This is a “surprise” optional tour that Odum has arranged on his own. We had wavered about going, but really? More elephants? What were we thinking. So of course, in the end, we signed right up. It’s only 500 baht each and it will fill the afternoon – so what the heck. Not everyone is going, so we split up – ensuring to listen to Odum when he tells us to take everything we need from the bus with us because we won’t be seeing the bus until the next morning – and hop into a little van at the train bus parking area with 8 others, and taking off into the wilderness of Kanchanaburi.

Arriving at the little park, we are handed our uniforms (this is obviously a thing now at parks – which makes sense in so many different ways), head up the hill to the bathrooms to change, then regroup down by the ticket booth. Here we get to make the elephants’ food – similar to our other experience – but oh so much better!!! First of all, there are no kids. Second of all there is lots of interaction with the elephants. We start off making the food – which entails lots of hacking fruits with huge knives! Then mashing everything together in little “medicine” balls. Very similar to our Chiang Mai experience, only this time, we’re actually taking part in the making. The guides/Mahouts are our photographers and we get some great photos to share.

Then it’s time to feed the Elephants. Only a few are here, kept in a corral or pen behind the tables where we made their food. We all climb up on the feeding platform and begin the hysterical process of feeding each elephant down the line. But some of them are just too greedy and some people aren’t moving and well, it becomes a mass of grasping elephant trunks and empty buckets of food. Too funny.

After we feed these guys and gals, we wash our hands and proceed down a steep and narrow dirt pathway to the river where 3 more elephants wait for us to bathe them. We’ve decided we aren’t going to get in the water today – we’ll just be the official photographers, which, honestly, is the best! It is so much fun to watch everyone get soaked while they are bathing the elephants and then sprayed by the elephants– rather than do it ourselves! The videos and the pictures are well worth it!

Once everyone has been in the water for a bit, the Mahouts get the elephants to lay down in the river, almost crushing Maggie who was in the wrong place at the wrong time! Bathing work continues with more soap and more soaking wet elephants…and bathers! But, oh, those faces! That huge face and those expressive eyes, just laying there in water looking up at you so balefully!

In a final water activity, the Mahouts get one of the elephants to completely submerge itself. So incredible to watch! Then it is picture time! Now we can get into the act – relatively dry and unscathed, but always ready for our cue to hang out with the elephants and snap pictures!

Time to dry off (for everyone else) and then turn in our dirty uniforms and have a nice refreshing drink of Roselle water – which was excellent! As we were hanging out waiting for the rest of the crew to come out of the changing rooms, the elephants came walking through the camp. god, they are so massive and beautiful and you just want to stay and take care of them and be their friends/protectors. I can totally get how Lawrence Anthony (remember him? From Thula Thula outside of Richard’s Bay in S. Africa?) could be so attached and almost part of the herd. So sweet!

Done with the tour, we load up into the van and set off for the resort. Ummmm…but…there’s no A/C. What? Oh man. The next 30 minutes are a disaster. The A/C has broken in the van and no matter what the driver does, he can’t get any cool air in here. We’re in the first row and roasting, the guys in the back are literally sweating to death. But there’s nothing to do! We’re passing fans around – I’m fanning myself and Melanie in the row behind me. The windows don’t really open, and we’re afraid if we open them the little we can it will be hotter. The folks in the back start to get mean and angry, screaming up at the driver to turn on the A/C. Of course he can’t – he’s doing everything he can (I won’t go into the whole Rodney/Maggie thing – Rodney is in the front because of his leg, Maggie, his wife is in the back, and they start this bickering thing they do..welll..as I said, I’m not getting into it! If we weren’t all so hot, it would have been funny.) To the driver’s credit, he knows it’s uncomfortable and he hauls ass down these little roads and thoroughfares trying to get us back as fast as possible.

Anyhow, 30 minutes later we are finally at the resort and passing by our bus which is parked up at the top of the entrance way. One of the ladies yells to stop, she needs to get things off the bus. Ok. Odum has told us and told us, multiple times, not to leave anything on the bus because we wouldn’t be seeing it until the morning. And what do they do? They leave important stuff on the bus – like their backpack and passports or money or phone – I don’t know! But bottom line, it shouldn’t have been on the bus and they were really super lucky the driver actually stopped. Because he barely understood English and just getting him to stop and let her our for a minute was a challenge! Sigh. Well, while we’re waiting for “I obviously don’t listen to a word the Guide says and I definitely don’t follow directions” lady, the driver does something in the back of the van, and Voila! The A/C is fixed! Joy! The last 2 minutes of our drive was blissful. Poor guy!

Back on our home ground, we decided to take a walk down to the Mon Village about 1 mile down the little dirt road from the hotel. It was a lovely walk and the village was really quite quaint. All sorts of houses and barnyard animals, but it was a real living village – probably for the staff of the hotel – and it just didn’t feel right taking pictures. So, we reversed course, stopping at the river pier which was very pretty, and watched a longtail go sailing past us.

After getting cleaned up and packing organized, we wandered down to the restaurant for dinner. We had a lovely meal of Khai yat sai, an omelet stuffed with pork and veggies, grilled chicken with peanut sauce and yummy stir fried chicken and veggies. The setting couldn’t have been better, sitting down on the deck overlooking the river in the dusk.

Back at the room, we sit out on our lovely patio for the last evening, enjoying our night caps and the peaceful surroundings. Tomorrow we must leave. But for now, we can relax and enjoy our peaceful evening!