Best Birthday Ever, Elephant Riding

After the explosion of tigers we went and rode elephants. I'm glad we did it. It was just us, the elephant, and the elephant handler going through the jungle. Apparently while we were out on our walk two tour buses full of people came, rode, and went.

The coolest part was when the handler stopped to water the elephant. He gave her a bucket full of water, she sucked some up in her trunk then put it in her mouth and swallowed it. Then he just gave her the water hose and she shoved it into her mouth with her trunk and gulped down the water periodically.

I got to ride on the neck for a while. Elephants aren't soft. The skin is super thick and rough. The hairs are short and stiff.

Many of the elephants in the camp had pink spots that made them even cuter than just-grey elephants. In this photo the elephants were lining up to be fed by the tourists.

After our ride they gave us some watermelon and water. Oh, and we were totally suckered into buying a photo--of us in the water with the elephant. As part of the elephant-walking circuit they walk through the river. Sometimes the elephants suck up water and spray the tourists. Our elephant was nice and sprayed the water off to the side.