DAY 80 - PHUKET, THAILAND - APRIL 17, 2010

PHUKET YOU MAY REMEMBER IS THE SITE OF THE DEVASTATING TSUNAMI SEVERAL YEARS AGO. ALTHOUGH WE DIDN’T GO TO THE RESORT AREAS AND BEACHES WE HAD ONE FINE DAY ON OUR EXCURSION.

THE TOUR WAS CALLED “CHALONG WAT, SAFARI WITH LUNCH”, WHICH CAN OR CANNOT STIR ONES INTEREST. OUR FIRST STOP WAS THE SAFARI VILLAGE. THE DRIVE TO THE VILLAGE WAS LESS THAN IMPRESSIVE, THEY DRIVE ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD FOR STARTERS, TONS OF TRAFFIC, FEW DRIVERS OBEYING THE LAWS, ALTHOUGH BETTER THAN INDIA, AND VERY NARROW ROADS ONCE LEAVING THE MAIN HIGHWAYS. OUR BUS AND A SMALL TRUCK HAD AN INCIDENT ON THE ROAD GOING BACK TO THE VILLAGE.

ONCE ON THE SAFARI GROUNDS THINGS LOOKED VERY ACTIVE, ALREADY A GREAT MANY PEOPLE TAKING PART FOR BEING SO EARLY IN THE MORNING. OUR BUS WAS THE FIRST TO ARRIVE, THERE WERE THREE IN THIS TOUR, AND WE WERE LED TO THE ELEPHANT SHOW. THE ELEPHANTS HERE ARE THE SMALLER ASIAN OR INDIAN AND NOT THE LARGER AFRICAN VARIETY.

THREE CHARMING LITTLE GUYS, THE WAY I LOOK AT IT THERE ARE NO SMALL ELEPHANTS, WERE LED INTO THE RING AS WE TOOK OUR SEATS. AS THEIR NAMES WERE CALLED THEY EACH RAISED THEIR TRUNKS AND BOWED THEIR HEADS. THEY KICKED SCOCER BALLS INTO A NET, SHOT DARTS AT BALLONS AND DUNKED BASKETBALLS ON COMMAND.

THE SHOW ENDED WITH SEVERAL PEOPLE FROM OUR GROUP VOLUNTEERING FOR THE IMFAMOUS ELEPHANT MASSAGE. I HAVE TO BELIEVE IT IS IMFAMOUS BECAUSE THEY TOLD US SO. THE OBJECT IS TO LAY ON THE GROUND, FACE DOWN, A MAT IS PLACED ON YOUR BUM AND THE ELEPHANT TAKES ONE OF HIS LARGE FEET, IT’S BIGGER THAN YOUR BUM, AND TENDERLY MASSAGES YOUR BUTT AS HE RUNS HIS TRUNK OVER YOUR HEAD AND EARS. AS WE LEFT THE ELEPHANT SHOW WE TOOK PICTURES STANDING NEXT TO THE LITTLE GUYS.

THE MONEYS WERE NEXT WITH A LITTLE SHOW OF THEIR OWN. THEY RODE BIKES, DUNKED BASKETBALLS AND WALKED ROPES HOLDING UMBRELLAS. THEY RANGED IN SIZE FROM SMALL TO VERY LARGE. THEY ARE NOT HOWEVER AS BIG AS ORANGUTANGS. ONE OF THE LITTLE CREATURES WAS LABELED AS “SAFARI VILLAGE QUEEN FOR 2010” AND WAS A WILLING PARTICIPANT IN HAVE PICTURES TAKEN HOLDING YOUR HAND.

THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE EXCURSION WAS ABOUT TO BEGIN...A THIRTY MINUTE RIDE ON AN ELEPHANT. WE CLIMBED THE LONG STAIRWAY TO THE PLATFORM BUILT FOR BOARDING THE ELEPHANT. EACH ELEPHANT HAS A LARGE METAL SEAT, ACCOMMODATING TWO PEOPLE, PLACED ON ITS BACK.

CLIMBING ABOARD IS NOT AS EASY AS ONE WOULD THINK. IT TAKES A GREAT AMOUNT OF GRACE, WITH THE AID OF TWO ASSISTANTS, GETTING ON TOP OF THE BEAST. (GETTING OFF IS EVEN WORST AND LESS GRACEFULLY ACCOMPLISHED).

GEORGIA AND I MANAGED TO GET ON TOP WITHOUT ANY MAJOR INCIDENT AND FOLLOWED THE FIVE COUPLES IN FRONT OF US. EACH ELEPHANT TAKES ORDERS AND COMMANDS FROM HIS PERSONAL KEEPER. THE ELEPHANT KNOWS HIS KEEPERS VOICE AND FOOT MOVEMENTS BEHIND THE EARS AND REACTS ALMOST INSTANTLY. OUR ELEPHANT MOVED THROUGH THE GROUP OF ELEPHANTS IN LINE FOR OURS IN OUR PARTY. HE SLOWLY HEADED DOWN THE LONG STEEP HILL WADDLING FROM LEFT TO RIGHT AND WITH EACH STEP GEORGIA MADE A FRIGHTENING SOUND. THE ELEPHANT KEEPER SOON PICKED UP ON GEORGIAS FRIGHT AND HELPED ENCOURAGE HER BY CONTINUALLY REPAEATING “OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD.”

AT ONE POINT, AS THE ELEPHANTS MOVED FROM THE DIRT ROAD TO A WATER FILLED TRENCH, OUR GUIDE MANEUVERED OUR ELEPHANT INTO POSITION TO TAKE ONE GIANT STEP INTO THE TRENCH. GEORGIA HELD ON FOR DEAR LIFE, TRYING TO STAY SILENT, BUT THE KEEPER STARTED WITH “OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD.” I FOUND IT QUITE FUNNY. GEORGIA, EVEN THOUGH FRIGHTENED TO DEATH, WAS HAVING TO MUCH FUN TO REALIZE HE WAS ENCOURAGING HER ACTIONS.

WE WALKED FOR A QUARTER MILE BEFORE REENTERING THE DIRT ROAD AND UP A DIFFERENT STEEP HILL WHERE WE STOPPED AND WAITED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE GROUP. WHILE WE WAITED I TURNED THE CAMERA TO TAKE A PICTURE OF OURSELVES WHICH THEN PROMPTED THE KEEPER TO INDICATE HE WOULD TAKE OUR PICTURE. BEFORE WE KNEW IT THE KEEPER OF ANOTHER ELEPHANT HAD OUR CAMERA AND HE SNAPPED AT LEAST A HALF DOZEN PICTURES. HE CERTAINLY KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING AS HE ZOOMED IN AND OUT FOR VARIOUS EFFECTS. THEY WERE SO GOOD WE NEVER GAVE MUCH SERIOUS THOUGHT TO PURCHASING THE PICTURES TAKEN BY THE VILLAGE PHOTOGRAPHERS.

WHILE WE WAITED FOR THE GROUP TO GATHER, ONE OF THE KEEPERS BEGAN YELLING “AUSSIE, AUSSIE, AUSSIE.” WITHIN SECONDS THE REPLY CAME “OYE, OYE, OYE.” IT’S AN AUSTRALIAN THING WHICH WE HAVE EXPERIENCED BEFORE, ONCE IN AN AUSTRALIAN SLANG DISCUSSION WHILE ON THE SHIP AND ONCE DURING ANOTHER TOUR. ONE MAN INDICATED HE YELLED IT IN THE MIDDLE OF TIME SQUARE AND SURE ENOUGH THE REPLAY CAME BACK.

SEVERAL MEMBERS OF THE GROUP BOUGHT BAGS OF BANANAS AND WHILE WAITING FOR THE OTHERS TO ARRIVE THE ELEPHANT SNIFFED OUT THE GOODIES AND BEGGED FOR TREATS. ONCE WE ALL GATHERED TOGETHER, WE BEGAN OUR TREK THROUGH A FOILAGED LINED PATH ON OUR WAY BACK TO THE LOADING STAND.

THE EXCURSION WOULD HAVE BEEN GREAT IF IT HAD ENDED HERE BUT THERE WERE MORE THRILLS IN STORE. RUBBER TREES ARE IN ABUNDANCE IN THAILAND AND THE LATEX INDUSTRY THRIVES. WE WERE SHOWN HOW THE RUBBERY SAP IS EXTRACTED FROM THE TREES AND PROCESSED INTO LATEX SHEETS FOR SHIPMENT TO LARGE PROCESSORS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. IT WAS VERY EDUCATIONAL.

WE MOVED ONTO THE RICE FIELDS. WE WERE GIVEN A DEMONSTRATION IN THE PROCEDURES USED IN PLANTING OF RICE AND USE OF THE WATER BUFFALO IS IN THE OPERATION. HARVESTING RICE PRODUCES YET ANOTHER SET OF SKILLS AND PROCESSES BEFORE CONSUMPTION OR SHIPMENT...AGAIN VERY EDUCATIONAL.

THE ONE CONSTANT IN ALL THESE OPERATIONS IS THERE IS ALMOST NO MACHINERY USED, IT IS ALL MANUALLY PERFORMED.

AS WE FINISHED GAINING ALL THIS KNOWLEDGE AND EXITED THE DEMONSTRATION OX CARTS WERE WAITING TO TAKE US ON ONE FINAL JOURNEY. WHAT A WAY TO END THIS PORTION OF OUR TOUR.

NOT FAR FROM THE VILLAGE WAS CHALONG WAT. WAT MEANS TEMPLE. CHALONG IS ONE OF TWENTY-NINE VENERATED PHUKET BUDDHIST TEMPLES. ALTHOUGH WE HAVE SEEN OUR SHARE OF BUDDHIST TEMPLES ON OUR EXCURSIONS IN ASIA EACH SEEMS TO PRESENT NEW CHARACTERISTICS IN BUDDHISM. ALL THE BUDDHAS HERE WERE STANDING AND ALL HAD LITTLE CAPS WITH PEAKS. ALL WERE GOLD AND ORNATE. THE TEMPLE GROUNDS HAD SEVERAL SMALLER TEMPLES AND ONE ENTRANCE DISPLAYED THREE ELEPHANTS. WE WERE TOLD THAT ALTHOUGH THE ELEPHANT IS NOT WORSHIPPED IT IS HELD IN VERY HIGH ESTEEM AND IS SACRED.

ALL THE TEMPLES ARE COLORFUL AND HAVE ORNATE CARVINGS AND STATUES IN FRONT AND ON TOP OF THE BUILDINGS. THE PLACE WAS JAMMED WITH VISITORS AND WORSHIPPERS. FROM TIME TO TIME FIRECRACKERS WERE IGNITED TO CHASE OFF EVIL SPIRITS.

THE SMELL OF THE FIRECRACKERS AND THE INCENSE COMBINED WITH THE RISING TEMPERATURE PERSUADED GEORGIA AND I TO RETURN TO THE AIR-CONDITIONED BUS BEFORE THE SCHEDULED MEETING TIME. MUCH TO OUR SURPRISE, THE BUS WAS ALREADY HALF FULL. OUR COMPANION BUS WAS ALSO JUST ABOUT FULL.

WE WERE ALL HOT AND HUNGRY AND OUR NEXT STOP FILLED THOSE NEEDS. THE THAI CULTURAL CENTER CONTACTED AN OUTDOOR RESTAURANT WHICH COULD ACCOMMODATED THE WHOLE CREW.

THE SPRING ROLLS WERE CRISP, THE DEEP FRIED PORK WAS DELICIOUS AND THE CURRY BEEF AND POTATOES WERE SO SPICY IT SOAKED INTO THE RICE AND MADE BOTH UNEATABLE. WE ALSO HAD TEMPURA VEGGIES AND PORK ON A STICK AND THEY WERE GOOD ENOUGH FOR MY TASTE BUDS.

NO EXCURSION CAN BE ENDED WITHOUT A CHANCE TO SHOP AND OUR FINAL STOP WAS A LARGE JEWELRY STORE. THANKFULLY, ON THE SECOND FLOOR THERE WERE OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST. WE GOT AWAY WITH SPENDING ONLY $9. WHAT A BARGIN.