If there is one nation in South East Asia that draws people for a myriad of reasons, that has to be Thailand. With a history spanning a well over a millennium, cultural opulence that pervades generations, business opportunities that keep improving day by day and blessings from Mother Nature across the land it is apparent that the locals do not take anything for granted. Instead, they have built beautiful hotels all around the country to house the numerous tourists, they preserve their cultural rituals and they take active measures to conserve their natural habitats. There is rarely an exception, therefore Chiang Saen hotels should not come as a surprise in spite of them being located much to the north of Bangkok and their snug location amidst greenery.
There are rivers such as the Mekong and Kok that trickle by many of the land masses earmarked for elephant preservation. Needless to say, it is much easier to build elephant stables and elephant orphanages in areas where there is access to a free flow of water. The Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp & Resort benefits from such gurgling waters and presence of pachyderms within their massive acreage. One must pay tribute to the Thais for never fearing to think out of the box, thus giving life to adventurous activities such as yoga with elephants, setting out on a picnic atop an elephant’s back and trekking through the jungle with a large blackish grey creature by your side.
There are sanctuaries that allow enthusiasts to volunteer their services to protect elephants as well. Trained mahouts would provide such volunteers with some essential tips prior to allowing them to take over the bounden responsibility. This allows those who adore elephants the opportunity to interact with the animals on a daily basis, feed and bathe them while learning about their daily routine and sleeping patterns.
Intrigued by history, art and food, Lavinia Woolf is a writer who is passionate about the extraordinary and writes of the exhilarating and enchanting. Google+