5 Day Adventure Exploring Thailand's Wonders: DAY 3 Elephant Trekki...

Day 3: Siam Elephant Trek Safari

Started off the day walking around Patong Bay checking out one of Thailand's most distinctive forms of coastal transport the Long-tail boats. Most of them are powered by a diesel engine with the propeller mounted directly to the drive shaft, making them very simple and effective. They are deaf-initely not the quietest ride on the water, nonetheless they're fun to watch zip around.

From here it was off to explore Phuket by trekking around the mountainside on elephants wandering through the tropical landscape. Along the trail there are some nice open areas in the tree canopy that make for an awesome overlook of the Chalong Bay.

The organization Siam Safari offers these voyages and has received numerous international and national awards for their nature and elephant trekking tours. At their elephant camp they pay close attention to elephant welfare and follow high international safety standards. Siam Safari is the only Royal Thai Government certified elephant camp in Phuket and Southern Thailand. Allowing visitors to meet young elephants and learn about the conservation efforts for Asian Elephants. All of the elephants at Siam Safari’s are females and are well taken care of by their professional mahouts.

Throughout the day there are various educational demonstrations about authentic Thai culture. One of the stops entailed learning how to de-husk a coconut and the process of making coconut milk and oil. The whole coconut is utilized in some way or another. The next stop was getting to see a water buffalo plough a rice field and how rice is then cultivated. This is a very laborious process and takes some skill to sift out the rice.

Stopping for a break along the way to try some Thai coffee and tea with some traditional desserts called coconut pancakes. There was also the chance to cook some authentic Thai curry that can be taken home to make a meal with later. One of the last demonstrations gives an inside look at how rubber trees are "tapped" and processed. Harvesting rubber is one of the main sources of income for Southern Thailand. They scrape one line a day until they make it completely around the entire tree. It's crazy to think about how much rubber there is all around the world that is being used for car tires and it all starts from carving a groove into a rubber tree once a day to collect some liquid in a small bowl.

The Journey finishes with a delicious Thai buffet meal served at the elephant camp overlooking the Phuket mountainside. It is a pretty spectacular view to have while enjoying lunch. The tour offers some great insight into the everyday life that takes place in the Thai countryside. I was also lucky enough to capture a glimpse of "The Big Buddha" peeking out over the tree canopy, visiting the buddha will happen in my next post. The evening winds down at Karon Beach by taking in some rays and watching the sunset.