Who you callin' a mahout?

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For day two in Chiang Mai, we decided to increase our riding repetoire of interesting animals. We were picked up early and taken to Chiang Mai Elephant Camp, about an hour outside the city. Once there we changed into worn out denim shirts, baggy pants, and a straw hat: the uniform of the mahout, or elephant trainer. Our mahout class was comprised of 9 people and 4 elephants.

The morning was spent learning about the elephants; what they ate, how they lived, their physical characteristics, and how to control them. We got a quick overview of general Asian elephant facts, then were introduced to 4 of their herd. We took some time to get to know them and feed them some bananas purchased on the way to the camp. The professional mahouts took their share as well, and the 40-ish bananas we bought for the day disappeared way faster than we anticipated.

Next we learned how to control the elephants using words, a hooked stick, and our feet. Let me assure you from the start: these elephants were coming to no harm. The hooked sticks were made of bamboo and acted much like nudging someone with your elbow might. We all were a bit concerned about that at first, but it was obvious before long that it didn't hurt the elephants one bit. A bit annoying to them, maybe, but ultimately just a way of communication. We practiced the commands for a while, cheering on the others in the class when it wasn't our turn. Honestly, the elephants weren't really listening to us, but to the mahouts. The mahouts train with an individual elephant for a year or more, striking up a strong bond of respect and love. An hour of mispronouncing the Thai command words probably didn't immediately endear us to them.

Lunch was greatly welcomed and comprised of chicken curry, cucumber soup, and fresh fruit. In the afternoon the real fun began. We all got onto the elephants bareback to take a walk down the river. A French couple, a British/South African couple, and two British sisters each had one elephant, while Caz and I shared the biggest one, Som Si, with a Norwegian girl named Mary-Lou. Som Si was 26 and very reliable and patient. Her mahout (whose name I never caught) was friendly and very funny.

As we plodded along towards the river, Sandy and Ania, the British sisters, in front of us began having some trouble with their elephant. It seemed she was just not interested in this little trek and kept swerving off the trail to have a snack. Her mahout was very young and not having much luck getting the elephant to listen. After repeated attempts to get the elephant on track, they eventually had to get off. Instead of just walking the rest of the way, we offered to let them join us on Som Si, something her mahout agreed to. Thus the strong and patient Som Si carried all five of us girls to the bathing area of the river.

As soon as we got there, we were attacked by the two couples who had already arrived and begun washing their elephants, so we were soaked before even touching the water. Once we were off Som Si, "bathing the elephants" turned into a full-fledged water fight as we all threw buckets of water at each other. The elephants, in the meantime, just closed their eyes and sat through it all. Bless their hearts. After we were all suitably wet, we were given soapy bark to rub down our elephants with. Then Som Si and her mahout gave us all the opportunity to get a picture standing on a standing elephant. It was pretty cool, if a bit nerve-wracking.

The elephants and their riders were all fresh and clean, so it was time for the second part of the river walk. Since it wasn't really fair to have 5 people on one elephant, they brought a new one over to replace the naughty one. The British girls were spooked, however, and refused to go on any elephant except Som Si. So Caz and I took her instead. Her name was Boi, and she was 75! A venerable lady. She wasn't really inclined to listen to my commands, and I wasn't really inclined to push the matter. She knew the way and took her own time about it, and I knew enough to respect my elders. Her mahout took over Caz's camera and snapped some shots of us, although most of the time he just looked through the pictures saved on the memory.

The second half of the walk ended with a mudbath, something the elephants supposedly like in order to cool themselves. The mahouts encouraged us to wade in there with them and help smear the mud on their skin. I don't know who threw first, but it almost instantly became a massive mud fight. The riders and a couple of the mahouts went nuts, covering each other head to toe, flinging it across the pool, and rubbing it into each other's hair. The elephants, for their part, all left the pool and had nothing to do with the shenanigans. The mud fight went on for a good long while, but finally we all dragged ourselves out and walked back to the camp center, all of us an appealing olivey brown color. Oh, except for the French couple, who opted out of the immaturity. Their loss!

We hopped back in the river to clean off, then bought pictures and watching video of our day. We paid our respects to the elephant spirit with incense provided by our class leader before getting a ride back to Chiang Mai. Arriving back after dark, we decided to meet Sandy and Ania at the Night Bazaar after a shower. Stalls lined the streets just outside the central city, and inside the market pavilion, more vendors showed their wares as fabulous ladyboys invited us to their free cabaret. We opted for some pad thai and Chang beer instead.

We got back to our hostel just around midnight, exhausted but with a certificate in basic mahout training. Plus Caz got some pretty cool shades. Success!