ELEPHANT NATURE PARK

Sasha and I rose early the next morning to walk 30 second journey from Bunchun to ENP Office (complete coincidence-- so strange!). There we boarded a white bus that took us to another office where we finished our payment, got a tee-shirt, and gave copies of our passports. Before we knew it we were on the hour and a half long journey to the park!

Taking you through each day at ENP would take up way too much time and overwhelm me with nostalgia, so I will give a brief overview of our favorite aspects/people/activities and how extremely overwhelming and amazing our time at the park was.

First and foremost, the volunteer coordinators. There were four of them: Joe, Johnny, Say and Jane. They were all Thai guys that looked to be about 20 but were really all 27-30. Each day we had a different assignment and was accompanied by either one or two of them. Needless to say after about 2 days we were in love with all of them. Actual love.

Next, group D. There were about 50-something volunteers the week we were there. On the first day we were split into 5 smaller groups-- Sasha and I were in group D (aka best group ever). The first morning our task was park cleanup (scooping up poop and uneaten grass from all over the park). That was the day we bonded with our “parents,” Joyce and Blain. They are both flight attendants for Northwest Airlines and pretty much the coolest people we have ever met. We definitely got the closest with them-- spending most of the week laughing until our stomach hurts from all their ridiculous stories. We have decided that all we want to be when we grow up is them. We also grew very close with a couple from Australia (though the guy is actually Welch). They run a cat daycare and are also in the running for the coolest people we have ever met. There were so many other people we made great friends with including a girl from Middleton, MA, a guy from Vermont and so many others from all over the world!

(Coming home from cutting corn... Riding on top of the corn on he truck)

(Family selfie)

(Family selfie Leah style!!!)

Finally, the ELEPHANTS (DUH). I honestly don’t even know where to start. In just one week at the ENP we learned so much about Asian Elephants. We saw them interact with their friends, “families” and babies. It was out of this world. Less amazing, we also learned about the abuse they face not only in Southeast Asia, but also throughout Asia, America and many other places. Unfortunately their ability to live in the wild has almost disappeared due to deforestation (logging industry) and the few still out there are under a constant threat of being captured. Elephants are horribly abused in so many ways, the most common being the logging industry and the tourist industry (offering elephant rides, shows, begging in the streets, etc). The way in which elephant’s souls are broken in order to gain complete power over them is unbearable-- causing many to cry and even leave the room when Lek (the founder of ENP) gave us a presentation on our last day. If you are interested in learning more about the practices used to “tame”an elephant-- just google it. There are so so so many disturbing articles and videos out there. They aren’t hard to find at all.

We left that lesson with a few things to pass onto others. If you are interested in taking action to help improve the lives of Asian Elephants, here are some things you can do:

1. Always, always, ALWAYS know where the wood from your furniture comes from. If it is sourced from Myanmar, don’t buy it. If it is sourced from Thailand, Laos, or Cambodia-- ask questions and learn more about it. If the store is unable to provide you information, don’t buy it.
2. If you are traveling around Southeast Asia-- never ride, touch, or interact with elephants. If you see one on the street and the owner says they need money to buy their elephant food-- don’t do give them a penny. Any and all elephants that are tame enough to be around/get touched by humans are elephants that have been (and are most likely still facing) terrible abuse.
3. Never attend a circus that uses animals in their acts. This is not only for elephants, but for all animals abused and mistreated in circuses all over the world. Just don’t go. Period.
4. If you love elephants and want to see them close up or want to interact with them in a way that doesn’t hurt them, consider coming to Elephant Nature Park for a week. You don’t get to ride them or interact with them as closely as you may wish, but you get to see and appreciate them in a way that is way more beautiful than a ride. ENP is a sanctuary for elephants that have been lucky enough to escape their past of abuse-- you will see their scars, their broken hips, legs and backs, as well as countless other handicaps such as torn ears and complete blindness. However you will also see them bathe in the river, cake themselves with mud, hold trunks with their best friend, and chase the dogs in good fun. It is truly an experience I wish everyone could have.
   
   
   

   
   
   

   
   

   

   
   

   

   
   
   

   
   
   

   Our fav dog ever, Memphis❤️❤️❤️