An Elephant Day In Mondulkiri March 5, 2016

Dad had found this elephant excursion on the internet.  There were several, he chose the cheapest one. We saw a group being picked up at our hotel to leave on one when we arrived.  A nice van picking them up.

I wondered how legit ours was when our driver/guide showed up in an old, dirty, old little car...and we were the only ones...

As I sat in the front seat and Dad was in the back, we both thought, "you get what you pay for" haha

Here we have arrived to begin our hike in.

 The car...

 We first hiked across a savanah type area.  These are pineapple  growing.

Cashew trees.

Banana Trees. 





You can see the jungle we are heading for in the far distance.

It felt great to hike.  It was so beautiful, and the sounds were amazing.

Our guide making me some bamboo hiking poles.  They were a life saver for me.



This was a hard hike.

Our guide and lunch spot for later.  Dad did really good with the food.  We told the guide not to have too much cooked, we weren't big eaters.  However, when it was time for lunch, I was starving. (no surprise at that...right?)  It tasted delicious to me.  Vegetables and rice.

Looking for the elephant....

Found her.

Our first close up encounter.    A little nervous. We are not in a zoo you know.  Feeding her bananas.  She would take some and curl her trunk around them, and reach out for more.  It was like she was hoarding them.  I told her no, she had to eat the ones she had first.

 Can you tell Dad's nervous but amazed face?  Yes, I look awkward...I was ready to jump away at any sudden movement.  The trunk was a little too exploratory, I had bananas under my arm.

Quite something to watch this magnificent animal just doing her own thing.  Wandering around eating. 

 So fun just to follow her around.  You could not predict which way she would go.  

  Sometimes we were just a little too close for comfort.

 She would just snap the bamboo and break it before putting it in her mouth.

 She is now making a hole to mix the dirt and water to give herself a mud bath.  She would suck water in her trunk, then put it in the hole and mix it up with her foot, then squirt it on all of her body.  She does this every day.

Here is a video...then my battery ran out...ugh...  Sorry I couldn't load the video.  Too big.  Something to watch when we get home.

This was a great Cambodian Adventure!