To get you up to speed, I have left the Kumala Pantai & I am now in Ubud at the Tegal Sari. In the last JBR I went to the opening of the Helen Flavel Learning Centre in Singaraja & met my sponsor child, 11yo Ketut.
On this day, I went to the Elephant Park in Taro, about 25 mins from Ubud. I baulked a bit at the price, ($68USD) but after my experiences there, it is well worth it. When you consider the daily food bill for 27 elephants, it's got to be huge!
The park is owned by a guy from Melbourne, who is married to a Balinese lady. He also owns Bali Adventure Tours, who do white water rafting & trekking, etc. I saw him in the gardens with a pair of secateurs pruning! Nice to see that the boss doesn't mind getting his hands dirty!
Got picked up at 8:30am - I was the only passenger. Had a great chat with the driver. He said they only had 17 people booked in for the park that day. When I arrived, I was the first one there. I was met by a guide, who led me through beautiful landscaped gardens to the main elephant area.
There is a large quadrangle that gently slopes upwards. Dotted all around are large concrete circles, where the elephant is chained while being fed.
To the left is a couple of large covered shed with quite a few elephants already kitted out with seats on their backs & had their trainers sitting behind their heads.
At the base, near the entrance to the compound is the ‘mounting' area (for want of a better word), the ‘show' area, the restaurant & gift shop. In front of the restaurant is a big swimming hole for the elephants to swim in & get washed. Right up the top of the quadrangle are some bungalows getting built, for tourist accommodation & the gate leading into the forest.
As I was led in, the first thing I saw was a baby elephant getting a wash in the swimming hole. The guide led me over a pat. She is 3 years old & very cheeky, they told me. Each elephant in the park has its own trainer/carer.
Next I went over to the mounting area - this is where you get on the elephant for your ride. The elephant's back is at the same level as the platform along the edge & the elephant walks into a corral so it can't move sideways. Getting on was alot harder than it looked. I was a bit reluctant to step on the elephants back to get into the seat, but after a couple of false starts, I managed it with the help of the trainer & guide.
You could fit 2 people in the seat, but there was just me, so I could sit in the middle & hold onto the armrests. The elephant's gait wasn't too bad, just a gentle sway.
My elephant was called Daisy (I think) & her handler was Wayan. He was sitting right behind her head. We headed up through the main quadrangle, where quite a few elephants were being fed, & through a gate & into the forest.
Wayan was very knowledgeable about elephants, the local vegetation & wildlife (saw some HUGE spiders. yuk!). We were on a dirt track cut through the forest. It was lovely scenery. At one stage Wayan pointed to the left and said 'Hotel!'. I looked over & all I could see was a dilapidated old shed. Wayan turned around & said with a big grin 'Chicken hotel!'. I had to laugh.
I was quite relaxed by then, & had even let go of the rail to take a couple of photos. Daisy would stop every now & then to eat some grass or shrubbery & give me a jolt, just to remind who's boss. The elephant had snorted & waved its trunk at a few chickens that had wandered past - Wayan told me that the elephants are scared of little animals, especially if they come at them from behind or from the side.
The next thing I know, I am flung backwards into the seat & clinging on for dear life as Daisy decides to charge a dog. Yes it was just like in the movies - trunk raised, trumpeting & running through the jungle! It probably only lasted less that a minute, but up there I was sweating bullets, mildly terrified! Wayan quickly got her under control & we continued on our way.
After my near heart attack, I couldn't help bracing myself every time I saw a dog, cow, chicken, bird, or even rustling leaves for the rest of the trek! The rest was uneventful, and the trek lasted about 30-40 minutes.
On returning to the main enclosure, Wayan guided the elephant into the swimming hole. Um, excuse me, helloooo, I'm still riding on it! I didn't get wet, even though she swam for a bit to cool off. We went back to the mounting area & I got off the elephant alot easier & far quicker than I got on. By this time, a few more tourists had arrived & were going off on their trek as a group.
A guide led me to the area next to the swimming hole where there were a few elephants tethered to a rail. From a wheelie bin, they handed me flat pieces of sliced palm stems to feed my elephant (not that she deserved it after her little frolic in the forest!). I was able to pat her on the head, ears & trunk - she didn't care as long as she was being fed. She even lifted her trunk so I could peer into her mouth & look at her teeth. Wayan took some video on my camera, which will have to be severely edited! Daisy picked up a flowered wreath & hung it over my head, as if I was ‘best in show'. It was quite cute. By then, another trek had returned, and some squealing coming from the swimming hole. A couple of their elephants were spraying them with water from their trunks. They were boy elephants of course!
I watched the elephant show, where 3 teenage elephants performed tricks, like playing soccer, basketball, raising a flag & sitting on its haunches with front legs in the air. After the performance, it was lunch - an Indonesian buffet. Quite nice, & all included in the price. Drinks were extra, of course. After lunch I treated myself to some silver elephant earrings & a blown-glass elephant figurine.
On the way out I looked through the museum, located next to the entrance. They had a casting of a full woolly mammoth skeleton - it was absolutely massive. I only reached just past its knee! No photos allowed in there, which was a shame. I would have liked to take a photo of the mammoth bones.
After getting dropped off at my hotel, I got the free hotel shuttle into Ubud to go to the internet café on the main road. I was dying to tell my family about the trek. I am so rapt that there are internet cafes everywhere, some even have broadband! And aircon! No more postcards - everyone at home gets emails from now on!
I came back to the hotel courtesy of the shuttle again, and wrote up my journal & transferred my photos onto my laptop. Yep, thought so - the video of me feeding the elephant required severe editing before fit for human viewing. Sat out on the patio & watched another magnificent sunset which made a great backdrop for the flight of several herons returning home for the night.
I went for dinner at Café Wayan in Monkey Forest Rd. My entrée was fabulous, but my main course was revolting - lemon chicken, which was dry as old boots & my cocktail was too strong. I don't know why they insist on burning so much incense. It's too strong when trying to eat. I didn't enjoy my dining experience there at all. I didn't even wait to have their killer banana pancakes.
Rang the hotel to be picked up (I could get used to this!) & watched a dvd on my laptop (no TV here) before falling asleep.
To be continued........