Elephants are cool. They're big (the world's largest land mammal), they're smart (at least as smart as some politicians, by some accounts), and they're useful if you're trying to attack the Romans by marching an army over the Alps (as Hannibal did during the Second Punic War: 218 - 201 B.C.).
When I was recently in Malaysia, I had a chance to ride an Asian (or Indian) elephant. The Asian (or Indian) elephant is smaller than the African (or African) elephant. It also has smaller ears and tusks. However, when you're on top of one, these elephants still seem pretty darned big.
The Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary (also called the Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary) is located an hour or so outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's capital. Their primary purpose is to provide safety, shelter, and medical attention to various orphaned elephants found roaming around Malaysia which might otherwise have been killed by poachers or by locals who don't want the elephants destroying their crops (which elephants apparently like to do as a hobby; it's that or watch cable, and most elephants like to stay active).
The Sanctuary also lets tourists in to feed and ride the healthier of the elephants. That's how I found myself there after an interminably long ride on a bus that was old enough to have been with Hannibal's army when he crossed the Alps and which had needed shock replacements for at least the past fifteen years.
Staggering off of the bus with a bunch of other people who were trying to find the feeling in their limbs again, I found myself in a riverside complex dominated by lush grasses and a forest of rubber trees. To my surprise, these trees were not actually made of rubber, nor did they bounce very well; rather, their sap can be harvested and used to produce natural rubber which, presumably, does bounce.
There was the usual touristy stuff to take care of before we could see the elephants in person: there was a short documentary where we learned about the sanctuary and the elephants there; there was a gift shop with t-shirts and other elephant-emblazoned paraphernalia; there was a small museum with elephant-y pictures and artifacts. And because this was Malaysia, we roamed around barefoot; it was considered rude where we were to wear one's shoes inside.
Eventually we were allowed to go out into the elephant paddock (wearing our shoes again, not that that would help if an elephant were to stand on someone's foot). Handlers brought out a half dozen or so of the elephants. They (the elephants, not the handlers) were smaller than I had expected, all of my elephant knowledge coming from Tarzan movies, which presumably used the larger African elephant for their stock footage. But they were still amazing. As their handlers prodded them toward the river for a pre-show bath, they moved smoothly and even lightly across the hard-packed dirt of the paddock. In the clay-red water of the river, they splashed about playfully, rolling around to make the most of their aquatic time.
After that it was feeding time. Buckets of fruit were brought out and we were allowed to hand-feed the elephants. Some were greedier than others, snapping up the offered food with their trunks, shoving it into their mouths, and then waving their trunks around as an indication that they wanted more. It's even possible that a tourist child was eaten in the confusion, but seasoned tourists are used to that sort of thing.
Next came ride-the-elephant-in-a-circle fun-ness. We all got into lines (well, orderly crowds...okay, crowds) and traipsed up to the top of a short tower where two or three of us at a time were allowed get on and ride the elephants around in, well, a circle. This was incredibly boring.
However, the next event wasn't.
Off we went, riding the elephants down to the river. Whatever were we going to do there? Okay, we had an idea. When we bought our elephant ride tickets we had two choices: 1). dry, or 2). swim with the elephants.
I had, of course, chosen Option 2.
Into the river we went. There was some splashing; then (and, believe me, this was rather unexpected), the elephant we were on rolled over, dumping the three of us off into the water.
After swallowing a small portion of the murky river and trying to put aside the thoughts of tuberculosis and typhoid that suddenly began to race through my head, I splashed around with the elephants some more, until both the elephants and the tourists were tired of it.
Then we all left to get our tuberculosis vaccinations.
The Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary takes in hurt, sick, and orphaned elephants and is staffed by a dedicated team of handlers and volunteers. To find out more and to support this noble cause (read: you'll sleep better at night if you donate), go to their website at www.myelephants.org .
