Buses, Bamboo Rafts, and Elephants! Oh My!

after a few very long days of learning, teaching, and eating, we finally came to the fun part of orientation, our 2 day excursion to Kanchanaburi. as we mounted the bus with all of our bags, it the sky became dark and it began to sprinkle. by the time we pulled out of the parking lot, it was pouring! i tell you, riding in big buses is terrifying enough, but add in torrential rains while crossing overpasses and then see how your stomach feels... ekkk!

three hours, and one very delicious meal of volcano prawns (yum yum)later, we arrived at the resort in kanchanaburi. after a good night's sleep, the group awoke with cheer. i, on the other hand, did not sleep very well due to my extreme excitement... today was the day i was going to fulfill my dream of riding an elephant! i put on my special elephant riding pants, laced up my shoes and ran towards the bus.

when we arrived at the elephant camp, i thought my cheeks were going to split i was smiling so big. there were several large elephants on the grounds driven by old thai men. we were greeted by the most talented elephant i have ever met. first her trainer began singing a song and she danced for us, curling her trunk up and shaking her head side to side. then she pick up a few rings and twirled them around her long trunk. finally, she picked up a basketball and scored a three pointer!

when they announced it was time to ride the elephants, i ran so fast to the top of the stairs i think i pulled my partner ryan's shoulder out! there are few words to describe what it felt like to be sitting on an elephants back while he runs through the jungle... but when the driver jumped off and told ryan to sit on the elephants head: terror! and when the driver told ME to sit on the elephant's head: ah! terror/excitement/fear/happiness....

oh, and if anyone thought that finally riding the elephant would slow my obsession, think again!

after our elephant trek, we moved upstream to jump on some bamboo rafts and float down the peaceful river. it was so tranquil and nice, that is until we passed the elephant crossing and heard the shrieks coming from the new crop of riders ha ha.

when we returned to the hotel, a movie-like pool party ensued. pretty much everyone in the program headed down to the big pool with frisbees, i pods, and beer. its a good thing the resort was nearly empty, because we celebrated like we were the only ones there!

the amazing part about orientation was that after only one week together, we all became so close. there is a special bond between people who travel together, and while i've only known you all for a short period of time, i feel like we've been together for months! i miss you guys already!

xoxo,
dena