I have lived in Auburn for 20 years and I am finally leaving the nest. As of June 28th I will be done with my job, will be in the process of moving my things into a dear and gracious friend's garage, then getting on a jet plane to Thailand in the wee hours of the morning of July 3rd. I will return to the U S of A on July 26th. I will be apartment and job hunting in the midtown area of Sacramento immediately upon my return before starting at Sacramento State on September 3rd. HUGE, yet exciting changes are upon me. You are probably here to see pictures of Thailand...stay tuned! I will be updating as frequently as I can depending on internet access {or the need to just unplug and relax}. For the Momma Bears out there, this way you will know I am alive! BUT, just know that if I get trampled by an elephant, I will die happy!
Everyone seems to ask, "Why Thailand?" ummmm...why not?! My reasoning's {not that I need to}:
1. It is a beautiful country
2. They eat RICE noodles! (gluten free)
3. THEY HAVE ELEPHANTS!
4. It's fairly cheap
This dream started September 5, 2012 while I was laying on my back on the grass of SF Giant's stadium practicing yoga with Janet Stone while listening to my all time favorite, Michael Franti sing a song of inspiration. {Sadly I do not remember the song, but they're all inspiring} I was suddenly hit with an incredible urge to travel abroad on a service trip, this time for animals. Through the next few months life took me on a few loops and turns and I eventually revisited my thought of loving on some far away animals and here I am going to love on the biggest and most beautiful of them all {although I am a little biased}.
Michael and I pre yoga sesh. I have not booked much as I want to experience the most of my trip and not set boundaries or deadlines. I fly into Bangkok on Friday, July 6th and will take the overnight train up to Chiang Mai which can be upwards of 14 hours. I will spend Saturday and Sunday in Chiang Mai, seeing as much as possible while catching up on some rest. Monday morning I am to be at the office of Elephant Nature Park at 8am. I will then be taken to the sanctuary to spend the next seven days with rescued elephants. I can guarantee I will be an emotional mess for that entire week. The elephants are rescued from many different abusive ways of life such as street begging, a life of carrying humans on their backs {NO, I will NOT ride an elephant or use them as a pack mule while in Thailand!} or other various crummy ways of living. Watch this video that left me sobbing about the way of life for many elephants within Thailand and other surrounding countries: A promo video for Elephants Never Forget
Where I will be for the best seven days of my life: Elephant Nature Park http://elephantnaturepark.org/index.htm
Here are a couple of testimonies from visits to the park that have left me in tears, yet so excited to pay my part to these giant loves of my life...
http://matadornetwork.com/community/johncaldwell/elephants-in-thailand-an-unforgettable-encounter/
and if 1,500 FIVE star reviews doesn't say enough?!
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293917-d601884-Reviews-Elephant_Nature_Park-Chiang_Mai.html
I will be done at Elephant Nature Park on Sunday, July 14th and I already know I will not want to leave, but will be doing so with many tears. I plan to spend a few more days in Chiang Mai and perhaps a highly recommended village area called Pai. Once I have seen a bit of the north I will hop on a plane to Krabi in the South and live it up on the islands for over a week. This will be a good and needed recovery to console myself. Thank you for following me on the adventure of a lifetime!
Pictures to follow... Loves.
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