We went on a once-in-a-lifetime elephant trekking in the jungle of Thailand. And after this experience it was only going to be once-in-my-lifetime. We were in the mountains of Northern Thailand located on the Ping River. The tropical climate was hot and humid. The guide helped us onto the howdah (seat) for 2 atop the elephant's back. This same guide was scolding us for leaning in our seat too far to the left, no, too far to the right. Who could help but lean from side to side, when you felt like you were on a roller coaster, in slow motion. We went through a shallow muddy part of the river and up and down steep paths along the hills. I felt something unusual moving quickly down my back. It was not one of those spiders draped across the trees, I reached back with my hand only to find it was sweat, bullets of sweat racing down my back. I said to myself, "Whose big idea was this? Mine. I've got to get out of here." The howdah (seat) rubbed a hole in the seat of my new Chicos pants!
I would not declare this experience as my "Belles Choses" but what was a beautiful thing was next to us was a mother elephant and her baby calf. We were told the baby has to stay close to his mother for the first 2 years because the baby is being nursed. This timid baby was running, in a state of panic to stay close to his Mama. The baby anxiously maneuvered itself through thick muddy river water, almost getting stuck, in order to stay close to his mother. The bond of this Mother Elephant and her Baby was a Beautiful Thing.
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