Some people might not like animals taking part in shows
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
THAILAND, is undeniably one of South East Asia's most intriguing yet deceptive countries - a place that cloaks a wealth of exciting, exotic, colours, sights, sounds, smells and festivals. Here the locals eagerly pursue that most cherished of concepts, sanuk or fun. To a Thai, if it isn't sanuk, it probably isn't worth doing. Yet this same people place great stress on spiritual and religious devotion and on merit acts. Somehow their joy of life and pursuit of fun is juxtaposed in a very natural way with their deeply held religious and spiritual obligations.
One of the best way to witness the Thai's love of life and colourful ceremony is to attend a festival - there are plenty of them in this ever fascinating Buddhist Kingdom. One of the most interesting of the annual festivities first held in 1960 is the Elephant Round - Up in the north east town of Surin, a small place in I-San near the Cambodian border.
Thai's descend on this place by every conceivable means of transport - buffalo, rickshaw, pedicar, lorry, van, car, motor cycle , some even by elephant, - there is seemingly absolutely no limit to the mode of transport used. People come from the far ends of the Kingdom even foreigners pour in bus and train loads from the likes of Bangkok,Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai. They all come to see what Asia's largest animal - the lovable elephant - can do and they rarely go away disappointed.
The Thai people hold the giant, grey elephant in great esteem, especially the festiva participants many of whom are from the village of Tai Klong, which is around 40km north of Surin itself. The Asian elephant is actually slightly larger than the African one but the Thais even believe the shape of their country resembles the head of the elephant.
It should be added the Thai species, in contract to those in Africa, is easily domesticated within a matter of weeks and in the lush rain forests of northern Thailand - and neighboring Myanmar - you can see elephants hard at work hauling logs.
The north eastern part of Thailand, known to the Thais as I-San, is one of the country's most thoroughly fascinating regions. Its very distinctive character is in part due to its topography, to the local folk, who have their own unusual dialect, cuisine and lively, exuberant folk culture. I-San was apparently once part of the proud Khmer empire so perhaps that also helps explain the very real differences that seem to abound in this intriguing part of Thailand.
The north east's most popular - and certainly most visited festival - is the annual Surin Elephant Round-Up This is always held, come what may, on the third Saturday of November.
In this very well patronised tribute to the Buddhist kingdom's best loved animal, over two hundred of the giant beasts are assembled to entertain and thrill the huge crowd, which gets larger year by tear. Few visitors go away disappointed with what they see.
The stars of the show perform a range of tasks which are well beyond the ability of many smaller domesticated animals. Between folk dances and other cultural performances, these versatile behemoths star in displays of old-time elephant hunts, demonstrations of intelligence, strength and gentility, and the spectacular re-enactment of a war elephant parade.
For several years now the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) have organized a number of overnight trips to Surin for the festival. For around US$200, the visitor can get a first - class train ride from Bangkok - including a sleeper - , entrance to the elephant show, a trip to a silk-weaving village, folk dance demonstrations and, for good measure, some delightful meals, including some featuring thoroughly incendiary Thai dishes. It seems likely, because of the overwhelming success of this venture, that it will become a permanent excursion every November. There are now so many foreign visitors that the local hotels and guest houses cannot cope and some tourists have to be accommodated some way away in Korat.
At Surin itself the festival takes place over two days. There are elephant races, sparkling demonstrations of old-style elephant hunts as well as numerous displays of the sheer power, strength and incredible versatility of the elephant. Loud battle cries resound around the dusty arena as the festival recreates battle scenes of yesteryear and there is even a tug-of-war between an elephant and some seventy brawny members of the Royal Thai Army. The Elephant usally wins. They also perform in ordination and harvest ceremony scenes and the cute young calves following their mothers have most of the spectators cooing. There are sprints in which the swiftness of the animal is well demonstrated - in short sprints they can reach speeds of up to 35km an hour. The Surin elephants take part in soccer, pick-up small objects such as matchboxes with their trunks and obey different commands.
In spite of their great bulk the elephant is actually an exceptionally agile animal and year after year they show their qualities of agility and great strength at the Surin festival. Nonetheless despite strength and agility they also show an endearing gentleness which no doubt goes a long way in explaining the deep affection that the Thai people genuinely hold for them. No one, rich or poor, young or old, local or foreigner, who visits the Surin festivities is not somehow moved by the events - the time when Thailand's elephants have their very own day the annual round-up.
Thailand Fact File
Getting there: Numerous international airlines have flights to Thailand. Most touch down at Bangkok's Don Muang International Airport. There are air services to Chiang Mai and bus services to Surin.
Getting around: Taxi and hire cars are available and tuk-tuk, bizarre three - wheelers are good for short journeys but be warned the ride can be more than a little hairy.
Climate: The climate is generally warm with the hottest season being between March-May. During November through February, temperatures are considerably lower.
Visas: Visas are required for stays of over 30 days and recommended for all people leaving Thailand overland
More details
Sightseeing
Evaluate this review
How helpful would this review be to someone making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
This product has not yet been reviewed. 
