Day 4: Sakuraaaaa ??

Day 4: We woke up early for a guest lecture at Chiang Mai University (CMU). It was really interesting to learn about the extensive history behind Chiang Mai’s culture, and the lecture definitely made me relook Chiang Mai from a different angle. I had always thought of Chiang Mai as the scenic and peaceful alternative to Bangkok’s hectic streets, so I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it used to be inhabited by royalty!

After lunch, we were prepared to head off to our next destination – Maesa Elephant Camp, one of Chiang Mai’s largest elephant camps in the region that still practices various forms of unethical activities such as circus shows, elephant painting, and elephant riding. However, after lunch, we realised that Maesa Elephant Camp would be closing early that day, and it was too far away from CMU for us to make it there in time. I was rather disappointed at having to forego the visit to Maesa camp, since our trip there would have provided us with a closer look at how unethical elephant tourism activities are actually carried out.

Well, at least we found a back up plan with CMU’s very own Veterinary Department! We returned to CMU to speak to some Veterinary students. I had hoped that the Veterinary students, having been trained on how to treat and care for elephants, would provide us with more reliable voices on the extent of damage that unethical elephant tourism practices can cause to elephants. However, our visit there was a little underwhelming, as we found that the students did not have much experience in treating elephants, and their pool of knowledge regarding the issue was rather shallow as well. This turned out to be a mild disappointment to our project, but at least the students were really warm and welcoming!

Although the morning was slightly uneventful for our group, we certainly found a good way to make up for the disappointment – a visit to Khun Chang Khian Village, one of Chiang Mai’s best-hidden secrets!

I never knew that Chiang Mai could have its own display of Sakura blooms, but that was precisely what we found at Khun Chang Khian Village – rows of tall trees bearing gorgeous pink flowers! The flowers were such a vivid shade that I was really tempted to take a tree home with me. The flowers were not in full bloom yet, given that they only spring up in full around mid-January. Even so, we were really lucky to have caught a glimpse of these beautiful flowers!

In the evening, we went to the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary’s office for an interview with its manager. The Elephant Jungle Sanctuary is a park that focuses on elephant conservation and eco-tourism. Our chat with the manager provided us with various insider knowledge that made me rethink my original perspective on elephant tourism.

Previously, we had always thought of the use of elephant hooks to be cruel and unethical. However, the manager revealed that the use of hooks is actually necessary to keep the inherently wild elephants under control, preventing them from running amok in villages and killing people. In fact, elephants have really thick hides, and piercing them with hooks on their back is merely akin to a pinprick – they barely feel any pain! This exchange really set me wondering. In various articles we found online, the use of hooks to control elephants was described to be extremely harmful and malicious. Being a Communications student who has once inadvertently made the mistake of dramatizing events to make an article more interesting, I realised that the media was similarly trying to sensationalise unethical elephant treatment to gain viewership. While traditional elephant tourism practices (ie. Elephant stunts/painting) are still detrimental to the health of elephants, perhaps the problem might not be as grave as the impression that the media has painted in our minds. This definitely served as a stern reminder that not everything in the media can be trusted completely. Instead, we should always seek out reliable sources, and not let online information influence our opinions about the research topic.