The whole experience was so meaningful for me, and I will never forget it. The people in the village work so hard to try and create a safe home for the Asian elephants. It is important to educate people from all over the world that elephants are not supposed to be used for entertainment or hard labor. I felt the daily work projects we did were necessary and helpful to the mahouts (elephant owners). The different projects included: cutting sugar cane, making fertilizer, planting bamboo trees, cleaning elephant shelters, taking apart old shelters so the mahouts could build new ones, etc. It was intense physical work at times but totally worth it when you could see that the mahouts appreciated us being there. Of course the best part was taking our daily walks with the elephants and bathing them in the river. It was an intimate experience that a lot of people in the world won't get, and I was fortunate enough to. - Stella McNeilly, September 2013
It was an intimate experience
