Tiger attack!


Advertisement
Thailand's flag
Asia » Thailand » North-West Thailand » Chiang Mai
October 5th 2008
Published: October 26th 2008
Edit Blog Post

Chiang Mai



Chiang Mai is beautifully situated in Northern Thailand, nestled in a valley surrounded by mountains. Among other things, it's famous for its trekking in the surrounding forests with visits to various hill tribes, such as the Long Necks, elephant riding and tiger sanctuaries. I would have loved to be able to spend more time there - and do a good long trek into the mountains and visiting some of these villages, as well as seeing Pai and Chiang Rai - which are other popular spots in North Thailand. However, my Thai visa was expiring on the 6th of October, leaving me only three days in Chiang Mai, including the day we arrived there - several hours late, as you may recall. So there wasn't enough time to arrange a proper trek and have time to see Chiang Mai itself. It's an interesting place with an old and a new part of town - the former having been surrounded by a massive city wall (parts of which are still there) as well as a moat which now divides the road circling the old town in a big square shape. The latter is host to a big night market, which we failed to see all of, even though we gave it a good try. All the streets in one part of town are lined on both sides with stalls selling everything from silk scarves, sandals, T-shirts, souvenirs, lamps, paintings and jewellery, to knock-off DVDs and banana pancakes :-)


Tiger Kingdom



By the time we found a guest house and had some lunch, it was already early afternoon, so we decided to spend the afternoon visiting Tiger Kingdom - a tiger sanctuary where they actually breed tigers and bring them up as partially domesticated animals, that mostly then go to live in zoos, but on a whole are helping to keep the tigers from becoming extinct. To help run the place, they allow visitors to spend time with the animals. We bought tickets to see all three age groups: 2 months, 6 months, and 11 months. We started with the babies, who were as big as dogs already. They are quite sleepy in the heat, but once in a while they wake up and are actually very interested in the visitors. They are really cute, with short, slightly woolly fur, big eyes and very big paws. The minders who are there with you, are not controlling the animals, as well as they aren't tied up - they have little sticks which they hit them on the head with to teach them when they are doing something wrong. They are very tough skinned animals, according to the minders, and eventually they'll learn to stop whatever they're doing wrong before the stick hits them - it just becomes a threat. What they neglected to tell us before we went in, though, is that they have certain behavioural indicators when they want to play with you. So I didn't think anything of it when one of them started sniffing my legs (I was sitting cross legged on the floor next to it), and then licking it before it started playfully biting and grabbing my leg with its paws. I took it by the neck, like I would with my own pets, and pulled it off, but it started again afterwards - biting my big toe and scratching my leg. That's when I called for back-up... the man with the stick who managed to get the predator off my leg. It didn't hurt - not so many nerve endings in your lower leg... - but it bled, and I could see the minder felt a bit bad about it. But what do you expect when you go and sit next to a carnivore with sharp teeth? Even kittens have drawn blood from me before... In any case, I got my 'wounds' cleaned and then we went and saw the other age groups. I must admit, though, that I kept my distance with these bigger cats, who were already quite a lot bigger!

A dad had brought his two kids, age 6 and 3, with him in the enclosure with the 6-month olds at the same time we were there. It was crazy to see how the tigers were eyeing up the kids, stalking them and trying to circle them as if they were prey. One of them even jumped in the water to try a different angle and avoid the minders, who were very aware of their intentions. You would have thought the dad would see it too and try to protect his kids who were both scared sh*tless and crying - but he just kept making kitty noises at the tigers, patting them on the head - even though the minders were telling us to approach them from the back - and trying to make a man of his 3-year-old son, almost forcing him to touch the animal that was twice his size and obviously not a friendly little kitten!

The big ones - and they were REALLY big, even though they still weren't full-grown - were quite intimidating, but it was interesting to see the minders interacting with the tigers. One guy especially was very good with the animals. You could tell he really cared for them and understood their nature. He told us a lot about their behaviour and the routines in the sanctuary. He was the one who told us about the programme to keep the tigers from extinction and the connections with the zoos.

They also had some tigers that were 18 months old. If I had thought the 11-months ones were big, the way the 18-months had filled out and bulked up in comparison was amazing. You could tell that they were really strong and much more focused and independent than the other cats, who were still very playful. I have a video of one of the bigger cats trying to catch a rag on a stick - it's really impressive to see how he jumps in the water and jumps up to try to get it. I'll try to upload it if I can...

Butterflies and Orchids



After the wild and exciting experience at Tiger Kingdom, we opted for a more delicate stop on the way back to town: A Butterfly and Orchid Farm. There were some butterflies, but not at all as many as they said in their brochures - still, it was quite interesting to walk around and look for them. I even managed to pick up a few - although, I'm a much bigger fan from a distance. Close up they are just insects, which I manage to forget when they are fluttering around in the air :-)
Most people know how much I love orchids as well, so I spent some time walking around the rows with all kinds of orchids. There was every colour imaginable. Very beautiful.
After this, we went to the night market which was so extensive, we didn't manage all of it at all. I did, however, manage to get a few presents for people, which I now have to carry around...
My attacker crawling across GerardMy attacker crawling across GerardMy attacker crawling across Gerard

Hmmm - wonder what he's up to...
Note to self: must find post office soon! ;-)



Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep



The next day we rented motorbikes and drove out of town up a very long hill. It's the first time I've driven in a slightly busy town, and it was a bit scary when changing lanes. In Asia, people just drive where there's room, and use their horn to signal that they're coming up behind someone. There are motorbikes everywhere, with up to 4 or 5 people on some of them (mostly kids in the country-side, but still...), and they swerve in and out between the cars. There's a sort of hierarchy on the roads, based on size - so you can all guess who stops for crossing pedestrians... :-)
Anyway, once we were out of town it was a really nice road, slowly curving up the mountain. We stopped at a couple of viewpoints, and could see Chiang Mai stretching out below us in the valley.
Once we got to the top we climbed what seemed like an awful lot of steps in the heat of midday. Everywhere, people will try to sell you something. In some places they will try to call you over from their little booths that they set up on the side of the path, or little old ladies will stop you with a begging look on their faces, trying to sell you lotus flowers, or candles and incence to use for offerings at the temple. The steps leading up were very beautifully lined with a dragon's long green body (naga) as a banister on either side, made of glazed ceramics. Foreigners have to pay an entrance fee, whereas locals can come and go for free - which in a way seems fair enough, as most of us aren't buddhist...
We started in the outer courtyard, which was cool and shady and very nice after the long, hot climb up. I really like the bells that almost encircle the temple, which people stop and ring, one by one. I wish I could remember more from my buddhism classes, so I'd better understand the meaning of them. I've tried researching it online, so far without much luck... Between the two doors leading into the temple, a group of schoolchildren (it was Saturday, so they didn't miss class...) were dressed up and playing Thai music, and if front of them 3 girls were dancing what I'm assuming were traditional Thai dances. It added a very nice ambience to the place.
Inside the temple courtyard, the gold everywhere was almost overwhelming. You have to cover your shoulders and knees when entering temples, and they are very nice lending out scarves and sarongs to inappropriately dressed foreigners - that day I hadn't planned ahead properly, so I had to borrow a lovely purple scarf :-)
It was a very nice place, as you could tell that people really came there to worship, not just to admire the temple. There were actually more locals than foreigners, lighting their incence and candles and being blessed by monks. I too got blessed by a monk and had a white string tied around my wrist - not by the monk himself, though, as they cannot touch women, but by a layman sitting next to him for that particular purpose.
Back in Chiang Mai, we had dinner at a lovely restaurant in the new part of town overlooking the river. I love how there are gekkos everywhere :-) One at this restaurant had placed himself particularly cunningly on a lamp, ready to snatch up any flittering night insects - and at the same time of course, striking a great pose for the photographer :-)

Old Town



The next morning we got up early to make the most of our rented bikes, and drove into the old town, which is a big square within the old city walls. Here we saw both the oldest and the most important temples, according to the lovely girl and tour operator at our guest house.

Wat Chedi Luang is the oldest and very stunning old crumbling temple, with beautiful elephants on the sides, and niches with gold Buddhas in front of gold leaf trees. It was very nice to be there so early in the morning, as we had the place mostly to ourselves. The stall holders were still setting up their wares for the day, and monks were walking around minding themselves, or sitting in groups in the shade talking.
The second temple, Wat Phra Singh, was mostly notable for its lying down Buddha, and its pictures of Chiang Mai from the last century. It was interesting seeing how the markets used to look, and the bridges, and people's clothes - not all that different and yet so much has changed at the same time...

At lunch time we were picked up by a minibus and began our journey to Laos... Slowly catching up here :-) Tales from Laos soon to follow.

Lots of love,
Kristine



Additional photos below
Photos: 76, Displayed: 30


Advertisement



29th October 2008

misundelig :o)
Hej Kristine hvor er det dejligt at følge med i din tur - det ser ud til, at du oplever en hel masse og nyder din tur i fulde drag og hvor er det da nogle flotte billeder du lægger ind. Der er bare et problem forbundet med det... det gir stor rejsetrang!! Anyway, go rejse fremover og pas på dig selv :o) Jeg glæder mig til flere Blogs. Stort knus fra Ida
7th November 2009

Another Tiger Attack survivor!
You were the lucky one with only a few scratches. My visit there late January this year, left me with a two large bites from a 1 year old tiger. Just missed my femoral artery. 54 stitches. 11 days in hospital with a bad infection in my leg. So please let it be known - Tiger Kingdom is a very dangerous place despite its safe appearance - and visitors there are playing a game of Russian roulette playing with caged animals that one day will kill someone. It's anything but cute!
12th February 2010

jonathan and i love tiger
awww that is the cutest tiger picture ever seen sent more picture about tiger and cheetah
8th March 2010

you guys are assholes to put this up! if you were badly bitten and needed stitches then fine, i'd get that. But for fucks sake! it was a couple of scratches!!! what do you expect from a tiger in captivity that is yearning to be set free into the wild. stop making such a big deal out of it.
22nd April 2010

I appreciate the comments made here. First of all, I wrote this mainly for my family and friends, but if other people are getting something out of it too, that's great. Secondly, I'm sorry other people have been badly hurt at Tiger Kingdom, and hope that this will help other people take caution when visiting wild animals. I don't think that's making a big deal out of it!

Tot: 0.167s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 8; qc: 52; dbt: 0.0891s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.2mb