Tropical Paradise Awaits

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We left the balcony doors open that first night and every night after, so we could savor the steady rhythm of softly crashing waves. There is nothing like the gentle but powerful tumbling of the Sea, so constant and reassuring, to calm the spirit and soothe the soul...like God watching over us all night as we slept a deep, healing sleep.
The next morning was more than ALIVE with exotic bird calls and jungle noises, the fragrance of plumeria, and the intoxicating Ylang Ylang massage oils wafting up to our room from the beach. The unmistakably enticing aroma of Thai food aroused our curiosity, and it was suddenly "time to explore!" We found there was a state of the art cooking school (Ginja Cook) just down the path from our room and a corresponding Ginja "Taste" restaurant overlooking the Mai Khao Beach.
With map in hand, we bravely ventured out to see if we could find our way around the hotel, not nearly as easy as it sounds! We could not even imagine how a team of architects and landscape planners would even know where to begin on such an exquisite design, and a stack of travel magazines couldn't begin to capture a small percentage of this overwhelming beauty and attention to the smallest detail. We had no real plans other than a list from the internet of the top ten "must sees" and the desire to leave plenty of time for God to surprise us. We were so thoroughly caught up in the balmy, breezy, sultry air and the incomparable turquoise of the Andaman Sea, not even imagining what would happen next, when...
Suddenly, I thought I spotted an elephant on the beach...and that was the beginning of our love affair with "Yum Yum"! She is a six year old Asian elephant and has totally changed the way we think and feel about these magnificent, surprising, affectionate, gentle, loving creatures...one of God's most amazing, and that's for sure...never did we dream we would be rolling around in the waves, being tossed about side by side with Yum Yum! It was the most incredible experience and I'll let the photos say the rest...

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Photos

The Jungle beckons!
Looking out to the jungle next door from the guest bedroom.

Morning sun
...from one of the guest beds, with its exquisite silk comforter and downy pillows.

Sawadee Krap!
We learned to love the sound of this greeting.

Sawadee Ka!
Oh, to be enveloped in those waffle weave cotton bathrobes!

Walkway from our room
This pillars in this walkway were lit every night. Our room is in the upper right corner

Walkway at night
Here is the same walkway in the evening, all lit up. You can see the light on our balcony, top right. What a great day!

Courtyard
a little stream provides water to wash the feet while passing through.

Ginja "Taste"
Wonderful restaurant, source of intoxicating fragrance from morning til night.

Cooking school
Lovely Thai woman, and they were ALL absolutely gorgeous!

Ginja "Cook"
Gorgeous granite bowls, huge chopping boards and walls of windows for the ultimate creative cooking experience!

Hey! An elephant!
Yum Yum out for a walk on the beach.

Love at first sight...
and I always assumed that they just stepped on you and it was instant injury or death.

Yum Yum loves Dane
or is possibly mistaking his head for a coconut.

A hesitant pose,
But she actually leaned into me and kind of "hugged" me with her legs. Wow, I'm not dead!

Getting to know you
She is utterly fascinating to us in every way and we just can't get enough of her.

I'm UP!
"Hold on", they say. Hold on to WHAT? Elephant hair? She also passed my sandals up to me that I had kicked off in the grass!

One way to get up
but she also will scoop you up with her trunk between your legs, and those photos were not nearly so appealing.

Is this a dream?
Kids swarmed all over her. She patiently let them climb up, then dove under a wave, shaking them all off. What fun.

Loving the water
and she must have enjoyed the weightless feeling, because she would just collapse and become like a great big water balloon.

Queen of Sheba
It is so exhilerating and one of the most memorable times of our lives. We will never forget her and how she seemed to love us.

Elephant Love
A well deserved rest after rolling around in the waves and playing with everybody. Still amazed by her gentle temperament.

Comments

[Calen]

Wow
I finally got a chance to sit down for a while and read through your travel blog, and I'm glad I did. I love your photos and your account of the trip - especially Yum Yum. It must have been incredible to be that close to an elephant. Kahni - Your photographs are beautiful, and your writing makes me wish I could visit Thailand myself. Maybe someday I'll be able to. When I get back to California, I'd love to hear more about it from you; I'm sure there's many more stories where these came from. Dad - Don't worry. I'm sure Yum-Yum was just being affectionate; your head looks nothing like a coconut. =D God bless both of you. I pray he gives you many more experiences like this one. Calen