Taya Starling

On another adventure of “Playing Tourist in My Own Town,” I ventured out of Bangkok with the SkinnyFatKid because no trip to Thailand is complete without petting tigers, playing with elephants, and eating from a boat. Although ideally I take visiting friends and family up to Chiang Mai to the proper animal sanctuaries, when pressed for time the Sriracha Tiger Zoo and a near by elephant sanctuary suffice.

The Sriracha Tiger Zoo is in desperate need of a facelift but as long as the animals are being cared for I can’t complain too much about how badly they need a paint job. Their website says they have over 400 Bengal tigers but I’m pretty sure the actual number is somewhere around 100 unless they’re hiding them in the back somewhere. The tigers are all ages and sizes and you can hold or feed the younger ones around 3-7 months old. Just be sure they don’t paw at you too playfully. At that young of an age they’re not aware of their own strength yet.

The only full-grown tiger you’re allowed to come in contact with is on a short leash attached to a concrete slab that you can sit on to be photographed with him. I’m not going to post that picture here because quite frankly it makes me sad. I will however show you some of the adorable elephants they have including this 4 month old baby girl.

 If you get there in time you can catch the elephant show where the gentle giants come out and perform stunts like throwing darts, shooting hoops, blowing balloons, hula hooping, and dancing. Each show requires 3 audience members to participate and you better believe we got the SkinnyFatKid up there with a quickness. Fortunately for him he didn’t have to compete against an elephant at balloon blowing or dart throwing… no, the SkinnyFatKid got a nice little massage from the elephant before being walked over- which Thai people believe brings good luck (;

 After a fun morning with the tigers and elephants at the zoo we were about ready for some lunch and the Pattaya floating market seemed like the perfect place to try. I had never been before but everything online sounded good so we loaded back into the van and drove about 20 minutes down. Compared to the other floating markets I’ve been to in Thailand this one is HUGE. This is also the only one that was built specifically for tourists so not only is it well laid out but it also has shows and activities for the steady stream of visitors who come through by the bus load. We didn’t catch any of the shows, play any of the games, or zip line, but we did eat our fill!

 A nice & spicy Som Tum (papaya salad)

 Hot & spicy Tom Yum noodles

 And of course the obligatory Pad Thai. There were so many other things we wanted to eat and that I wanted him to try of course but we were stuffed and decided to walk it off a bit and explore the rest of the market.

 This is my “Playing Tourist in My Own Town” pose complete with camera (yes it’s real) and peace signs. We’ve all been there.  After a bit of wandering through the souvenir heavy stalls, we were about ready for a snack and some coffee…

 If you’ve never had Kanom Bueng I strongly suggest you try it- a little sweet, a little savory, they’re perfect for when you’re in that snackish mood but don’t know what you want. Kanom Bueng are tiny Thai crepes that look like tacos, thin and crispy on the outside with a meringue like smear on the inside before being topped with either toasted coconut, minced shrimp and scallions, or foy thong, a sweetened egg yolk dessert.

 To wash down the treat we found an old school coffee shop for some authentic Thai Iced Coffee. The whole shop was made to look retro and even had vintage toys, treats, and packaging.

 It was the kind of coffee shop where you could sit around talking, staring into each others eyes… until you realized it was about 100 degrees outside and you need to get moving. We thanked the friendly vendors and got back in the van to head another 20 minutes down the road to an elephant camp outside Pattaya.

The camp only has about 30 elephants ranging from a “teenager” at about 17 years old to a few entering retirement at 60, but our friendly Mahout (that’s elephant trainer to those of you who don’t know) informed us that elephants can live well past 100 years of age if they’re healthy and well cared for. Our elephant was roughly 40 years old and still sassy. She insisted on going her own way, stopping for roadside snacks, and enjoyed spraying water when we went through the lake.

 Here she’s way deeper than I thought we would go and I’m not even sure she can see which way she’s going under there but still she seemed to enjoy diving her trunk down into the water before abruptly spraying water with a jaunty little honk.

Many of you may not know, but I love elephants. Every chance I get I visit the MaeSa Elephant Sanctuary in Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand). Earlier this year I actually completed a short course in mahout training and learned how to work with the Elephants (: So technically, I can be your personal mahout- but only if you ask nicely and pay me in treats.

I’m not sure what the rest of the world’s elephants like to eat but Thai elephants LOVE bananas and sugar cane. Our friendly ellie didn’t even bother waiting for me to break the weave of bananas but instead shoved the whole thing in her mouth, like a lady.

And that HomieLoverFriends is how to “Play Tourist in My Own Town.”