Ok, so I will try not to ramble on and on about how AMAZING our day has been!!

We had to change rooms this morning so we decided to take a half day trip today, so we got picked up at our hotel at 1pm which was a safari jeep type thing. Lee and I were a bit sceptical when we got inside and see that none of the dials on the dash board were working (including the speed!) but we survived the ride to Namthung Waterfall, which was beautiful. We were the only people on the tour, so the guide sat and told us some facts/history etc about everywhere we went. So we stayed there for a while before heading back into the jeep and to another part of the island to do elephant trekking.

And well that was totally mind blowing!!!!! Our elephant was called Rumthip and she was about 40 years old the guide told us. Firstly we had to climb up this wee podium to get on the elephants back then once we were on the guide started walking in front of the elephant and speaking to her, telling her to go right or left it was amazing how they can communicate with them. Our guide wandered in front of us singing thai songs out loud! It was so amazing, just sitting there on the back of an elephant trekking through the Thai jungle. She was an Asian elephant so she is smaller than the african elephants that we have in zoos. Rumthip took us through a little steam, (for which part the guide told her to bend down and then he jumped on her head and sat until we reached the other side) then up a hill right into the jungle. She kept stopping or swerving off the track to grab some food and look for coconuts (all the time the guide telling her to stop!!) It was amazing!! Then we stopped for some photos, where we stroaked her leathery skin. On the way back Rumthip found a coconut which she stood on and crushed before scoffing it! Our trek lasted about 30 mins. After arriving back at the podium we bought a basket of bananas and fed her (lots of pics and video clips obviously!).

We then left Rumthip and headed to a traditional thai house where the guide showed us how to make Thai Red Curry and filled us in more about the surroundings and thai culture. We then walked into the jungle where we met Joy, a male short tail monkey. He was 2 years old and trained to climb trees for coconuts, which the local people use to cook and sell. I fed Joy and we were shown how he gets the coconuts free from the trees. Then we were shown how to make coconut milk and obviously got to taste lots of fresh coconut and coconut milk that Joy retrived from the trees right in front of us. Our guide (his name was Chai) told us lots about how the people here rely on the monkeys to fetch the coconuts and how they sell them for about 2 bahts (about 3p).

Then after saying goodbye to Joy we returned to our hotel and are just about to head out for a pizza because we are starving (coconut isnt very filling!!)

We are off to Singapore tomorrow where we get free internet so will upload all the pics and videos tomorrow.

Lots of Love

Siobhan and Lee xxxxx