chiangmai trip, part 4... elephant show!

mama said the elephant show would be very nice... i didn't know what to expect, really... we'll see...

while we were seated, mama and uncle ivan went to buy the admission tickets. the tics cost a bomb, so the show better be good!

cousin val can't wait to get in, she's so very fond of elephants! grandma can all but keep her seated firmly...

ahhh, after settling down to watch the show, the elephants finally made their way to the "stage"... can't say it's much of a stage, just a large empty piece of land. slowly, and majestically, they trudged along to the center...

haha, so cute!! instead of holding hands, the elephants are holding tails instead, walking in a single file!! :-)

don't know if you can see it clearly, but this shot shows the elephant attempting to kick a ball. and they're mighty good at it!! it's supposed to try to score a goal at the other end. the ball ended up smashing past the goal into a tree, beating a human "goalkeeper"! so far, the scoreline says elephants 1, humans 0. yay, go elephants!!

here's a real marvel... the elephants can draw!! and their masterpieces are really very good pieces of artwork!! i'm impressed!

mama seems more intrigued by the elephant show than i was! hahaha!

here are the final masterpieces, beautifully drawn by the talented elephants. we noticed that each elephant has a unique talent in drawing certain objects. after the show, we found some of the elephants' past drawings on sale at the souvenir shop. obviously, the elephants' carers thought of making an extra buck by selling their masterpieces from each performance. just hope the elephants get to enjoy some of the profit that were made on those drawings. extra sugarcane, perhaps??

my favourite is one of the elephant's "self-portrait". don't know if you can see it clearly enough in the picture below... it is really good!

another trick from the elephants... allowing the trainer to climb onto its hindleg, while balancing itself on just 3 legs.