Unforgettable Encounter with Thai Elephants

This pic is 10 years old! I realised today that my first solo travelling trip was in the summer of 2007 - I went to Thailand for 3 months, just booked the flights, and went 😝 I was too naive at that point to be nervous - I haven't looked back since ❤️ I've since been to SE Asia quite a lot and it's still one of my favourite places in the world 👌🏻 This particular trip taught me that experience is priceless, you can see pictures of elephants, see them in zoos, on TV - but until you meet one, touch one, you don't know that they have tiny little whiskers all over their leathery trunk which is way softer than you could ever imagine, you don't see the intelligence in each and every one of them when they "see you" as they look into your eyes. Until you've met a free happy elephant, like the ones here in this nature reserve, you can't see the sadness in the eyes of the elephants that are stuck as slaves in the tourism industry... Experience and gaining perspective is the best thing you can spend your money on 👌🏻 . . . #breathtaking #elephants #elephantnaturepark #theworldisbeautiful #travelpics #travelphotography #chiangmai #norththailand #thailand #thaistagram #girlslovetravel #gltlove #glt #girlswhotravel #explore #thailove #nationalpark #travelgram #instatravel #backpacking #traveller #wanderer #tbt #tbt❤️