Five days of preparations in Chiang Mai
In Chiang Mai we have just 5 days before the animal registration offices close till newyear. So five days to sign all the papers sent them through, and go back to Surin to arrange the transportpapers. Plus, ofcourse, all practical preparations, like shopping for our tentcamp, printing posters, flyers and t-shirts, buying medicine for our elephants and for the
”Jumbo express on tour”. We also want to hire two mahouts and Nong as our cook. Now Lee has to go to Surin for our papers anyway he can just as well arrange the purchase of Mae Lai Tong, and take her back to Chiang Mai.
With all the stress the thought arises, we might postpone our journey with a week, but that’s just for a moment. Lee says: “I don’t know if I can make it, but I’m just gonna give it a try.” We’ll see how far we are gonna get. The next evening he, together with two mahouts, stacks of papers and a bundle of money for Mae Lai Tong, has to leave by truck for Surin.
He comes running to us, sweating, he yells that he has got all the necessary papers, but not enough money yet. He asks where the mahouts are, and if the truck is ready to go. Finally everything is arranged and the team is ready to leave. Lee then accidentally drops all his papers to the floor, gets the remaining bundle of money and runs out of the office again. I hope he can get some rest while under way, and that it won’t take to much stress for him to arrange the transportpapers.
This week everyone at the office is working for the Bring the Elephant HOME project. The students are translating our texts into Thai, the designers are busy with the design of the posters, Aoi arranges the T-shirts, Pom the mahouts, Lek the truck and Nong buys cooking utensils and some basic ingredients. We give Yut a special shoppinglist of materials, which he gets at the local market for cheap. Five of us visit a wholesaler with a enormous shoppinglist to buy the campingmaterials. While shopping I get nervous about how much it would all cost us, and constantly say that everything seems so expensive, while keeping a close eye on the endless shoppinglist. But at the checkout, our three fully filled shopping carts with tents, blankets, pans and other campingstuff, only cost us 160 euro. After we have put everything into our car, Lee calls to say that the transportpapers are o.k. and that he is on his way to Chiang Mai, together with Mae Lai Tong. What a productive day this was!
