The Surin Elephant Round-up is a cultural festival held every year. The festival has its origins in the royal hunts which were conducted in Surin Province during medieval times. The indigenous residents of Surin, the Kuy, have been traditional practitioners of corralling elephants and training them as working animals. When the Ayutthaya Kingdom came into power these hunts were converted into a public extravaganza and wild elephants were replaced with tame ones. The festival, in its contemporary form, was first organized in the 1960s when civil war in Cambodia and the steady decline in economic value of elephants forced the elephant handlers (mahouts) to seek occupations in the entertainment and tourism industry.
Being in the city prior to the event I had seen a number of banners advertising concerts during the festival. I took a picture of one of these banners to do some looking if I would be interested in seeing any of the bands. I didn't have much luck on the bands but during my searching I found out there would be a dress rehearsal of the Elephant show on the 14th. I couldn't find anything else out about the rehearsal online so I just went to the stadium and tried my luck. It worked out great.
I enjoyed the dress rehearsal and had booked the hotel through the weekend so returned and watched the show again on Saturday. I didn't know how to buy a ticket for the stands in the shade so bought an umbrella and sat in the sun. I really should have worked harder to figure out how to buy a ticket the sun was brutal.
The number of Elephants was just amazing. Hope you enjoy the video that I could not seem to keep short.
Following is the short I uploaded while at the show.
Friday the 15th had an Elephant parade through town and then a breakfast for the Elephants at Phraya Surin Phakdi Si Narong Changwang Monument (อนุสาวรีย์พระยาสุรินทรภักดีศรีณรงค์จางวาง).
I parked my motorbike close to the monument and then planned to walk back up the parade route. I couldn't tell which direction they would be coming from so really missed the parade. Maybe I will go back next year to see the parade. I really enjoyed being around all the elephants for the breakfast.
When the eleplants had their fill the locals came in and selected some of the remaining food and took it home. I grabbed a couple of bananas for myself and did my best elephant impression as I gobbled them up.
Following is the short I uploaded while at the Elephant Breakfast.
I did not do a lot after the 2nd time of seeing the elephant show and on Monday I started the long ride home to Kanchanaburi. I thought about stopping along the way to remove some pins I had on my map of place to see but was ready to be home.
I made of number of stops on my way home but was happy to arrive where I started over a month before heading off to Bangkok. My trip counter (pictured below) says I rode over 4,200 kilometer (about 2,650 miles) in total. Thanks for reading along on my travels. I think I may take some shorter trips in the coming weeks while the weather is cooler and making riding so enjoyable.
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