August 1999

After our sailing school, we stayed in a great resort hotel (very cheaply due to the off-season). Beach swimming and wading was no fun, because the southwest monsoon winds created huge waves. (In December and January, the high season, the northwest monsoon winds hit the other side of the island first and the resort beaches are calm.) The hotel had a great swimming pool, though. We rented a jeep for the day and drove around, hiking in a national park and swimming in a waterfall. The pictures below are from an elephant safari.

Catherine feeds an elephant a basket of bananas.

Brett getting a massage. The elephant has a harmonica curled in her truck and is playing soothing music while she thumps his back with her foot. He said it felt great.

This pig-tailed macaque is trained to pick coconuts for his owner. He brakes the coconut off it’s stem by twirling it with his feet. The monkey is practicing in the picture.