Thai Picture Moment : Elephant and a Mahout

Sangworn, a mahout (elephant driver), stands with his 13 year old elephant, Bussaba, at his temporary camp September 26, 2008 in Bangkok, Thailand.

While the elephant is a symbol of Thailand, it is a fairly common site to see the unemployed and homeless animals roaming the city streets begging for food.

The tame elephants dodge the traffic as their mahouts sell sugar cane by the bag to tourists who then feed them. Thai officials frown upon the practice and have passed laws banning elephants from roadways but the mahouts still come risking fines in order to survive.

Elephants have been big business for the country for centuries but now they are reduced to a major tourist attraction. Elephants are trained to paint, play musical instruments, and even kick soccer balls. Until Thailand banned logging in 1989, many Asian elephants were laborers working in the jungles.

Via The Big Picture

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