Thailand Holidays - Thai Elephant Day

For tourists who decide to visit Thailand in the spring, there is an opportunity to attend a unique holiday - National Thai Elephant Day Once upon a time, the image of this strong and powerful animal appeared on the coat of arms of Siam, as Thailand was called in ancient times And today the elephant, as a symbol of wisdom, adorns the emblem of the Thai Ministry of Education Celebrations in honor of the state symbol take place annually on March 13 and are accompanied by colorful performances and shows Elephants have long been a mainstay of Thai culture With their help, they dragged heavy loads, moved long distances, built palaces and temples, and won military campaigns A hundred years ago, there were about one hundred thousand wild and domestic elephants in Thailand, but today their number has decreased to 3-4 thousand, while there are practically none left in the wild The holiday is one of the opportunities to draw attention to the catastrophic decline in the number of Thai elephants, and also to emphasize the gratitude for the help that elephants have provided to humans over the centuries Their good-natured disposition and funny appearance made these leisurely bumpkins everyone’s favorites On March 13, elegant animals walk freely through the streets, accepting congratulations and words of gratitude In the cities of Phuket and Pattaya, events are held near temples, where locals and visitors to Thailand flock Anyone can attend the show completely free of charge Here you can see animals of all ages in bright blankets, painted with fancy patterns The culmination of the festival is feeding the elephants with fruits To do this, tons of juicy fruits are brought to the temple, as well as specific elephant delicacies - sugar cane and pickles Residents of Ayutthaya, the ancient Thai capital, organize sports competitions between elephants and schoolchildren These types of football matches cause a lot of laughter and often end with the ball bursting White elephants are given special treatment in Thailand They symbolize monarchical power and are considered royal animals Thai belief says that the Milky Way is a family of thousands of snow-white shining celestial elephants