I'm going to write about my trip to the Tiger Temple even though it happened so long ago. One Saturday, while in Bangkok for the weekend, friends and I decided to go on a day trip that included going to a floating market, the Burma Railway, and the Pha Luang Ta Bua Temple which is home to the tigers.The floating market was interesting but it's something that I probably won't do again. When we got to the dock where the boats load and unload people, we waited in line. I felt like I was at Knott's Berry Farm waiting in line for the log ride. Boats would come, unload people, fill right back up, and then be off. (There were no Thais other than those who worked there, so when I mean people, I mean tourists. It really did feel like Knott's.) We got into a 8-person boat with a Thai who paddled us along the canal while we shopped. The things being sold were not of much interest to me but I did buy a lot of fruit (roseapples, pomelo, and mango). Hmmm.
The Burma Railway is just that, a railway. It was nothing very special, but it has quite a history. It's also known as the Death Railway, but I'll let you wikipedia it if you want to know more. I would say the most exciting thing about this stop was that I raced the train. The railway goes over a river and so for people to walk on it, they have to walk on the tracks. There are platforms every 20 meters or so for people to stand on so they don't get run over when the train passes. One time when the train was coming, I had the brilliant idea of trying to get to the next platform instead of staying put on the one where I could safely stand. I managed to beat the train in addition to irritating the train conductor. He was blowing the horn several times before I made it to the platform.
The next and final stop that we had all been waiting for was the tiger temple. In fact, there was more than just tigers; the place looked like a huge national park with deer, cows, boars, and peacocks. (One peacock had its feathers spread out too, if you know what that means.) As cool as the other animals were, we didn't waste anytime with them. We went straight to the tigers. First, we saw the 6-week old cubs which were so adorable. We then walked over to the area that had the freaking-huge tigers. We did have to wait in line (Knott's), but it wasn't that much of a wait. When it was my time to see the tigers, a worker came over to me, grabbed my hand, and led me to them. (It was really funny to see large white men holding hands with and being walked by small Thai women.) I was able to pet the tigers while the worker snapped photo after photo of me with the them. When our group was done seeing the tigers we were instructed to stand to the side while they walked the tigers away. One tiger stopped in its tracks and looked over at the crowd, primarily at me. I think it was planning on eating me, but before it could do anything the worker yanked its leash and it proceeded on. Haha. Because we were at the temple when they were closing, they said we can walk with the last tiger (unleashed) back up the hill. That was really awesome.
If you ever find yourself on Khao San Road and have a free Saturday, I suggest you book this day trip. It only cost 450 Thb for the transportation, 150 Thb for the floating market, and 300 Thb for the tiger temple. That whole day cost me less than $30 and it was a magnificent experience.
