That’s me walking a 500 lb. tiger on a leash with a monk. This is at the Tiger Temple just outside of Kanchanaburi, Thailand. It’s set up like a zoo with other animals that can freely wander around the grounds.

They have dozens of tigers of all ages. There is a section where you can go around and get close to the adult cats.

There is some controversy about this establishment, with some accusations of drugging and exploitation.

For an extra fee, you can even feed the tiger cubs. Shannon and Derrick did this

Seeing the pics, I’m a little envious that I didn’t join them.

After Tiger Temple, we made our way to an elephant camp to go for a ride

You hop on from an elevated platform and the mahouts (elephant trainers) take you around for a ride

The elephants go down for a dip to cool off in the river

At one point, our mahout jumped off and let Shannon ride on the elephant’s neck

Riding an elephant is not the most comfortable ride but it was a really cool experience.

Next, we took a boat ride along the Kwai River

After a day full of hanging out with neat animals, we enjoyed our last night in Kanchanaburi. We bar hopped around, including a ‘get drunk for 10 Baht’ bar. Baht is the Thai currency, and 10 Baht corresponds to about 30 cents in U.S. currency.