On our first day in Chiang Mai province we spent the morning visiting the Ran-Tong elephant sanctuary. This was an absolutely wonderful stop on our tour. Asian elephants are smaller than African ones, but have larger brains and are considered more intelligent. The sanctuary rescues elephants that have been abused, usually by cruel or uncaring handlers who overwork, underfeed and mistreat these large creatures. Most cannot be reintroduced into the wild and are taken care of at sanctuaries such as this one. All of the larger elephants were female, which are easier to keep in captivity. The two 'baby' elephants (ages 2-5) were both males and after weening were kept separate from the rest of the rescued herd because they often get into mischief and act rebellious. When we arrived at the sanctuary, the site's guide called out to the elephants who immediately came over for a meet and greet. We changed into 'work clothes' at the facility and then spent the next several hours feeding and bathing the elephants and learning about their plight and rehabilitation. One of the things encouraged at the sanctuary is human interaction with these giant mammals so that they lose their fear of people (many have been traumatized by their previous handlers). We were taught to touch and say kind words to the elephants as we fed them. We sliced bananas and made 'vitamin balls' wrapped in leaves for their consumption. It was an awesome experience.