It is time to visit elephants again!

I think I've found my next exotic travel destination - The Thai Elephant Conservation Center in Hang Chat, Thailand.





With my visit to the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage near Colombo, Sri Lanka in 1995, I developed an appreciation for these majestic beasts and their mahouts.  (Mahouts are boys who take up the  'family profession' when he is assigned an elephant early in its life. They remain bonded to each other throughout their lives.)

 Many of the baby and young elephants I "met" during my visit to Pinnawala were just getting to know their mahouts.  I wonder where these "friends" are now?

Recently I came across a YouTube video of the Thai Elephant Orchestra, a group of 14 elephants from the Thai Elephant Conservation Center performing with young human musicians.  Quite amazing.


If you'd like to learn more about these talented animals, their mahouts, and the musicians involved in creating and writing for this orchestra, visit http://www.thailandelephant.org/en/orchestra.html 

The Sounds of the Beach

Roaring surf, wind through the shore pines, laughing children, barking dogs, and....

cawing crows! 

Yes, you read that correctly. 
The summer sounds of the beach include a 5 a.m. wake-up fly-by of our denizen of local crows. 

With that raucous sound another day at the beach has dawned!

Shadow

Shadow!  A handsome corgi has become the newest member of the music loving dog group who travels to my Lincoln City organ studio with their owners for organ lessons.

Shadow makes the trip down the coast every other week with Margaret to give my husband and me some "dog time."  We don't have a dog of our own, so these visits by dogs owned by my students and friends are great animal encounter moments.

Thanks Shadow for joining the group.  You follow two great music-loving dogs - Dino and Bailey - who traveled to my studio for years.