before we got in the river, the guide informed us that he'd be telling the elephant to sit down in the water with us still on her back. he sang a little song "doo-doo-doo-doo" and demonstrated the motion she would make which, according to him, was a gentle swaying back and forth. you will see that this motion is actually more like a mechanical bull, only about 3,000 times larger. both he and ban waa were delighted by this game as you'll notice by his laughing and "oh my god"ing and her trumpeting and splashing. marco was less delighted the first time i was tossed [you'll see the camera go down because he's about to leap into the water to my rescue] but it was all in good fun. so fun! i could get used to having an elephant playmate.
