ROAR!

I saved the best photos of our Chiang Mai trip for last. We went to a place called Tiger Kingdom. Its a cool place. They have SO many tigers there! You have a choice of either just walking around and looking at the tigers, or you can pay to go in and actually sit with and touch the tigers. You get to choose from the baby tigers, the "toddlers" and the "teens". Or spend more money and do all 3! Once they get to be older than a few years, it is no longer a wise idea to enter their cage. All of the tigers we saw looked completely happy and healthy. They did not seem sedated at all. They were very affectionate with their handlers also. It was like a little slice of paradise! We couldn't afford all 3 sizes so we went for the baby tigers. We got to spend about 15 minutes in their pens playing with them. It was amazing! They were so cute and cuddly. They made little purring noises and loved to have their bellies pet. Before going in we had to wash our hands. We weren't allowed to pick the tiger cubs up or touch their faces. They discourage the tigers from licking or biting (obviously), even in play. Although, one little cub was playing with my arm and he did bite the inside of my elbow. It was so soft though, like a bite from a puppy. Anyway, it was an awesome experience and made us long for the new system! After we spent some time with the babies, we walked around the rest of the park taking pictures of the other tigers. I am glad we chose the babies because some of the older tigers were so big and intimidating I don't think I could have stepped into the cage with them!