Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary Review

Nothing beats a dose of wildlife when I'm overseas. It's my dream to visit every zoo and animal sanctuary in the world. While that is almost impossible, I made a promise to myself that while I am in a particular country, I would visit either one.

So it only made sense to visit the Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary in Pahang while I was in Kuala Lumpur. To this Singaporean, Pahang isn't exactly near Kuala Lumpur. But ask a Malaysian and he would say the one and half hours drive was VERY NEAR! What can I say? They live in a huge country. Trust me, anything bigger than Singapore is huge in my books!

The drive took us on a highway with thousands of flags. You gotta love Malaysia during the general elections. With the number of flags all over the country, one can be forgiven for thinking fabric was on 99% discount. LOL!

See what I mean? Mind you this was just a tiny road in a village!

How do you get to the sanctuary?

From Kuala Lumpur, take the Karak Highway heading towards Lancang District, passing the Karak Village along the way. Once in Lancang, you should be able to see a BP gas station by the side of the road. Turn left into the road before the gas station, then follow the ample road signs along the way and head towards Bolok. You will pass an Orang Asli settlement and at the end of that road, you will reach the Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary. The journey takes between 2 to 2 1/2 hours and is 160km from Kuala Lumpur. --- Courtesy of Tourism Malaysia

The Kuala Gandah Elephant Orphanage Sanctuary is such an amazing attraction. If the name doesn't give it away, the sanctuary is home to homeless elephants. Duh! Not just one or two elephants but lots of them. It was such a joy to see the young elephants.

 You can either buy a small bunch of sugarcane at RM1.00 or a pack of peanuts at RM3.00. Remember, proceeds go the sanctuary.

 This fella is adorable!!! I so wanted to bring him/her home!

Look at the number of trunks!!!

Singaporeans will love this. Entrance to the sanctuary is free. Hahaha! I just had to say that. It's true what! Singaporeans love everything that is free! But hey don't be an ass by visiting and leaving without contributing a little bit. It's extremely easy to do so. You can make a donation or even better, pay for a guided tour and elephant bath (do note that the elephant bath will cease from June 2013). The guided tour and elephant bath is RM20.00 per person.

 Rasli the animal presenter!

The adult elephants perform a short demonstration everyday.

 A female elephant is given a bath by it's mahout.

Uzair and Stephanie waiting to bath the young elephants. Uzair is a very talented producer in Kuala Lumpur. Can't wait to watch his Nepal documentary. www.uzairsawal.com 

As much as I would have liked bathing the elephants, the thought of getting my feet wet was a no no. I can't stand wet feet. Urgh!

Splash water they did... 

I am in one picture. This one!

Now you know what to do when you are in area. Visit these elephants and you might become an EleFriend! For more information, visit their website at http://www.myelephants.org/.