One of the main reasons Sebastien wanted to visit Chiang Mai in northern Thailand was to go to Tiger Temple. I believe that there are a few places, maybe two, in Thailand called the Tiger Temple. The one we went to was about a 40 minute cab ride from Chiang Mai.
There is some controversy regarding the well being of these tigers. They were in small caged-in areas and seemed very aloof. My experience was that it was amazing to touch such a beautiful being but that they did looked very sad and depressed. I also had a moment with a younger tiger and his spirit asked me to free him.
When we arrived at Tiger Temple we had lunch in the restaurant which is within arms distance from the tigers. We eat and watched visitors get their picture taken while they lay on these wild beasts. When we were done we decided that we would go in the big cat’s cage and the baby tiger’s cage.
We had 15 minutes in each cage and were allowed to touch them behind the head. I loved being around the babies. The one we were allowed to pet sat on our laps and cuddled with us for a second. The paws on this baby tiger were bigger than my face.
Here are some pictures of us with the big boy tigers.
Yes they are real live tigers.
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I was hoping to hear also the story about temple here…
Me and my girlfriend were looking into going here but after reading your blog we are not so sure, did the tigers seem drugged to you? I’ve heard of tiger temple north of bangkok that is run by monks and seems much more right on. Thanks for the info.