The enduring odyssey of Sak Surin, an elephant initially gifted by Thailand to Sri Lanka, took a homeward trajectory as the pachyderm touched down in Chiang Mai yesterday, ending a 22 year long overseas sojourn.
Sak Surin’s journey back to Chiang Mai was an elaborate endeavour. Encased within a specially designed cage that was placed in the cargo hold of an Ilyushin IL-76, Sak Surin was accompanied by a team of four veterinarians and two mahouts who had journeyed to Sri Lanka earlier to facilitate the repatriation.
The IL-76 departed Bandaranaike International Airport, Colombo, at 7.30am yesterday. Despite the five hour long journey, Sak Surin reportedly remained calm throughout the airborne voyage, which concluded with the plane’s touchdown at Chiang Mai airport at 2.03pm later that day.
Upon landing, Sak Surin was met with a comprehensive…
