Tiger Kingdom

My roommate May and I ventured out to a place called Tiger Kingdom, about thirty minutes away in Mae Rim. You decide which tigers you want to get close to (smallest, small, medium, and large) and then buy tickets. May and I decided to go with everything but large. It was a better deal to do more than one or two, anyway. But we still weren't brave enough to go with large. So off we went. We started with the smallest, which were around three months of age.

They were so cute! They were all very playful, like kittens. It was actually a bit of a challenge to get one to stay in still for one second to take a photo. They made these little "rawr" noises, too, like they were trying to be big and scary tigers. It ended up sounding like a meow.

Next we went to the small tiger habitat. They were just a few months older than the first group, averaging about six months old. They were a little more mellow, so maybe a few months really does matter when it comes to maturity. Much easier to get pictures with.

Then finally, the medium tigers. We had to ask if we were at the right habitat, thinking the sign was wrong. These tigers were huge! Especially compared to the itty bitty things we had just left. But no, these were really the "medium" tigers. We were a tad nervous approaching these ones, but they ended up being the most snuggly things ever. They were just like house cats, sprawled around the ground. Some sitting composed under trees, others on their backs soaking up the sun.

It was a great experience. We spent about thirty minutes in each habitat. Then afterwards, we ate lunch at a restaurant which overlooked the large tiger habitat. And they were absolutely massive! It actually did make the medium tigers seem appropriately classified.