Photo of pantry visiting Thai elephant goes viral

A Thai elephant named Boonchuay went looking for a snack and became a star. A cell-phone video of the wild elephant breaking through a wall into a town house’s kitchen to nosh on steamed rice has grabbed the attention of global viewers.

Villagers said that the break-in was typical of the mischief Boonchuay made when he occasionally paid a visit to their hamlet of Chalermkiatpattana. The small town is situated near Kaeng Krachan national park, where many herds of elephants still roam in the wild.

“They come to visit quite often. They always come when there is the local market because they can smell food,” said Itthipon Thaimonkol, the park’s superintendent.

The owner of the house, Ratchadawan Puengprasoppon, said the sounds of crashing and banging woke her in the early hours before dawn. When she went to investigate, she discovered Boonchuay’s head poking through her kitchen wall beside the drying rack.

Boonchuay’s trunk pulled open cabinet drawers, knocked pans and cooking pots to the floor. He chewed on a bag as Ratchadawan, unsure what to do, used her phone to take videos of the hungry nocturnal visitor.

The image of Boonchuay’s head poking through the kitchen wall quickly became a humorous meme online.

Plotnik said that most villagers were sympathetic to the elephants and never mean any harm to them.

Photo courtesy of https://today.line.me/th/v2/article/Vk8nw2