An Asian elephant carries her handler in her mouth at an annual elephant festival in Surin, 450 kilometres northeast of Bangkok November 20. Over 250 elephants took part in the 39th staging of the event which celebrates the elephants' part in Thai history and attracts thousands of tourists from overseas. The residents of Surin, near the border with Cambodia, have been using the elephants in everyday life for centuries. The elephants perform nowadays as much for tourists as for labour in the jungle.

JIR/PB