Thai soldiers in traditional attire stage a mock battle alongside
"battle" elephants at the annual Surin elephant festival, 450 km (279
miles) northeast of Bangkok, on November 16, 2002. More than one
hundred elephants took part in the 42nd staging of the event, which
celebrates the elephants' part in Thai history along with more modern
forms of entertainment. The residents of Surin, near the border with
Cambodia, have been using the elephants in everyday life for centuries,
though the elephants perform as much for tourists as for labour in the
jungle these days. REUTERS/Jason Reed

JIR/JD