Lazy Days in Galle and a Long Flight Home...

The final leg of my travelling took me to possibly the best place of all, although that is a tough call to make! Galle, specifically Galle fort, is a beautiful, vibrant, eclectic and colourful place: the town lives within the old Dutch walls of a centuries-old fort, a pink stoned lighthouse stands sentinel, its beacon gazing out over the vast, blue Indian Ocean. The buildings within are a mixture of medieval European, Asian and western architecture and design, and churches, mosques and Buddhist shrines co-exist harmoniously next door to one another.

The people too are a melting pot of cultures, nationalities and backgrounds: from international photojournalist Juliet Coombe who has since married and settled in Galle, to the young, boardshort-wearing, dreadlocked young men, the 'fort jumpers', who make money by being paid by tourists to leap off the fort walls into the sea below.

The food in Galle is similarly stunning: dhal curries, betelgourd curries, spinach and potato and fresh, hot poppadoms every night have become the norm...

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end, and after a few days exploring Galle and a peaceful afternoon relaxing on Unawatuna beach, I made the trip back to Colombo, where I treated myself to a night at the Cinnamon Grand hotel before finally flying the long 11 hours home.

Welcome to 'Little England'...

This is the repeated phrase I've heard in Nuwara Eliya: utilised by the British to grow tea and cool climate vegetables and fruits (including the beloved British strawberry), colonial Nuwara Eliya became known as a microcosm of England. It certainly feels that way when I was there: very chilly, with constant drizzle and grey mist obscuring the hilltops.

Nuwara Eliya is home to Victoria Park, a beautiful landscaped garden filled with fountains, ponds, flowers and numerous bright little birds chirruping away in the trees. Later in the day I visited Labookellie Tea Factory, and saw exactly how we get our delicious cuppas back home. Topped off with a complimentary pot of golden tea and a rather tasty slice of chocolate cake, a brilliant way to end my visit to the heart of the Hill Country.

Today I journeyed for hours on the bus, back to Colombo where I will be spending a few days before heading down to Galle on the south coast. Already the chilly, windy nights and rainy, misty days of Nuwara Eliya are becoming like a dream in the hot, humid air of the capital...

The Well-travelled Road

A lot has happened since I've last been able to post, but I will start with the most recent first: last night I was in Kandy for the first night of the spectacular Esala Perahera procession. This procession through the streets of Kandy, home of the sacred Tooth Relic, carries the relic itself as well as the four Hindu devales for the people to see during the sacred full moon period. The relics are carried on the back of gigantic elephants, mainly tuskers, who are decorated in sumptuous clothes and sparking lights. Other decorated elephants join the parade as well as Kandyan dancers, and other performers and dancers. Drums, flute-like instruments, singing: all add to the hectic atmosphere as the streets are crowded with thousands of people eager for a glance at their religious relics. Well worth staying for, it was a fantastic evening.

Prior to my third stay in Kandy I have been up on the north-east coast, to the coastal town of Trincomalee. Trinco saw more than its share of action during the civil war, and it retains a rather bruised, derelict appearance as it struggles to reassert itself following peace. The harbour is beautiful but also incredibly dirty, with open sewage pipes and waste collecting on the edge of the water. We were able to visit Marble Bay, which was absolute paradise: swaying palm trees, golden sands, water so clear you can see the bottom six feet in, and best of all, practically deserted. Spent a wonderful morning and afternoon swimming and relaxing.



Follwing Trincomalee a rather nice surprise occured: I was invited back to Wasgamuwa for a few days! I was at Trinco with Ravi, SLWCS's founder, some of the other volunteers and the film crew who are producing a documentary on human-elephant conflict: as they were all going to Wasgamuwa and then on to Kandy, I was invited back to the fieldhouse for a couple of days before going to Kandy with them. It was brilliant, that first view of the fieldhouse was like returning home. Back to friendly faces, peaceful ambience and delicious food.

Today I've arrived in Nuwara Eliya, high up in the Hill Country and surprisingly chilly. This is the tea capital of Sri Lanka, so I'm looking forward to some tasty cuppas over the next few days...

The Sacred Cities

Since I last wrote, I have left the conservation project, spent a few days around Colombo and Dehiwala, and have since arrived in Polonnaruwa.

Spent several days in Anuradhapura, one of Sri Lanka's ancient capitals: as you can imagine, crumbling ruins, bright white dagobas, serene Buddhas and beautifully landscaped parks. My favourite was five minutes from our guesthouse, a wonderfully quiet and shaded Royal Pleasure Gardens with huge bathing pools and elephant friezes throughout. The story says that one of the ancient princes met and fell in love with a commoner here in the park, whom he then married, forsaking the throne. Several Sri Lankan couples were picnicking under the leafy trees, no doubt recreating those old love stories.


Onwards then to Polonnaruwa, following a long and bustling bus journey, and tomorrow the plan is to visit the ruins here. Then due to meet up with some friends from SLWCS over in Trincomolee on the east coast, so will endeavour to keep you updated!!

Acquiring Merit at Sigiriya and Dambulla

Life in the jungle continues as ever, with countless birds and animals sighted, friendly local farmers met, impromptu Sinhalese lessons from the clever and curious children, and of course continuing spectacular vistas and panoramas every time I look up to the horizon!

We had a day off a few days ago, and seized the opportunity to visit the impressive Sigiriya, an ancient Buddhist monastry site built upon a hardened lump of magma, its volcano long since eroded. You get to walk right to the summit, along some perilous staircases in which it is well advised not to look down! Definitely worth the view from the top though: mile upon mile of lush, verdant jungle and distant, shrouded mountains.

Later in the afternoon we visited the Dambulla Rock Temples: another hike uphill, then the caves themselves are cool and dark as you enter. The ceilings and walls are frescoed with images of the Buddha and his life, and the caves are filled with a multitude of statues of the enlightened teacher. So quiet is Sri Lanka that even in these renowned places, you have the caves to yourself at points, perfect for quiet reflection and thoughts.

I'm currently writing this from the main campsite in Wasgamuwa, with the tank below shimmering in the late afternoon light, the Knuckles mountain ranges visible in the distance.We're just about to go to the treehut for some elephant-spotting, so for now I will leave you...

Wasgamuwa Walks and Kandyan Culture

Well, managed to get to an internet cafe so decided to do a quick blog update. Arrived at Wasgamuwa National Park very late on Monday night, so first port of call was bed! Our bedroom is basically a brick barn with an open wall, so at nighttime we can hear the crickets and frogs singing us to sleep. Tuesday we had a guided tour of our main sites, the HQ site where the laptop and researchers stay, and the tree hut, a fantastic treehouse built high in the boughs of a tree that we sit in every evening at dusk to watch for signs of elephants. On our first night we were lucky enough to see a herd of eighteen of these fantastic animals, mohters, aunts, sisters and babies, all steadily and quietly grazing, moving as they foraged. On the way home to our basecamp we also saw a lone tusker, dark and skulking in the tree line.

Day to day life here is quite idyllic, consisting of early mornings woken by the rooster, a leisurely breakfast of rottis and tea, and then a hike through the beautiful lands of the park: either a transect searching for signs of elephant or leopard or a monitoring of the electric fences used here to encircle the villagers, protecting them from the elephants. Of course, it is so hot here that even a short hike will leave us exhausted. It gets dark by seven, so early to bed, apart from the odd evening when we have a 'bottle party' with Chintaka and Sarath, our staff members who stay at basecamp, sampling the local arrack, a liquor distilled from coconut.

Following a hard weeks work we have come to Kandy for a few days, a big change from the rural peace we are now used to! The city is a riot of colour, noise and scary road-crossings! Visited the fantastic Botanical Gardens yesterday, and today we had the confusing task of catching a bus from Kandy's central bus station to take us to the Millenium Elephant Foundation. We had a brilliant day, washing elephants and being liberally drenched in return! Photographs will follow shortly, they are difficult to upload due to the format I am shooting in!

Tomorrow we plan on visiting the Temple of the Tooth, a temple on Kandy lake that houses a tooth taken from the funeral pyre of the Buddha himself. Afer that we return to Wasgamuwa, and hopefully more sightings of the wild elephants!

Until then, ayubowan!

The Beginning...

Well, I'm currently on my fourth day on the island of Sri Lanka: the flight was long and tiring and I was very grateful to reach terra firma again! The taxi ride to Ranweli was an eye-opener, seeing the poverty was a bit of a shock despite expecting it, although I had to laugh when I saw one man ferrying his poor cow in the back of his tuk-tuk!

Ranweli is situated on the west coast, and we are about 100 metres from the Indian Ocean: as you can imagine, some beautiful sunsets. The village is situated between the ocean and a long, winding river flanked by mangroves, a haven for a plethora of birds and water monitors. On Saturday I went on a river tour on a boat, and saw enough kingfishers to last a lifetime: pied, stork-billed, white-throated, even our own little blue and orange Eurasian! Coupled with some impressively large basking monitors and countless egrets, herons and waterbirds it was a wonderful experience.

To be honest the rest of my stay here has been unashamedly lazy: sitting by the pool, walking on the beach, swimming and acclimatising to the spicy food. But, I figured that Ranweli is going to be my only luxury stay during my time here, so why not?!

Tomorrow I head off to Wasgamuwa National Park to join the Sri Lankan Wildlife Conservation Society as a volunteer for four weeks. Elephants here we come!