Blogs from Southern Province, Sri Lanka, Asia - page 5

Nase flakani v Mirisse shrnu uz do jediného clanku, vic si to stejne nezaslouzi. Hlavnim poznatkem bylo, ze Mirissa automaticky neznamena dobre počasí. Z tech 5 dni jsme videli slunicko asi 3 hodiny, jinak bylo pod mrakem a relativne často sprchlo nejake to stesticko. Me to tak uplne nevadilo, protože jako spravny Cech jsem do more každý den vlezl, more bylo krasne teple, takze jsem byl vlastne spokojeny, ze nemusim resit nejake mazani a pripalovani. Jeli jsme se podivat na velryby (za 6000 rupii i s odvozem), coz bylo trochu zklamani. Je to totiž docela loterie, na kterem miste se pan Vel Ryba rozhodne nadechnout. Mozna to urcuje podle toho, kdo mu kolik zaplati planktonu, ale mozna nam to delal naschval. Standardni prubeh je totiž takovy, ze clovek 5 minut kouka na prazdne more, pak se ... read more

Staying in a lovely guest house (The Spice House) here in Marissa. We would thoroughly recommend it to anyone who is coming here, probably about six or eight rooms and a lovely pool with quiet gardens all around. A nice respite from the hustle and bustle outside. This is a beach part of the holiday so a fair bit of r&r and so not so much activity to report on. Hence bi-daily blogs. We did on the first morning suffer the inevitable navigational issue, this time,however, with Marie and Donna in tow. Decided to walk down to the fishing harbour and after getting there hot and tired decided to get tuk tuks to take us back to the beach. The tuk tuks dropped us of on a corner and we headed off up a road that ... read more

Day 13: Saturday 16 September - Koggala - Galle – Ahungalia - Bentota This morning we drove to Galle to explore the city including the lighthouse and the Old Town. We also visit the UNESCO World Heritage listed Dutch Fort, the largest intact Dutch fort in Asia. Within the ramparts and stonewalls of Galle Fort outstanding buildings remain. From the ramparts, we could see a river inlet which was where the major tsunami destruction occurred as the area was rather low. The water flowed on the cricket ground which was next to the river. Thousands were killed in the city alone. The cricket ground is known as the Galle International Stadium, which is considered to be one of the most picturesque cricket grounds in the world. As the ground, which was severely damaged by ... read more

Day 11: Thursday 14 September - Udawalawe National Park Today we head to the neighbouring Udawalawe National Park. With herds of elephants, wild buffalo, sambar deer and leopards, Uda Walawe National Park is the Sri Lankan national park that best rivals the savannah reserves of Africa. In fact, for elephant watching, Uda Walawe often surpasses many of the most famous East African national parks. Here we visit the Elephant Transit Home located in Udawalawe National Park, where abandoned baby elephants are cared for before they are released into the Udawalawe National Park. Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home is a refuge for baby elephants, the majority of which have been affected by the tragic elephant – human conflict (when mothers are often separated from their young or even killed). This incredible project provides food, medical care, and anyt ... read more

Blue whales, the largest mammal on Earth and a lifelong dream of mine to see them in the wild. The Indian Ocean is one of the best places to do this as its a breeding and feeding ground as opposed to a place they pass through as is the norm with so many other blue whale spotting locations. The morning started as most on our holiday: waking before sunrise, then being picked up by a tuk-tuk at 5.50am to take us a distance we could easily walk. Glyn had pre-booked us with 'Raja and the Whales' and upon arrival we were offered sea-sickness tablets. Now having been on many boat trips and never once suffering from sea-sickness in my life, I wasn't going to take one and was concerned it may not mix with other medication ... read more