Around Galle - and a special birthday

February 19th, only two days left in Sri Lanka, a day touring, and a final day at the pool and beach.  It was also my birthday, and Ranjan had plans for us! He had already bought me a batik shirt and a sarong, but today he wanted to show us some new sites.

First we journeyed beyond Galle to a turtle sanctuary at Hikkaduwa. Turtles have many predators: humans who like to eat their eggs for longevity, dogs, honey badgers, gulls that eat the eggs and also the emerging day old turtles, sharks,

and fisherman. The survival rate is only 1 in 100 eggs, and around the world conservation centres have been set up to protect the species.  Here the threatened species was the green backed turtle, and the owner paid 20 rupees for each egg brought to him for incubation.  Unusually he also took in injured turtles and rehabilitated the back into the wild.  We saw turtles that had been caught in fishing nets or struck by a boat propeller, that had lost one, two and even three fins, that were slowly taught how to swim and dive against they could be released back to the sea.

We visited a moonstone mine,the only one in the world to produce blue moonstones, and watched the entirely manual process by which the seams, some 45 metres down, are dug out, the mon stones sifted for the sand, and then patiently cut and mounted.The prices were beyond our reach.

We took a boat safari through the mangrove swamps, seeing how cinnamon was extracted from the bark of a tree, rolled into cinnamon sticks or ground to a fine powder, and how cinnamon oil was produced. We visited an island temple, not the most elaborate or spectacular on our tour, but perhaps with the most knowledgeable guide.  The disciple with the blue face had done something very bad in a previous incarnation, but had been reincarnated as a protector of animals and all living things!

Our driver dropped us off at Jungle Beach to watch the sunset whilst he went off to run an errand.  It was a lovely beach, although rather popular on account of its beautiful reputation.  At sunset all the sun bathers packed up and left leaving it briefly to just ourselves.  And then, as if on cue, at the end of a day's work, the locals arrived, stripped down to their underwear and enjoyed a dip in the cooling waters before returning home for dinner.

Ranjan collected us.  He had been preparing a birthday surprise meal! We ate traditional Sri Lankan fish curry and rice at his mother's home, surrounded by his family including his beautiful wife, his charming son of 14 years age, top of his school and winner of the village prize, who speaks excellent English and wants to be a doctor, and his very pretty 8 year old daughter.  He was so proud to introduce us to his family including his 72 year old father, and we felt honoured and privileged to have been invited into his home.  It was a  perfect end to a memorable birthday.  Thank you Ranjan!

Tsunami

Over the course of 3 weeks we had got to know our driver,  Ranjan, quite well. Always polite and courteous, he was clearly pleased to show us around his country.  We gave him the well deserved title of "The safest driver in Sri Lanka", and this justifiably made him beam with delight. He had shown us photos of his wife, children, brothers and sister, and it was clear his was a close-knit, happy family of which he was extremely proud. It was a shock to us therefore when on our way to Galle he stopped at the side of the road adjacent to a narrow strip of palm tree backed beach and pointed out a pile of rubble. This, he said, was my house until the Tsunami came in 2004 and flattened everything.  My wife and I, carrying our 4 month old baby had no warning and had to run for our lives.  We lost everything.   

A little further on he showed us his new house, not large but one of 87 that had been built by the government along with a block of flats to rehouse the homeless following the disaster.  There were other similar tsunami villages along the coastline, all of which had been completely devastated 14 years ago.  We saw a monument to the 1,270 people who lost their lives in one incident when the wave broke over a passenger train on its way to Columbo, and a statue of Buddha donated by Japan to the 58,000 people who perished in the disaster.  Ranjan survived with his family intact, but we found huge respect and admiration for them for rebuilding their lives and being so happy in the face of such adversity.

Memorial to the 1270 train passengers who lost their lives when the tsunami struck.  58,000 perished altogether.

Galle is a pretty town, fortified by a substantial Portuguese, and later, Dutch fort, and crossed by narrow streets and picturesque houses, many built in the colonial style.  It is a good place to buy jewellery or lace, or simply to while away the hours window shopping or walking the city walls.

Whale watching at Mirissa

We spent our last 4 days in Sri Lanka on the south coast town and beach resort of Mirissa. This small port lies about 20km East of Galle at one end of a long sandy strip of coastline that stretches most of the way to Columbo.  Many of the beaches here are a surfers paradise, but equally there are vast long stretches of inviting golden sand and gently lapping blue seas with hardly a soul upon them.

Everybody comes to Mirissa to go whale watching and of course we were no exception. It is an early start, before sunrise, but the port comes alive with fishing boats returning with the night's catch, tuktuks delivering passengers to the quayside, and the operators of 20 or more whale watching boats vying for your custom. It is a great opportunity for photographs provided you are fully

awake! We were welcomed aboard with tea, coffee, yoghurt and fruit, and then shortly after the sun had risen we set out in search of whales and dolphins.  Once we cleared the headland There was a steady swell on the sea.  The journey is not for those who easily succumb to sea sickness, although fortunately we were not amongst them.  We travelled for more than 2 hours, I would estimate more than 14 miles, and sign of land having long since disappeared, all the boats having spread out from one horizon to the other to give the greatest chance of spotting a whale.

Briefly we were surrounded by a school of dolphins following our course and riding the bow wave.  Then tantalisingly a blue whale broke the surface and swam alongside us for a few seconds before diving and disappearing from view.  All the boats began to converge,

and then began the patient waiting game.  How our captain knew when to give up and look elsewhere I do not know, but we were rewarded as once again a blue whale broke the surface and this time swam alongside us for several minutes.  It was amazing to see the colossal size of this animal, its tongue is bigger than an elephant, and to marvel at the slow but graceful way that it moved through the water.

From Ella to Yala National Park

Leaving Ella we journeyed southwards by the mountain pass that clings to the side of Ella valley.  After a few miles we stopped at the Ravana Falls, the subject of many legends centred around the story of Ramayana.  In the monsoon season (April) this waterfall becomes a raging torrent that covers the road, but today it was just a modest flow.

Further on we turned off the main road to see the Dowa Rock Temple, founded in the second century BC by King Walagamba.  It has a 38 ft (12 m) Buddha image sculptured from a rock and some paintings belonging to the Kandyan era, depicting various Jathaka stories. Our knowledgable guide gave us a fluent account of its history, but soon picked up on my love of nature and was delighted to,show us a camouflaged chameleon and a black hooded oriole chick in its nest.

We arrived in Yala just in time to transfer from our comfortable car into an open sided jeep ready to begin our safari into Yala National Park.  This park is famous for its population of leopards.  Three bone-shattering hours later we had seen plenty of wildlife, but not a leopard. Then suddenly our driver got a tip, and off we sped, heedless of the ruts in the track, at breakneck speed, overtaking other vehicles both left and right. Yes, we got to see a leopard, silhouetted on a rocky outcrop against the setting sun.  Sadly it didn't make a good photo, so you will have to take my word for it.  And would you believe it, it was less than half-a-mile from the entrance where we first came into the park.

The Central Highlands Railway and Ella

You won't find many mentions of Ella in the guide books.  Until 5 or 6 years ago it was just a sleepy town clinging to the mountainside amongst the tea plantations. When the civil war came to an end and tourists began to return in numbers the back-packers in particular discovered that train travel was a cheap and easy way of travel around the country.  The line from Columbo to Kandy became a popular way to travel between the two large cities.  Inevitably stops along the way began to attract visitors, and so Ella was discovered.  Ella "City" is now a busy place, hugely popular with gap-year students. The tea plantations are being built upon as locals vie to build more and more guest houses with increasingly dramatic views of the wonderful scenery, and the centre is alive with bars and restaurants catering to every nationality.  Strangely it is not yet spoiled, the views are magnificent, but we had a feeling it will not be long before the place is overrun and it loses its character.  Almost certainly the tourist juggernaut will move on down the line and develop the next sleepy village in the same manner.

Ella Rock - The View from our Room

Our reason for coming here was not for the destination, but for the journey. For 110 rupees (less than $1) you can buy a second class rail ticket from Nurwala Eliya to Ella, a journey

of nearly three hours.  But you may not get a seat. Our driver skilfully ensured we had a good seat and were able to cross from side to side and hang out the window repeatedly to try and capture the most stunning views. It might have been exciting for others to ride the footplate and jump off and on at each station, but we still felt like children, and enjoyed the journey in comfort.

Nuwara Eliya

Nuwara Eliya in the Central Highlands, is Sri Lanka's highest city at 1890 metres above sea level, and nestles in a broad valley surrounded by the country's highest mountains.  It is different here.  The houses have gardens of colourful flowers.  There are green lawns.  Sparrows chatter in the bushes whilst pigeons softly coo from the rooftops.  There is a racecourse, a golf club and the houses are of brick construction with tiled roofs.  The climate is very agreeable and altogether it feels very much like England.

Nuwara Eliya

Interestingly Nuwara was not discovered by the British until fairly late in their colonial rule.  Seeing the potential of the area in the 1830's they set about growing coffee, which for a time was very successful, until wiped out by the coffee blight of the 1870's.  The whole area was replanted with tea and the Ceylon tea industry was born.  The other main crop here is European vegetables and they are sent from here all over the island.

The Post Office at Nurwala Eliya 

We spent a morning here idling away our time whilst we waited to catch the train to Ella. Undoubtably the stop was a highlight for Anni who discovered a fabric shop.  Not content with going behind the counter to investigate the huge array of colourful silk and cotton fabrics for sale, she succeeded in gaining entry to the stock room where she rummaged around for material to purchase and bring home.  We left a couple of hours later, my wallet lighter, and our suitcases considerably heavier!

Adam's Peak - as one with the heavens

Adam's Peak - from our hotel

Imagine climbing a flight of stairs.Now imagine doing it 425 times in succession.  Just to make it a bit harder, now think about doing it at night poorly lit.  The steps are steeper than at home, they are stone, some are crumbling, some are narrow, some are broad, but they go on and on, without let up, and there are 5,500 of them.  The temperature is 18degrees c, falling to 13 degrees c, as you gain height, and people keep getting in your way. Could you do it? We did! And we came back down again.

At two o'clock in the morning, after just 3 hours sleep, we left our hotel room to climb the 7,359ft high mountain that is known as Adam's Peak or Sri Pada. At the top of the mountain is a Buddhist temple, a spiritual place where Buddhists believe Buddha left his footprint.  Sri Pada means beautiful footprint.  Hindus believe this to be the place where Lord Shiva left his footprint, whilst some Christians believe the footprint to be the first left by Adam after he had been exiled from the Garden of Eden. Three religions as one with the heavens.

Feeling very hot!

Unknown to us the day was also a poya day or religious holiday so we were in the company of around 4,000 pilgrims, from mothers carrying babies, to fathers holding the hands of children, to sons and daughters helping their aged parents and grandparents to reach the summit.  Many carried offerings of fruit or flowers, and many walked in bare feet.  Groups ascended together, chanting and responding as they climbed.  Young and old, it felt like all Sri Lanka was there, and we were sharing in a deeply religious ritual.

A long way still to go!

It was tough. Very tough. And the higher we went, the steeper the ascent became.  Our goal was to reach the top before sunrise and we had allowed four-and-a-half hours to do so. We had made a new friend, Roo, and together we spurred each other on, Roo being a great time-keeper, and monitor of our increasingly frequent stops. After four hours we had the summit in site, only 250 metres to go.......and then we stopped! Ahead of us, packed shoulder to shoulder

on each of the remaining steps, countless pilgrims patiently waited their turn to file past Buddha's footprint and leave their offering.  We moved to the side and from our vantage point watched the dawn as one by one the stars faded and the black of the night sky lifted to a palette of deep purples, mauves and pinks. Then as daybreak approached the distant horizon began to take on an orange glow, radiating outwards until finally the sun climbed above the far peaks and began to throw its rays across the mountain ranges picking out the highest peaks and slowly casting golden rays of light into the valleys picking them out one by one. It was a wonderful sight and we too felt we were as one with the heavens.

We did complete the climb.  It took us another 2 hours from joining the queue of pilgrims to reach the shrine, and the

Queueing to enter the temple at 7am

best part of three hours to descend the steps the way we had come.  The descent was perhaps the hardest part, taking a toll on our knees and ankles, and challenging us as tiredness overcame us.  In all the hike took us 9 hours.  We were exhausted but elated.  It was the hardest walk we had ever achieved. Would we do it again?.......... NO, NO, NO!