Trinkets for sale, Katharagama

The devotees who come to Katharagama are greeted by a host of small shops selling trinkets. I took this picture inside one of the shops at night.

Bird Island

The island in the Tissa Wewa at Tissa, Sri Lanka is a nesting place for egrets and cormorants. I took the closeup from a boat.

Under the greenery, Embilipitiya.

A village mud-track at Embilipitiya, Sri Lanka, bordering a water way. A welcome place for a bath and a picnic lunch.

Fruits for 'Puja'

A  roadside sales point for sale of fruits to make a 'Puja vattiya', for offering to the Gods at the Katharagama shrine. This was on the Tissa - Katharagama road.

The top of 'Kathiramalai' - 'Vedihitikanda'

The top of Kathiramalai - Vedihitikanda as seen on June 2011 from the road to Tissa.

Pleasure boats on Tissa Wewa.

Pleasure boat rides on Tissa Wewa, at Tissa, Sri Lanka are a must for any tourist.

Working a paddy field

Long stretches of paddy fields line the roadside from Tangalle to Hambanthota, Sri Lanka. You see in this picture the paddy field being prepared prior to transplanting the young paddy shoots.

Buffaloes foraging

Domesticated buffaloes range all over the countryside in Sri Lanka, foraging. They are usually accompanied by a male. They are steered towards their favorite mud patch where they dip down and watch the world go by. When you meet them on the road it is best to give them right-of-way for if they get restive they can be dangerous. I took this picture in a by-lane in Katharagama, Sri Lanka

A villager's hut on the road to Katharagama

A very eco-friendly house built in the traditional style using wood and mud. The roof is made of coconut fronds. This was the traditional building style over the last few millenia. Polythene on the roof is a recent introduction. It is called a 'varichchi' house in Sinhalese.

A 'blow-hole', 'Hummana',

 The seashore with pandanus trees on the way to the 'blow-hole'.

The blow-hole with a geyser of water rising up from it at irregular intervals to a height of about a few hundred feet.
To watch a video of same click on the address below:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbVI6dCKZUg&feature=related

Village pond

A village pond at Rekawa near Tangalle, Sri Lanka. A Cormorant and a peacock are visible in the picture.

An outrigger among the Pandanus trees

A scene at Rekawa, Sri Lanka. Pandanus trees grow all along the coast line. They are protected under the laws of Sri Lanka as they prevent sea erosion.

Kandyan dancers

I took these pictures of Kandyan dancers escorting the bride and groom to a homecoming ceremony at, Kadawathe, Sri Lanka.

Footpath to the beach

A footpath lying between two enclosed tourist cabanas leading to the beach, Tangalle, Sri Lanka.

Filial bond

Beaching an outrigger canoe

'Beaching' an outrigger canoe above the high water mark, after a fishing trip, takes a lot of effort. Helping hands are always available. I took this picture at Tangalle Bay in the south of Sri Lanka on a morning.

Sea turtle tracks and nest, Rekawa, Sri Lanka

There are five varieties of sea-turtles which come to the shores Sri Lanka to lay their eggs. The Greenback and the Leatherneck varieties come to the south coast to lay their eggs. The mature females come every two years. They dig a wide shallow pit in the shore and then a deeper narrower pit where the female lays about 80 to 100 eggs each time. It returns every two days about eight times to repeat the procedure.
You see the tracks of the turtle on the sand and the pit in which the eggs have been laid. I took this picture at Rekawa close to Tangalle, in Sri Lanka. Rekawa is a protected zone for sea-turtles.
After laying their eggs the Green-back turtles go northwards in the deep oceon and the Leather-neck turtles go south as far as South Africa to feed. On their return journey to lay their eggs each turtle is fertilized in turns by about 6 to 7 males in the high seas close to the shore.
The tiny turtles coming out of the eggs run on the sand to the sea in the night hours and swim very fast to the deep ocean to escape their predators. They come back as adults to lay their eggs in the same vicinity. It is claimed that hatching the eggs in a nursery and releasing the small ones on the shore, seems to delay their ability to swim fast. They thus fall easy prey to predators.

Whispering House

We found this house with 5 beds, a swimming pool, and a lovely ambiance for a stay of 3 days near the Tangalle bay, Sri Lanka. We had to prepare our own meals. We had a lovely time there

The waves

Watching the waves on a beach at Tangalle was a very soothing experience. The slow silent build up, the rolling over of the crest which becomes white and then the shallow water makes the crest to roll over and slam on to the outgoing wave making a bang was a beauty to watch. The sound of the bang could be heard in the chalet a few hundred yards inland, throughout the day and night. It formed a lullaby to my sleep at night.

Tangalle Bay Hotel, Tangalle, Sri Lanka

The Tangalle Bay Hotel was rebuilt on a design resembling a ship, facing the Tangalle Bay. It was built at the site of an older hotel which stood there more than 50 years. Each of the rooms has a lovely view facing the sea. I took this picture one month ago.

Coming home

I took this picture about a month ago from the beach at Tangalle, Sri Lanka. This was in the morning and the boatman was returning with the mornings catch.

Lobster netting, Tangalle, Sri Lanka.

Lobsters in the net laid the previous evening, off Tangalle beach, Sri Lanka.

Tangalle beach, Sri Lanka.

I took this picture of Tangalle beach at sunset. Almost the entire beach front has been bought up by foreigners who are building tourist resorts. A fisherman casting nets brought a catch of lobsters. He said he would get Rs.15,000/- for the five lobsters he caught that day. These are exported live to France, Germany etc.

Sunset at Avissawella.

The beauty of sunsets in Sri Lanka is a topic we hardly discuss. You need time to relax and watch it. The merging of myriads of colors on the cloudsis really impressive.

Flowers blooming in the wild.

I took this picture on the bank of the Kelany at Aswaththe, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Mongoose on the bund of a paddy field.

I took this picture of a mongoose foraging on the bund of a paddy field at Aswaththe, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Left bank of the Kelani Ganga, Aswaththe.

The boatman

The outrigger canoe is used to transport people from Eswaththe in Avissawella to Meethirigala in the Gampaha District across the Kelani Ganga. A bridge is proposed to be built at this site in the near future.

Little Cormorant

I took this picture on the Kudagama road, Avissawella. The cormorant was cooling itself by opening its wings to the breeze after a prolonged dive.

The Kelany Ganga at Aswaththe.

Hornbill

I took this picture of a Hornbill near its nest, at Kosgama, Sri Lanka in January 2011. There were two of them presumably a couple.

A 'Brahminy kite'

I took this picture of a 'Brahminy kite' soaring in the sky above our home in Avissawella. A few moments later iit flew low close to some crows' nests. All the crows ganged up and chased it away.

A tea factory on the distant hills.

A tea factory nestling on the distant hills is seen as a white speck, on the road to Wewalwaththe, Rathnapura, Sri Lanka.

A lily pond

A pond to grow water lilies made by tapping a stream, close to a house, at Alupola, Sri Lanka.

A mountain stream, Alupola.

A peaceful mountain stream where all the cares and worries of a rushed life could be shed. One could listen to the sound of running water and feel the cool breeze on the body and be transported to another world where time stands still.

'Natha Devale, Kandy.

The archeological excavations around the 'Maligawa Complex' in Kandy has found evidence of worship at the Natha Devale site from the early Centuries of the Present Era. This is a picture of the 'Natha Dewale' as seen from the 'Dalda Maligawa'. Natha, Vishnu, Skanda and Vinayaga have temples for worship in Kandy from very early times, predating the Dalada Maligawa.

Flower offerings at the temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

A picture I took of flower offerings at the 'mal aasana' in front of the repository of the Sacred Tooth Relic, Kandy, Sri Lanka.

Tea factory and workers settlement, Wewalwaththe, Rathnapura, Sri Lanka.

A beautiful view of the tea factory and workers settlements at Wewalwaththe, Rathnapura, Sri Lanka. I took this picture from the Alupola - Balakotunna, road at about 3 pm.

'The Audience Hall', Kandy.

This building is the 'Audience Hall' of the last King of Kandy. The King received ambassadors to the court in this building. The Kandyan Convention ceding the Kandyan Kingdom to the British was signed here. In the 1960s the Supreme Court held its sessions here. Now it is a protected site.

On the road to Nawalapitiya from Ginigathena, Sri Lanka.

I took this picture on the well paved road from Nawalapitiya from Ginigathena. The distant hills crowded in mist about 8.30am was a beautiful sight.

Flowers, Dalada Maligawa.

Flowers for sale at the entrance to the 'Dalada Maligawa' - Temple of the Tooth, Kandy, Sri Lanka. Freshly plucked buds of lotuses and water lilies are on display. These are offered at the shrine by devotees who buy them here.

Adam's Peak, Sri Paada, Sivanoli Paada Malai.

I took this picture of the cloud-touched peak of Adam's Peak, from the road on the approach to Ginigathena, past Kithulgala. It was a gray cloud-cast morning. A few minutes later the peak was covered by clouds and was not visible. Such is the enchanting beauty of this mountain. It is now the season for climbing the peak. The climbing season starts in December and lasts till July (Poson).