Saturday, December 31, 2011

The beauty of a female figure, Kelany Vihare, Sri Lanka.


A female figure in the Tivanka - three curves posture, carved on the outer aspect of the wall in the sanctum at Kelaniya Vihare, Sri Lanka. Can you see the whimsical smile on the face looking down at the watcher. To me it seems to surpass the enigmatic smile on the face of the famous 'Mona Lisa' of Da Vinci.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Brown-headed Barbet, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

The rather noisy Brown-headed Barbet (Polos Kottoruws - S, Kukkuruwan - T) seen eating unripe black-pepper berries. The Barbet makes a loud cry in the vicinity before it descends to quietly partake of its meal. It is rather a shy bird and flies away if disturbed. I took this photo in our garden at Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Monday, December 26, 2011

New variety of coconut trees, Sri Lanka.


 My friend Capt. Jermyn Fernando got me five saplings of a new variety of coconut produced by the Coconut Research Board, Sri Lanka . The CRI claimed that they would produce fruits within five years and five trees would provide all the coconut needed for an average household for an year. I have a bee-hive in our garden. I have seen the bees pollinating the flowers of the tree. They produced fruits in abundance three years after planting. The bunches are so heavy that one of them broke off from the tree. We drank the contents of the  fallen fruits in its 'Kurumba' stage. We have now put additional supports for the heavy bunches of coconuts. My wife says that it was the 'evil eye' of the neighbors which caused the bunch to break off early. The first photo shows the tree heavy with fruits. The second picture shows the broken bunch at the foot of the tree.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Indian Cormorant, Habarana, Sri Lanka.

I took this picture over the lake adjoining the Habarana Lodge in 2010.
The following is a video I took of 'The Little Cormorant'. Both species spread out their wings after a dive 'to cool their blood in the breeze' according to some sources.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2Lh1pGBtAU

Saturday, December 24, 2011

A hut by the river, Belihuloya, Sri Lanka.

This beautiful setting is on the opposite bank of the Belihuloya Rest House. The place is popular with bathers doing the long trip to Katharagama from Rathnapura. Now there is a shorter but less scenic route through Embilipitiya and Udawalawe. The stream looks placid but is dangerous. A companion of mine got nearly drowned bathing here. He lost his sarong in the struggle and had to be given a towel to cover his nakedness before emerging from the water.

Thursday, December 22, 2011






The 'Ramboda Pass', the climb from Ramboda to Nuwara-Eliya skirted a cut granite rock on the side of the hill. This has been by-passed by a tunnel now. There is a waterfall before and after the tunnel. The above pictures show the Ramboda falls before the tunnel, the entrance to the tunnel and the waterfall after the tunnel.
To see a picture of the Ramboda Pass before the days of the tunnel click on each of the web-addresses below:-
http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/5368237.jpghttp://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/5368237.jpg

 http://rowlands-in-ceylon.blogspot.com/2008/11/chapter-14.html

Galkanda waterfalls on either side of the highway from Beragala to Koslanda, Sri Lanka

On the road from Beragala to Koslanda and Wellawaya before the village of Nikapotha there are two waterfalls straddling the highway. The photo on top shows the waterfalls above the highway and the second photo is of the waterfall below the highway. People of the village and travellers come here for a bath. The water is icy cold.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

'Surathali' (Female Beloved-S) waterfalls, on the BelihulOya - Beragala road, Sri Lanka.

This waterfall is visible from the main road but you have to walk a few yards on a well constructed pathway to see its real beauty.
Click on the web-link below to watch a video of it:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NVZbkndhSY

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Lush green valley, Pathana, Hatton, Sri Lanka.

A lush green valley with the water from St.Claire's falls flowing at the bottom of it make this place look like Paradise. The cold air with the frequent mist adds to the enchantment here. The Arab visitors to Adam's Peak, of more than a thousand years ago, said that you could hear the 'sound of the Fountains of Paradise' in Sri Lanka. The renowned author Arthur C Clark wrote a science fiction titled 'The Fountains of Paradise' basing the story in Sri Lanka.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Devon falls, Pathana, Hatton, Sri Lanka.

Situated close to the Hatton - Thalawakele road this is a most beautiful sight.
Experiences of my batch-mate Buddy Reid at this site.
Hello Phillip,
I am no photographer, but I too started with a box camera belonging to someone else on a trip to Nuwara Eliya in 1955. I nearly lost my life as a result. I wanted to take a picture of the water falling downwards from the top of Devon Falls. I went close to the edge and slipped on the wet rock. I was sliding downwards almost at the edge when I saw a clump of grass about one foot in diameter.  I managed to grab it with my left hand and fortunately for me it did not break off at the roots.
 The box camera flew out of my right hand, across my body to the left and landed near a pool in the rock. I carefully went on all fours and retrieved it as it was worth more than my life, by which I really mean that my life would not have been worth living if I had lost my friend's expensive camera.
Buddy


Hello Phillip,
Thanks for the photograph of Devon Falls which adds drama to the story. You can see the road at the back, curving to the right end of the picture. I got off the car at the right end of your picture and walked down the pathway that you see, running at about a 20 degree angle from the road to the top of the falls. I slipped on the very limited area of rock between the end of the path and the top of the falls (the left side of the falls which is the right side of the photograph as you face the photograph). As you can see, it is a sheer drop. We did silly things when we were young. I wonder whether any of our batch-mates have done things which beat this for lunacy or had near death experiences. Please don't let my grandchildren know about this. I don't even let them climb up the side of their bunk bed.
Buddy

Click on the web-link below to watch a video-clip of this:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AzP47p0ROg

email observation from Nana


Hi Buddy
I am glad to hear that I am not the only lunatic in the batch.
When  I came over to UK in 1976, I thought I knew how to drive around in my car. My wife and I took few of our Sri Lanka friends to witness a cricket match played between the Sri Lankan cricket team against Somerset. We traveled from Sheffield (that was where I was working as an SHO in Paediatrics at the time) to reach the cricket grounds.
We did not have 'sat nav' facilities then, but only the printed road maps. As we were not very good at getting the road directions, I had entered a motorway(which I should never have got into) in the wrong way round and only realized my folly when we found few cars coming in the opposite direction. It was not funny and all the inmates were shouting at me in real filth. (May be some one at the time was helping me as I was not destined to die that young)
 I managed to take a U turn and get onto the right way round within a few breathless moments. Fortunately that motorway was new and there were not many cars at the time.
We did witness the match and we cheered the Sri Lanka team as they did well against Somerset ( Ian Botham and Viv Richards were in the team).
 We did return home safely very late.
 Not surprisingly the 2 friends who were with us refused to get into my car afterwards.( Incidentally both those friends have died few years ago).
 I am still alive to tell the tale.
You may share this with your grand children to show that even the medical students can be stupid, ignorant and foolhardy.

Best wishes.

 Nana

Elephant orphanage, Udawalawe, Sri Lanka.

Orphaned elephants getting their quota of milk for the day at the Udawalawe Elephant Orphanage.

 Click on the link below to watch a video-clip of same:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85sHXF_iE5I

Friday, December 2, 2011

The climb from Beragala to Haputhale - early stage.

The climb from Beragala junction to Haputhale is one of the most beautiful places to be in. The lush greenery and the distant hills covered in mist is a sight to relive again and again.

Click on the web-link below to see the last stages of this climb:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pN36Yg2vUU

Thursday, December 1, 2011

The view from Beragala, Sri Lanka.

The view of the distant valley of the Uva Province shows patches of glistening water. These are the Udawalawe, Hambegamuwa and Chandrikawewa. On a clear day you can see the southern shoreline and the Indian Ocean. 

Click on the web-link below to see Beragala town, Sri Lanka:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYg6WZnRqZY&feature=related

The road from Belihuloya to Haldumulla, Sri Lanka.

The scenic beauty of the hills, waterfalls and valleys of the Uva Province of Sri Lanka takes one's breath away. The above are two scenes from it.

Click on the following web-link to see a video of the above waterfall:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWGwW1KLtok

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Monday, November 28, 2011

In the Belihuloya Rest House, Sri Lanka.


The dining area and the river close by with the bridge spanning it are shown in these pictures.
Click on web-link below to watch a video of the river flowing by the side of the Rest-house:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L39p4Dsgr40


Scenes outside Balangoda on the Colombo - Badulla road, Sri Lanka.

The highway leading to Balangoda and the statue oif Lord Buddha on a hill top greet the visitor to this gem-town.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Waterfall close to the entrance to Balangoda, Sri Lanka.

A bare rock with water flowing over it adds to the beauty of the entrance to Balangoda.

Panoramic view from Bandarawela, Sri Lanka.

I took this picture in the morning just outside Bandarawela on the road to Haputhale. The distant hills are shrouded in the early morning mist. Cocks crowing from the houses below made a surreal picture.
'For oft when on the couch I lie,
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon the inward eye,
Which is the bliss of solitude'. 

William Wordsworth
Click on the web address below to watch a video of same:-






Saturday, November 26, 2011

The hills seen from Bandarawela, Sri Lanka.

The morning mist enshrouds the valley below Bandarawela, Sri Lanka.

Buddha statue at Dowa - Badulla -Sri Lanka.

By the side of the Badulla - Bandarawela road bordering a stream, this figure is sculpted on a rock face. There is a tradition that this was sculpted in a single day by a master craftsman (Yodhaya). This is one of the many places associated with King Valagambahu.

Click on the web-link below to see a video clip of the road from Badulla to Bandarawela:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI3liTenggc

Southern shoreline, outside Galle, Sri Lanka

Just outside Galle towards Colombo, I took this picture of a setting sun.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Unawatunna sea-shore, Galle, Sri Lanka.


Glass-bottom boats are for hire Rs.800/- to Rs.600/- for 2 hours. You could go out on a sunny day and watch the beautiful coral reefs under-water from the comfort of the boat.

'Wee Bissa' - paddy store, Mr. Martin Wickremesinghe's house, Koggala, Sri Lanka.

The old world -'wee bissa' - paddy store, is just in front of the museum building. No photographs are allowed inside the museum building but it is a veritable treasure trove of artifacts of a by gone era.