May 2009- Tour

May 2009 was an opportunity to visit a remarkable place called Ritigala Kanda (Ritigala Mountain); The mountain is now a sanctuary and is a well known bird  and butterfly paradise.Steeped in ancient history and that dates back to the 10th and 11th centuries. Marvelous ruins and amazing in the realisation that a thriving monastic community built their abodes here such a long time ago            

Left: The great historic flagstone path that leads to the top of the Ritigala Mountain. It is best to take a guide on these tours. There are a number of caves in the area too of ancient history. The drive to Habarana was equally picturesque . We based ourselves in Habarana and took the opportunity to also visit the Minneriya National Park to see the famous herds of elephants that gather there each year. As two of the families were staying at an Eco Lodge at Galkadawela, we also enjoyed some great bird watching on the banks of the Galkadawela Tank. We were fortunate to spend a couple of hours watching 40 elephants feeding at Minneriya. Some great 4×4 driving was also done to get across the river to observe the elephants. Left a female elephant and calf strolling the Minneriya .plain. Below: A giant squirrel greets me in the driveway to the Habarana Hotel driveway.

 4×4 driving across a waterway in Minneriya National Park. The crossing certainly added to the thrills of the day. Going back across was even more eventful as many others had followed our lead to get closer to the elephant herds and the river bed was a little deeper than when we arrived.

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Below Left: Purple Faced Leaf eating Monkey. Right: Thalangama Lake; an interesting suburban wetland  refuge on the outskirts of Colombo. Even Colombo has its surprises in terms of bird and reptile life.