I had not made any plans this weekend, but a phone call with my good friend Riaz on a Thursday morning convinced me to join him on a quick weekend trip to Yala. This was also a good chance for me to look for options of accommodation which I hope to use for some future projects I am trying ...
It was 2003, when I was the President of the S.Thomas College, Wildlife Society. Wilpattu National Park had opened after many years. We were some of the first people to venture into this park which was closed for the public for so long due to the war. We were given permission to camp on the bungalow premises of Kokmotte. With ...
It’s been a few months since my last blog post. Not that I haven't been travelling but I have been quite busy with work as well as my travels and I didn't get to really take time and sit down to write something. Also I didn't have anything really interesting to write about until last weekend. Myself and my friend ...
This was one of the most epic and memorable adventures I have done in a long long time.With the new facility of booking bungalows online my friend Raveendra managed to reserve two nights at the Warahana bungalow located deep within Yala National Park.Despite being to Yala over 50 times I have never booked a bungalow inside the park. I have ...
The Sinhala and Tamil New Year Holidays are here, and as usual practice the organization I work for gives us one full week off as our factories shut down. This year I didn't make any firm plans until the last moment.Firstly I was to head for three days to my estate in Rozella with the family and dogs. Leaving early ...
Sri Lanka's bird life aka "avi fauna" have been studied and observed for many years. It was thought that every species was recognized and identified by that time. But there was yet an undiscovered species of owl lurking in the shadows of our rainforests. Finally observed, identified and studied it was finally recognized as a new species in 2004 and ...
Sri Lanka's bird life aka "avi fauna" have been studied and observed for many years. It was thought that every species was recognized and identified by that time. But there was yet an undiscovered species of owl lurking in the shadows of our rainforests. Finally observed, identified and studied it was finally recognized as a new species in 2004 and ...
I got to know of three small owls being seen in one of our offices every day on a tree. I immediately made arrangements to go there, but it never materialized as I was busy with different other excursions as well as a hectic work schedule. After a few weeks I got news that they were not seen again.Having taken ...
The long weekend was approaching and I was very keen to cover some rare endemics of our country. Endemics are animals which are seen only in Sri Lanka. The country is home to 26 Endemic species of birds.Most of them are found in the wet zone, and Sinharaja world heritage site is one of the best places to find them. ...
It was that time again, when my brother from another mother Gihan was back in Sri Lanka. Our friendship goes back to our school days, and our adventures in the College Wildlife Society. Even though we live miles apart, everytime he comes down to Sri Lanka, we end up doing a crazy adventure filled trip. Full of laughs, and great ...
It’s the 4th of February, and we are celebrating Sri Lanka’s independence from British Rule. Being a public holiday, I decided to make the most of the holiday and try and do something productive. I called up my friend Pathum, and discussed where we could go. Finally settling on Kitulgala, as it is close to home and only two hours’ ...
The long weekend of January 2014 was significant in the fact that we got 5 days of holidays with the weekend included. I had made arrangements in advance for a bungalow booking in Talawila in Wilpattu National Park from the 12th-14th. In addition myself and my friend Riaz decided to do a visit to Galgamuwa on the 11th Saturday to ...
Christmas was finally here and the usual celebrations began. The 25th consisted of our usual family lunch where we gorge on my mothers amazing food and question why we ate so much by eavening.I was given a full week of holidays by my office during this week. Despite this long holiday period, other than the 25th I ended up working ...
Minneriya National Park is the home of the world famous “gathering” of elephants. Every year hundreds of elephants from around the region congregate on the receding banks of this massive man made tank to feed on the sweet grasses. Nowhere on earth will you see so many elephants in one place at the same time. Even though I had heard ...
Yala National Park is the most famous safari destination in Sri Lanka. During my early childhood, the park was out of bounds due to a terrorist attack, therefore despite the fact that the park re opened again in 1998, the school did not want to take any risks. I had heard so many stories about Yala, and had seen many ...
The land of lakes is an ancient land with a rich history. I have heard so much about this park from my parents, as well as many older folk who talk of Wilpattu as the greatest national park in the country. As many would have remembered the park was world famous for its leopards, and a sighting was almost guaranteed ...
Bundala was one of the first National Parks I visited as a small child. My parents and few other family friends headed to Bundala, on a trip in October 1991, back before anyone had heard of the place. We booked the Lanka Salt Bungalow which was a very basic place bordering the park. I was only five years old at ...
For months, I have been contemplating what to get my mom for her birthday which is on the 24th of December. The ideas ranged from expensive dinners at fine dining restaurants to sari's to jewelry and it went on and on. Finally after going through all options I wanted to check on some hotel deals because I know she loves ...
A long weekend was approaching and I was yearning to visit my favorite place on earth- Wilpattu National Park. Making plans with my friends Riaz and Hafiz, we decided to do a two day safari from Saturday to Sunday and to come back home on the same day.We left Colombo on Friday night, hoping to have a few hours sleep ...
I have been pining to go somewhere since my exhibition finished, and other than a short trip to Kitulgala I didnt travel anywhere.I decided enough was enough, and made plans to head somewhere during the weekend. I dont have much leave and hence decided to make the best of Saturday and Sunday.I was curious to go someplace I havent been ...
