Chameleon, Malwala, Sri Lanka.

The Chameleon is a beautiful lizard found amid jungle vegetation in Sri Lanka. It changes colour  as you look at it. This is supposed to be a trick it uses to camouflage itself. I saw this chameleon close to the Malwala bridge at Rathnapura, Sri Lanka.

Some more multicoloured roses.

Roses from Thailand.

 I saw these multicolored rose plants for sale at the Viharamaha Dewi Park in Colombo. The going price was Rs.2000/- each plant. The vendor at the stall told me that the plants were imported from Thailand.

Flowers in our garden, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Joking bridesmaids.

Bridesmaids at a wedding sharing a joke. I took this picture at my nephews wedding in Colombo, a few days back.

Sunset on Wellawaththe, Sri Lanka.

I took this picture of a sunset at Wellawaththe, Sri Lanka in 2009.

Flowers in my garden, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

'The embrace', Haththakucci, Sri Lanka.

'Haththakucci' is an ancient monastery complex close to Anuradhapura. It is a collection of large stones situated next to a water reservoir. A group of monks had made this their abode here and there are abandoned cave like dwellings. It is situated on an arid plain where there is a breeze which is a welcome relief. I saw this tree growing on a rock. Its roots seem to embrace the rock and go down to the soil to receive sustenance. It was a sight for contemplation.

'Umbrella tree' , Pesalai, Sri Lanka.

Mannar is famous for the 'umbrella trees which dot the arid soil with high degree of salinity. I took this picture in 2004.

Galvihare, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka

The figure in the standing posture, next to the figure of Lord Buddha lying down, has some unusual features. The first of these is the fact that the arms are held crossed across the chest, which is unusual for an image of Lord Buddha. The second feature is the fact that there seems to be a sense of profound sadness, on the face of the standing image. These have made people speculate that this is a representation of Ananda, the chief disciple of Lord Buddha. These belong to the 12th Century AD. In the orient, the creator of the sculpture remained anonymous.

Monkeys on the rampage, Hingurala, Sri Lanka.

Monkeys are a regular menace to the households in Sri Lanka. They pluck the young coconut fruits and throw them on the ground. Mango, rambuttan etc get their attention. They sneak into the kitchen and carry away food items. If provoked they can attack people. This happens where villages border jungle land. I took this picture of monkeys just outside a house in Hingurala.

Summer house, Hakgala Gardens, Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka.

 

"The Gardens (27ha) were established in 1860 as an experimental Cinchona plantation from which the anti-malarial drug quinine is derived. Subsequently the gardens were used for experiments in acclimatizing temperate-zone plants to life in tropics."
 It is situated on the winding road descending from Nuwara Eliya to Welimada. There are various sections for roses, ferns, a beautiful rock garden, a place for orchids etc. In addition there are tall trees which emerge out of the perennial mists surrounding the garden.
The multicolored Summer house stands out on a green lawn with the distant hills as a background.
The best time to visit the garden is in April-May of the year when the flowers are in bloom.  

The Bambarabotuwa valley, Wewalwaththe, Rathnapura, Sri Lanka.

 

A view of the Bambarabotuwa valley from the Alupola - Balakotunna road. You can see the Wewalwaththe - Balangoda road passing close to a waterfall. The waterfall is not visible from the Wewalwaththe - Balangoda road. The winding road below is a mud track.

Aukana Buddha statue, Sri Lanka.

 

The Aukana Buddha statue, situated close to the beautiful Kalawewa lake. is 12 metres high and is said to be now the tallest old Buddha statue in the world, after the destruction of the Bamiyan statue in Afghanistan. It is 'carved in the round' and is carved in the rare 'Asisa Mudra' - the posture of blessing. This statue was sculpted in the 12th Century AD.There is a story about this statue that a master and pupil had started to carve statues of the Buddha a few miles apart from each other, racing to finish his creation first. On finishing the statue first by the Master Artisan at Aukana, a gong was sounded. This sound was heard by the pupil, who was constructing the second statue at Sassaruwewa. The latter feeling ashamed at his defeat in the contest, had climbed to the top of his nearly completed statue, and jumped down killing himself. The name Aukana according to some was given because the early rays of the rising sun hit the top of the statue - ('Awwa' : Sunlight, 'Kanna' : Eating - S) and it looked as though the statue was eating up the first rays of the rising sun. There were a lot of similarities between the Bamiyan statue and that at Aukana.

The first is a photograph taken in 1938, the second was taken by me in the 1990s

Flower in our garden, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Two orchids in our home garden, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

These type of orchids do not need much care in the climatic conditions at Avissawella, Sri Lanka. Looks like the same species but with slight variation of colour.

'The dew on the flowers ...'

I took this picture of the dew on the leaves and bud of a rose bush, in my garden at Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Pillory - 'Dhandu Khanda' S - Kuruwita, Sri Lanka.

On a trip to the "Eknelligoda Walauwe' - an old feudal mansion house - in Kuruwita, Sri Lanka, in 1994, I saw this pillory - 'Dhandu Khanda' -on exhibit. I got one of the party to volunteer to pose for this picture. This is the result.

Galvihara, Polonnoruwa, Sri Lanka.

 Photo taken in the 1930 and photo taken by me in 2010 July.
Galvihara was constructed by King Parakramabahu 1 -(Arm strong) in the 12th Century AD.
"The larger seated Buddha is framed by Sanchi-style arch, with tiny bodhisattavas looking down on him from their celestial dwellings-perhaps showing a touch of Mahayana Buddhist influence, with its belief in Bodhisattvas".

Latex from a rubber tree after a heavy shower of rain, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

Rains cause havoc with collecting latex from rubber trees. This picture shows the effect of rain on the flowing latex.

Flower in the garden, Avissawella.