Stone-mason at work, Bambaragalle, Sri Lanka.

A scene reminiscent of work in the past few millenia - the way a piece of granite was shaped for the necessary requirement. See the wooden rectangle on the ground used to measure the size of the stone being chipped. I took this picture at Bambaragalle where the colossal Buddha statue is being erected.

Temporary 'Pirith mandapaya' few days after use, Namalanga Rajamaha Vihare, Kurunegala, Sri Lanka.

Artifacts at Rideevihara, Kurunegala, Sri Lanka - 2

 Rock wall paintings at Rideevihara.

Tiles and trellis work on the roof of a building at Rideevihara.

View of coconut estates from Namalanga Vihara, Ibbagamuwa, Kurunegala, Sri Lanka.

The view of coconut estates from the high rock where Namalanga Vihara is situated gives a spectacular sight.

Pond at Rideevihara, Kurunegala, Sri Lanka.

Rideevihara dates back to the 2nd Century BC. This pond carved out of solid rock is one of the sights there.

Rock temple, Kurunegala.

 Rock temples were earlier cave dwellings which with the passage of time evolved into places of worship. The rock temple shown is now a Raja Maha Vihare in Kurunegala at the bottom of Athaagala. The statue of Lord Buddha is on top of Athaagala.

Birds on a tree - On the road to Somawathy Chaithya.

The branches of a tree devoid of leaves provided an ideal perch for these birds.

Dinner halt at Kurunegala, Sri Lanka.

Coming back from Batticaloa to Avissawella, we stopped at this place in the outskirts of Kurunegala, at the 'Badagamuwa Comfort Centre', to have our dinner.

Two statues, Somawathy Chithya,. Sri Lanka.

 The Somawathy Chaithya is undergoing rapid development. I saw these two statues in the premises.

Youtube uploads by me

Please click on each of the underlined web addresses below.

•         Baby Elephant bathing - Rideevihare

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yb7aQnAap98

•         Milk feeding elephants – Udawalawe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GM31sVP8NMA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtNwPei39xY

Walking under an elephants belly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkXLcSsF9p8

Boiling milk in a new house

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbvbUZmjKVU

Pilgrims at Somawathy Chaithya, Sri Lanka..

Observing 'Sil' under the 'Bodhi' tree, tying 'panduru' and a view of the renovated chaitya.

The moat and Dutch Fort, Batticaloa.

Cricket match in the Municipal grounds, opposite the Weber Stadium.

Cricket is very popular in Batticaloa. You see a match in progress in Puliyanthivu.

'Male' and 'Female' Palmyra trees.

Tops of the 'Male' and 'Female' Palmyra trees, Batticaloa, Sri Lanka.

Wild elephants on the road to Somawathy Chithya, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka.

We saw these elephants, mother and child on the road to Somawathy Chathya, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka. I have given the relevant section from The Sunday Times of Sri Lanka of 4th September 2011 of an elephant count done in SL.

The Batticaloa Lagoon and the rest house facing it.

 The Rest House at Batticaloa is in Pulinthivu and dates back to British Colonial times. It offers excellent sea food and is proximity to the old Dutch Fort.

Date palms bearing fruit, Main street, Kathankudy, Sri Lanka.

Kathankudy in the east of Sri Lanka. It is largely populated by Muslims. In the main roadway there are date palms planted in the centre aisle. The date palm shown in the photo is bearing fruit.

Wild elephant struck by train, Manampity, Sri Lanka.

 Coming back from Batticaloa we saw the carcass of this dead elephant. It had been struck by a train while crossing the railway track at Manampitiya on the Polonnoruwa to Batticaloa stretch. 'The count conducted last month in forests and wildlife parks found 5,879 wild elephants, of which 122 are tuskers and 1,107 calves'.

Brahminy Kite, Batticaloa, Sri Lanka.

 

I saw this Brahminy Kite perched on the 'sentinel post' of the old Dutch Fort at Batticaloa. The second picture shows the sentinel post from the top of which the bird flew away a moment ago.

A bath for a baby elephant - Ridivihare, Sri Lanka

I took this sequence of a baby elephant being bathed at Ridivihare, Sri Lanka. Note the broken tusk.
Click on link below to watch the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yb7aQnAap98

Childrens park, Puliyanthivu, Batticaloa.

The childrens park in Puliyanthivu, Batticaloa, is part of the rehabilitation project after the Tsunami.

Deduru Oya at Ibbagamuwa, Sri Lanka.

 The Deduru Oya crosses the Kurunegala Dambulla highway just before Ibbagamuwa. I took these pictures of an 'anicut' upstream made to feed water to the paddy fields and a beautiful tree spreading over the river downstream. Deduru Oya is notorious for its flash floods which occur when heavy rains fall on the hills of Mathale.

The distant hills as seen from Minipe, Sri Lanka.

A view of the hills from Minipe, Sri Lanka.