Our hotel in Udawalawa is pretty fancy by any standard, and overlooked the beautiful Centauria Lake. We have a pretty full schedule most days, and today is no exception. We are down to breakfast by 6am for a quick round at the buffet before our drive to Udawalawa National Park.
We are lucky that most items at the buffets are labeled in English, but sometimes it still takes a little detective work to figure out
. For example, there was a beautiful salad with apples and such, that was obviously a Waldorf salad. A little was lost in the translation by labeling it "World of Doors" salad. I flashed back to when I was a kid and we used to start a phrase and whisper it down a line of ten giggling kids, just cracking up at the end result.
After a short drive in our van we hop into a modified open air Jeep with our safari driver, Prim, which was short for something like Primasuricasamusaca (we daren't ask his last name). We couldn't ask for better weather and were lucky to see an abundance of birds, elephants, crocodiles and many other species. I'm not sure when one goes from being labeled as a person who thinks birds are ok to a full on "birder", but I think we are heading towards the latter. Maybe it's when you start trying to make all those funny sounds to try to imitate them, but still end up sounding like a wounded dog?
In the afternoon we head to Bundala National Park for another safari
. It's such a beautiful area full of jungle flora and fauna. It's hard to believe that less 10 years ago Sri Lanka was susceptible to terrorist attacks by the Tamil Tigers during the Civil War here, and that SL was also struck by a huge sunami in 2004. We see more species of birds here than we have in any other place before. Our young guide is super knowledgeable and helped us spot a bird that was so rare, that it was the first time he'd even seen one. He was a true birder, calls and all!
Our accommodation for tonight is actually a fancy tent in the country instead of a hotel. It comes complete with a bathroom, A/C and even a few small geckos that call this their home (we were assured that they would keep the mosquitoes and scorpions away). Hey, anything that can do that is a friend of ours!
Next stop is Yala, and then Ella as we go higher in the mountains. Rox is looking forward to the cooler climate.
2/5/17 Udawalawa to Bundala
Sunday, February 05, 2017
Uda Walawe National Park, Sri Lanka
Other Entries
Comments

2025-02-12
Comment code: Ask author if the code is blank
Ellen
2017-03-03
Love these pictures!
camirandkdc
2017-03-03
So envious of your travels, and warm weather as we are still battling winter . Keeping in shape shovelling snow on the west coast . Look forward to seeing you both next month . Safe travels guys, Hugs, Di & Kirk
John Neff
2017-03-03
Thanks Mark for the great write up. The animals etc sound truly amazing. I can't imagine how it must feel being there except I have seen some of these things on TV. Be safe and continue enjoying your trip.
Carl
2017-03-03
Amazing menagerie you have photographed there, just amazing all that you are seeing. Keep up the good work with them and the writing, both are really enjoyable. Happy traveling guys!
Ali
2017-03-04
Thanks for sharing! Keep the blog posts and photos coming! ...and stay away from the leeches. I had a tick once but never a leech....
Irene
2017-03-04
Your pictures are stunningly beautiful and blog very interesting. Thanks for sharing.
Linda Mc
2017-03-04
What an enjoyable way to start my day. As always, I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog and seeing your beautiful pictures. Have fun and stay safe.
Phyllis S
2017-03-07
Amazing photos ! You must be in your glory to see all the amazing animals. Just can't get over them. What a day ! Looking forward to reading more. xoxox
Cindy B
2017-03-11
Great pictures!! Look forward to hearing all about your travels in person!!