Postcards from abroad
We have seen many peacocks wandering the grounds of our hotel, trailing their tail feathers behind them. But there is a notable absence of peahens which might explain why, yesterday, we had this full-on display at our van as we tried to leave (photo shot through the windscreen): We thought it was just vans that… Continue reading Peacocks (human ones too) and monkeys
The city of Anuradhapura is a huge ancient city - one of the greatest centres of Buddhism as well as one of the greatest cities of its age - established two thousand years ago and developed until 993 when it was laid waste by Indian invaders. It’s difficult to convey the city’s size - it… Continue reading Anuradhapura and the disobedient king
We have been dodging rain showers for the last few days, sometimes to the detriment of sightseeing. Yesterday we were supposed to climb up the side of a steep hill to see Buddhist caves but the (very wet) rain arrived as we pitched up at the ticket office, so we abandoned that idea. The beginning… Continue reading Some local animals and an ancient temple
Unaccustomed as we are to changing plans at the last minute, we seem to have managed the challenge. Instead of flying in to Jaffna and spending two days on the eastern coast, as a result of the cancellation of our flight and the impending cyclone, we flew in to Colombo yesterday and spent last night… Continue reading The Tooth Relic
We arrived on time early this morning to be met by a relatively cool (27 degrees) and gray Chennai which, to our surprise, boasts a much better road system than on our previous visit twelve years ago. Our friend Nikhil arrived at our hotel looking harrassed. He had just learnt that our flight tomorrow to… Continue reading Chennai