After these to relaxing days at the beach we wanted to get some more special experiences. So we got on a bus going along the coast to get to Tissamaharama, a small town at the lake Tissa.
Before we got there we stopped by in Matara and got to see there a nice place on a small island.
Tissa is close to the Yala National Park, we wanted to visit. A already on the bus to get there we got offers for Safari tours to the park, good thing was we got a free ride to our hotel from the bus stop, we knew that we got the ride so the driver could also offer us a tour. I know before I said that I won't get on a guided tour again, but here you got no other chance.
So we booked one of the tours for the next day and went to town to see the interesting places. First we went to a temple next to the town. The main part of the temple was a big pagoda.
From the temple we followed the street out of town and got to the Tissa lake. Here it felt a lot different after being all the time close to the ocean. Temperature was still high, but the air was wetter then on the coast. Also the sky was more cloudy and we could see a rain front coming closer.
We did not have much time to loiter around and take our time, because we had nothing with us to protect us from the rain. So we more passed by at the lake, saw a thousands of crows, only one stayed for taking a picture and beautiful trees. At the end we came back to the hotel only a few minutes before the rain started.
Next morning it was rather hard to get up, it was still dark outside. Why must those tours start at five in the morning ? It was hard to get Bernd out of the bed, but some water helped getting him out. Before leaving the employee at the hotel gave us our breakfast "lunch box" and we got on the Jeep. For a moment we were surprised that we were the only one making the tour, but it was better that way and won't change anything about the price. Before we left Tissamaharama we stopped at a small bar were we got a small breakfast with some typical Sri Lankan bakeries.
It was a short drive through some villages to get to the park and in there we got a beautiful sunrise, maybe that's why we had to start that early.
The fist wild animal we saw in the park was a leopard, sneaking around behind some bushes. Bernd wanted to run away from this big cat and was close to jump off the Jeep. I could stop him and explained him that it is the safest place around here and that leopards do not eat bread. Already at the beginning we had some luck, before the trip we got the information that you barely see the leopards, well but for a picture he was to good hidden behind the bushes. Seeing the cat was the most important thing. So only thing we could right now take pictures of was the nice nature.
Several times we got to see some mongoose, but they disappeared within a second, then along the street two jackals walked along offering us the chance to take some pictures, not to many of course. They were to scared of the noises the Jeep made.
After a while of driving around we saw an elephant crossing the street only a few metres away from us. He walked into the jungle to get something to eat. Bernd was so exited about this elephant that he did not stop talking about him for felt like hours and maybe also annoying our driver, it's a big difference seeing living elephants and dead.
To get our second breakfast we stopped at a water hole. Our driver explained us that the leopards get here to drink, the only thing we got to do is wait. We were waiting and waiting but they did not show up, we were already thinking to give up waiting for them when Bernd saw two of them walking along behind some bushes. So again no chance to really see them. But luckily they did not only pass by there, they walked around the bushes and a small hill and came back right in front of us. Surprisingly Bernd stayed in the Jeep with me looking at the cats on their way to the waterhole. What a nice couple and for us luck.
Our driver called his colleagues and told him that the leopards are here, but when the others got here they already disappeared. It seemed that the other guides did not belief him. At another waterhole we first saw these typical white birds, who usually clean the crocodiles teeth, it took us a while to see them. They are very good at hiding and of course not moving.
Next we got to see some water buffaloes at a bigger waterhole taking a bath, not to get clean, because they were in there mud more to cool down and get a break from millions of flies flying around them. Good that the flies did not come to us.
After seeing them it was time for a break, so the driver brought us to the beach close by and we spent the time walking around there.
We took a closer look on one of those anthills taking care not to get to close and maybe get attacked by ants, must be very painful. We saw a lizard climbing up there, not taking care that the ants may come out.
If we had our swimming clothes with us we would have jumped into the clean water, so we could only enjoy being there and enjoy the moment, also we got to see some fishermen's houses at the beach, only too far away to get closer.
Back at the Jeep we helped our guide with the pictures we took from the leopards to proof to his colleagues that he wasn't lying. We got back on the road and headed to the exit, also seeing some monkeys, peacocks and far away a Sambhur, a huge deer Sri Lankan deer.
At the end we did not regret going on this tour, seeing the wild animals and the beautiful landscape.
No comments:
Post a Comment