January 27, 2005
On a Mission
Yesterday, I was on a mission. Good things can come from going to travel shows. At the recent Daily Telegraph Travel & Adventure Show in Kensington, I hung out at the desk of a company that organises tours to some...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 09:12 PM |
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December 30, 2004
Saved by the Cat
Our mates are OK! John e-mailed them on Monday which I though futile because, although they now have internet access in the house in Negombo, that would be the last place they would be. But they replied. It turns out...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 06:49 PM |
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Sri Lanka: The Situation in the East
At last news has begun to trickle through about the situation along Sri Lanka's East coast—and it looks bad....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 06:31 PM |
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December 27, 2004
Killer Tsunamis
One of the biggest earthquakes ever recorded hit the Indian Ocean on Sunday morning. At 9 am local time, without any warning, Sri Lanka was pounded by a series of Tsunamis. I am trying to get my head around this,...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 04:51 PM |
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November 08, 2004
Our last supper
This completes the Sri Lanka travelogue— just in time for my Portugal trip :) It's only a little holiday, but I hope that a few quirky things will happen to give me new story leads, so watch this space. Time...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 08:19 PM |
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November 07, 2004
The Toddy Tavern
There was one thing left to do. I had only come across a single toddy tavern anywhere near where I was staying and that had been in Trincomalee. Even there it had been quite a way out of town. I...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:09 PM |
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November 06, 2004
Impending departure
Our impending departure was hanging over me like a shadow. I cried a little when we drove back to Negombo on the following evening. The house was dark and abandoned. John and I were together, but we felt alone....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 06:37 PM |
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November 05, 2004
On campus (3) -- of lechers and scorpions
In the morning I felt better. It was like awakening from a bad dream. I hugged John and we lost each other in a kiss. Sex was out of the question. Jungle sounds filtered through the windows and from the...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:55 PM |
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November 04, 2004
On campus (2) -- bookish interlude
Back at the library, it turned out that my trusty student friend had checked the entire Loris contents list for articles on marine mammals, saving me a lot of time....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:06 PM |
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November 03, 2004
On campus (1)
Any idea of further travel was out of the question. Irrespective of the fact that we only had a few days left, I was still feeling decidedly shaky and strange. Once again, I took 10 mg of Seroxat, which made...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:10 PM |
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November 02, 2004
Rocket-fuel arrack on Tamil Thai Pongal Day
Ten hours of continuous travel brought me back to Kandy. Determined to make my own way back, I took a local bus to Peradeniya and paid the equivalent of a day's wages for a tuk-tuk to Rob's house. This was...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:59 PM |
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October 31, 2004
Freaking on the road
I was woken by a commotion outside. The road through Ulla is never completely quiet. Irrespective of how few vehicles there are in the area, the odd tuk-tuk, bike and even bus might roar up or down at any hour...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:15 PM |
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Losing the plot
I woke up in the doorstep of a room. Not mine, there was no sign of the rucksack, but my bag was next to me. It was dark and quiet. Cursing my stupidity, I crawled under the mosquito net and...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:05 PM |
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October 30, 2004
Arugam Bay
In Pottuvil, just across from Arugam Bay, it was clear that I had arrived in backpacker country....Read this update
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October 29, 2004
Batticaloa to Arugam Bay
Batticaloa is a laid-back town on Sri Lanka's largest lagoon, made famous by its 'singing fish': in the time around the full moon between April and October, the water in the lagoon reverebates with a sound which one traveler described...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:08 PM |
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October 28, 2004
Running away
S and A were due to fly home in two days' time, so Rob had invited John and me to spend our last ten days at his place. He was keen to pick John's brains about the mathematical modeling required...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 08:30 PM |
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October 27, 2004
A wild goose chase (2)
The lecture was scheduled for six pm, more than five hours away. Enough time for me to get home and change. I was smelly and dusty from rushing across the city. Needless to say, Dr. W, like everybody else on...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 08:46 PM |
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October 26, 2004
A wild goose chase (1)
I had planned to visit the fish-market in Negombo later in the day, but first it was time to make a few phone calls. Reluctantly. The Sri Lankan phone system remined me of India back in '85. At times the...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:09 PM |
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October 25, 2004
Curd and Treacle
On the long drive through the dark back down the Kalpitya peninsula, we started to feel hungry. There was nowhere between here and Palavi where we could stop for food. So we talked about it instead. "I could do with...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:47 PM |
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October 24, 2004
The Turtle Beach
It was dusk before we reached Kalpitya itself, ostensibly the last settlement on the peninsula, but rows of palm-thatch huts lined the sandy track almost all the way to the sea at Dutch Bay. Here, a new sand bank had...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:30 PM |
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October 23, 2004
Yellow Oleander
The next day promised to be boring. I could not quite decide what to do with myself, when Maria phoned. She had a rare afternoon off from work and suggested we go on a drive along the coast. "We can...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:18 PM |
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October 22, 2004
Ectoparasites
As I approached the gate of the house in Negombo, a black-and-brown furry blur rushed at me, accompanied by fierce flashing teeth and the sound of mad barking. Evidently the neighbours' dog, the one I had shouted at during the...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:58 PM |
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October 21, 2004
The Eco Tour (2)
Of the world's seven species of marine turtles, five come ashore to nest in Sri Lanka. They are the green turtle (Chelonia mydas), olive ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea), loggerhead (Caretta caretta), hawksbill (Eritmochilys imbricata) and leatherback (Dermochylys coriacea). The 2.5...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:56 PM |
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October 20, 2004
The Eco Tour (1)
The area around Tangalla promised some spectacular beaches, but I was attracted to this town because of its proximity to Rekawa. It was there that one of the more active field-stations of NARA was based, carrying out extensive research on...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 09:09 PM |
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October 19, 2004
Raja's Oasis
Weligama was the opposite of Mirissa. The bay was crowded not with tourists, but with fishermen. There were so many boats that it must have been overfished. The main catch appeared to be tiny sardinellas....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:08 PM |
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October 18, 2004
South
I never met the people at NARA again because I could not make myself understood on the phone. My accent is bad, but even A seemed to have difficulties. The main problem was that I did not know the name...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:41 PM |
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October 16, 2004
Trial by bus
Getting a bus back to Kandy and, more importantly, seats should not be a problem, seeing that we were staying opposite the bus station at the eastern terminus of the Trinco-Kandy service. However, there were no private buses that morning...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:34 PM |
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October 15, 2004
Return to Trincomalee
The next morning John and I found ourselves in another minibus, speeding back towards Trinco. John had agreed to come along because he figured I could do with some support. I did my best to sell him the charms of...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:53 PM |
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October 14, 2004
Water shortages, forest fires and whale talk
Every drop of water had to be labourously transferred to a tank on the roof and all we got was a trickle from the taps and the occasional flush of the cistern. Rob had managed to borrow a pump from...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 07:08 PM |
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October 13, 2004
A troubled history
Over dinner, the discussion turned back to the weather. Incredibly, the looming clouds had again dissipated. There had been little rain since October and everybody was waiting for the northeast monsoon to pick up belatedly. I had gained an indication...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:37 PM |
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October 12, 2004
Christmas in Kandy
Kandy, the final stronghold of the Buddhist kings and home to the sacred relic of the Buddha's tooth ('sweet tooth' jokes abound) nestles by an artificial lake at the foot of the highlands. Here in the hills, it was markedly...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 03:38 PM |
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October 11, 2004
Elephants, Porcupines and Propositions (2)
In Pinnawela, Kunara refused to join us on our trip to the orphanage. "Oh come on", we pleaded: "We can take the labtops with us so nobody can steal them." "It is not just that" he replied: "Its the car!"...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 08:02 PM |
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October 10, 2004
Elephants, Porcupines and Propositions (1)
The next day, my arms and legs were pock-marked with mosquito bites. I carried a cut lime around to rub on my skin in an attempt to ease the fierce itching. I was high on histamines....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 07:44 PM |
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October 09, 2004
The night of the lost pocket knife
Back at Trinco Rest, my unease returned. I did not want to take a precious valium, so I had a drink, chasing one peril with another. Daytime drinking was bad news, but at least it was now late afternoon....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 09:15 PM |
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October 08, 2004
An afternoon stroll
I had arranged a tuk-tuk for 11 o'clock. The commander, who had borrowed my book on whales, had hinted that he might drop by at Trinco Rest when he finished work at 11:30. It turned out that a family of...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 06:43 PM |
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October 07, 2004
Tension
Back at the French Garden, I suddenly felt depressed. The experiences of the past few days were catching up with me. How was it that this holiday had turned into some kind of expedition? Why was I chasing after pipe...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 04:41 PM |
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October 06, 2004
Crazy night out
The harbour master had been in a jolly mood all along, telling the Captain that I was his new wife and trying to pair me off with two young crew members on the pilot boat with whom he made me...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 04:34 PM |
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September 30, 2004
The Ship
I'll be away for a few days, so this is the last 'Whales of Trincomalee' instalment for a week or so. I'll see what's going on in London instead. Can't wait -- aaahh -- I can almost smell the smoke...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 01:25 PM |
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September 29, 2004
The fool's errant
The T-shirt was worth its weight in gold. It was light and airy and, more importantly, I now looked presentable. So at two, I set off on the freshly oiled bike to seek out the offices of the United Nations...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 05:54 PM |
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September 28, 2004
Paths
So far, I had gotten by with a mixture of English and sign language, but back at the bus station, I was out of luck. A group of young men tried their best to help me out, but they did...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 09:07 PM |
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September 27, 2004
Trincomalee (part3)
The hostel was not as bad as I had feared. At dawn, I spotted only one geriatric cockroach which was slowly crawling towards the next room. It swayed and weaved because it was missing two legs on one side so...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 07:46 PM |
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September 25, 2004
Trincomalee (part2)
As we approached Trincomalee, the vegetation thinned and the landscape became more arid. On either side of the road, large swathes had been cleared of shrubs and trees as an anti-ambush measure during the long war between government troops and...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 06:12 PM |
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September 24, 2004
Trincomalee (part1)
This is a brutally honest blog entry, but then it is a brutally honest blog :} -- based on the actual travel journal. So here goes: I awoke from colourful dreams, swimming with whales and dolphins in an ocean world...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 04:42 PM |
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September 23, 2004
The snake
Not surprisingly, we needed to recover from our little stroll. My feet had swollen overnight, much to John's alarm who thought I had contracted a tropical disease. I told him that it was probably filiariasis which can make them swell...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 08:08 PM |
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September 22, 2004
Stray Dogs and Drunken Geckoes
I blinked into the blazing sunlight and surveyed the lush tropical greenery from the bedroom window. We had arrived. Time to explore. John wanted a day of rest, but I was having none of it. "We have come half way...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 08:45 PM |
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September 21, 2004
On the Road again
It is disappointingly easy to adjust to being back. Already, the journey seems like a colourful dream. Now and then, when I close my eyes, I see flashes of sunlight so bright it is dazzling, silhouettes of palm trees against...Read this update
Posted by Denni at 09:06 PM |
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September 19, 2004
A picture in 60,000 words
I have decided to serialise my travelogue on Sri Lanka: 'The Whales of Trincomalee' in this blog. Let's face it; it will never see the light of day as a book....Read this update
Posted by Denni at 02:14 PM |
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