Sri Lankan wildlife up close

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• Holiday Types: Beach, Safari

• by: JonMArtinTravelPhotography
• on: Thu 09 Feb 2012

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Before the sun rose I had left my gecko-ridden room for a long bone-shaking, leopardless drive through Sri Lanka’s Yala national park.

Here I learned how elephants and other animals with their instinct and infrasound, fled to high ground before the Tsunami hit in 2004, and that my compact camera was not up to the job of capturing David Attenborough-worthy wildlife images.

Another long drive followed, up the winding west coast road towards Galle, passing bustling towns and the skeletons of houses broken by the ocean's power. I was jolted into consciousness by the driver’s white-knuckle overtaking and roadside stops for refreshing king coconut or fruits, like the elephants’ favourite – the wood apple – fresh to my eyes and palate, eaten under the shade of a cotton tree.

At The Fortress resort and spa I was met by smiling staff, crisp in flowing saris or sarongs. I quickly returned their “Ayubowan” greeting, grabbed my welcome cocktail and ran to see the sun setting spectacularly over the Indian Ocean. Plunging my drink down in the shallows of the infinity pool and laying flat on my stomach I photographed it merging with the sunset and its reflection. Job done, I sipped my long cool drink and gave myself over to luxury, with its comfort and fine wines, with no frogs in the bathroom sink or screeching geckos behind the bed.

But luxury is more than an immaculately mixed welcome cocktail that greets you with a matching sunrise; air conditioned designer room, discreet but attentive staff and an infinity pool overlooking an inviting ocean. Luxury is about contrasts and having the time to observe the wonders of nature up close, seeing something first hand, for the first time and bridging for an instant the distance between two cultures.

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