Sri Lanka - Uda Walawe National Park

After the baby elephant feeding, we arrived at our hotel, Kalu's Hideaway.  It is owned by a famous Sri Lankan cricket player and is a beautiful 8-room hotel.  Most people stay only one night, either after an evening safari or before a morning safari.  We stayed two nights, with a morning safari in the middle.

The restaurant at the hotel uses all vegetables and fruits grown on the property, except the coconuts which come from the coastal areas since they need salty soil.  The region we were in is known for rice and bananas.  We learned that Sri Lanka has 36 different  varieties of bananas!

Since the hotel only has eight rooms and is fairly isolated, Jack had the run of the place - including a tree house, hammocks, gardens and orchards.  The staff loooooved him and made him special meals including several fresh squeezed juices and as much fruit as he wanted.

The tree house

Obviously, Jack's favorite tree in the garden - the Jackfruit tree

A peacock that kept getting into the garden

The next morning, we piled into a open-top jeep and headed into the park for a safari.  One border of the park is a reservoir and a dam which supplies the electricity for the surrounding area, including the electric fences along the other park boundaries. 

The jeep ride was incredibly bumpy, going through mud and fields on paths through the park.  We saw dozens of elephants - there are 600 elephants in the park - as well as wild water buffalo, peacocks, a few monkeys and crocodiles, and beautiful tropical birds. 

Our welcoming party, blocking the road!

On the way back to our hotel, our driver stopped and bought us fresh sugar cane.  The man selling it on the side of the road cut the outer part off and told us to take small bites of the hard, stringy cane, suck the sweet juice out, and then spit it out.  Jack mostly liked being allowed to spit!

 We headed back to the hotel for a nap and an afternoon at the pool.  Our ride was slowed by a farmer herding his water buffalo across the dam.  Reminds me of my dad herding the buffalo across Stadium Road in Brantwood :)

Jack decided that it would be hilarious if Grandpa's buffalo went swimming like the buffalo in Sri Lanka.  Speaking of Grandpa, my parents are coming soon!  They leave Saturday and arrive on Sunday!!!!  Rob will be taking a group of students to Green Camp in Bali for a week so Jack and I will hang with Grandma and Grandpa. 

One more Sri Lanka post to come...about the sea turtle hatchery. 

Baby update...17 weeks and starting to feel the kicking!