Victory Celebrations over Defeat of Tamil Tigers in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka

After the blasts of firecrackers.

Hanging dangerously from a three-wheeler.

Three-wheelers decked out in the national flag.

Riotous victory parade by ordinary folks.

Riotous celebrations.

When I arrived in Nuwara Eliya, popularly known as Little England on account of its temperate climate, was in the midst of the wildest celebrations ever to engulf the town: victory celebrations over the Tamil Tigers.

Everyone was so happy in this Tamil-majority town.

Convoys of vehicles and three-wheeler cabs blared their horns while their occupants waved the Sri Lanka flag in unrestrained joy, screaming their happiness as I snapped pictures of them.

Firecrackers were set off while police officers were out in full force to ensure that things did not get out of hand.

No one will ever forget the victory celebrations over the defeat of the Tamil Tigers.

Sigiriya, Sri Lanka

Metal staircases hug the steep slopes of Sigiriya.

Sri Lankans climbing up to the summit.

The moat outside Sigiriya.

Sigiriya or the Lion's Rock

A small island like Sri Lanka is blessed with 7 UNESCO heritage sites. One of them is the city of Kandy on account of the sacred Buddha Tooth Temple (see preceding post).

Another is Sigiriya. Some say it's the eighth wonder of the world.

A solid granite rock 370m high that rises from a plain is bound to elicit a feeling of awe. Once a palace, fortress and a refuge for Buddhist clergy, it's now a big tourist attraction like Angkor Wat. In fact, the moat and entrance to Sigiriya reminded me of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.

At first, I was undecided whether to visit Sigiriya as I wondered if I could walk up the steep flight of steps to the summit.

I took an early morning bus for the 4 hours' ride to Sigiriya. I still remember the bus conductor for he failed to return me my change! But he made it up by telling me where to get off. I had to walk about 1 km along a dusty unpaved road to the entranceof Sigiriya! However, it was a nice quiet walk and I had the rare opportunity of hearing a bird singing. Rare because the mighty crow is the king of the skies in Sri Lanka!

The passengers in every bus and car that passed by looked at me as if in pity to see me trudging in the hot sun. So to avoid them I purposely walked along the moat! A huge monitor lizard relaxing under a huge tree startled me. I thought it was a snake! When I recovered from the shock, I had a good laugh.