Habarana

March 26th

I have not posted for several days as we had no WiFi in Anuradhapura and here in Habarana it has been pretty dodgy.. I will try to upload some photos.

The foyer of the Galle Face hotel, Colombo

An interesting notice about the hotel,

A bonus was a breakfast wedding reception complete with band.

 

 Buddhist images in the temple

 There are roadside stalls selling  beautiful sweet pineapples for between 50 cents and $1.

Tree house used by farmers to watch for marauding elephants

Elephant in Wilpattu National Park

Fancy an elephant ride

Drystone walls of the Moat around the 5thC palace/fortress of Sigiriya built by king Kasayappa on top of a 200m rock.

 

Sigiriya I did not attempt the climb!

Massed elephants at Minneriya - about 200 elephants up close and personal.

Almost an elephant jam!

Only some male males have tusks.

Plenty of other wildlife such as spotted deer.

And wading birds.

Lizards

and mongoose

Might be a changeable hawk eagle anyway it looks menacing..

Colombo, Sri Lanka

March 21st

Well, Singapore Airlines looked after us very well but we were pretty zombie like by the time we got to the Galle Face hotel about 2.00 a.m. It is real colonial style built in 1864 on the waterfront and what used to be a racetrack but is now a promenade. Breakfast this morning on the terrace was pretty stylish everything from Apricot Danish to curries and an army of waiters.

Our driver came this morning and brought a friend to navigate for him. The traffic is incredible worse than Cairo.  So we saw a Hindu temple and a Buddhist one and the exteriors of churches and mosques. The street of goldsmiths had lots of well set up shops but not so many customers. I like the street signs of cardboard cutouts are children saying such things as "Daddy drive safely" and "Please don't talk on the phone while driving"

For lunch we asked what the locals ate and the answer was "short eats" so we got bread rolls stuffed with very nice curry.

Just a few photos 

 Chinese bears at Tullamarine

 Beautiful orchids in Changi Airport, Singapore

 Tuk tuks in a shopping strip

 This elderly man outside a Buddhist temple shared his bottle of water with a stray dog.

 Schoolgirls on the street at lunchtime.

 The Colombo Municipal Offices.

 Outside a goldsmith's shop

 Shop windows. There are also smart malls with all the upmarket brand names

I liked the name of the bridal shop.

 Elaborately carved carriage for a god used in street processions.

 Interior of an Hindu temple. There were two cows tied near the entrance.

 Some of the paintings in the temple.

Long past  my bed time so this is all for today.

Melbourne March 17th

St Patrick's Day and on Tuesday we head to Sri Lanka. I am expecting it to be hot but also interesting as it has been a trading hub for centuries and has had a succession of colonial masters and before that it was settled by various groups from India who brought Buddhism in about 250 B.C.
I am hoping that we get to sample the legacy of this rich history including food and handicrafts.

Vilanowa Palace, Warsaw

June 21st

This Polonia Palace has a superior buffet breakfast which even includes shot glasses of vodka with the coffee and whole baked apples.

So we were ready to go when Karolina came at 9. Her small Honda  is very satisfactory as it has a jump seat and the three of us can sit side by side in the front. We drove to Vilanowa Palace on the outskirts of Warsaw. The baroque palace was built by King John lll Sobieski in the last quarter of the 17th C. and in spite of Poland's complicated history including the abolishing of the monarchy in 1795 and more than one partitioning  of Poland and two World Wars the palace and its extensive gardens has survived. It  was originally opened as a museum in 1805.

The scene of devastation around the Polonia Palace in 1945.

 The hotel today

Breakfast buffet including baked apples.

More goodies

Vodka or Freidrich Chopin 'champagne' with your coffee.

A wing of the Vilanowa Palace.

Rather superior garden seats.

 A very fine equestrian portrait of Stanislaw Potocki by Jacques Louis David painted in 1781.

Beautiful furniture.

The King's bed.

 17thC tapestry wallpaper.

Elaborate cornice

Delicate ceiling painting.

 After World War ll the palace was used by the government to accommodate world leaders. This bed had to be lengthened for Charles de Gaulle.

One of the stone floors

Our lovely and expert guide,Karolina.

Charles de Gaulle striding out in Warsaw today (near our hotel).

In the morning we fly to Helsinki to connect with our flight back to Australia and this blog will once more go into hibernation.