One of the destinations Joel had planned was a visit to Yala Natoal
Park, a preserve for wildlife protection, where we went on a Jeep
Safari... on a cold rainy afternoon.
Jim, our driver, let us off with our luggage at the side of the road, where a Jeep took us down a very muddy track, with occasional glimpses of the ocean between shrubby trees growing out of sandy dunes.
We first were served a very good, if hasty, lunch under a thatched roof
close to the waves off a sandy beach, close to the large tents where we
left our luggage, because these were our lodgings for the night.
Impressed with the meals these guys prepared in kitchens with sand under foot & leaves for a roof? An unqualified YES!
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We five intrepid travelers: Edward on the left, Joel, Stephen & Nana. with his constantly carried tripod/selfie-stick
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We clambered into the sturdy, almost "armored" open jeep with our affably capable guide & driver, Kaloum.
.. headed out onto the marshy wooded beach of dunes finding first many water birds...
Along a coastal wildlife refuge.
A striking green parrot-like bird called a bee-eater... but, I was simply watching & trying to keep my mind off the growing discomfort from being cold & wet. I wasn't studying to learn many of the details like names, for all the variety I was seeing...
The terrain was a constantly changing mix of beach sand & jungle margin.
But we kept catching glimpses of the wild elephants, which were of fascination & wonder to me. I've always loved those gracefully lumbering creatures.
A youngster was a surprising treat!
Spotted deer were plentiful & also quite beautiful, with majestic racks of antlers.
There were alligators, often submerged, but sometimes moving about on their own errands
Many more birds of mysterious variety, perching & seeming sometimes to be having lofty conversations. The trees surviving in these brackish waters were sculptural wildlife...
There were beings mysterioso to match...
Peacocks were plentiful, mostly looking drenched & bedraggled.
We passed the big rocks where we were told the leopards would show themselves on sunny days, but being cats, were staying hidden in drier haunts that soggy day. This Leo could not blame them!
As a fine finale one family of elephants, two females, one a nursing mother with her baby were coming closer to the road, persistently wanting to cross where we were slowing to watch.. along with several other vehicles
We were properly startled by the cow's close subtle aggression toward Joel, filming from the back seat, as she staked her legitimate claim to to cross between the several vehicles gathered for the show.
We were happy to be met in what was by now very heavy rain by the host crew with flashlights & umbrellas... getting us back to our canvas "glamping" quarters in the dark... quickly disappearing, leaving us with but the promise of "dinner in our room"...
Where we were fumbling for lights... digging for warmer clothes, &... quickly chucking absolutely any notion of the hot showers we'd dreamed... perceiving that plumbing as being outside... in the weather we we'd just escaped...!
So we "settled" into the welcome of relatively dry shelter, since we were not in communication with our others... since there was no escaping the truth as promised, as we re-invented it as a "date night"...
The only chairs, being quite moist, needed to stay mostly on the porch. still under the edge of the eaves. By now we could celebrate as adventure what began as potential predicament... no candles, lamp light... incessant rain for our musical background... dinner of a credible fish curry... nearly bliss.
Next morning we reunited in quiet daylight returning via Jeep to our van... happily "safaried-out"... but, now we know better the rainy season we are traveling in, which treats us, as we climb over a rather high pass, to flag stops so we could safely navigate around slides... & numerous waterfalls...the best being a spectacular, thus busy, attraction. Cameras busily clicking all around us, we found our moment...
Well, two, when Nana appeared...
Obviously rice paddies were happily unfazed by the wet...
We did what we could do...we drove on in the rain, rain, rain...
