Monkeys eating carrots in Nuwera Eliya

One interesting encounter we had when we were driving around the lanes of Nuwera Eliya was that of a whole troop of monkeys near a carrot field, brazenly uprooting carrots in a field and eating only the carrot portion and not the leaves. They were really enjoying themselves destroying a poor farmer's field.

This is a further illustration of the destructive tendencies of the monkeys and I strongly believe as a farmer that something has to be done immediately to curb the population which is rising with human habitation, and either a mass cull or some form of injected birth control needs to be administered. I lose thousands a year to the monkey menace and have to keep constant vigil to say nothing of the cost of the fire crackers I have to light to keep them away when spotted.

So please someone persuade the powers to change the laws. It is illegal to kill the monkeys.

Weekly gotukola harvest for delivery to customers

This was last Monday's photo of Menika washing the fresh gotukola (val) that she had just harvested, prior to delivery to my customers within a few hours in Colombo. I will be doing the same tomorrow morning August 29th and as my demand exceeds my supply, I am feverishly trying to grow more areas with it. This is all organic and is therefore ideal for the morning kola kanda that people love to drink.

Thal Gaha

This Thal tree in the ancient ruins area is so full of fruit and not harvested. People are probably scared to cut the fruit which is delicious when specially prepared as a drink.

A local ayurvedic physician at work preparing his medications

This ayurvedic doctor is preparing his medications. His father was a settlor in the area from Waga a village near Padukka close to my Godagama farm. His father was given the original 5 acre plot of land in the 1930's by DS Senanayake as part of the Minneriya colonisation scheme, and it is this property that I am now farming on in Raja Ela, Hingurakgoda. None of his family are farmers now.



My friend Mr Gaminidasa is an ayurvedic physician specializing in broken bones. Here he is preparing Ran Thambili oil for one of his medications.

Asleep in the verandah with the sun streaming in

A mosquito net is a must for a good nights sleep undisturbed by sound in your ears. However the cool breeze in the hot months means you are covered head to toe, asleep like a baby as this photo shows and I seem to tolerate this !!!!! at what cost!!!!!

Watadage Polonnaruwa and its environs

Pilgrims climbing the steep steps to the entrance


Moonstone and guard stone at each of four entrances to the circular temple



The galpotha with ancient inscriptions

Menika and daughter first visit to ancient Polonnaruwa

Our trip to the Gal Vihare and the Watadage in Polonnaruwa was a brief introduction to show Menika and her daughter some of what we had to offer here. There were tourists and there were signs all over saying "no photos with backs to the images" There were a number of tourist police whose job was to prevent people from having their photos taken.

One couple in particular were interpreting it as it was fine if the back was not to the statue but just the side was so the person and the statue would be in one photo in a sideways pose. The police pounced on them with the tourist protesting that their back was not to the statue.

They felt most agrieved as they felt they were obeying the instruction to the letter and the police were not interpreting it properly. They were most upset. So in order that there is no confusion the notice should read, no photos to be taken with people posing as well and to apply this universally for all buddha statues all over the island and not just an isolated place here and there.


The head of the reclining Buddha at Gal Vihare


A view of Gal Vihare from the adjoining rock



My favorite photo of them coming down the Gal Vihare rock