Clients - Robin & Daniel
Guide - Ruwan Sampath
Driver - Ruwan Fernando
Day 1:
Company driver Ruwan picked up our two guests from Colombo airport around 12.15 PM and were then transferred to Aggressor Safari Lodge. It took around 3 hours to get to the lodge. On the way Ruwan stopped at a local restaurant for refreshment. Guests arrived at the lodge at 3.30PM. After a welcome drink & late lunch, guide Sampath went through the introduction of the lodge. Guests were shown their chalet they stayed in, the chalet in front of the pool. Around 7.30 PM guests had their four course dinner. The guide took the opportunity to go through the weeks itinerary and got to know the guests.
Day 2:
After breakfast, we departed to Sigiriya for an exciting day ahead. Around 10am we started to climb the rock & it was rather quiet that day so guests could explore the place freely. The wall painting of a beautiful woman in the 5th century AD was a highlight. It took us around 1.30mins to climb to the top of the palace which totaled 1270 steps. Soon there were less clouds & the views were very clear. On the way down guests also visited to the museum and water garden.
Around 1.30pm we had our lunch & the guests enjoyed local foods in a restaurant in Sigiriya. Guests tried different local dishes with rice and curry.
About 2pm, we drove back to Habarana and entered the Eco Park to see elephants gathering. There were around 100 elephants at the park and the guests had a wonderful time. After the safari we got back to the lodge about 7.45pm & had dinner. After dinner we had amazing conversation while having a few wine glasses.
Day 3:
Early in the morning we went on our first Wilpattu National Park game drive & at 6am we entered the park. After a one hour drive in to the park we saw our first major sighting; a big male leopard crossing the road. We went further in to the jungle. We saw lots of different birds, all three types of deer population, water buffalos, sloth bare etc. We stopped by a large lake inside the park and had our breakfast. The guests went close to the lake to see a few crocodiles. Guests also took this opportunity to feed the monkeys. We get back to the jeep and continue the ride where we manage to witness a second leopard siting for the day. Around 11.30 am we came out from the park and headed back to the lodge. After lunch, guests went for a rest. After noontime,the guests relaxed by the pool with a few beers.
Day 4:
After breakfast we left for Anuradhapura. Our first kingdom (3rd century AD to 10thcentury BC) we visited Isurumuniya, Tuparamaya, Sri MahaBodiya, JethawanaAramaya Ruwanweli Maha Stupaya etc… The weather was great and it was good time to walk.
From Anuradhapura we went to Polonnaruwa on the way while guests had mix lunch at Rajarata hotel.
Around 2pm guests checked in at Deer park hotel.
Around 6pm we went to the monkey research center to do the Loris tour. The guests received a warm welcome with a cup of coffee. After we had the coffee we started our Loris tour. We spent about two hours there and managed to see four Loris’. We went back to the hotel about 8.45 and had dinner there.
Day 5:
After breakfast we left for Polonnaruwa ancient city around 8.30 from the hotel. Polonnaruwa belongs to 10-13 centuries AD. In there we first met a head of about 40 macaque and we spent 20 minutes watching and photographing their activities. We went to see Manik Viharaya (Stupa) and Monkey kingdom main film location and Gal Vihara. Around 12 we went back to hotel Deer Park & guests jump in to the pool and enjoyed a beer. On the way back to the lodge we stop at a local restaurant since the guests were very keen on testing local cuisines.
Day 6:
Today the guests slept for a bit longer and had a late breakfast. Guests took the opportunity to explore the lodge. Our senior staff Bandu and I took them for a walk. Our chef prepared a few meals from jack fruit since Elaine was very much interested in the food. Local staff girl Nirosha gave Elaine few seeds to take to USA. After lunch, another local lunch around 2 pm, we went to Wilpattu National Park to do our last safari. There were lot of birds, and other small animals we saw previously. We had another leopard sighting again, this time there were two leoprds together. Finally the day ended where we witnessed the sun go down near the lake. Final dinner went late with wine.
Day 7:
The bond the staff had with the guests was amazing. The staff was really sad to say goodbye.
