Sri Lanka 070905n: Meanwhile...back in Colombo

Yup, Mr '2001: A Space Odyssey' himself turns up at my Colombo hotel while I am away in Kandy, much to the delight of the missus. Dang, what a miss, I'm a great fan! :-(

Sir Arthur C. Clarke, wheelchair-bound since 1988 due to post-polio syndrome. Sri Lanka has been his home since 1956, and he owns a dive centre to the south of the island (badly hit by the 2004 tsunami), among others.

Sri Lanka 070905m: The Night Sky

On the way back to Colombo, the Moon and Venus put up a great show. Poor Jupiter is also there, but outside the pic.

The crescent Moon, Venus and Jupiter (little dot, below to the right - click image for better view).

Sri Lanka 070905l: The Tea Factory

Sri Lanka = Tea, so just outside Kandy we do a quickie trip to this tea factory. It gets tea leaves from the surrounding plantations, all hand-picked.

The tea leaves are dried and separated here according to size. And the smallest dusty bits are turned into tea-bags!

Processed tea leaves.

Sacks and chests of tea leaves, ready for sale. There are more than 1,000 tea factories in Sri Lanka, and 95% of it is exported. Tea leaves are auctioned off to international brokers who then sell them off to tea manufacturers such as Lipton, Tetley, Twinnings, Ahmad, etc. So what you see here is OEM tea, the original thing!

The six main types of the famed Sri Lanka tea, named according to regions. Click image for better read.

Sri Lanka 070905k: Kandy Medical Centre

A full-fledged sidewalk medical centre. Plastic surgery? Organ transplantations? No problem! Click image for better read.

Sri Lanka 070905j: Temple Compound Scenes

Bells seem to figure prominently in Buddhist temples.

Across the wall, one sees the old complex of temples.

Part of the ancient wall.

Corridor between the external wall (right) and the temple wall (left).

View towards the Kandy Lake.

Sri Lanka 070905i: The Outside Hall

An outdoor hall, in the temple's compound. Note the white dagoba (stupa) to the left.

Close-up of the wooden joints. Note the lotus motif.

Intricately carved wooden pillars and beams.

Sri Lanka 070905h: The Pictorial

At last a royal couple take the Tooth Relic to safety in Sri Lanka to escape the baddies in India.

Close-up of the description. Click image for better read.

The sacred Tooth Relic, now sparkling like a star, has a golden throne of its own, and an umbrella too. What an awesome sight.

Close-up of the description. Click image for better read.

This painting, as part of the pictorial on the walls of the hall, shows the Tooth Relic shooting into the air and shining like star as soon as the bad guys try to destory it with a hammer. Intriguing stuff.

Close-up of the description. Click image for better read.

Sri Lanka 070905g: Main Hall of Tooth Relic Temple

The main Buddha in the temple hall behind the Tooth Sanctuary.