Nature comes to life on park safari

Peacock in Yala, the Sri Lankan national park. [Photo by Ben Lerwill/China Daily]

Leopards will always be Yala's poster-boys but, as previously established, in my case they remained elusive. For me, the creatures that will stick in the mind are instead the park's elephants. I spotted at least two on every game drive, and they always made for an imposing sight. Smaller than their African cousins, they nevertheless loomed like gray giants in the forest, impossibly solid and impossibly powerful－and impossibly hungry, for that matter.

The animal itself occupies a special place in Sri Lankan culture. When an especially renowned elephant passed away in 1998－a male known as Maligawa Tusker Raja－the government declared an official day of national mourning. The country clearly recognizes the value of its wildlife in tourism terms too, although it would be heartening to see some sort of regulation in place to prevent Yala's main game-viewing area becoming too swamped with jeeps in years to come.

Sri Lanka is a hugely rewarding travel destination. The pace of life, on the whole, is heavily conducive to relaxation, and the island's multi-layered blend of different creeds and cultures helps to create a visitor-friendly environment. If you're looking for a fine introduction to the place, you could do far worse than combining Galle and Yala. And if you see a leopard or two? Consider it a bonus.