BLUE WHALES & SMOOTH SAILS

Sri Lanka’s welcoming waters offer a myriad of oceanic adventures along the island’s west coast

- RANJAN PAL

For many Indians, a trip to Sri Lanka can be an eye-opener as a cleaner, less crowded and more compact version of their own country awaits them. This sun-soaked neighbor boasts the charming name, resplendent island; aptly so, as travelers will find they are never far from an amazing beach or sparkling cove, full of ocean adventures to be experienced.

TENACIOUS TURTLES

With eyes wide open behind my snorkelling mask, I watch a giant green turtle sail gracefully upwards, followed by a school of small, yellow feeder fish. Despite the majesty of the sea turtle’s movement, its hooded eyes and prominent head make the creature look like a cantankerous bald, old man. I offer a handful of seaweed to the amphibian, and one lightning-fast lunge later its beak has snapped the gift away. Taken aback by the ferocity of this move, I overbalance and try to right myself by pushing on its mottled, brown back. Swiftly it wobbles away, throwing back an unimpressed look at the clumsy human teetering in the very shallow waters of Hikkaduwa's reef. The whole encounter leaves me both shaken and stirred–like a badly made martini. (www. internationaldivingschool.com, 3-hour snorkelling excursion, $100/ ₹7,500)

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