The real Sri Lanka through the eyes of the locals.
Ask anyone who has been on safari with us and they wouldn't deny that community interactions are part of the best memories they have of their safari with Ayu in the Wild.
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A jungle-farmer's life is tough! Waking up before dawn to collect water, set out to work on the field before the sun becomes unbearably hot and as the day ends, gather firewood before heading home.
Most often, 'Paddy-farmers' (who grow rice) close to wild Elephant corridors need to stay awake on all-night vigils. Sitting in a tiny watch hut, vulnerable, in the middle of his field or maybe high up on a tree with just a faint light for company. Despite electric fences that are meant to be a deterrent, Elephants still break through, keeping logs on the fence and stepping over! At night, intermittently, each farmer yells out to the other in the next field - a simple tracking mechanism to ensure no one has fallen asleep or come to any harm.
On safari a few weeks ago, we spent some incredible moments with a jungle-farmer and his family experiencing how to cook-like-the-locals-in-the-wild.
We picked vegetables off his plot and helped cook five curries on an open fire of three bricks.
Ever tasted prawns grilled on a banana leaf over a wood-fired bbq of sorts?
After a long safari ride we visited them again as night approached - just to chat about their day and ours. They had even lit a campfire! The jungle-farmers' life is one of incredibly hard work. Yet, they can be the most hospitable people you will ever meet. Talk to them and they never fail to smile!
As the night became cooler from the breeze wafting through the vast lake in front of their tiny clay, wattle and daub hut, our day out on safari came to a perfect end.
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