Tails, you win! (It's a Blue Whale's tail)

Day 6 (21/02) Hikkaduwa – Mirissa Harbour.

$ am up, 5 am pickup. Arrived amid absolute chaos with tourists and guides trying to find the right boats amongst about twenty 50 footers.
It all works, and we are off at 7 am for a four (4) hour trip to see whales and other marine life.
After 4 hours we had seen a green turtle and some flying fish, oh, and a Manta ray.. At this point our skipper decided to abandon the whale hunt, and off we chugged back towards harbour. I'm not quite clear on the communication method but after 20 we about turned and shot off back towards the fleet who had apparently spotted something.

It took a further hour to catch up with the others, and about half an hour before a tail was spotted aome distance away. Off we all rushed with one of the crew timing the reappearance. This allowed us to dash forward and be in more or less the correct spot.
With some deviations, this worked really well and I managed a couple of captures.

Following some encounters with dolphins, we arrived back in port 81/2 hours later!
Lionel was remarkably cheery considering having been hanging around all that time.

Enough for one day, but we squeezed in a quick visit to the Stilt Fishermen (Tourist pastiche, unless of course the Indian ocean is now populated by plastic Angelfish.) then to Galle Fort, built originally by the Portuguese, extended by the Dutch who kicked the Portys out, and then extended and modified by the Brits, who had kicked the Dutch out, or so I am told.

Quiet morning by the pool tomorrow, then who knows what, as our itinerary has been shoogled.


Buenas,
G.