Cuddly & Poppy's Holiday

It was a cold and misty Friday evening. Mummy and Daddy bear sat on the porch with their children and all their friends, sharing hot chocolate. 

"Daddy, what time do we have to leave home tomorrow." asked Cuddly. "We should leave by 7am." said Daddy Bear. "The taxi will be here right on time," said Mummy bear.  

“(Oh then), I better go and finish my packing!” exclaimed Poppy. “Oh, wait a little more Poppy. Finish your hot chocolate,” said Cuddly and all the others agreed. Everyone had come to say goodbye to the family before they left on their holiday. 

I’m sure Cuddly, Mimi and Poppy are going to have a lot of fun in Sri Lanka,” Woody chirped. "Imagine going on an aeroplane," said Bunny excitedly

 "Isn't it Mimi's first time?" said the badger babies (who were now quite grown-up),"Yes, ours too," said Cuddly and Poppy together. 

"Are you going to miss us?" Asked Poppy. "Yes we will miss you!" said starry and the ducks who had been quiet all this time.

 "We will miss you walking by the pond in the afternoons." said Ciggy.

The only one's missing were Goldie and Miu. They had gone back to the city to visit their family. Ah! and the otters who were too busy swimming and playing slip and slide as usual. 

"It's getting chilly out here, it's time to go back in and home," said Mummy Bear picking up Mimi and wrapping her up in a blanket. One by one everyone hugged Cuddly and Poppy and went on their way. I'm all excited, Cuddly! I'll see you before 7am tomorrow, said Poppy and gave Cuddly a big hug. She knew this holiday abroad was going to be special.

The next morning Daddy Bear was up very early. "Mummy, it's time, let's load up the taxi!" said Daddy. "Can you hear me children?" 

"I'm coming as fast as I can, Daddy." Cuddly scrambled as fast as he could with his 'wheely bag,' stopping to check if he had locked it. He ran to the taxi and quickly put the luggage in. The driver moved it around to make room for more bags. Cuddly ran back again into the house and as he ran he shouted out loud to Poppy, "Hey Poppy, it's time to go!"

"Please put  your coat on Mimi and pick up your toy." said Mummy. Cuddly looked at Mimi as she laughed and squealed with delight. It was Mimi's first holiday away from home. 

"Let's go Mimi, or we'll be late! Mummy, I'll help you carry Mimi's luggage.'' said Cuddly.  "Yes, can you take both these bags please, I will bring Mimi with me." said Mummy.

Daddy called out again, this time from outside. "It's time my dears, hurry up, we have a flight to catch." Cuddly saw Poppy and Kyrie her little brother hurrying across with their parents.

"Happy holidays, Cuddly! Take good care of Poppy." said Mummy Kangaroo winding Poppy's red scarf around her neck and helping her with the backpack.

 "Yes, Mrs. Kangaroo, I will, said Cuddly. "Don't worry!" . 

 "We will miss you Poppy, don't forget to call us everyday.'' said Daddy Kangaroo. Mummy Kangaroo was looking a little anxious too as this was Poppy's first holiday away from home and her little brother Kyrie. 

Poppy ran back and gave Kyrie another kiss and a hug and said, "Don't miss me too much. I will be back soon."

Soon Mimi was sitting comfortably in her car seat between Cuddly and Poppy. Mummy Bear sat with Daddy Bear right in front of them. 

Cuddly and Poppy suddenly saw all their friends lined up on one side of the road waving goodbye to them. They waved back too. Bunny and Starry were standing together, holding a banner! It said "Have fun in Sri Lanka!" (Art work idea- friends on one side of the road as the van approaches). 

The Taxi drove out of the woods and onto the highway to take them to the airport! The friends/Cuddly and Poppy/ continued to wave excitedly at all their neighbours and Farmer Joe’s cow too! 

 "Are we there yet!" Mimi shouted and everyone laughed!  "No darling Mimi, it will take us forty five minutes to get to the airport.  And if all goes well, at least 11 hours to get to Sri Lanka." said Daddy. "That sounds like a long, long time Daddy!" she said and yawned. "Mimi, do you know that we will be flying about 5,415 miles away from home." asked Daddy. And Mimi shook her head. Daddy was trying to help Mimi understand that it was a long flight.  "Don't worry there will be a nice movie or two that you can watch on the flight, and time will surely fly!" Mummy reassured her.

"Let me take out my list." said Poppy and pulled out a long list of things to do and started reading it out loud to Mimi. "I'm excited, aren't you? she said. Soon we will be doing all these things, Mimi." 

Turning to Cuddly she added, "Aren't you excited, we have a lot to do, right Cuddly? I hope we get to tick off everything." said Poppy. "I'm sure we will be able to do that, Poppy. We just need to be patient," said Cuddly.

"I want to go to the beach soon, said Mimi. I want to play with my spade and bucket and flags! I'm going to build a sand castle. Will you all help me?"  "We will help you silly, we will be there too!" said Mummy, Daddy, Cuddly and Poppy, all at the same time. And  Mimi was very pleased. 

They arrived at the airport on time. Daddy Bear and the driver unloaded the luggage while Mummy bear got Mimi out of the car seat.

 "Mummy, shall I get that trolley," said Cuddly. "Yes please,  push it closer so that Daddy can load our luggage. Daddy Bear settled the Taxi driver and gave him a good tip as he was very helpful and courteous. He then turned to us. “Children,” he said, “Can you see how crowded this airport is? You must stay together and stick close to us.”

"Yes Daddy," said Cuddly and Mimi together. Yes, Uncle Bear,” said Poppy, I know we can get lost easily, we will stay close together”

 Now follow me to the check-in counter," said Daddy. Mummy made sure she held Mimi's hand firmly in hers and walked towards the check-in counter.

The rest was easy, Daddy Bear had all their passports and they went through the immigration counter quickly to the boarding area. They only had a little while to wait. All sat down and Mummy Bear gave the children a few packs of juice. They sipped their drink as they looked around in excitement at everything happening around them. 

There was a loud announcement that boarding had started. Daddy and Mummy Bears guided the children to the gate and handed the boarding passes to the checker before walking into the airbridge and onto the plane.

The stewardess helped Mimi and Mummy bear find their seats and then helped Cuddly and Poppy to theirs. "Is this my seat Daddy," asked Cuddly. Yes, said Daddy Bear and put away the hand luggage. He stood over Mimi first, then Poppy and finally Cuddly to make sure that each child had fastened their seat belts properly.  

Mimi had the window seat and Mummy bear was next to her. She had a good view of the runaway. Daddy bear, Cuddly and Poppy were in the middle row of seats.

 "Daddy, when can I sit near the window." Asked Cuddly. "Sometime later Cuddly, once Mimi is settled in. When the seat belt sign comes off, it'll be safe to move around. But let's wait till we have had a snack or two, ok?" said Daddy. It was the first time that both Cuddly and Poppy were on an aeroplane so they wanted to find out exactly how things are done inside the plane. 

Poppy was quite pleased to be in the aisle seat for now. "I can take turns with you later, can't I Cuddly?" she asked. Cuddly nodded and settled himself with the headphones. 

Cuddly and Poppy heard the voice on the loudspeaker again and watched the flight steward standing ahead and explaining the emergency evacuation drill. Then the stewardesses walked up and down checking if everyone were buckled in. 

Just then the captain's friendly voice came on saying. "Hello, this is the captain speaking, "Welcome aboard. We thank-you for flying Indian Pearl Airlines. We expect a smooth flight and anticipate that we will arrive on time in Sri Lanka at 21:00 hours GMT. 

Enjoy your flight."

The last warning  'Fasten your seat belt' sign came on and the plane began to taxi on the runaway, slowly at first and then gathering speed. As it took off, and flew straight into the morning sky, Mimi let out a loud squeal! Poppy clapped and Cuddly smiled to himself. They were all so excited, their long awaited overseas holiday had just begun. 

Though the sun had come out, the London sky was still overcast  "Can you see our house, Mimi" asked Cuddly. Mimi strained to looked out and said, "Oh no Cuddly, I cant see anything."  "We are flying through clouds Cuddly." Mummy said.

The stewardesses began wheeling out the food trolleys. "Tea or Coffee," they asked as they moved along. "What will you have?" she asked Mimi. Mimi looked at Mummy Bear questioningly. "Please give her a chicken burger and fries, thank-you." said Mummy Bear. Poppy and Cuddly asked for a club sandwich and enjoyed it very much.

"Mummy can I watch a movie now," asked Mimi. Mummy Bear flipped through the channels and chose Mimi's favourite video. Poppy said, "I want to watch Moana. Cuddly decided he would read his book first.

Several hours passed by and Mummy and Daddy Bear realised that their little munchkins and Poppy were all fast asleep. They decided to let them sleep till it was time to get off the aeroplane!

When they woke up, Cuddly and Poppy saw the other people take their bags from above them. Daddy Bear said." Cuddly and Poppy, it's time to get-off, please take your coats and your backpacks. Can you move forward slowly with Mummy and do exactly as she says."

They all followed Mummy Bear and Mimi slowly and waited for Daddy bear at the end of the airbridge in the airport. He lead them through the check-out and immigration. The officer said, "Welcome to Sri Lanka, enjoy your holiday," and handed over all the passports to Daddy Bear. They collected their luggage and headed towards the exit. 

Daddy Bear said that his business associate would meet and take them to their first hotel.

Cuddly spotted the board which said Daniel Brown and Family! "There he is Daddy," said Cuddly and ran towards him pulling his 'wheely' bag with him. Poppy walked unhurriedly behind. She was holding Mimi with one and the bag with the other. Mummy Bear wheeled Mimi's bags and hers.

They all clambered into the van which was waiting for us. Finally they were off to the seaside! But it was night time already and they couldn't see much of the scenery.

It was past 10pm when they checked into the Governor’s Hotel near the sea. The manager welcomed them as the stewards stood by holding a tray with something unusual.

What’s that Mummy” Mimi asked. All of them looked puzzled. It was an orange almost oval shaped container with a straw! "This is a king coconut drink, freshly cut for you. Here please hold it with both hands and take a sip off the paper straw.” said the steward to Mimi. They all took one each. The drink was yummy and refreshing and they finished it off in a jiffy. 

What's that sound? asked Mimi. Poppy said," It sounds like the wind," And they heard it again. Yes indeed it was the wind! But there was more! There was a thud, thud. She listened and looked in the direction of the sound. They saw a balcony and ran out onto it. It was the waves splashing on the rocks below. Cuddly stood there awestruck! Listening and watching... Daddy and Mummy bear looked around wondering where the children were and saw Cuddly, Poppy and Mimi standing on the balcony as if mesmerised by the frothy and foaming waves, hitting the rocks forcefully. 

The steward seeing the look on their faces said, “Don’t worry, it will be alright in the morning. Make sure you come down to the beach with your parent's. Come early to collect shells and wade in the shallow water.” “Thank-you, yes, we will,” they said, and ran back to where Mummy and Daddy Bear were waiting.

Cuddly and Poppy were feeling tired and Mimi began to yawn loudly. “Time for bed,” said Mummy. They had 2 rooms with a connecting door and large windows facing the sea.

“Cuddly and Mimi you can share this (double) bed, and Poppy you can have your own,” said Mummy. “Is anyone hungry?” asked Daddy. “No?” he asked as the children. They  shook their heads sleepily. “Alright children, please brush your teeth and have a warm shower, then pajamas and bed,” said Mummy bear.

“Mummy can you please set the alarm for 7a.m.? We want to go down to the beach early.” said Cuddly. “Yes, ofcourse my dear.” said Mummy smiling at him. “Now, shower and bed as fast you all can.”

Soon, they were all tucked in

 and fast asleep.

"Rrrrrrrriiiiiinnnng" went the alarm and up they jumped! Cuddly and Poppy sat on their beds wide eyed and a bit unsure! "Where are we?" they both shouted!"

Just then Mummy bear walked into their room. "Wake up babies, it's a brand new day far, far away from home! And looking at their surprised expressions, Mummy said, "Have you forgotten? We are in the beautiful Island, Sri Lanka!"

Both Cuddly and Poppy burst out laughing and that woke up Mimi. "Okay, Okay," chuckled Cuddly followed by Poppy who said, "yes, yes, I thought I was dreaming!" Everyone laughed and Daddy Bear joined in too.

"Mummy Bear said, " Get dressed soon and wear your hats children. Mimi bring your spade and Bucket.

They quickly got dressed and followed Mummy and Daddy Bear to the beach. "It's safe, the green flags are out and Oh! I see the red and yellow flags too! Let's stay in this area, okay children? It's good that we came early." said Daddy Bear.  

Mimi ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. Cuddly and Poppy waded into the shallow water. 

They paddled for awhile and lay on the sand and let the slow waves wash over them.

Mimi started digging up to build her first sand castle. She called out, "Mummy, Daddy, come help me. How do I build a tall tower?" Daddy Bear showed her by piling up the sand and Mummy bear dug out a moat. "Go bring some water Mimi," said Mummy. Mimi said, "I'm scared!" 

"Come let me show you how," said Cuddly getting up. He took her gently by the hand and helped her scoop up the water. Just then a wave rolled in over her feet and she moved back spontaneously. Poppy seeing that said, " Mimi you are wearing a life jacket, so you are safe. The water is shallow here, scoop more water from here." Mimi nodded and took a full bucket of water and ran back to her sand tower.

Cuddly said, " yoohoo, can you see me? Look am buried in the sand!" Daddy bear laughed.

Poppy said, "Hey Cuddly can you free yourself and come here, I like to try that too!"

Daddy took photographs of the children playing on the beach and wading and of Mummy Bear with her hat and sun glasses, seated on a deck chair and reading a book. 

Soon it was time to go back in. "Breakfast is ready," said Ranil, Daddy Bear's friend. "Do get washed up and lets go up to the terrace to eat." 

They all quickly showered and changed and joined Ranil's family at breakfast.

 "Good morning children. Please meet my family, this is Amaya, my daughter and this is Shama or Aunty Shama," he said. They all said, "Hello" to each other while Mummy Bear and Daddy Bear shook hands with them. 

Mimi looked at the little girl with admiration.  She was wearing a sun-dress with yellow polka dots and her hair was tied in pig tails tied with yellow ribbons. Mimi ran ahead and sat right next to her. Poppy sat on the other side of her and said, "Hello, I'm Poppy and pointing to Cuddly she said, "that is Cuddly." Cuddly had sat opposite her. He nodded to Amaya and said," It's very nice to meet you." Mimi kept asking Amaya lots of questions.

Then Aunty Shama said, "You can call me Shama Nandha. Nandha means Aunty in Sinhala. Cuddly tried to pronounce it...""Nan...dhaa," he said. It sounded funny and everyone was amused. That's ok, we will practice saying it later." Shama assured him.

"Come let's eat, you must be all very hungry." she said.  "Yes we are," said Mummy Bear and dished out the toast, and honey/ pancakes and jam and poured the milk for the children. 

Mummy and Daddy Bear said, "Let's taste the Sri Lankan breakfast. He served a small portion of 'kiribath and 'seeni sambol.' "This is so good." said Daddy Bear. 

Mummy also took something labeled 'hoppers' and 'lunu miris.' "These taste really good," Mummy exclaimed! It's spicy and also a bit sour. There was a pot of treacle. Mummy added a teeny bit of that too. "It tastes so good!" She said.

Soon after breakfast, both the Daddy's and Mummy Bear looked at their itinerary and discussed their next move. 

The children were enjoying a nice conversation at the table with each other, when suddenly Amaya  said, "Do you know that I am a star." The other's wondered what she meant. Then Aunty Shama replied, "Amaya likes to tell her special story whenever she meets new friends. It's something very interesting." 

"Do tell us Amaya, we want to hear all of it" said Poppy and Cuddly excitedly. 

"I'll tell it from the very beginning!" she said. You know my Mummy and Daddy brought me to their home from a Convent. "What is that?" asked Mimi. That's a place where Catholic nun's live. And sometimes they have a home where they look after little children. "Do you understand now, Mimi" she asked. Mimi nodded. "So one day Mummy and Daddy visited this place. They wanted to see all the babies there and then they saw me in a cot in the corner! "Oh she's so small!" exclaimed Mummy. Daddy quickly looked at the kind matron in Charge and said, "She's quite small but can we adopt her?" "Yes, she's a healthy baby, though small," she said instantly. She had known Mummy and Daddy for a long time, and she knew that they will be the best parent's for me. 

"All the paper work is done, if both of you can just sign here, then you could take her home today!"  "They had a-d-o-p-t-e-d me! " said the beaming little girl, Amaya. Excitedly she continued her story.

"Daddy had driven us to Colombo in his new car. Mummy said I was no trouble at all. I had slept all the way home. She had strapped me safely in a baby basket with pink blankets. 

As we drove in there were many people waiting for my parent's in the drive-way. They were holding flower bunches and gifts to welcome us. They all looked happy. I have seen pictures of everyone who was there. 

Mummy and Daddy told me they fell in love with me, the moment they saw me! My grandparent's had taken one look at me and had said, "Oh how small and angelic she is!" "It was a great welcome, don't you think? All of them often tell me what a special gift I am to them and give me a hug and kiss!"

"Do your parent's do that too?" she asked Cuddly and Poppy. "Yes, we know we are special too," said Cuddly. Mummy bear told me lots of stories  about the time I was born. And Poppy too was thinking of the time her mother had shared similar stories with her.

Poppy said, "Your story is very special Amaya, thank-you for telling us. But I suppose it's different to our stories. Yes our parent's do hug and kiss us lot's of times and we all hug and kiss too. That shows that all our parent's love us lots and lots, isn't it Cuddly," she asked. Cuddly gave her a wide grin and a big nod.

"Mummy may I invite my new friends to our home? I can show them my room and my toys?"  Amaya asked  "Yes ofcourse!  We will invite them after we return from our holiday." said Aunty Shama.

Mimi had been listening carefully to Amaya. Then she suddenly slid off her chair and ran  to Mummy bear and whispered something into her ears. Mummy Bear listened intently to Mimi and assured her, "Yes Mimi I will explain it all to you later. You can now go and play in the shady part of the garden with the others." The others too, slid off the chairs and ran towards the beach ball that was lying on the grass to play catch.

Daddy said it was no time to leave Governor's Hotel. "Where are we going now?" asked Cuddly. "We'll be going to see the turtles as planned." said Daddy. 

At that Mimi let out her usual squeal! "Baby Turtles, let's go soon Daddy." she said. Poppy smiled and held onto Mimi's hand while the van was being loaded up again for the next part of their trip.

Poppy said, " Did you know that turtles lay eggs late at night?" They furrow deep into the sand on the beach and lay their eggs." Mummy Bear was impressed with Poppy. "How do you know so much about this?" she asked her. "Mummy read it to me from an encyclopaedia." said Poppy. "That's very good." said Mummy bear. Then Cuddly said, "I googled with Daddy Bear's help, and found out that there are 5 different types of turtles, that come ashore  Mummy. I'm just waiting to go and see them myself." Mummy said, "Yes, let's go to the hatchery and find out. Am sure we can find out more about the turtles and even see some of them." 

"We are here now in Habaraduwa, please get down carefully,"  Uncle Ranil announced. Daddy Bear went ahead and bought tickets to enter the hatchery as the others followed him. 

Mimi as usual ran ahead towards the tanks filled with water. There were so many turtles of different sizes and colors. A guide answered all the children's questions. 

Cuddly was the first to ask him. "Can you show me a green turtle please?" "Here they are, they are the most common turtles in Sri Lanka. Come this way please," he said to the others.

 "Is this a Olive Ridley?" asked Poppy. "Yes, did you see the color of it's shell? That's how it got it's name. And now let me show you the baby turtles." he said.   

                                      

And that's when Mimi squealed again. Amaya laughed and grabbed Mimi's hand and ran towards the Baby turtles. The guide allowed the children to handle the baby turtles gently for a few seconds. "Mimi, here let me show you," said Cuddly. And slowly lifted a baby green turtle from the tank with his palm. Mimi, Amaya and Poppy did likewise . And put them ever so gently back into the water.  "When do you release them to the sea," asked Poppy. "Usually at night, within a few days of hatching/or when they are stronger." he said. 

By this time Mummy and Daddy Bear also were nearby listening. Then Daddy asked him, "Where is their nesting ground." The guide pointed to a fenced area on the beach and said, "there it is." "How long do they take to hatch," asked Mummy  Bear. The guide said, "Usually just over sixty days. So we have to keep track of the time and protect them from predators. These will be released soon." said the guide, pointing to the tank of baby turtles. If you come back tonight, say around 7 pm, it must be dark. Then you can see the release of a batch of baby sea turtles." "Okay we'll try to come tonight." said Daddy.

"These other adult Turtles you see here are mostly rescues. Once they are treated for their injuries and they heal, we release them back to the ocean. 

"What a wonderful time we have had here. Am sure we have learned a lot more, isn't it," said Uncle Ranil. It's time to head back, said Aunty Shama. "Where are we going to now Mummy," asked Amaya. " We are all going to the Galle Fort now for lunch and we will stay on there till tomorrow." Aunty Shama explained. But Daddy Bear had plans of returning to watch the release of the baby turtles only with the Cuddly and Poppy.

Everyone had a quiet afternoon. In the evening they walked on the ramparts and watched the sunset. And took pictures of the lighthouse. The sky turned a light orange and then darker and suddenly dusk set in. Daddy Bear took lots of pictures of us against the backdrop of the lighthouse. And then said, ''Let's head back for a quick dinner." The moment dinner was done, Mummy went upto the room with Mimi and  Amaya went with her parents.

The driver drove us back to Habaraduwa to the beach next to the hatchery. We got there just in time! They had just started to release the baby turtles. There were many guides watching each baby and directing them as most paddled instinctively towards the sea.

"Where's that one going, giggled Cuddly. Poppy also giggling replied, " Yes where's that one and that one and the other one going? " The guide gave them permission to gently guide the baby turtles to the sea. Cuddly and Poppy slowly kept their palms behind them  and nudged them towards the sea. The guide said, "Look,  I'm shining this white light so the little fellows can see where they are going." Indeed it was a lovely sight.

 "Wow, this is exciting, am glad we got to see all this." said Daddy Bear. Poppy yawned, "Shall we go back now?" Cuddly laughed. "You are tired so soon?" "Yes I am, aren't you?" said Poppy. And Cuddly shook his head and said, "Not at all!" He was thinking, I can stay all night watching these babies!

Daddy reminded us that we also had an early start the next day. "Remember you have to wake up early to be at the Mirissa Harbour by 6:30am tomorrow. Don't forget to ask Mummy to set the alarm! 

As soon as they returned to their room, Cuddly and Poppy whispered to Mummy Bear about the next day's plan. Mummy Bear assured them, "Everything is ready, go to sleep now, goodnight, I'll wake you up. Don't worry." They quickly washed and changed into their pajamas and got into bed. 

Rrriiinnnggg.. went the alarm again and it wasn't even light! Both cuddly and Poppy sat up with a start! This time it was Mummy who laughed out loud and said, "Get up children, we are going whale watching today and we need to get ready soon.'' I'll wake Mimi up and help her to get dressed.

We don't have to worry about breakfast. We will get breakfast and all the snacks onboard the boat.

Daddy Bear peeped in and asked, "Are we all ready? Ranil, Shama and Amaya are waiting for us downstairs." Let's go soon we have to be there by 6:30am.

Soon the two families got into the waiting van that would take them to Mirissa. Cuddly yawned and Poppy laughed. Mimi was half asleep and was on Mummy's lap. Amaya was quiet. 

We reached the Mirissa office of the whale watching tour company near the Mirissa harbour and Uncle Ranil went in to make the payments and get the update. After that Nimal, the leader for the Whale watching expedition for the day briefed us on what to do and not to do on the boat. They also asked us to take a tablet to avoid motion sickness.

Mummy Bear made sure we were given the correct dosage and we swallowed it with some water.

"Can you hear the waves Poppy?" Cuddly  asked. "Yes I can hear the roar. How exciting all this is. We will soon be in the boat! I hope we can see a lot of whales and dolphins today!" "Yes, I sure do hope so," said Cuddly, rubbing his hands together and smiling.

Uncle Ranil helped Amaya and her mother into the boat and Daddy bear helped Mummy Bear and Mimi and then us! We wore our life jackets and our Daddy's helped us to strap them on firmly. 

The fun had just begun. Nimal used his megaphone to inform us  whenever they spotted something...he said "we are 28 miles out at sea, we have steered the boat parallel to the coastline as we got a message that there was a school of dolphins and whales in this direction. 

Next we heard Nimal shouting into the megaphone and then we saw many bottle nosed 

dolphins swimming parallel to our boat. Mimi squealed as she saw them jump gracefully out and back into the water. Amaya laughed and clapped her hands. Both the little girls were seated on their parent's laps so they could see out .

Suddenly Poppy pointed to something else in the water and asked. 'What is that ?" Nimal on hearing that looked her way quickly and said "those are adult Turtles. "Today you are so lucky to see them. It is a great day!"

The pilot stopped the boat for a while and then we heard Nimal say loudly ..

"Look in the direction of 3' Ó Clock! There you can see the Fin whales, two of them!

We did the same two more times and stopped the boat to watch them come up spout out water and then go under.

It's just four hours. We are all very lucky today we had four whale sightings and many dolphins and also turtles and flying fish! That is a bonus," he said. Indeed it was, said Daddy Bear and Uncle Ranil. "We are so happy." said Daddy Bear.  I gave him a big hug and said. "Thank-you Daddy for bringing Poppy and me on this trip, we are so happy." Yes Uncle, we are very happy indeed, said Poppy.

Mimi seeing Cuddly hug Daddy, got off Mummy's lap and said," Yes Daddy am very happy to be here too and to see all the dolphins, they are very cute! 

Why does that man call them bottle nosed Daddy," she asked. 

Daddy smiled down at her and explained it to Mimi the way she could understand. Amaya too stood by on a side and nodded her head to everything Daddy said. Mummy Bear and Aunty Shama looked very amused at her tactics.

We rode back in the van after a great morning of whale watching. Uncle Ranil said we were very fortunate to have seen so many beautiful  dolphins and whales and sea turtles.

The rest of the afternoon Mummy and Daddy Bear got all of us to rest in the hotel. "Lets make our jigzaw puzzles, said Mimi holding Amaya's hand and walking towards aher bed. Poppy said, "I'm going to read my book, Mummy Kangaroo said it was her favourite growing up! Cuddly was curious, "May I see it please? "Oh its a famous 5 series, I love them. May I also read it after you? " Just then Mummy Bear reminded Poppy that she should call her Mum as promised. Mummy dialed the number for Poppy and Handed over the phone to Poppy. Poppy sat on the bed and had a quiet conversation with her parent's for a few minutes. She told them about all the exciting things they had done so far and promised to call them again soon.

Just then Uncle Ranil said, "Children, it's time to go and explore the shops in the Galle Fort and have dinner somewhere nice. Come on down, " he said.  Mummy and Daddy Bear agreed and we all held hands and walked through every nook and corner of the Fort. We looked at the old buildings and the Churches while Uncle Ranil rattled off the history and meaning of the names of each of them. 

Next we went into the Museum and looked at all the artifacts and wondered how they even found them. 

At the end of that time of exploration, we were all so hungry! Daddy Bear suggested we stop by a popular restaurant and check-out the menu's. Mummy Bear browsed through, "Let's go in here," she said. We ate the "Wayside Inn" which had the best variety of food. 

Ï want a tall glass of mango juice, please Mummy, " shouted Mimi, "Sshh," said Mummy, "You can say it quietly darling Mimi," she said, Some ordered glasses of freshly made  pineapple  and water melon juices, as all the walking had made them quite thirsty.

Uncle Ranil treated us to a lovely dinner and we all took the long way back so that we could grab an ice - cream cone from the best gelato place there. Cuddly asked for a hazelnut flavoured cone and Poppy said, "May I try the "nutcracker" please ?" We each picked our favourite  flavour and slowly walked back to the hotel while enjoying the delicious ice- cream cones.

The next morning was another rush. "Daddy, called out Cuddly. How long will take us to  see the wild animals, what's that place called Daddy?''

 "That's Yala, Its about 1-1/2 hours from here. 

Uncle Ranil hurried us all to bring our luggage down quickly. "Lets go and grab a quick breakfast children," he said and directed us to the dining hall.

Soon we were on our way to Yala. Uncle Ranil said, "I will keep you entertained by telling you a lot of stories of elephants, leopards and bears that I have seen before. 

I'm sure if we are all quiet as we travel in the jeep, we will able to see as many wild animals, not so far away  from the bungalow. I  booked one  for us in the deep jungle where all the action is," he told Daddy Bear.

Cuddly was curious, When do the leopards come out, and what about the bears?" he asked Uncle Ranil. He turned around and looked at us and said, "very early in the morning or at dusk," And if are very lucky and be quiet, we might be able to spot a leopard walking to the water hole. I will wake you all up very early and you must be very silent. The ranger will come with us in his jeep and take us." "Uncle, you must not forget your camera in the morning," said Poppy.

As we entered the park. Uncle Ranil and Daddy bear met the Ranger and he directed us to the bungalow where the jeep was waiting for our first safari inside the park.

Mummy Bear made sure all our luggage was locked up safely before we set -off.

Poppy was intrigued. She had read about the wild elephants. "They are different from the African elephants , she told Mimi and Amaya. The Asian elephants skin is dark. The oldest of the females lead the herd," said Poppy. And pulling out her note-book she read, they move around in herds of 12- 20. Mummy bear said," good on you Poppy, you have done your homework. Isn't it exciting to learn new things." Everyone nodded.

Suddenly, as we turned a corner we had to slow down immediately and come to a halt! "Sshh,"said Daddy, everyone quiet please!" There they were, a herd of wild elephants. The driver quickly backed up the jeep so as not to disturb them. The ranger said, "There's a baby, so it's not safe to get too close. The mother may get disturbed. So let's wait here till they move across the road and into the thicket." "Yes we saw them, Cuddly and Poppy  said softly, how cute he is!"

As soon as the herd moved, the driver then slowly drove past that spot. 

Poppy said, " Look, look peacocks with their feathers fully opened! "It's so blue and shiny and beautiful, right Mummy," said Mimi. To that Amaya added, "That's a peacock, it's a boy bird and look at him dancing!" 

What a bonus that was!

 Next Aunty Shama pointed to the trees and said," Look there are so many beautiful jungle fowls, foraging for food. Did you know that they are the national bird of Sri Lanka? " "No. We didn't know that," said Mummy Bear.

Daddy pointed to a herd of mean looking buffaloes and said, "they better not be disturbed!" "Yes", agreed Uncle Ranil. Aunty Shama pointed to the sky to show a beautiful serpent eagle soaring in the sky.

As we drove on, The driver slowed down and stopped near a watering hole. ''There,'' said Uncle Ranil, elephants and herons and flamingos. Mimi was so happy, she whispered, "Mummy how beautiful those birds are? They have looong legs ,"...Amaya also joined in and said, "Yes they are pink!" ''Those are the Flamingoes, he continued. The herons are the smaller birds.''

The ranger pointed to the elephants and said, "This is the biggest herd I have seen in weeks. Cuddly started counting them quickly and said, ''I think there are almost 20!'' Daddy Bear nodded and said, "Lets go back to the bungalow and do another round trip at dusk. You know why, don't you? ''Yes,'' said all the children. And Poppy said, ''to spot a leopard!''

As we entered the bungalow, we got some delicious aroma's . The caretaker cum cook  had prepared a delicious lunch for us. Mummy Bear asked him, What are having for lunch today?" He said, all organic vegetables and rice. I didn't make it spicy as there are children." That's very thoughtful of you, Appu. Children, please wash your hand over there and come take your seat here, " she said. We all sat around the huge dining table, a little tired but a "lottle" happy as Cuddly playfully said. 

Now children, off you go for a short nap before we head out. Each of you can have a hammock in the verandah to sleep in. So as soon as they finished their lunch, each of the children ran to a hammock. Cuddly clutching Poppy's famous five book and Poppy with her book of crosswords in the jungle. Mimi and Amaya grabbed their soft toy and asked, Mummy will you help me into the hammock please? Both got help and before their head went down they were dozing off! The Dad's took the armchairs and the Mums the rattan couch. It was a cool afternoon in the jungle and the whole tour group had a good siesta!

Soon it was time for tea. And Appu set the table with a steaming pot of tea, sugar, for the adults and hot fresh milk, cream crackers , honey,  and jam to go with it for the children. Aunty Shama poured out the milk into the glasses and handed it to the children at the table. They happily munched the tasty crackers and taking turns to slather it with honey first and then jam. 

Daddy bear said, "its time to leave if we are going to spot the leopard. Here quick, put on your shoes he said to Mimi and Amaya. Cuddly and Poppy, please get your light coat too.

And off they went in the jeep. It was a bit windy now, the sun was playing hide and seek and shadows were falling too when suddenly we came across a clearing and saw rocks and the sea! 

Mummy almost shouted! "Look on the rocks, look who's there." And there was a leopard sprawled out as if he was drying himself after a swim. Uncle Ranil took his camera out and got a clear picture of the leopard on the rocks. Further to the right were a clump of trees.  Cuddly and Poppy were admiring the leopard when he decided to move into the trees and to their surprise, there was another fellow sitting on the branches. Everyone was thrilled. Uncle Ranil said, "You know in all the days I've spent in Yala, today has been the luckiest of days. Never have I ever seen so many wild animals in a day! " I think we can spend one more day enjoying the jungle and see if we can spot a sloth bear. Then we have been the luckiest tourists ever!"