Baby Turtles on the Dance Floor, and your chicks for free.

I am in Sri Lanka right now, hence the abscence of much posting. back in a week... but this deserves a post...

On Saturday night I went to a party on a beach in Hikkaduer, south Sri Lanka. It was pretty much the only party in the entire country save for the drab ex—pat clubs in the Capital.

It was ten o’clock and things were just getting started when there was some consternation amongst the locals, a group of about six of them were gathered round something on the beach.

I left my beer on the bar and went to take a look-see; there was a sight I never thought I would see. A nest of sea turtles decided that it was time to be born and there they were, tiny little reptilian toddlers emerging from the sand.

The excitement this caused amongst us all was pretty remarkable as I’m sure you can imagine, even the locals don’t see this thing every lifetime. Baby turtles the size of a matchbox, crawling out of the sand ‘midst the fire glow and disco lights. Awesome.

So, rather than let them get baked by the fire or trampled on by a German traveler/dancer’s Birkenstock a rescue mission was called for. We picked the baby turtles up one in each hand and marched them down to the lapping Indian ocean. Very slowly – definitely sub-baby-hare speed – they crawled off into the sea, accompanied by the pumping and dire sound of a Dire Straights techno remix.

I didn't have my camera with me for the baby turtles, so here is a picture of the biggest key in Asia, taken in a small Buddhist Monastery in the same village.