Month: March 2026

Written by Dilini.

After 10 wonderful days travelling around Sri Lanka, it was finally time to end our academic tour and depart Sri Lanka. We started our final day with a frenzy of packing, then the two last article presentations by Induja and Kalindu. Next was one of our favourite activities – breakfast! with a buffet full of local food like coconut roti, milk rice, tea buns, crocodile buns, roast paan with several other side dishes and delicious Ceylon tea and coffee.

Following the breakfast, some of our students went to enjoy the sea breeze at the beach adjoining the hostel, while others completed packing their bags. An academic field course is never complete without a final test. Moving away from regular final paper, we held a quiz about Sri Lanka geography and biodiversity, where each group spent about 4 minutes at each of multiple stations answering the questions. Although students were not very happy with all the questions, they did very well in the end.

After loading our bags onto our buses, we left the 234 Weligama. On our way to Colombo, we stopped for lunch at Galle Fort. While everyone else was enjoying regular meals and drinks from the menu, Olin, Aili, Induja, and Ravindi decided to build their own dishes mixing different food and drinks that they ordered – fusion-fusion cuisine. After the delicious lunch, we all walked along the fort wall enjoying the scenery of the attractive Galle beach, some buying coffee and others baked goods from a tuk-tuk bakery. We took a modern toll highway most of the way to Colombo arriving at dusk.

In Colombo we stopped at the Laksala Souvenir Shop. Most students spent their remaining rupees buying gifts for friends and loved ones back home. Some of us had hard time deciding which item to buy as there were myriad handmade items ranging from small keychains and fridge magnets to huge elephant carvings and traditional wooden masks plus a range of teas, coffees and spices. We stopped at the Independence Memorial Hall, a national monument in Sri Lanka built for the commemoration of the independence of Sri Lanka from British rule, Ravindi, Induja, and Kalindu gave all of us gifts to thank for the wonderful opportunity they had over the last 10 days. Then we headed to The Steuart by Citrus, to enjoy the farewell dinner organized by Ashan, our outfitter. We then drove to the Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport with heavy hearts and said our goodbyes to, Steve and our Canadian students departing for Toronto, and Dilini, Ravindi, Induja and Kalindu remaining behind and wishing all safe travels.

Normally, when one wakes up early in the morning—or at least for many of us university students—there is a bit of a sigh. It would just be so nice to stay in bed! On this field course, we’ve had a number of early mornings, each touched with a bit of exhaustion but largely filled with the excitement and promise of a hike through the Runakanda Forest Restoration Site or a safari through Yala. Today, there were the usual sighs and excitement, but it was also bittersweet. This was our last early morning in Sri Lanka.

We soon pushed aside this reality to embrace the marine adventures to come. Arriving at the docks, we skirted past bikes and tuk-tuks, scrambling our way to the top deck of our boat. All around us, colourful, almost tie-dyed fishing boats in the Sri Lankan style lined the protected harbour—steep-bowed and sitting high in the water, waiting to be filled with their catch. The boats filled with tourists and, by 6:30, we were off.

Despite the calm seas, a number of us had to endure the woes of seasickness—but it was all worth it as soon as we heard the call: “Bottlenose dolphins—three o’clock!” Everyone clambered to the starboard side of the vessel. It didn’t matter. Soon, the dolphins were dancing through our bow wake, manoeuvring in a display that proved difficult to capture, even for the most experienced photographers. Next came the smaller cousins of the bottlenose—the spinners—followed by Risso’s dolphins. The top-heavy boat swayed from side to side, listing toward whichever direction the dolphins emerged. Garry, an ornithologist living in Colombo, and his son Jude proved invaluable with their knowledge of the fauna all around us.

After we had passed Sri Lanka’s famous coastal shelf, we received the greatest treat: pilot whales. Our boat raced toward the call from nearby vessels. In the distance, they were manoeuvring separately, trying to catch a glimpse of these behemoths as thirty-odd whales dove for squid undertaking their daily vertical migration. We finally joined the party. For over 30 minutes, we watched as the pod resurfaced for air, caught their breath, and rolled into a dive—water streaming off their tails on the final descent. Then we would set our timers and keep watch until, ten minutes later, the pod emerged again. It was incredible.

By this point, we had been on the boat for nearly six hours, so it was time to head back. Some of us slept, some chatted about favourite mementos from the course, and some simply watched the horizon. But all were anticipating the final debate, prepared by yours truly: Meg, Olin, Rivindi, Hannah, and Claire. Some might say it was the highlight of the entire trip—though you may be hard-pressed to find them.

Four o’clock came around, and the fiery exchange came to an end. Beach time!

We all rushed to change into our swimsuits before boarding the buses and heading to Turtle Beach, hoping to snorkel alongside sea turtles. Unfortunately, our time underwater didn’t quite live up to the beach’s name, as the turtles had since moved on and we didn’t see any. We did, however, see coral restoration projects in action, attracting a variety of tropical fish and adding to the experience. We stayed in the water for over an hour before being gathered for a photo taken by another tourist who knew all the right angles.

We then said a sad goodbye to Turtle Beach before heading back to our hostel for one last dinner, where we shared stories and laughs from the day. We decided that this amazing course deserved a celebration, leading us to the restaurant next door for a few drinks and some time to hang out before heading to bed ahead of our long day of travel the next morning.