Soon after the civil war ended in Sri Lanka, we visited Wilpattu National Park, which had been closed to visitors until then. Spread over 1,300 sq kms, the trees were familiar in name but unfamiliar in numbers and girth. Sloth bear scats at regular intervals on the main dirt road, cannon ball-sized elephant dung, a leopard, mugger crocodiles, and an array of creatures big and small, were the highlights of the memorable day.
