The Best Event Which I Ever Joined | Steem Sri Lanka 3G Contest Series| Week 04 | Sinharaja Workshop | 5% to SL Charity

This is Steem Sri Lanka 3G series's 4 th week and only few hours left to participate in the The Best Event Which I Ever Joined | Steem Sri Lanka 3G Contest Series| Week 04. While inviting you all to participate if not yet, I’m going to tell you my best experience of an event I’ve taken part in.

It was the annual Sinharaja Workshop organized by WUS ( World University Service) of University of Moratuwa. It was late 2018 and we were informed that the event is going to happen, for the excitement of all the nature enthusiasts in the university. We have a separate club called Nature Team for nature related things in the university and most of that’s members were so eager to participate in this event.

Only 30 spots were available and due to the high demand, the organizers had to arrange a pre workshop and we had to do some tasks in order to get selected for the event. Any how I was lucky enough to get selected and little did I know that I am going to get the most fascinating event of my life so far.

So why is it Best? Let me unfold the stories one by one.

First and foremost, thing is, it was happened for 5 Days! 5 days inside the jungle! So, we 30 were assigned into 6 groups of 5 people, 3 boys and 2 girls (girls are always lesser in any group of our university). It was the Kudawa entrance and within 2 km inside the jungle, we had our lodge, with minimum facilities but nobody had any complaints.

World renouned zoologist, Prof. Sarath Kotagama was supposed to be the head of the event, the main resource person but due to a health issue he couldn’t participate. So another famous zoologist and protographer Dr. Vimukthi Kulathunga lead the event this time. Dates were assigned to all groups to cook for all 5 days for the whole 30 students and other resource persons. One of few challenges, but a sweet one.

I can say, we were literally closer to nature for 5 days. No signal for mobile phones so we were quite alone. Washrooms were open from 2 sides, you can do the work observing the nature and far mountains. And you won’t be alone in there as there were plenty of frogs and insects inside. Not satisfied yet? How about a couple of blue magpies in your washroom to greet you good morning!

In fact, before this event, I was just a nature lover without any knowledge, but this event gave a lot of technical knowledge and basics on forestry, zoology and botany. We were told that first day “you won’t see many animals or creatures not because there aren’t many but because your eyes are not practiced to see them”. That was gem of a statement as by 4 or 5 days, we practiced observation and all sorts of animals and creatures can be seen. And I was getting nervous of my eyesight getting bad couple of days before the event and the greenery around me happened to be the perfect therapy for eyes and they were very well once I returned.

We came there as 30 strangers mostly but left as very good friends. No event is successful without the quality people involved and those 30 are still having a very good bond with each other. The bird watching sessions, meditations, hikes, photography sessions, presentations and so much more…The event was truly an asset to my life, without any doubt.

Finally, we were assigned to make a video on the experience, and I’ll attach the video here as well.

If you ever get a chance to get a step closer to nature, don’t hesitate to grab it!

Until next time,

-Ceylonese Eye-