27 May 2009

Flowers along the Negombo Road


Colombo - Negombo Road is one of the busiest roads in Sri Lanka. You may see this beautiful sight along this road, amidst heavy traffic, especially during the month of May (The month of flowers). Interestingly the red flowers are called Mai mal (May Flowers)

In this little stretch I saw trees covered with red flowers as well as yellow. I thought it was as colourful as the stretch along the Kandy Road during the months of February and March.

13 comments:

rainfield61 said...

We have Flame of the Forest at many part of Malaysia, along the road side. It will sometimes look so red and dense, very beautiful.

Digital Polaroids said...

Beautiful flowers!

http://digitalpolaroids.blogspot.com

Harshi said...

It must be a very pleasing sight, esp. when you're stuck in a traffic jam.. =D Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful shot K! This shot reminds me of a very old program that used to be telecast on Sirasa TV called "para dige" or "mawatha addara" or something to that effect, where the crew traveled the highways of Sri Lanka capturing images of interesting flora and fauna along the roadside. To the best of my knowledge it has never been re-telecast... which is sad for it was an interesting program IMO... :)

Kirigalpoththa said...

Rainfield61,
I google that just now. The name rightly fit in. it looks like flame and moreover mai mal too looks similar. Thanks for that information.

Digital Polaroids,
Thanks for visiting my blog and your comments!
Found your blog very interesting too.

Harumi,
Yep, It was hard driving on those busy roads. Saw this and took a few photos. I got a well deserved rest too for few minutes:)

Chavie,
I think it rings a bell to me. Thought they showed only a few episodes. Infact it is a great idea for a documentary. Can do similar one for railway tracks of Sri Lanka too.

Thanks all for your comments!!

sbarrkum said...

A couple years ago returned to Sri-Lanka after 10 years. The road from the airport to the main road was full of yellow flowering trees, I think called Asala Mal (it was mid may). I asked the cab driver (I dont have welcoming/goodbye committee's) if he noticed the flowers in bloom and he said no. I think you appreciate the flowers (and sun) after being in county with seasons.

Anyways, love the blog, read it often though i dont comment. The tunnel story reminds me of a trip we did in our schooldays (more than 3 decades ago) when we walked from Ohiya to Pattipola.

Kirigalpoththa said...

Sbarrkum,
Yes esala mal usually bloom in the months of March - May..they too are very attractive when in full bloom.

Glad you have done the Ohiya - Pattipola hike along the railway. Did you see the highest point on the railway track? It is a great stretch and you pass a few tunnels and bridges too. I have not done the entire stretch but a part from Pattipola side and section from Ohiya side.

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience and following this blog.

Robin said...

I wonder if those are the same flame-red trees I saw blooming in my neighborhood here in Israel today. I love this time of year, the trees are awash with color - red, yellow, orange, pink, a real rainbow of blossoms.

Kirigalpoththa said...

Robin,

We call them Mai flowers (May flowers) here in Sri Lanka and they certainly look like flame-red. Infact my friend Rainfield too mentioned about a similar flower in Malaysia known by the same name - Flame of the forest :)

I think it is either the same tree or one in the same family.

Thanks for visiting my blog and for your comments!

Magical Mystical Teacher said...

Scarlet May flowers
along the Negombo Road
brighten the journey.

My Ruby Tuesday

Miranda said...

Wow, I'd love to see those while driving around. Very pretty!

Kirigalpoththa said...

Magical Mystical Teacher,

Thanks for the lovely poem! :)
Saw your blog and it is very interesting!!

Just me again,
Thanks for dropping by and for your comments.
Pity that they show off only during a certain time of the year..

Chavie said...

Comment made on 2009-05-28T18:03:21.034+05:30

Beautiful shot K! This shot reminds me of a very old program that used to be telecast on Sirasa TV called "para dige" or "mawatha addara" or something to that effect, where the crew traveled the highways of Sri Lanka capturing images of interesting flora and fauna along the roadside. To the best of my knowledge it has never been re-telecast... which is sad for it was an interesting program IMO... :)