 Horse-riding on the beach
by Nilma Dole
How many of us have fantasised
about horse-riding on the beach with the breeze of the Indian Ocean
flapping against our cheek and wafting our hair? Would you like to take
your wedding or honeymoon photographs on a beautiful stallion with the
backdrop of the sea overlooking an exotic island? For many, it’s just a
fantasy but if I told you that you could do it on Beruwela beach, would
you be surprised?
The Riverina hotel in Beruwala has a special stable where they keep
two beautiful stallions. We were introduced to a white and black
stallion called Scotch who was a friendly steed but with a ravenous
appetite.
 My friend Mimi and I woke up as early as we could on an otherwise
comfortable holiday weekday arriving at 7am to see if the Public
Relations Manager of Riverina hotel, Ralston Archibald was telling the
truth. Being pleasantly surprised to see the stable, we were excited to
go horse-riding on the beach. Riverina has been offering horse rides to
their guests for several years now. Says Ralston, “We have always given
the best holiday experience to our guests and the horse-riding on the
beach was something we are proud to have.”
The horses come from special stables in the highland hills and travel
all the way to reside at the Riverina hotel. They are fed on a strict
diet of horse fodder and drink plenty of water.
Stroking Scotch’s soft mane as the stable hands began to put the
stirrup over his body, Mimi then mounted on Scotch. Taking the horse on
a slow trot to the beach, he was trying to bite every green leaf in
sight. We couldn’t help but laugh at his big appetite and we had to
promise to feed him once he got into the stable.
Slowly, we then came to the beach and started riding him gently with
one foot up and one foot down. Scotch was well-behaved and after little
pats and a gentle tug of his rein, we managed to manoeuver him along the
beach where the row boats were docked.
Thrilled with the prospect of horse-riding on the beach, we proceeded
to take as many photographs as possible since Mimi is a die-hard
photography fan. In every angle possible, we got a brilliant picture of
her on Scotch’s back with a backdrop of the Indian Ocean overlooking an
exotic island where a Buddhist temple is situated.
The stunning early morning sunrise pictures taken were mesmerising
and we were happy that we knew a secret unknown to many. Taking happy
memories of the Beruwala beach riding at Riverina, we hoped to come back
again.
Scotch is a friendly horse so make sure you rub him the right way
when you meet him. Treat him gently and he will give you a fantastic
horse-riding experience.
Afterwards, we settled down to a hearty breakfast at Riverina and
went over the wonderful riding pictures that we were anticipating to
show everyone on Facebook.
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