Thursday, June 25
Upon arriving in Colombo, we were struck by how different Sri Lanka was to India. The airport was not a crush of frantic energy. The people were genuinely friendly, not just to sell us something. Everything was clean. Another tourist commented that Sri Lanka was as if India and Bali had a baby.
After a 40 minute taxi, we arrived at the Galle Face Hotel, an old colonial structure. The staff were gorgeous and gracious and everyone was busy setting up for a grand wedding in the evening. We showered, laundered clothes, and had a kottu to nourish us so we could explore.
Given my penchant for high places, we tuktuked to the Lotus Tower at sunset to watch the colors in the clouds and the lights blink on below. We walked a footpath around the lake and enjoyed the various restaurants featuring patons singing to raucous music. A tuktuk deposited back at the hotel where we witnessed the large wedding while we ate on a balcony overlooking the ocean.
Friday, June 26
Buffets are wasted on me since I don’t like to eat a lot. The hopper was good though. We took a tuktuk to the bus station while the driver tried to convince us to hire him to be our driver to Kandy. I emphatically explained that Kevin really liked busses.
We queued to 45 minutes for our bus and the next 4 hours winding our way up to Kandy. En route, we saw 2 different elephants on trailers being carted for a festival. It’s strange to look out your front bus window at an elephant butt! The villages along the 2 lane road were crowded and heavily congested. The foliage was lush and i swear the coconut trees are the largest I’ve ever seen. The terrain and foliage reminded me of Bali.
The Queen Hotel, another colonial structure, had been damaged in the 1998 civil disputes but had been refurbished to a fine sheen. We succumbed to KFC for lunch and spent the end of the afternoon at the Tea Museum. The guide led us through the tea production plant while we viewed the antique dryers, sifters, and sorters.
In the evening, we visited the temple where, they say, a molar of the Buddha was housed and worshiped. It was a huge temple complex. Long queues snaked up to the room where the tooth was housed. We skipped the final room but enjoyed watching the musicians and flower offerings.
Saturday, June 27
Last November, a monsoon destroyed a chunk of train track between Kandy and Ella so we hired a driver to take us from Kandy to where the track was open. The driver doubled as for guide as we also stopped at tourist spots. The waterfalls were lovely and I enjoyed touring a working tea factory.
The train ride was a mixed experience: pretty but served with a large, frenetic, loud, Russian family. The track winded through terraced tea fields, densely vegetated forests, and through tiny mountain towns. We hung out windows and doors to immerse ourselves in the experience. The Nine Arch Bridge was one stop further than our actual planned stop so we stayed on longer to see the bridge and then rook a tuktuk back to Ella.
The room at the guest house overlooked a ravine and facing a massive waterfall that we heard all night. The guest house was remote and promoted a pizza service for our dinner. How could I refuse that? We chatted with a Slovenian family while consuming our pizza and beer.
Sunday, June 28
Before breakfast, we walked along the train tracks and beside Buddhist Temple. The flowers were lush and it really reminded me of Bali. After breakfast, we journeyed to the Nine Arch Bridge and waited for the train to cross it. Watching the train cross the bridge was an actual tourist attraction. We waited with at least a hundred people as the tension rose upon the imminent arrival of the train. The train was so slow but gave us all a fun show.
Back at the guest house, a driver picked us up to take us to Udawalawe for our safari. It is a good day when you can spend it with wild animals in the wild, doing wild animal things. The elephants were the highlight with multiple herds sporting babies. Crocodiles were the next coolest in the national park and at one spot, our guide counted 20 on the lake banks. We saw spotted deer, water buffalo, birds, monkeys, and many others that i can’t remember. I love safaris.
Monday, June 29
The 6am safari was much different from the day before, because visited the canopied region of the park hoping to see a leopard. We hired a guide so we saw more birds and smaller animals like mongoose, jackals, and hares. Sadly, no leopards. It rained and was actually chilly! I was not so fond of this since I was not prepared.
Back in the car for the final long ride back to Colombo. We tried to hire our driver to take us to Galle because a GF told me to get a gun powder drink from the Galle Fort Rope Bar but the driver was not given permission to make a detour. It turned out to be a good thing since that day was a country-wide holiday which banned the selling/drinking of alcohol. Imagine how disappointed I would have been to show up at the Rope Bar and not be able to have my drink!
We chilled in the afternoon and went out for kottu with cheese that had been recommended in our Lonely Planet Best Places to Eat book. The food did not disappoint.
Tuesday, June 30
A local chemistry PhD student joined us for the buffet breakfast at the hotel and we then relaxed for the rest of the morning. After a delicious lunch with a past colleague, we hired a tuktuk guide to show us a temple, the mayor’s office, the independence monument, and a gem shop. The trip wasn’t quite over until we taxied to a guest house close to the airport and hung there until our 10:30pm departure for the airport. I was excited it going to be a 10hr direct flight to Melbourne. All went well.
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