Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka What A Dream!

I was invited to take part in an educational trip to Sri Lanka in September - this trip was a tour of this beautiful island in the Indian Ocean and was arranged through leading tour supplier Exodus. Exodus rates their tours by Activity Level and this tour of Sri Lanka was rated as Level 2(Easy/Moderate) I would say this was a fair rating.

Most of the activities were easy, I would say the moderate parts of the tour were perhaps the amount of walking (some people might not like walking as much as I do) and the climb of Sigiriya Rock Fortress which was daunting for those who did not like heights - however it is possible to do a part climb (as a vertigo sufferer I took this option) which I think was reasonable and then enjoy the views whilst your fellow travellers carry on to the top if you do not want to do it all / the final long ascent is via open metal steps.

After our overnight direct flight to Sri Lanka, we were warmly welcomed and transferred a short distance to our first hotel of the tour which was located on the beach at Wattala, which is a suburb of Sri Lanka. We were free to enjoy the hotel‘s facilities and the surrounding area before meeting again in the evening for a fantastic fish supper at the hotel's "The Fishery" restaurant. I would say that there is not much to do in Wattala and I wouldn't recommend this area for a longer stay but with the short transfer from the airport, a lovely beach-side setting and a large pool it was a good place to recover from the jetlag and relax before the tour started the next day.

The next morning we checked out of The Pegagus Reef Beach Hotel and headed inland - although this was quite a long journey we did have comfort breaks, we also saw life in rural Sri Lanka including 2 elephants crossing the road, coconut husking, paddy fields and banana plantations before arriving at our lunch stop - The Ayila Hotel - a lovely property with a superb pool and views out to Sigiriya Rock Fortress (also known as Lion Rock).

We had a lovely lunch at the Ayila followed by a tour of the property and then we carried along a short distance to the base of "The Rock". We then spent the next couple of hours climbing The Rock and discovering the moat which surrounds beautiful gardens, looking at the art temple offerings and the Lion's feet which are before the final climb to the summit where the King's Summer Palace remains are to be found.

Following the climb we all descended to the base and boarded our coach for the very short trip to our next hotel - The Sigiriya Hotel, our base for the next 2 nights. Time to freshen up and have a drink before dinner which was a huge buffet selection with plenty of choices for all.

After a good night's sleep, we drive to the historic area of Polonnaruwa - the 10th-century capital of Sri Lanka. Take in many of the different temples & ruins including the Royal Palace, the Audience Hall, the Sacred Quadrangle and the Rankot Vihara. Polonnaruwa is THE place to visit for all fans of ancient ruins and of course, there are many more throughout this stunning island nation. We then enjoyed a delicious vegetarian lunch (highly recommended) before taking part in an elephant safari. After this, it went back to the hotel for our last night at the Sigiriya Hotel for dinner and drinks with newly made friends.

On Thursday we took a short drive to Dambulla where we visited the Cave Temple, which is rightly considered one of the most impressive sights in Sri Lanka. There are 5 caves here each adorned with ancient Buddhist paintings and over 150 statues (seemed well over 150 to me), very culturally and spiritually significant to the people of Sri Lanka and a remarkable sight for everyone to enjoy.

Next, we visited the village of Hiriwaduna, set amongst a lush landscape we were warmly welcomed and set off in old bullock carts powered now by engines (lawnmower style). We were taken through the rice fields and were told about the local way of life including the life of a paddy field worker. Then we were on to our next form of transport and were gently rowed down the river to our next stop which was a cooling coconut juice which we were taught how to drink like the locals!

Then we boarded our water-going vessel once again for a ride around the lake where we were each treated to a necklace made from a freshly plucked water lily.

Once back on dry land, it was a quick tuk-tuk ride to our lunch stop. This wonderful vegetarian meal was prepared and cooked by a local family, grandparents, parents and small children living together and making good use of the natural materials available to them. All of the food was delicious! We were shown how to remove rice from its husk, how to sieve out the waste product and be left with perfect rice, an amazing technique that I'm not sure I would ever be able to manage. After more shows of grounding flour and making a roof from the local trees, it was time to depart. This could have been a tacky tourist experience but I'm glad to say it was not. I'd highly recommend this experience to those travelling to Sri Lanka.

We then drove a short distance to our hotel for tonight the Cinnamon Habarana Village where it was time to relax before cocktails and dinner.

The next day we moved from the Siraghese area to Kandy. On the way we stopped at the Matala Spice Garden -I've been to a few of these around the world but I think this was my favourite. We learnt about the different herbs and spices grown there, we all enjoyed a shoulder and neck massage and then if we wanted to we could make purchases from the shop, we were not pressurised to do so but I did get my shopping head on!!

We then all got to plant a small palm tree and that felt like a good thing to do.

We then continued on our way to Kandy, we had a lovely lunch at the colonial Old Bar & Hotel in the heart of the city. I would recommend a visit to this lovely property.

After lunch, we visited the Peradeniya Royal Botanical Gardens this 147-acre parkland has over 4000 different plant species and it was a very enjoyable couple of hours spent wandering around along with hundreds of happy smiling school children.

From here we moved on to an early evening cultural show to see some traditional dancing and find out their meaning.

We then walked along the lakeside to see the sun setting before heading by small bus to our hotel for tonight the Topaz Hotel set high in the hills above Kandy.

We freshened up before heading for welcome cocktails and canapés by the pool (absolutely delicious!)where we were also treated to an unexpected fireworks display.

Then it was time for dinner and a nightcap before heading to bed after a very long but thoroughly enjoyable day.

The following morning, we set off from the lovely Topaz Hotel in the hills above Kandy at 8.30 am and travelled the short distance back into Kandy to visit The Temple Of The Sacred Tooth, the most religious site in Sri Lanka. Even though we were warned it would be busy I never expected anything like we encountered - it was amazing to witness the devotion of so many to their religion. We visited the main points of the temple including the offering hall, the gathering hall and then a private meeting with a Buddhist monk for a blessing. From the temple, we headed to the Isini Gems museum, factory and showroom. This was an interesting stop teaching us all about the varied gems that Sri Lanka is famous for and where lots of the group took part in a little retail therapy!

From here we headed for yet another delicious lunch in a local restaurant before continuing to our next hotel the Cinnamon Citadel Kandy located next to the Mahaweli River.

This hotel is lovely with a fantastic pool, along with a great bar and restaurant area. The rooms were large with a balcony overlooking the pool/river. Dinner was a buffet affair with so many unbelievable choices catering for both local and western palates, a lovely evening to top off another great day.

So Sunday in Sri Lanka didn't quite go to plan. After checking out of our hotel we visited a tea processing factory and learnt all about the process of making tea from when the plant arrives at the factory through to its final packing and being sent to auction in Colombo.

From here we headed to the train station where we were to get the train to Nuraya Eurilya along a very scenic route, however, the train had other plans, the station master kept our group leader informed and it transpired that our train had broken down about an hour away and all other trains were either stuck behind it, going elsewhere or were seriously overcrowded.

The decision was made - we left the station and instead travelled by road which was also very scenic.

We stopped at a tea plantation and learnt how to pick the tea but I've no idea how the women there can pick up to 100 kilos each per day!

We then stopped again at a restaurant for refreshments where there were great views of both the hills and the valley including waterfalls and lakes. We then continued to the town of Nuraya Eurilya where a rally had just finished for the forthcoming presidential elections so there were a lot of people on the streets and enjoying the local cafes/restaurants in this beautiful place they call "Little England".

On our last full day in Sri Lanka, we travelled from Nuraya Eurilya back to the capital Colombo. Along the way we again saw amazing scenery, stopped at several beauty spots, had tea at the charming Devon Bungalow (couldn't stop there), lunch at a property right on the river and then arrived a little later than expected at the Cinnamon Red Hotel after viewing some of the main city sights by coach.

We had time to get ready before being taken to the Cinnamon Grand Hotel not far from our hotel. What a treat we had in store for us. I've enjoyed the food on this trip but this last night was the icing on the cake - delicious.

Then we returned to our hotel where we had drinks at the rooftop bar some 26 storeys above the city.

A lovely end to an amazing trip.