Sri Lanka
December 5 - 24, 2019
COLOMBO
We flew into Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, and spent a few days in the city before setting off into this jungle of a country! It was hot hot hot! Sri Lanka is mostly a Buddhist country and it's culturally appropriate to have your knees and shoulders covered, especially for women - especially in Colombo. This made walking around in 90+ weather with intense sun exhausting. However, we enjoyed getting so fully immerged in a culture unlike one we had experienced so far.
We walked the markets, wondered the streets, and visited the Red Mosque and Viharamahadevi Park. And started our love affair with the delicious curries we would eat throughout Sri Lanka <3
Aaand back on the train! We rode from Colombo to Kandy, about a 4 hour ride. You aren't guarenteed a seat and could be left standing the duration of the ride, so it was a mad dash to get a good spot when the train arrived at the station! Luckily we got great seats.
KANDY
The train ride to Kandy was beautiful. Rolling green hills and tea plantations filled the landscape. This country is SO lush! The greenery is mesmorizing.
In Kandy, we visited the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic - said to house a tooth of Buddha! It was really interesting learning about the Buddhist religion and experiencing more of their culture. A giant white Buddha statue up on a hill could be seen throughout the city.
We definitely stood out as tourists here, even having to use the tourist entrance!
This is the cheapest country we have visited, for less than $1 I got a heaping plate of vegetable curry and rice! And it was delicious!!
ELLA
Back on the train! Kandy to Ella was about 8 hours and known to be one of the most scenic train rides in the world. It was a major reason we wanted to visit Sri Lanka. And did not disappoint! WOW! This time we didn't get a seat until about the last hour of the ride. However, we were able to stow our bags and got what we felt were *really* the best seats.. hanging out the door platform.
Ella was a breathe of fresh air compared to the cities of Colombo and Kandy. The rainy misty mountains didn't stop us from exploring. Following the train tracks to waterfalls, Ella Rock and monkeys galore - a new way of hiking we absolutely loved! Despite the leeches that love Justin's ankle and scary bat cave :P The Nine Arches Bridge was awe inspiring. Made of only brick, cement and stone. An architectural beauty against the green surroundings and a bit sketchy watching the train passby!
UDAWALAWE
After Ella, we were ready for sun and surf, but we stopped first in Udawalawe to visit the National Park and see some wild elephants! We saw about a dozen elephants including babies, peacocks, water buffalo, golden jackals, mongoose and a bunch of other small critters.
Our homestay was $3.25 per night and included a Sri Lankan breakfast feast! We couldn't even finish it all!
We liked this elephant encounter much better than the 'sanctuary' in Thailand :)
MIRISSA
The beaches in Sri Lanka are just as impressive as the mountains. Mirissa was a quiet beach town. On a morning stroll along the beach we ran into some monkeys, well.. monkeying around!
UNAWATUNA
Unawatuna had a bit more life to it. It was about a half hour bus ride from Mirissa and was the first time we showed up somewhere with no accomodations. We walked the main street until we were close enough to the beach and haggled a great price at a hotel that included breakfast. I think it was around $25/night - big slurge! Haha
We trekked to Jungle Beach and enjoyed a delicious coconut - and more monkeys! One day we took the bus up to Galle Fort. Some of the steps were made of coral and we saw turtles in the waters below. This dutch style fort was really great for sunset.
GINTOTA
We essentially had our own private beach in Gintota. The room was a basic hut just steps from the beach - we could hear the waves crashing from our bed. With nothing really in walking distance it was very quiet and peaceful. For $10/night with breakfast we were happy to call this home for a few nights :)
Down the beach was a hotel resort, while we were playing frisbee they invited us in for a cooking class. Free lunch! They politely asked us to leave before we could jump in their pool :p
HIKKADUWA
Hikkaduwa was our favorite beach town. Sun, sea turtles and surf, what more could you as for! Justin finally got to get a board and in the water.
Public transit in Sri Lanka is no joke. No capacity protol, just squeeze as many people in as possible. Buses and trains are filled to the max and getting off is a sweaty art of trying to literally not step on people.
