After two and a half years since I was last in Sri Lanka I decided it was time for another visit to this stunning country. The visa fees have been waived for a few months as the country tries to encourage the tourists back after the incidents at Easter this year, especially as the tourism industry is the main employment industry in Sri Lanka. I was frivolous and had a driver to take me around, saving me from public transport but costing me a fair bit. My driver took me to places I both had and had not heard of and was able to explain about the different places we passed through.
Colombo
I didn't spend long in Colombo and stayed in two different hotels along marine drive which runs along the coast. The first night I stayed at the OZO which had a good buffet breakfast overlooking the Indian Ocean. You didn't need a sea view room as you could go up to the roof terrace which has an infinity pool and bar and then breakfast came with a view.
I spent the afternoon with my friend and we visited a number of places, including a mall, dilmah tea lounge and Independence Square. The lotus communication tower is now coloured with a green stem and pink flower in the centre of Colombo (when I visited Colombo in 2017 it was still all white) and is the largest self supporting structure in South Asia.
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| Independence Square |
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| Lotus Tower |
My final night in Sri Lanka was spent at the Marino Beach Hotel which was absolutely incredible. The large roof terrace has an infinity pool and a garden and was just stunning. The room was modern with a complimentary mini bar and a view over the city and the sea. The hotel provides access to a shopping mall, which is home to a 9D cinema and a virtual reality gaming centre.
Millennium Elephant Foundation
I was taken to the Millennium Elephant Foundation (MEF) in Kegalle having expressed my love of elephants. The aim of the MEF is to improve the welfare of domesticated elephants in Sri Lanka. They have a little 'museum' to tell you about the foundation and the elephants. They have the only elephant born to a domesticated elephant in Sri Lanka and are also sponsored by Crabbies alcoholic ginger beer. They have a choice of packages for visitors or you can volunteer and go for a longer period of time and help to look after the elephants. My visit was short but very interactive and I definitely had a naughty elephant who decided I needed a shower (gravel and all), luckily there was a shower I could use to rinse out the gravel and change - if you do visit take a towel and a change of clothes just in case.
Passikudah and Trincomalee
The public beach in Passikudah was actually nicer than the hotel's bit of beach. I did not find a huge amount to do in Passikudah and stayed by the hotel pool enjoying the good weather.
We had a day trip to Trincomalee and visited a large Hindu temple at Fort Frederick. The temple was intricately decorated and very colourful with a large statue outside. It is to one of the God's associated with fertility and there were little wooden cots tied up everywhere where people had been praying for a baby. Whilst most of Fort Frederick appears to no longer be there the fort gate still stands and inside the complex there are a lot of deer.
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| Temple statue |
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| Example of the little wooden cots |
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| Trincomalee beach |
From Nirali beach we took a boat to Pigeon Island. This island is protected and you have to pay a $25 fee to be allowed to go over to the island. We hired a boat and snorkeling equipment from a hotel and I spent the afternoon snorkeling from the beach of Pigeon Island. There is a beach either side of the island from which you can snorkel, although I saw much more on one side than the other. I was lucky that someone took pity on my lack of confidence and came out with me, enabling me to see turtles and a shark along with lots of pretty fish and corals. Everyone in Sri Lanka is so friendly and they didn't want me missing out.
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| Turtle |
Ella
I stayed at the Ekho Ella which was a beautiful hotel with a view over Ella rock and Little Adams Peak. The room had a train theme and the hotel was located a short walk to the bars and restaurants of Ella.
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| View of Ella Rock from hotel room |
On the way in to Ella we visited the Halpewatte tea factory and despite being out of season you could still go on a tour of the factory. There was a tea tasting session with the 4 types of black tea produced and a little shop selling their tea in very tourist friendly packaging.
We visited the Demodora 9 arch bridge, which has a train line running across it. It is free to visit and I felt much safer by the fact there was a train strike. The bridge is a bit of a trek to access but it is located in a very scenic spot in the valley with tea plantations nearby. We also visited Ravana waterfall which is just beautiful with a little viewing platform too. There was a man with a street food stall selling wedges of fresh mango which were delicious. My driver also took me to visit Mahamevnawa Buddhist Monastery which is at the top of one of the hills. The monastery itself is still being built but the view was lovely and there is a model of how it will look.
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| Demodora 9 arch bridge |
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| Ravana Falls |
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| Mahamevnawa Buddhist Monastery |
Ella is also popular for hiking and we went to Little Adams Peak. This is actually made up of 4 peaks but due to my lack of fitness I actually only made it over 2 of the peaks. It overlooks Ella rock (which you can also hike up) and is really pretty. If you are adventurous it is also home to Sri Lanka's longest zip line, with 2 lines spanning over half a kilometer and located near the top of Little Adams Peak.
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| View from Little Adams Peak |
My lovely driver took me to see one of his relatives for a cooking lesson and whilst I wasn't very helpful it was really interesting to see the preparation of the fresh food over 2 gas rings and an open fire. The curries made were absolutely delicious - Sri Lankan food is incredible and has so much flavour to it.
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| Sri Lankan Cuisine |
Security
People asked me a lot about security before and whilst I was away. The hotels in Colombo scanned your bags whenever you arrived at a hotel and there were 5 security points to pass between being allowed into the airport complex to actually getting on the plane. I felt safe wherever I went and was not hassled when I went out alone. The only problem I had was being out of season I was the only person staying in one of the hotels which meant I felt a bit watched, but certainly not unsafe.
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| View from Little Adams Peak |
