Christmas time in Sri Lanka

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Up until a few weeks before my December holiday (I’m a teacher and at my new school, new country, we had 3 weeks off...sooo well-deserved..) I still hadn’t decided where on earth to go. I wanted to stick closer to home and somewhere not full of expats, specifically drunken expats (I have British people in mind when I think of those two words together) and somewhere not too cold but not boiling hot either. Having spoken to a couple of people about recommendations for that time of year, I settled on Sri Lanka, somewhere I’d always wanted to go..preferably during the elephant festival but I’m always going to miss that as long as I’m in this part of the world as that’s when schools start back. Anyway so a wee bit of research later and I had my air ticket in my hand..

I also add here that I was travelling alone; there are a few single people at my school but not that many and in any case, most people ended up going ‘home’ for Christmas. I had no desire to do that, one reason being I hadn’t long left (August) and the UK in December, are you kidding? Luckily I didn’t go for that option in any case as the terrible weather left thousands of people stranded all over the world wanting to get into or leave Europe, so I felt I had definitely made the right choice in sticking to warmer climes.

I would recommend booking ahead if you go to Sri Lanka in December as apparently it is one of, if not the, most popular times to go. Even though I was booking 5 weeks ahead, some accommodation was already booked, and when I got there I wasn’t able to go by train at all anywhere as all the seats were booked. At this time of year the workers get free tickets so you can imagine why I had an issue; I tried first, second and third class and all tickets were gone every time I checked.

Anyhow I get ahead of myself. I shared a taxi to the airport with my friend and colleague from school (also going to Sri Lanka but a different area) and met a couple from school who were also going to Sri Lanka but had a looser itinerary than me as they were taking their bikes and cycling around – sounds great to me! Our plane was slightly delayed but not by much and less than an hour after taking off we were preparing to land at the major airport. Having left the UK when I was 4 to live in the South Pacific, and many journeys since then, I still feel that thrill when I arrive somewhere new and breathe in different air, step on different soil. Or tarmac. I hope that never gets old. Then my next thought tends to be ‘Could I live here?’

I had pre-booked online a room for the night in Negombo about 15 mins drive from the airport, a place called Golden Star Beach Hotel. I read that Negombo was a bit of a shithole but I decided it was only for one night and the next day I would make my way up to Kandy, the ‘hill country’. Fabien and Klara from my school joined me as they hadn’t booked anywhere and there was room. We got there about midnight. My room was about $40 (U.S.) for the night, not the cheapest but I wanted to try and get a decent night’s sleep before setting off for Kandy the following morning. The hotel was OK, room a bit spartan for the money I thought and the breakfast is not great (I skipped it apart from having juice and a banana) but fine enough for a night or two. I stayed there on the way back and was put in a different room, much nicer and more modern (TV even!) but for the same price; I guess there must be different areas of the hotel that are being refurbished so maybe some rooms are the older ones. Anyway it’s worth asking for the ‘newer’ rooms when you arrive. Also take a copy of your booking – I quoted my name but they couldn’t find my reservation, so that was kind of pointless. The hotel however organized for a driver to drive me up to Kandy in the morning, so that was hassle-free. I am figuring out that although I would like to be adventurous, I don’t want to make things hard for myself as a lone single woman traveller either, so at least at first, I do things the easy way like having someone organize a driver for me to get to my first destination rather than taking public transport..it depends on the place too of course.

At 8am the next day the hotel-organised driver picked me up in a mini van and drove me to Kandy. Door to door it took 3 hours from Negombo to Kandy. It didn’t take long to get out of city traffic and soon things started to look more lush and green, different birds in the air, palm trees and rice fields. On the recommendation of a friend from school I had booked into McLeod Inn in Kandy for one night then and on the 25th and 26th too. McLeod is a relatively steep windy climb from the centre of town (about 10 mins walk from the market) and has a superb view from its dining room balcony. The owner was really friendly and accommodating and although I wouldn’t agree with Lonely Planet’s review of the rooms being ‘spacious’ (I reckon mine was about 2.5 metres squared minus the small bathroom at the most) it was simple and clean..and quiet. If you are standing in the loo you can hear others talking next door but er, hopefully you don’t need to spend long in there so it shouldn’t bother you! The food there was good too although 2/3 times I ate at Sharon Inn nearby (more later). I would definitely stay there again, it’s good if you want something simple but not dodgy! When I went it was about $20 U.S. per night (not including meals).

So I ended up being in Kandy for that half a day and then on the way back from Ella, for the 24th, 25th and then I left for Negombo on 26th ready for my flight back to Bangalore early morning on 27th December. While I was in Kandy I visited the market, which is hard to miss, full of every kind of fruit or vegetable you could imagine, plus bottles of local honey and stands full of spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, cumin etc. Whilst stopping at a stall looking at the tea they were selling and the vanilla pods hanging invitingly (I’ve never seen fresh ones in real life!) I got talking to the owner and he invited me into the back of his stall to have a cup of tea, which was delicious – a kind of cardamom spiced tea, drunk without milk. Yum. His English was great and he recommended me a few things to see in Kandy in my short time, and although I didn’t feel pressured at all to buy anything, of course I did because there was so much on offer! On my last visit on the 26th I bought some fresh vanilla pods (ice cream here we come) and some sweet cinnamon sticks (I’d never seen different types of cinnamon before). Definitely go to the market before you leave; of course it’s worth checking you’re not being ripped off for prices, but you can do that by checking out the prices of the spices in the supermarket nearby, and I found them to be the same.

While I was in Kandy I stopped by the Temple of the Tooth, which I’m not convinced is an essential part of your trip to Kandy as really compared to other temples I’ve seen (and there have been many!) there’s not a lot to see or appreciate. However the exterior is interesting for its architecture and it’s worth a wander round, I’m just not sure I would recommend it as a ‘must-see’. You can just walk around the outside area. I also went to the Mlesna Tea Centre on the main road (Dalada Vidaya) where you can buy tea but also just sit at one of the small tables and have a large glass of whatever flavoured iced tea they’re serving, for about 50 pence per glass. Yum. There are a couple of internet cafes around the same area, banks..you name it really.

I decided to check out the train station the same day to see if I could get a train ticket to Ella, which was supposed to be a beautiful spot I’d heard. No luck with that as ‘all sold out madam’. On the way out I got talking to a man with a shiny, bald pate and a toothy grin (don’t you know he’s going to be a character already?!) who called himself ‘Blacky’ and explained in pretty good English the reasons for there being no tickets (peak time, workers get tickets for free) and that he was a one-stop-travel-shop, had his own van, and could be hired as a tour guide by me to take me wherever I wanted to go. Now again, as a single white woman I am wary of offers like this but decided to check it out anyway. He proceeded to show me his minivan together with a book of pictures and recommendations from other foreigners. I decided to go for it – how else was I going to get to Ella? I could go by bus but having my own personal guide who could stop off wherever sounded more appealing. He said he’d pick me up at 7am the next day from McLeod and we’d drive to Ella. He quoted me..I have to convert again now..about 20 quid one way..and it was a 6 hour journey.

Although I’m sure sitting in the first class observation carriage on the train would have been wonderful, I thoroughly recommend driving to Ella too! Blacky stopped the minivan whenever he thought it appropriate, to show me a kingfisher or a bulbul, pepper growing, coffee and tea plantations, viewing points and snacks on the way including stopping off at a massive tea factory, the name of which I helpfully can’t remember now, but he said it was the largest in the area. You get a tour of the factory to learn about the tea-making process and of course have the chance to have a lovely pot of tea and a piece of cake surrounded by beautiful tea-covered hills. I bought some tea, of course! Blacky was er, not exactly quiet in the way he spoke but very enthusiastic and knowledgeable about everywhere we went, as it was a journey he had made many times. He showed me bunches of red bananas being sold, telling me traditionally women were not allowed to eat them as it was bad luck..? but not so much now. All I would say is that if you are car sick, be prepared as the roads are very windy and narrow, ascending all the time as you approach Ella. I’m not car-sick luckily and I enjoyed the twists and turns, stopping every now and then to admire fantastic views, but bear that in mind if you are car sick!

In Ella I stayed at Rawana Holiday Resort, a sudden and steep turning from Ella’s main road but only a few minutes walk from that road, so everything’s accessible on foot. Ella is tiny with only one main road really, with a couple of places to check your mail, have a bowl of curd and honey (my favourite), a snack or two and check out the market which is on Tuesdays. There are plenty of places to stay but again, several places I checked out where full; luckily this wasn’t! Slightly cheaper than McLeod, some rooms look out onto Ella Gap, which bridges Little Adam’s Peak and Ella Rock. My room didn’t but looked out onto a small patch of grass and other houses in Ella, which was still very pretty. The room was roomy and clean again, basic yes but not grotty by any means. The hot shower was better than my one at home..one main reason I stayed there was for the food, as this place’s curries were recommended in my travel guide and wow was I not disappointed. They have a set menu of about 5 different curry specialities. The 3 nights I stayed there the feast was fit for a king; about 8 different small dishes, like thali, but not quite, amazing red rice (like wholegrain but even nicer), delicious soft garlic cloves, mango chutney, the tastiest aubergines I’ve ever tasted..yum, yum, yum. I ate more in Sri Lanka in a week than I did here in a month for sure!

While I was in Ella Blackie helped me explore the surrounding areas like Nuwara Eliya, Lipton’s Seat, Badulla, Haputale and Wellawaya. I really wouldn’t have seen as much without him and his knowledge allowed us to stop at e.g. a little farm shop that sold buffalo curd in clay pots together with large bottles of local honey, both delicious..he tried to get train tickets for me without success but he tried..and he stopped whenever he thought there would be a good view to ‘take picture?’. If you don’t hire a driver maybe think about hiring a bike as there are so many turnings you can take off the main road, they’re all worth exploring.

I took my time in Ella, combining one ‘event’ a day with lots of reading and relaxation! I climbed up Ella Rock which ascended quite steeply towards the end and certainly tested my lungs and legs, but was totally worth it for the view. I was quite proud of myself actually as it took just over an hour from my guesthouse to the top, unlike my guidebook’s estimation of 2 hours one way! I can’t be thaaaat unfit then. Go in the morning though, no later than 9am as 15 mins after I reached the top, blankets of cloud swiftly moved in and covered half the view. Whilst in and around Ella I also climbed up Lipton’s Seat, which again tests your muscles (or lack of) but the spread of tea everywhere is amazing as is the 360’ view. I would definitely, definitely recommend going to Lipton’s Seat, it was stunning. I rewarded myself with a massage at the Ayurveda centre in Ella, which was good but the masseuse was quite intensive as I had bruises on my arms for days afterwards!

Blackie drove us back to Kandy where I stayed for the nights of 24th and 25th. It rained all of 24th, monsoon-like, and I despaired of ever leaving my room on Christmas Day! But as luck would have it the sun peaked from behind the clouds on the 25th and I spent a leisurely day walking around the beautiful Peradeniya Botanical Gardens followed by visiting the market once more, having a cup of cardamom tea and reading back at McLeod before seeing some Kandyan dancing at the YMBA, a building about 10 mins’ walk down the hill from McLeod, and well worth seeing but get there at about 5pm or just before, as the 5.30pm performance was packed out. If you're in Kandy do have dinner at least once at Sharon Inn from 7pm. You should book though as it's popular! There's no menu, you just turn up and hope for the best..which it is. Loads of different dishes, mostly spicy of course but something for everyone, all cooked there and then with ice cream to finish. I ended up sitting at different tables with different people the two times I went, so it's a good way to chat with other travellers too!

Blackie drove me back to Negombo on 26th, and I spent the half day I was there watching a stupid movie on the TV, writing and sending some postcards and having a delicious crab dinner at Sea View Restaurant, a few minutes walk from Golden Star Beach Hotel. By 7.30am the next day I was touching down in Bangalore.

Sri Lanka definitely left me wanting more and was a great break from city life in Bangalore. I think I also liked it and felt a connection to it because so much of the vegetation I saw I recognized from my years in the South Pacific. Next time I want to check out a National Park or two and get into some proper bird and animal watching. I will be back there for sure, it’s just a case of when! I also found it fine to travel alone as yes, a single, white woman who sticks out like a sore thumb so that was good.

Highlights:

• The food. Everything is spicy, so be warned! But great variety. And try to check out locally-made buffalo curd with raw, biting honey. Addictive.
• Spices and tea at Kandy Market and chatting with randoms.
• The overwhelming greeeeness of the hill country.
• The fresh air.
• Catching your breath at the top of Ella Rock.
• Veritable oceans of tea at Lipton’s Seat.
• The variety of birds I saw everywhere.
• Peace and quiet.

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