Sri Lanka

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Friday Night

Abu Dhabi airport is really something to behold. It is like being in a giant green and blue mushroom. Not a single straight line anywhere and it has a very organic feel to it. It is the hub of Etihad Airways, so people of all shapes, colours and sizes pass through its colourful doors. Muslim women in complete black, men in not much more then loin clothes, backpackers in t-shirts and women in colourful saris. Why were we there? We were on our way to Sri Lanka.

Saturday

I was very impressed with Etihad Airways and I would highly recommend them. They are a new airline and as the national carrier of UAE they are proud of their service and are trying hard, and as far as I can see, succeeding, to match their more well known rivals Qatar and Emirates. The planes are modern and many have state of the art entertainment systems even in the cheap seats, or in “Coral” as they are charmingly called.
Colombo airport starts well and is cool and organised, but then as you head through passport checks towards the street everything becomes busier, hotter and chaotic. We had a long drive to Kandy to look forward to and it was within 5 minutes of starting that we discovered the dubious joys and sheer terror of driving on Sri Lankan roads. But more about that later.
Before we had left the UK, numerous people had told us that we must see the elephants’ orphanage and luckily this must-see attraction was to be our first stop. There were 60 elephants of all sizes enjoying their daily frolic and wash in the river. However my expectations may have been too high because once you have seen how cute the cute ones are and how big the big ones are, there is not much else to keep your attention. So back to the car, though J (my wife) had managed to take 75 photographs.
We were desperately looking forward to reaching our hotel and sleeping (we had very little sleep on the overnight flight) but that was not to be possible because we had to visit the Susantha herbal garden first. The garden is run by the Sri Lankan government and grows organic spices and herbs to be used Ayurvedic (natural healing and self care) medicine. It was moderately interesting to see how spices we normally see in jars grow and how they can be used in medicine. Our enthusiastic guide informed us that most ailments can be cured quickly and without side effects and some, for example high cholesterol (I have a personal interest), can be cured forever. Hmm. The hair removing lotion was tested on my leg and sure enough I now have a hairless, smooth patch of skin the size of a playing card on an otherwise hairy leg. So we bought some. We also bought a lotion that claims to cure a bad back forever after one month’s application. Watch this space.
Amaya Hills hotel is, as the name suggests, situated in the hills outside Kandy. The steep road winds up the hill, without the comfort of safety barriers or road markings but even this does not appear to dampen the local drivers’ enthusiasm for, literally, driving on the edge, so by the time we reached the hotel we needed a beer and a sleep. One hour later and sort of refreshed we were taken by our new guide, L, to a local dance performance. We would normally avoid ethnic events having been subjected to some pretty grim and frankly embarrassing performances in the past but because we were a party of just 4 (with our friends N & P) and were in the complete control and awe of our guide and with no prospect of escape, we had to go. However I am glad we did. The male and female dancers were extremely energetic and colourful. Three drummers kept up a driving beat as the dancers gyrated, jumped and balanced plates. The finale was fire walking. I have to admit that it was better than overweight belly dancing and throat gargling we have had to endure in the past.
I was eagerly looking to my first dinner and I was not disappointed. I had decided that where possible I would eat only vegetarian Sri Lankan food and avoid the temptations of pizza and spaghetti bolognaise. The only exception I made was breakfast - even I could not face curry at 7 in the morning and the heavily spiced “porridge” made of rice and coconut milk is the sort have dish you have just once. Keeping to this regime was easier than I thought and I had some marvellous dishes including a very sociable garlic curry. Most meals were buffets that allowed me to choose from sometimes 8 vegetarian dishes, though invariably I had a bit of each of them. Sri Lankan food is very spiced and they like playing jokes on tourists by making the most innocuous looking dishes the hottest. Beware the red grated coconut dish called sambal; the red colour is from the fiery chillies.

Sunday

Kandy Botanic Gardens were first stop and they were fantastic. Slightly reminiscent of Kew in London (for example they both have parakeets) the gardens are beautifully laid out and have some fantastic plants and birds. Our guide L is particularly knowledgeable about birds that made our visit especially interesting. A bird that did not fly above 12 feet particularly intrigued me. I presume because of vertigo. Interestingly, a close relative could fly above 12 feet, I suppose after receiving intensive therapy. But in my view the most impressive sight, even better than the bamboo the size of telegraph poles, were the bats. In fact they were flying foxes, the size of, well, foxes and they sleep in the trees in full sunlight. There were 1000s of them and occasionally one would wake up and fly around a bit. Very impressive and just a little scary. And a bit dangerous because living on a diet of fruit their digestive systems worked very effectively and you had to tread very carefully indeed.
To the locals (and this applies to anywhere, not just Sri Lanka) tourists are seen as walking wads of money and because they tend to be relaxed they are vulnerable to all sorts of scams and tricks. And I am no exception. Our guide, L, had returned to the minibus so we were on our own and therefore unprotected. A gardener approached us with something, which he had found in the garden he thought we might be interested in. It was a large scorpion, 4 inches long. How interesting, I thought. He was happy to let me take a picture but then, of course, the contract had been made and I had to fulfil my side of the bargain that involved giving him money. I took out a coin that he dismissed immediately. I took out a paper note and waved it hopefully. He accepted it and my part of the contract appeared to have been discharged and we parted. As I looked back I noticed that the scorpion, which I had thought, he had discovered in the bushes was safely wrapped up and stored ready for the next sucker. Even the guard in the orchid house, after telling us the name of a few orchids, expected a payment. Informative signs next to each plant would have done a better job. Just a thought but had he removed them?
All tourists are marched to the local handicraft/batik/wooden toy/string etc factory and we were taken to the gem factory. Normally I feel that I should buy something and if I don’t the place will close the next day and all the workers will be turned out onto the street. The problem with the gem factory is that everything is too expensive to buy, carry home and store in the back of a cupboard. So we didn’t buy anything, felt a bit guilty and used their toilets.
Sri Lanka is Buddhist country and Kandy is the home of Buddha’s tooth that was salvaged from his funeral pyre. The shrine is very important to Buddhists and so it has a continual stream of pilgrims and visitors arriving at its doors. It is also a magnet for street vendors, beggars and, unfortunately, terrorists. Earlier in the year a terrorist had tried to enter with a shoe bomb. Thankfully they were unsuccessful but now all visitors have to remove their shoes and walk barefoot to the shrine that is at least ¼ mile away from the entrance. Amusingly, at the entrance the police warned us to be aware of the monkeys who were lobbing roof tiles onto the people below. In the temple the tooth is not actually visible. It’s in a casket that is in a locked room. We weren’t too disappointed not to see it however we did see a famous elephant that had been stuffed. Shuffled back to our shoes and had an excellent lunch at a nearby restaurant that had wonderful views over the town.
The next night we were to stay at the Grand Hotel in the mountains. We left Kandy and drove slowly up a pot-holed winding road into the mountains to Nuweira. The trip was only about 100km but it took 4 hours. However driving in Sri Lanka is not boring. When you are not avoiding other road users there is always plenty to see. The villages in this area do not exude prosperity. Many houses are made of tin and wood. Little shops line the road selling either lots of one thing or lots of things but only one of them. They did not seem to be very busy. The road is under repair that added to the journey time and one day it will smooth and fast. But not now.
The Grand Hotel at Nuweira looks very like a hotel we stayed at in Tunbridge Wells, which is not surprising because the area, because of the tea plantations, has a very noticeable British influence. It is also cold and grey. The Grand Hotel is grand and after some random tipping we were shown to our nice clean room. Interestingly we were given instructions about how to light the fire, rather than on how to control the air conditioning. Pre-drinks in the bar were made even more special by the England v Pakistan cricket match being shown live on the TV that is one of benefits of visiting a cricket mad country.
After a fantastic meal of many types of curry, including cashew nut curry (but avoiding the ox brain curry) we slept very well without the clatter of air-conditioning or the attentions of mosquitoes.

Monday

At 10 am after more random tipping we left the hotel. We were warned that we had a long day travelling but we weren’t quite prepared for how long. We had to get to the coast by evening but between the hotel and our destination lay a long and winding road over mountains, down valleys and through tropical jungle to the coast. Our guide kindly offered to take us white water rafting, or rather take us to a white water rafting company and watch us, but we all politely declined.
Mist shrouded the mountains as we descended at never more than 25mph. The road was in much better repair than the road we were on yesterday, but there are still no safety barriers between the sheer drop and us. There are also no pavements so our driver had to constantly dodge pedestrians, or ignore them and hoping they move out of the way. There seems to be a hierarchy on the road: At the bottom are animals who are ignored and have to get out of the way as best as they can. Next are people will generally be avoided. Tuk tuks (the small, noisy and smelly 2 person taxis) can usually be intimidated out of the way but are a whining nuisance (like mosquitoes). Cars and vans need respect but can still be intimated. Lorries and Buses you have to watch out for and avoid, even if it means scattering animals/people/tuk tuks. It’s a jungle out there and only the fittest, strongest or nimblest survive. There are no stupid animals or slow people on Sri Lankans roads because they are probably all dead. Evolution in action!
The scenery is breathtaking. The hills are mostly covered in tea bushes, and because they are continually picked and clipped, the whole scene has a manicured appearance. Some small patches of virgin jungle which still remain look untidy and out of place. Raging waterfalls falling from the mist cut their way through neat rows of tea bushes. And there are an awful lot of tea bushes; we drove through them for hours. People are everywhere. Not crowded but just everywhere. There are always people walking along the road, probably going either to or from the tea plantation. No stretch of road we saw was ever free of a pedestrian or two. The women tea pickers add a splash of colour in their bright saris. They normally work about 8 hours a day and have a quota that they normally reach by 2pm or 3pm in the day. Anything picked after that is extra. Not a bad system because it gives the pickers some flexibility and the company gets sufficient tea picked for its needs.
On and on down the mountain, round hairpins, overtaking anywhere. Our experienced guide admitted he has to take travel sickness pills for this journey. Sometimes when I saw a bus heading towards us on our side of the road I would shut my eyes and hope the bus would miss us. Somehow it usually did.
After a few hours we stopped for traditional tea and cake opposite some picturesque waterfalls. Perfect tea (of course) and very tasty cake.
The tea plantations slowly gave way to wonderful green tropical jungle and it began to feel distinctly warmer. Huge palm trees, bamboo and plants with leaves the size of car doors lined the road and surrounded individual houses which were dotted everywhere. Lunch was taken in a restaurant next to a swollen river in a green paradise accompanied by the sounds of colourful birds and the drum of warm rain.
On and on we drove through the flat jungle. Traffic increased and consequently there were more scary moments. My jaw began to ache and I realised it was because I had been unconsciously grinding my teeth throughout the whole traumatic journey. I had tried to put the seat belt on but no luck - in an accident we would be thrown around like eggs in a biscuit tin. This just added to the stress. Luckily the driver and guide both had working seat belts.
We had more tea and cakes. Food and drink, outside the tourist hotels (actually even in the hotels) is very good value for us tourists. Four teas and four cakes were the equivalent of about £3. At a very non-tourist café, 4 teas were 60p.
The journey continued through jungle and the road became straighter and was lined with stalls/shops. They seem to a bit more permanent than a stall but not quite a shop. A sort of “Stop”, which nobody seems to do because I never saw anybody buying anything.
We finally reached the coast road just south of Colombo but still 2 more hours to go. The traffic was very dense as we enter the area hit by the Boxing Day tsunami. And to make matters worse it gets very dark very quickly. At least you can’t see what has just missed you.

Tuesday

Amaya Reef hotel at Hikkaduwa was badly hit by the tsunami but has been renovated and there are now no signs of the tragedy that struck the hotel 18 months ago. As we sat in the restaurant next to the sea, it was hard to imagine the sea rising up and causing so much devastation. Would we have known what was happening when the sea receded, exposing the rocks and fishes? Would we have run out and looked at the seabed? Apparently some poor people went out with pegs and string and marked out land for themselves. They were landowners at last, but just for a few moments. The final death toll in Sri Lanka is unknown but our guide thought it was in excess of 50000. Driving to Galle we saw reminders of the tsunami everywhere.
Galle is a fortified Portuguese/Dutch fort. The Portuguese invaded in 1550, the Dutch kicked them out 150 years later and then British took over 150 years after that. The country was finally free of occupiers in the 1950s. There are a few obvious reminders of the tsunami: concrete foundations where once stood a house, boats in unlikely places and some remaining blue refugee tents. Everything else looked quite normal. Even newly built walls and houses seem to have been built with an old, well-used look. Physical scars can be repaired, but mental scars must run deep and will take time to heal. I noticed on a school was painted “Love the sea, it is nature’s gift”.

The Dutch church in the fort is a reflections of the history the occupiers. The earliest tombs have Dutch names and a few of the Portuguese who remained after the invasion. After 1800 English names appear, including one from Crimond near Aberdeen where some of my ancestors come from.

At the hotel we were staying on a half board basis so were offered a set menu that, frankly, was a bit uninspiring and not particularly Sri Lankan but more “International”. Which seems to mean chicken and spaghetti bolognaise. So I ordered Sri Lankan vegetarian curry from the normal menu (and damn the expense). I knew I had hit the jackpot when the waiters re-arranged the tables in order to accommodate my meal. And it was certainly a feast. Each dish was a meal in itself: Cashew curry, chickpea dal, a bean dish, aubergines, tomato and onion salad, crispy popadums and a mountain of rice. I could not eat it all but, as a joke the staff gave me a “doggie” bag to take to my room.

And so to bed. We were well into mosquito country so we had our repellent on, and in our room we had a mosquito machine (I was never sure what the mosquito machines did - kill them on just make the room unpleasant) and a mosquito net, complete with fist sized holes, over our bed (curiously, N & P in the next room did not have a net at all: Did the mosquitoes not like that room? Was it not decorated to their taste or was the view inferior? We never did find out). Finally, to ensure a completely mosquito free room I hunted down any remaining insects with the room service food menu. The mosquito killing had become a male bedtime ritual. So if you stay in room 104 at Amaya reef hotel and look at the enticing pictures of food on the front of the menu, you may see a few extra sticky items. The air conditioning was extremely efficient, in fact so efficient it made the room chilly, regardless of the temperature it was set at so I had to wear pyjamas to keep warm. But at least the mosquitoes did not get me.

Wednesday

We felt as if we had been travelling and/or sightseeing ever since we landed 5 days ago so we requested, and were granted, a day off from our hectic schedule. It was bliss. We didn’t even leave the hotel, (apart from N who went for a spa treatment) but just lay under the palm trees, sipped tea and contemplated in a Buddhist sort of way. If I had to choose a religion, if they were lined up like yoghurts in a supermarket, I think I would choose Buddhism. Lots of good sense, you can’t blame anyone but yourself, you can’t pray to a deity for salvation or forgiveness. It’s all down to you. Very tolerant and no persecution - no blood has been spilt in the name of Buddha. And I like the colour saffron.
We are going to celebrate N’s birthday so I asked one of the restaurant staff if they could make a birthday cake. Of course, he said, and they would make it an extra special occasion. As the day wore on it seemed that more and more staff were in on the secret and I received frequent progress reports. Even the room cleaning staff knew all about it. At 8 we went for dinner. We had the best table in the restaurant that was next to the sea. The table was adorned with flowers and a cloth had been decorated in coloured rice and spelt out “Happy Birthday N” (not just “N” really but I am using abbreviations here for legal reasons). There was a chilled bottle of sparkling wine standing in ice. After the meal the cake arrived, complete with candles. N was overcome.

Thursday

Off to next hotel - the Amaya Lake at Dambulla which was another very long haul. On the way stopped at a turtle hatchery. Eggs are bought for about 4p from local people then hatched and the little turtles are kept for just a few days (during their most vulnerable time) then released into the sea. It gives them a fighting chance. Seems a worthwhile project and it broke the journey up. At Colombo we dropped off N & P and continued to Dambulla with a new guide/driver. After another moderately terrifying 4-hour journey we found our way to the hotel. It lies in a perfect spot next to a lake, surrounded by the jungle and lots of noisy creatures. We did not have a room but a little split level bungalow with a digital weighing machine. Someone had taken to the time to spell “Welcome” in leaves and flowers on our bed that was a nice touch. It was dark when we arrived and J managed to trip the fuse by forcing the hairdryer plug into the wrong socket. Such fun.

The restaurant, like most restaurants in Sri Lanka, is open to the elements but we discovered this one has a particular problem; we could not understand why a man was employed to stand on the grass apparently doing nothing. We enquired and were told he was there simply to ensure animals did to bother the diners. Sure enough during our meal a 1metre long monitor lizard wandered up to see what was going on but our guardian sent him on his way. A squirrel however got past him and begged for food. We gave him some bread. The staff asked if he was bothering us and we replied that he wasn’t so he stayed and finished his meal.

Friday

Siguria was our first destination. As you approach it you see a huge rock rising hundreds of meters from the forest. You could see why the king chose this site 1500 years ago to build his two palaces. If he had not then it would have really annoyed him if someone else had moved in and built a holiday home on the top. So the king claimed it and built a huge palace. He built 4 huge swimming pools where he could watch his 500 concubines and chose one (or I suppose 2 or 3) for whatever activity kings did with concubines. Drainage and water management were quite advanced in Sri Lanka 1500 years ago and much of their impressive engineering feats remain. In Britain at that time the Romans had left and we were living in wooden huts.
As we started up the 1200 steps to the top 2 men who tried to help us up the steps by holding our arms joined us. As soon as they have helped you up a few steps it seems a contract has been made and they are bound to you for the rest of the day. However my man was only half my size and was more of hindrance than help so I politely declined his services. J, however, liked her helper and he proved to be very useful and a comfort to her so he stayed with her the rest of the visit.
We continued up winding steps carved out of rock in the hot and steamy jungle to the naughty cave paintings. To see the paintings you have to ascend a spiral staircase nailed to the sheer rock face with only a bit of wire between you and the rocks and jungle below. The paintings are of topless women and were painted by soldiers 1500 years ago. When the Buddhist monks took over the palace they destroyed most of paintings but the ones remaining were probably too inaccessible. Or perhaps they kept the paintings to punish themselves. Who knows? Anyway they are quite remarkable and they look as if they were painted yesterday. We climbed further up to a plateau that was half way up the rock and where once stood a huge lion. His feet still remain and originally you would have entered through his mouth to climb the rest of the way to the top and the summer palace. Actually if you had been the king you would have been carried by minions. Now there is a metal staircase erected by the British in the 1930s and although rusty it seems to be quite secure. At the top the view is magnificent. Jungle in all directions and a number of Buddhas peering up above the tree line. There are remains of the palace at the top but no swimming pools - it would have been too much trouble to get the water up (although they did have water pumps to get drinking water to the top). The king though, not wanting to be without a concubine for long, had another throne that looked over a sort of dance hall where his 500 concubines would dance and gyrate hoping to attract his attention and favours. A nice life for the king.
During the steep descent J’s helper (the human banister) came into his own and she was extremely grateful to him.

As we approached the exit the sellers of wooden/leather/paper things again assaulted us. I find it quite hard to brush them off knowing (possibly incorrectly) that they won’t be making many sales that day. A particularly persistent man was selling a box which looked like a book but whose USP (unique selling point) was that the opening mechanism was hidden making it very hard to get into. However by sliding this, pulling that and pinching something else it opened to reveal a small storage area. It sort of lost the point of being a useful box and became just a slightly interesting thing. But how many times can you whip it out at dinner parties and defy your guests to open it? People would stop coming. So as much as I wanted to buy something I couldn’t bring myself to part with the best part of £10. Sorry.

The next and last visit was to the Dambula rock caves. The walk up the hill to the caves was extremely gruelling in the searing heat. Even the hawkers and beggars were lethargic. Just before you enter the temple area, a man takes your shoes. No official sign, no price list just a shoe rack under a tree. Do we have to do this? Will our shoes be there when we return? Will we have to pay a ransom to get them back? It was too hot to find out so we took our shoes off, gave them to him, and entered the courtyard. Down one side were caves, now walled in, and in the caves were many Buddhas of all sizes, sitting and lying. Every part of the cave was painted brightly. Someone had been very busy. As we left 100 rupees secured the release of our shoes.

Our guide wanted to take us to more sights in the afternoon such elephant safari (no thanks, seen them), massage parlour (too tired), batik factory (why?), wood carving with teeth (no thanks). We just wanted to spend our last afternoon enjoying the hotel facilities including the very inviting pool. We won (well, we were paying him) and he had the afternoon off.

After a very pleasant lunch we lounged around the pool, swimming up to the bar to get ice-cold coke, listening to the sounds of the jungle and watching the animals. Bliss. A walk through the trees and along the lake was very peaceful and idyllic (until we discovered the lake contained crocodiles).

Saturday

Our plane was leaving Colombo airport at 9am. We were 4 hours away as the Sri Lankan drives, so we had to get up 2.30 and leave at 3am. At that time the roads were quite empty but there were still plenty of things to hit or to hit us. Furthermore our driver had to keep awake and concentrate for 3-4 hours in the middle of the night. This was more to worry about and not surprisingly we did not sleep during the journey. However we made it safely to Colombo airport some time after 6am, in good time for our plane to Abu Dhabi and then finally on to London and home.

Finally

We flew Etihad that I thoroughly recommend
We used a local agent Tangerine Tours of Colombo who were excellent.
We had a great time. Everyone we met was unfailingly polite and helpful.
The holiday exceeded our expectations
Highlights were the food, Siguria, the Jungle and the plantations.
We will definitely go again when England cricket team tour.

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Photos

Abu Dhabi Airport
Inside the giant mushroom

Elephants
Frolicing elephants from the orphanage

Dancers
Dancing and spinning plates

Bats
Sleeping flying foxes

Temple
Temple with the tooth relic

Tea Plantations
Hills covered with tea plants

The Sea
Hard to believe the sea caused so much devastation

Turtles
One day old turtles

Siguria
The steps to the top

Comments

[P]

A great holiday
A great recollection of a fantastic holiday. I would deffinately recommend a tour of Sri Lanka. There is so much to see that you really have to make some time to relax too! Can't wait for our next trip....

[yfvg]

vcfgx
very nice pictures