Sri Lanka

The Elephant Orphanage ~ We had an early start as we set off with the driver to Pinnawela. The Pinnawela Orphanage is situated northwest of the town Kegalla, halfway between the capitol Colombo and the ancient royal residence of Kandy, in the hills of central Sri Lanka. It was established in 1975 by the Sri Lanka Wildlife Department, who also run the breeding progamme. Twenty elephants have been born since 1984, making this the largest herd of elephants in captivity in the world.

The journey time about 3½ hrs, and although there’s lots to see out the window, it’s still best to leave early to miss the traffic. and wandered down to the river, past lots and lots of souvenir shops, so that we could see the elephants being bathed. It is possible to get into the river with the elephants and wash them as well, but have a tip ready for the elephants owner ~ 100 rupees (about 50p) should be fine. We watched the elephants being fed. Personally, I found this bit tacky, although most tourists seemed to love it. The babies are fed with a bottle and the older ones feed themselves. Then you can wander around a take a few more pictures. The ‘owners’ of the elephants are always after tips, so be prepared! Having said that, it was a fun stop, and something not to be missed in Sri Lanka. Ideal for kids too.

Sigiriya Rock Fortress ~ Another early start is advised, as we set off to climb the rock fortress, located only a few minutes from the hotel. It is possible to we hire a guide locally at a cost of 1500 rupees (about £7.50). The attraction was a superb experience, with lots of history and great views from the top. You should allow around 3 hrs for the whole experience … the climb to the top can be a bit scary if it’s very windy, which apparently it often is!

Temple of the Tooth ~ Legend has it that after the cremation of the Buddha at Kushinagar, the remains, including one of his teeth, were kept in India, then was smuggled to Sri Lanka, hidden in the hair of an Orissan princess. First it was taken to the Kingdom of Anuradhapura and later arrived at its final resting place in 1592.

We arrived at the Temple around 1600 hrs, which was a good time to get there as it's not too crowded. Entry is free to the grounds and you need to leave your shoes outside. You should note, however, that there is lots of security and bags will be searched twice. On entering the main temple you have to pay around 300 rupees for each foreigner and we also had a guide who was good fun and told us all about the place and the history surrounding it. A visit without a guide would not be half as enjoyable. There are grounds outside the temple that are really peaceful and you can’t help but feel relaxed.

At 1800 hrs, the actual casket containing the Tooth is displayed to the public so we went back into the temple, although it was much busier now with loads more tourists. For this reason I would recommend visiting earlier when it’s less busy as you get a better feel for the place rather than it being a bit like Grand Central Station. We left the Temple around 1930 hrs in the dark and the lights gave it a whole new look and would be a shame to miss. I returned to collect my shoes but they had been nicked, so I had to stop off at a shoe shop on the way back to the hotel!

Ceylon Team Museum ~ An interesting port of call, and something different to do. The Museum has a fascinating collection of old machinery, and traces the 130-year old history of the first tea plant brought to Sri Lanka by the Englishman, James Taylor. The museum has an attractive wooden interior, plus a library, and looks just like it did in your old Geography textbooks!

Kandyan dancing ~ This is OK but not my cup of tea, as I found it all quite touristy. Having said that, the fire walking at the end was best bit!

Elephant Festival ~ This takes place in Perahera once a year for ten days. During this elaborate festival, the Sacred Tooth Relic is removed from its home in the Temple, and temporarily installed in a howdah upon the back of an elephant, which then proceeds through the streets of Kandy, accompanied by important officials, musicians, and ritualists. We were really lucky to be there at that time ~ what a great night! Check schedules for this as it really is quite spectacular, and is always held around the time of the new moon at the end of July.

One day we set out early for a drive up the coast, which is a lovely drive as you drop down out of the mountains, with lots to stop off and see. There are several street sellers trading their wares, and we bought cashew nuts and avocados for lunch. As we got nearer to the beach we drove through coffee and rubber plantations, still harvested by hand.

The BBC were filming a documentary about the turtles in the area close to Kosgoda Beach, and this to me is the main reason why you would stay in this area. At this time of the year, turtles come up the beach and lay their eggs and guests staying here have the opportunity of wandering along the beach at night with a chance of seeing turtles. Fortunately, having returned to the Kosgoda Beach Resort for supper one evening in the hope of seeing a turtle on the beach, our luck was in and it paid off!!

Another day we decided to have a day trip to Galle and caught the train which was great fun and fairly straightforward. The journey time was about 90 minutes and you got a great perspective on local life and saw a great deal more! As we travelled further south we saw more Tsunami damage and at times it was quite eerie seeing mangled train tracks and the ‘tsunami train’ in Hikkaduwa which was hit and in which 1250 people perished! Tsunami damage is still very evident … we passed a couple of temporary schools full of kids who shrieked as the train went by!

Galle Fort ~ This was very impressive and a walk around the walls is highly recommended. There are houses and shops inside the fort and entry is free. Fortunately, this UNESCO World Heritage Site sustained no damage from Tsunami.

Leaving Galle, we drove back up the coast and this is where we saw the most destruction from the Tsunami, although it has to be said there is a lot of new housing and life does seem to be going on. To someone who hasn’t seen what it was like before – it is hard to get a true idea of the scale of the damage. Some people still living in tents, but others lucky enough to have new houses. Saw quite a few new fishing boats, with names of sponsors on the side, such as Rotary Clubs in the UK.

We were lucky to be able to spend some time at the delightful Sigiriya Village. The staff offered by far and away the best and friendliest service we received throughout the entire trip. The hotel has been built around the local vegetation and has superb views of the Sigiriya Rock Fortress, which is the main reason for coming up this way. The rooms are all very pretty and recently refurbished, although the bathrooms only had showers, no baths. The restaurant is open sided and has the feel of an African game lodge. The food really good and fresh, and there was lots of choice. There is also a nice little bar area for pre-dinner drinks. They have a ‘Hotel Garden and Mini Farm’ where 80% of their produce is grown for the kitchen and it shows. It’s all organic and you can wander around the garden if you wish. There is also a volleyball court and a very ‘rough' mini golf area, however the pool was good.

It had been 19 years since my last visit to Sri Lanka and I was thoroughly impressed with the place and left full of enthusiasm ~ if only they could sort out their political differences!

Basically, I recommend you give it a try and go to Sri Lanka !!