The North
The only international airport being in Colombo, we started our journey on the west coast but quickly made our way up to Sigiriya. This little town nestled in the jungle was the perfect place to get a taste of Sri Lanka's jungle interior. We spent three days in the area which gave us enough time to hike up Pidurangala rock, go on a safari in Kaudulla National park and still relax and explore the beautiful surroundings.
I must say that our guest house was a big part of what made Sigiriya so great. We were a little unsure about the place when we booked it as it looked pretty isolated, but we still decided to go for it since it was so cheap ( 10$ for a double room). When we arrived at the guest house, we realize that we were indeed pretty far from the village and we didn't have internet, but this was a small price to pay considering we were sharing a tree house with elephants and monkeys in the middle of the wilderness. After our time at Thina.. guest house, we started to make our way down south to reach Kandy where we would begin our train journey in the mountains the next morning.
The Central Highlands
We decided to stay in Kandy for only one night and it was definitely more than enough. The city is big, crowded, very overwhelming and to be honest, there's a lot of nicer places to visit in Sri Lanka. The next morning, we got up early and got to the train station ready for what was supposed to be one of the world most scenic train ride. Four hours threw our journey, we concluded that the whole thing was a little overrated, but the experience was still a must during a trip to Sri Lanka. There was no limit to how many people they would try to squeeze on the train and many people that had bought their tickets didn't even get to hop on the train. Luckily, after an hour or so, the two seats next to me opened up and we were able to seat, relax and enjoy the view for the next few hours which wasn't the case for a lot of people that had to stand up for 7 hours or more.
For a better chance to have a place to seat, I would recommend anyone that wishes to ride the train between Kandy to Ella to do so on the weekdays when the locals work and to ride it in the opposite direction (Ella to Kandy).
7 hours later, we finally arrived in Haputale, a small town in the mountains not to far from Ella. I had read about Haputale in many blogs and describe as a quieter and less touristy version of Ella, I was excited to see for myself if it was worth the stop. As you might guess, we instantly fell in love with this authentic little village. Our guest house perched on a cliff, facing the tea plantations and the mountains was the cherry on top of it all. During the next few days, we walked around town and down in the tea plantations. We also went on a hike to the top of Diyaluma falls which was a pretty strenuous hike but totally worth it. Finally, on our last day, we woke up early to reach Lipton Seat, which is known as the best view in Haputale. The tuk tuk ride to there and the view was pretty good, but I reckon it still didn't beat the view from our homestay ( Belview guest house).
After breakfast, we got back to the train station and got on the train ready for our next destination: Ella. We were pretty thrilled at the thought of going to Ella as we had read it was one of the must do's in Sri Lanka and we're a little disappointed by the village. Don't get me wrong, Ella had great things to offer, but after Haputale, we were expecting the same kind of village perched in the mountains with amazing views, but it wasn't the case. Since Ella is at lower elevation and situated in a small valley, we didn't see much from the village at all. Even though the village was a little too touristy for us, the famous Nine arches bridge and the Little Adam's peak hike were both very beautiful and worth the stop in Ella.
The Coast
On our last few days, we said goodbye to the mountains and made our way back down to the jungle. We went on our second safari in the well known Udawalawa National Park and once again, the experience was a huge success. The adrenaline rush you get when a 300 pounds elephant walk right next to you in the wild and looks into your eyes is pretty insane, I can tell you that.
Yesterday, we finally made it to the southern beaches and now were pretty happy to rest and relax for the last days we have in beautiful Sri Lanka. We will spend time some time in Tangalle, Mirissa and Unawatuna.
Sri Lanka
Best Dive: Swami Rock, Trincomalee Best Hike: Pidurangala rock Sustainable activity: Visit the Victor Hasselblad Sea Turtle Research And Conservation Centre in Kosgoda. Sustainable stay: Kuwera Eco Lodge
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