Sri Lanka Impromptu!
This trip was never planned. One fine day my wife booked the tickets to SriLanka, because I dared her to, and that's how the trip came into being.
All in all we were 6 people in total Mohit, Anku, Saurabh, Rosi, Manasi & me. The plan was made after the tickets were done. We had 6 days from Wednesday to Wednesday following the Valentines day. After much deliberation the following plan was agreed and hotels booked accordingly.
Since Forex card provider dosen't support LKR currency we procured LKR in the following two ways
1. INR ->LKR (in INDIA)
2. INR-> USD ( in INDIA) + USD -> LKR ( in Lanka)
We realized that option 2 is better deal and USD is acceptable almost everywhere, all hotels and restaurants accept USD, but return the change in LKR.
For local and intercity transfers we decided to hire a taxi.
Day 0:
All assemble at Pune airport and leave for Colombo via Chennai. It was a quick one hour flight from Chennai to Colombo. While I slept off right away, Anku managed to catch glimpse of sunrise over the vast Indian Ocean.
Sri Lanka welcomed us with super quick immigration transfer and smiling faces.
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| @ Colombo Airport |
Day 1:
So we did finalize on a big car for our 6 day travel and our driver turns up right on time to pick us up in has swanky Fortuner. We manage to fit in our luggage and comfortably seat all.
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| 6 of us +1 driver and luggage of all .. comfortably loaded in this one |
Surprise surprise.. in a foreign country that feels very own
Srilanka feels very India like but cleaner & greener. People are courteous and traffic police have a smile on their face.
With hunger biting on to us, we head straight to breakfast. The Srilankan Cuisine ( from our limited exposure) appeared to be little Mallu style cuisine with a different Lankan Aroma and sauces.
Through out our travel we kept struggling for getting spoons or forks, it appeared as if spoons are a treasured resource in this country, it is advisable to carry your own spoons when travelling around in Lanka.
Filled and happy we head out to begin our tour. First stop Elephant orphanage and we had seen some pictures on the net. So we all stop at one such orphanage on the road.
The person at the ticket counter had fairly good English and explained to us all the packages and activities included.
After much internal debate we settle for 1000 LKR pp ticket and enter the premise. As we enter we were surprised to see the premise was just few meters in all and 3-4 elephants roamed in stagnated water. We had entered a private farm which was riding on the success of the original tourist spot. The actual orphanage was nearby First time we felt like a tourist in a foreign country.
Nonetheless we pose for pictures and take the lesson on our trip ahead.
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| Old Elephant at the Orphanage |
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| Crane out for photo-shoot @ Elephant Oprhanage |
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| Happy to pose |
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| Young Jumbo having a good time |
On the way we encountered some really crafty jute, bamboo articles. Elephants, chairs, lamps and everything made out of bamboo and jute, after some window shopping we move ahead straight for Kandy.
The cozy place called Kandy
We arrived at our Hotel 24 by Suyama in Kandy by the evening. Kandy felt like a small hill station town. Kandy is primarily known for its temples also few is home to some legendary cricketers from Sri Lanka.
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| Full house @ Kandy Hotel |
The Anuradhapura Museum also houses artifacts from centuries old sewage system which was far more evolved even than what we find in some urban areas even today.
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| Drama Company |
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| With the moonstone..@ Anuradhapura |
After some goofing around we head out for lunch. This restaurant served really good food and also was generous with cuttelery :).
In the second half of the day we head out to the Mahabodi Temple complex.
Mahabodhi temple is build around the sacred Fig Tree which grew out of branch of Bodhi tree. Samrat Ashoka sent a branch of this tree to Srilanka in the bygone era.
Siddharth attined enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree in Bodh-Gaya India, After his enlightenment he was called Buddha, the one who is awakened. After his enlightenment Lord Buddha preached of a middle path to attain Nirvana, Nirvana is the ultimate state for the soul and it takes one away from the repetitive circle of rebirths. The moonstone captured in a picture above depicts the essense of life in its layers.
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| Giant Pulmeria (Chafa) plant on way to Anuradhapura Temple |
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| Monkeys with a hairdo @ Anuradhapura |
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| Evening Procession at the Bodhi Tree @ Anuradhapura |
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| Boulevard along the temple @ Anuradhapura |
After the Anuradhapura excursion we head out for dinner back at our hotel.
The day ends with a common request to download some Hindi songs for the long journey coming up next day. I rise up to this occasion and download all my favorite songs overnight, great community service indeed ;).
Day 4:
After the sumptuous breakfast and multiple parting pictures we bid farewell to Sadhula and the smiling owners of this place.
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| Ladies @ Sadhula Reception |
Armed with awsome playlist and super awsome car we play all our favorite songs on the way and head out straight to Bentota. Bentota is like Goa of Lanka with lesser crowd.
Midway Lunch
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| Pose Before Lunch |
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| Pose after Lunch |
Bentota
Southern Star, the hotel where we planned to camp for the next two days was right on the beach with its own private beach.
We end the day with light drinks and a quick round of Mafia. The game excites some and infuriates some other .. :)
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| Beach right out of out hotel @ SouthernStar Bentota |
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| Looking for fresh sea food @ Bentota |
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| Some Yoga by the Bay! @ Bentota, a perfect click by Talented photographer Mohit |
Day 5:
Next morning we head straight for some yoga by the Sea and realize that the property owner had invited us for Surprise Breakfast.
Filled with fresh fruits and sea side breeze we indulge into some goofing around.
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| The free Breakfast @ Bentota |
While few preferred frolic by the sea, I preferred to reading a thriller. I chanced to get myself a book by the name "Hell was too crowded", got hooked on to it as the plot had many interesting twists. Could not complete the story for the time crunch and now I am looking for the summary.
In the second half we head out to Madhu river safari.
Sightseeing & Cinamon Island
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| En-route Madhu River Safari @ Bentota |
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| River Monitor Lazying along the Mangroves.. its almost 5 feet long lizard living off on monkeys and small animal @ Madhu River |
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| Ladies at the Fish Spa |
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| With the Cinnamon cultivator@ Cinnamon Island |
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| A sculptor depicting the meditative state of Buddha while he was fasting for over 80 days. He still did not attain enlightenment even with fasting. |
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| Entering the Cinnamon Island @ Madhu River Safari |
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| Mesmerizing Sunset by Madhu River |
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| While after a trying day I tried to rest for some time. |
Day 6:
Day 6 being the final one all amongst us had a common thought " how time flies".
When the breakfast table is set by the sea we eat to our hearts content and lay down for some mid morning siesta.
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| Our souvenir for Sri Lanka |
By noon we head out to Colombo to catch our evening flight and pick some souvenirs on the way.
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| Final Day in streets of Colombo |
Souvenir Shopping
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| Souvenier Shop @ Colombo |
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| Final sendoff to Raju |
The 6 days went like a breeze, all were super happy about the impromptu trip and support by our driver/friend who drove us around the country without complaining. As we checked into the long immigration line we all thought of the beautiful places we went.
Goodbye SriLanka we miss you already, we will meet again for sure.
Awesome.. Everything captured so well... Indeed a memorable trip...😊👍 ✌🤓
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