Our trip to Spectacular Sri Lanka

The beautiful island country of South Asia , earlier known as Ceylon and presently Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka lies to the south of India  and has  lots of historical  and mythological tales from ancient days. Sri Lanka is a beautiful island which lies in the Indian Ocean southwest of Bay of Bengal. According to ancient mythology and the Epic Ramayana, present day  Sri Lanka  (then called LANKA) was ruled by King Ravana  and it was here  that Ravana  held Sitamata ,wife of Lord Ram captive,  but was finally defeated in a fierce battle by Sri Ram and his army which  included the Banar sena or an army of moneys.

It was on 29^th of March, 2024 that we started our short trip to Sri Lanka from Hyderabad Rajiv Gandhi International airport. The two of us ie my husband and myself were eager to visit Sri Lanka and after quite a bit of research we planned the trip. We checked in at the airport , completed  all formalities and boarded the flight which was to take off at 11 .05 am. During the last week of March there was   a special facility given by Sri Lankan government and no visa  was required for Indian tourists. Our flight landed in Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka at 2pm. All formalities completed we were   met by our tour guide Mr Kusahan who would guide us through the entire tour.  We had taken the trip through Make my trip and found that we had made a good selection. We collected a sim card from Dialogue company so that we could communicate with our family members back home and also exchanged money at Thomas Cooke at the airport. Then we boarded the AC sedan car that was waiting for us which was to be our vehicle for the next seven days.

Day 1 ie 29^th March 2024: Destination Kandy. Stay at Hotel Sussie:

Our first destination was Kandy a large city in Central Sri Lanka about   144  kms from Colombo. It is set on a plateau surrounded by mountains and is hub of tea plantation and biodiverse rainforest.  There is a beautiful lake, the Bogambara lake in the heart of the city. On the way we stopped for light refreshment at a restaurant and then resumed our journey, we reached Hotel Sussie around 7pm.On the way we enjoyed the natural beauty of Kandy. The city is nicely designed keeping the forest intact. We hardly found signs of deforestation for urbanisation. The Hotel was just opposite to the lake and was very comfortable with all modern amenities. The view from the room was awesome. The dining room in the second floor was beautifully set and laid out very efficiently and served a variety of food – English, Sri Lankan and Indian too. After dinner we headed back to our room and had a nice sleep.

Day 2 ie 30^th of March 2024: We left the hotel after a nice and delicious breakfast which consisted of Poti roti with coconut chutney, Red rice and fish in Sri Lankan style, variety of chutneys, cakes and other baked products along with fruits. We enjoyed Sri Lankan tea. We then left for the famous Tooth Relic temple which is a Buddhist temple. Beautiful and variety of flowers are offered to Lord Buddha along with water, tea etc which are placed in small platforms. Crows visit the temple and drink from the water placed in front of Lord Buddha. Various rituals were being performed in the temple. The temple also had a nice library. Next we visited the Gem and jewellery outlet, Wood craft shop and Batik store. This was followed by a typical Indian lunch.

Next destination was the famous Peradeniya Royal Botanical garden which had immense  collection of trees, different variety of bamboos and most interesting was the huge amount  of bats roosting   on the trees. The bats were flying freely from tree to tree.  The botanical garden was spread out and walking was comfortable because the paths were well kept.

We returned to our hotel and after a delicious dinner retired to our room.

Day 3 , 31^st March: Destination Nuwara Eeliya , Stay at Hotel Araliya Red.

Day 3 was  scheduled for Nuwara Eeliya which is 74 kms from Kandy. It is a city housed in natural beauty and is the tea production centre of Sri Lanka. The fragrance and aroma of tea was  so beautiful and soothing that we could not refuse the offer of enjoying their tea. We also purchased some tea. The tea factory premises were very well managed.   The mountains and the greenery attracted out attention along with the water falls. Most beautiful St. Clairs falls caught our attention along with several other water falls . Our next visit was to the wood craft store where different articles were being craved out of wood.    There were masks of various types and sizes symbolising peace, fire, etc.  We bought some mementoes, mask and other gift items. Next we visited Hanuman temple, Victoria Park, Nuwara Eliya Post office, and finally reached Sitamma temple. The Sitamma temple (Seetha Eliya) was where  Devi Sita was kept captive by Ravana , according to the Epic Ramayan. It is mentioned as Ashoka Vatika in the Epic Ramayan.

The  evening was spent watching a dance program depicting various cultural events and finally an acrobatic dance was performed showing various tricks with fire etc.

Day 4 and 5: 1^st and 2^nd April , Destination Bentota beach and Kalutara  beach: Stay at Hotel Hibiscus Beach Hotel.  The journey to Bentota and Kalutara Beach was awesome. We travelled by road adjacent to which was the railway track and then the sea. Trains frequently passed and we could enjoy the train moving adjacent to the road.   The hotel was near the Kalutara beach and the beach was extremely beautiful. The mangroves along the beach were beautiful. We could watch sunset and also had a dip in the hotel swimming pool. The dinner was very nice and well spread. After dinner we witnessed a lovely carnival staged by few well trained persons.

Our boat Safari in Madu River between the mangroves was exciting and mesmerising. The boat passed between mangroves and covered the total river. There are 64 islands in the river and each island has a speciality. One had Cinnamon cultivation and we could see the making of cinnamon, another had a small temple with Hindu deities. We visited a herbal garden which had large collection of different spices as well as medicinal plants. We also visited the Turtle Hatchery in Bentota. The hatchery was more than words can express. Being a student of biological science and with interest in conservation I was impressed by the way turtles are protected, reared and looked after by the staff at the hatchery and was something to appreciate. Turtles are rescued and realised into the sea. Several turtle species were protected and special mention needs to be made of the Olive Ridley turtle. A unique thing which I saw was the way the hatchery has been set up and how the newly hatched turtles come out and move towards the point where they find their aquatic habitat for further development. We could hold the turtles in our hand and click beautiful photographs.

Day6:  3^rd April : Destination :Excursion to Galle : Next we headed for Galle excursion. On the way we saw a beautiful Buddhist temple which has been built after the Tsunami which had left a lot of destruction. Sri Lanka is a Buddhists    country and there are beautifully designed statues of Lord Buddha in various points  and places. Every person is aware of the significance of worship and follows the norms.  There are also Christians, Hindus and people following Islam.

Galle is a fortified old city in the south west coast and was built during the Portugese colonial rule in the 16^th century. We visited the Galle Maritime Museum, the Light House, Clock Tower, Church and the Galle International Stadium. After lunch at a seaside restaurant we spent some time at the sea beach. The city is set by the sea giving an extremely beautiful view and is worth visiting.

Day 7: Destination Colombo : Stay at  Hotel Bejaria: The next destination was Colombo the capital of Sri Lanka where we visited the famous Independence Square, Twin tower , the Port, The Gangaramaya (Vihara) Buddhist temple, the beach and Galle Face Green. We visited a mall and did some shopping for family members.  The hotel Bejaria in Colombo was cosy and comfortable with nice dinner. Next morning we packed our belongings, had breakfast and started our journey back home to India. At the airport after completion of all formalities, and getting our passports stamped, we checked in and boarded the flight to Hyderabad .

Our trip to Sri Lanka was a really great and the hospitality of the people of Sri Lanka will remain in our heart forever.  Our special thanks to our tour guide Mr Kushan who was so punctual, caring and friendly.

Mail me at deymithra57@gmail.com for any suggestions or query.