The views from the airplane just before we land confirm that Sri Lanka is indeed a pearl in the Indian Ocean. The flight to Sri Lanka took us just an hour from the Chennai airport but life seems much calmer and relaxed as soon as you land and one can really feel the island vibe.
Our first stop was at the resort Amaya Lake in Dambulla. We took a taxi from the Tourist Drivers Association counter in the airport. They quoted LKR 8000 to Dambulla, which we thought was a good deal compared to the LKR 14,000 that the hotel had quoted. Bandaranaike International Airport is in the town of Negombo, to the north of Colombo and the drive from the airport to Dambulla offered views of small villages amidst fields and lush green trees. On arrival at Dambulla, we found that the hotel Amaya Lake was 10 kilometers from Dambulla. We paid LKR 400 more for the extra kilometers that we traveled and after a sumptuous lunch buffet, took a tuk tuk to the Dambulla Cave Temple that is 10 kilometers away in the town of Dambulla.
The steps that walk up to the Dambulla cave temple was steep and slippery but that never stopped the multitude of local devotees from making the climb. The views from the top were good and the five caves under a giant overhanging rock had colorful religious paintings on the ceilings and statues of Buddha. We took a tuk tuk for LKR 100 from the cave temple to the town center of Dambulla and had a local dinner before proceeding to the hotel in a tuk tuk for LKR 500.
The next day, we took a tuk tuk to Sigiriya. The entrance fee is steep at about LKR 2800 for foreigners and about half for people with Indian passports and is just LKR 50 for the locals. You walk through ruins of swimming pavilions and water fountains to the giant rock that rises 1214 feet above sea level. Half way up, climbing a spiral staircase offers views of the few remaining Sigiriya frescoes. Keep your entrance tickets handy as they would be checked again just before the climb on the spiral staircase. After a landing is the final climb through the lion's paws, to the top of the rock where are few remaining ruins. The views from the top of the plains are endless.
We retained our friendly tuk tuk driver and after lunch at local stop, drove to Habenera for an elephant ride. It was LKR 4000 for a 45-minute ride to the nearby lake and back. The ride was good especially when we were wading through the lake filled with vegetation. There was a helper with the mahout who offered to take photographs for us but demanded a big tip in return.
Amaya Lake, though situated nowhere is indeed a beautiful property with access to the Kandalama lake, on whose banks it is situated on. What the hotel lacks in warm hospitality, it provides in a location that could not be more peaceful and serene.
On the third day, we took a taxi to Kandy stopping at a Spice Garden on the way. It was nice to see the trees and shrubs from where the spices come from but please be aware that it is not the place to buy anything. Since, we were roughly aware of the cost of spices and Ayurvedic potions, we were shocked at the prices quoted. When confronted, they offered us products for half the price, saying that the pricing was aimed at European tourists. But even at half the price, it still was a no buy. We asked our taxi driver to take us to lunch at an authentic Kandyan place and were taken to the Peradeniya Resthouse Restaurant opposite the Royal Botanical Gardens. It seemed like a place that taxi drivers take their tourists guests in return for a free meal.
Royal Botanical Garden, Peradeniya is huge and has a good collection of trees and plants and it sure lived up to its reputation of being one of the finest botanical gardens in Asia. We stayed at Amaya Hills in Kandy. Amaya Hills is around 5 kms up on a hill and has magnificent views of the city below and the mountains surrounding it.
The next day, our first stop was the Sri Dalada Maligawa Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. This temple is said to have the tooth relic of Buddha. The temple was ornate and it was sad to notice that parts of the temple had been damaged by a bomb blast and was rebuilt. The doors to the chambers that contained the tooth relic was to be open only at 6 pm that day and so visiting the temple was like visited the Louvre and finding the Mono Lisa behind locked doors. Not sure if one can see the tooth fragment even when the chamber doors are open.
We then walked along the Kandy Lake to reach the Kandy Museum, which is behind the temple. The entrance fee to this small museum is LKR 500 for foreigners and LKR 25 for locals. Wonder what sights would be missed by most if the Louvre or the British Museum charges 20 times more for foreigners.
The Kandy Art Association near the museum, hosts an evening of Kandyan dance at 5:30 pm. After buying tickets for LKR 500 each, we spent time idling by the lake. The tourists started settling in their seats by 4:45 pm. The dance routines were interesting to watch and the programme till the national anthem was sung. After the national anthem, even though the programme mentioned two more events, people started moving out from their seats and settling in areas just below the stage. Only later, did we realize that the tour operators had given their clients an heads up about the last two events happening down the stage. We were stuck standing on chairs with very little views of the Fire dance and the no views of the fire walk. It was a chaotic ending to a beautiful evening.
On the fifth day, our taxi driver dropped us at Ging Oya Lodge in Waikkal, our place of stay for the last two days of our trip. We paid LKR 22,000 for the taxi for 3 days and 2 nights of service. Ging Oya Lodge is a B&B run by Belgian host who have lived in Sri Lanka for more than 20 years. Our stay was in an independent bungalow styled room set among coconut trees facing the Ging Oya River. It was almost like a luxurious camping experience. The lodge though away from the city center has local homes as its neighbors. Ging Oya is an eco-friendly lodge and they use water from a local pond and so be prepared for a bath in brackish water and have Deet ready to tackle mosquitoes in common areas.
The local beach is a 20-minute walk from the lodge and we enjoyed it on two afternoons. On both the days, we had none one sharing the waters with us except for very few locals walking across it. The views on the other side of the beach were equally good with lush green trees. Not sure if one can swim in the waters though as it was rough and there are no lifeguards.
On the morning of our last day, we took a tuk tuk to the city center of Negombo and visited St. Marys Church. It was beautiful inside with statues depicting the stages of cross and large mosaics on the ceilings. Our trip back to the airport took us around 45 minutes from Ging Oya Lodge.
It was a trip that offered us a mix of history, varied landscape and a beautiful beach. The other areas that we would consider in a possible next trip to Sri Lanka would be Anuradhapura and Polonuwara for more history, Nuwara Eliya and areas around for more scenic beauty and Gale for more beaches but keeping in mind that Sri Lanka is less authentic and more touristy!!
Our first stop was at the resort Amaya Lake in Dambulla. We took a taxi from the Tourist Drivers Association counter in the airport. They quoted LKR 8000 to Dambulla, which we thought was a good deal compared to the LKR 14,000 that the hotel had quoted. Bandaranaike International Airport is in the town of Negombo, to the north of Colombo and the drive from the airport to Dambulla offered views of small villages amidst fields and lush green trees. On arrival at Dambulla, we found that the hotel Amaya Lake was 10 kilometers from Dambulla. We paid LKR 400 more for the extra kilometers that we traveled and after a sumptuous lunch buffet, took a tuk tuk to the Dambulla Cave Temple that is 10 kilometers away in the town of Dambulla.
The steps that walk up to the Dambulla cave temple was steep and slippery but that never stopped the multitude of local devotees from making the climb. The views from the top were good and the five caves under a giant overhanging rock had colorful religious paintings on the ceilings and statues of Buddha. We took a tuk tuk for LKR 100 from the cave temple to the town center of Dambulla and had a local dinner before proceeding to the hotel in a tuk tuk for LKR 500.
The next day, we took a tuk tuk to Sigiriya. The entrance fee is steep at about LKR 2800 for foreigners and about half for people with Indian passports and is just LKR 50 for the locals. You walk through ruins of swimming pavilions and water fountains to the giant rock that rises 1214 feet above sea level. Half way up, climbing a spiral staircase offers views of the few remaining Sigiriya frescoes. Keep your entrance tickets handy as they would be checked again just before the climb on the spiral staircase. After a landing is the final climb through the lion's paws, to the top of the rock where are few remaining ruins. The views from the top of the plains are endless.
We retained our friendly tuk tuk driver and after lunch at local stop, drove to Habenera for an elephant ride. It was LKR 4000 for a 45-minute ride to the nearby lake and back. The ride was good especially when we were wading through the lake filled with vegetation. There was a helper with the mahout who offered to take photographs for us but demanded a big tip in return.
Amaya Lake, though situated nowhere is indeed a beautiful property with access to the Kandalama lake, on whose banks it is situated on. What the hotel lacks in warm hospitality, it provides in a location that could not be more peaceful and serene.
On the third day, we took a taxi to Kandy stopping at a Spice Garden on the way. It was nice to see the trees and shrubs from where the spices come from but please be aware that it is not the place to buy anything. Since, we were roughly aware of the cost of spices and Ayurvedic potions, we were shocked at the prices quoted. When confronted, they offered us products for half the price, saying that the pricing was aimed at European tourists. But even at half the price, it still was a no buy. We asked our taxi driver to take us to lunch at an authentic Kandyan place and were taken to the Peradeniya Resthouse Restaurant opposite the Royal Botanical Gardens. It seemed like a place that taxi drivers take their tourists guests in return for a free meal.
Royal Botanical Garden, Peradeniya is huge and has a good collection of trees and plants and it sure lived up to its reputation of being one of the finest botanical gardens in Asia. We stayed at Amaya Hills in Kandy. Amaya Hills is around 5 kms up on a hill and has magnificent views of the city below and the mountains surrounding it.
The next day, our first stop was the Sri Dalada Maligawa Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. This temple is said to have the tooth relic of Buddha. The temple was ornate and it was sad to notice that parts of the temple had been damaged by a bomb blast and was rebuilt. The doors to the chambers that contained the tooth relic was to be open only at 6 pm that day and so visiting the temple was like visited the Louvre and finding the Mono Lisa behind locked doors. Not sure if one can see the tooth fragment even when the chamber doors are open.
We then walked along the Kandy Lake to reach the Kandy Museum, which is behind the temple. The entrance fee to this small museum is LKR 500 for foreigners and LKR 25 for locals. Wonder what sights would be missed by most if the Louvre or the British Museum charges 20 times more for foreigners.
The Kandy Art Association near the museum, hosts an evening of Kandyan dance at 5:30 pm. After buying tickets for LKR 500 each, we spent time idling by the lake. The tourists started settling in their seats by 4:45 pm. The dance routines were interesting to watch and the programme till the national anthem was sung. After the national anthem, even though the programme mentioned two more events, people started moving out from their seats and settling in areas just below the stage. Only later, did we realize that the tour operators had given their clients an heads up about the last two events happening down the stage. We were stuck standing on chairs with very little views of the Fire dance and the no views of the fire walk. It was a chaotic ending to a beautiful evening.
On the fifth day, our taxi driver dropped us at Ging Oya Lodge in Waikkal, our place of stay for the last two days of our trip. We paid LKR 22,000 for the taxi for 3 days and 2 nights of service. Ging Oya Lodge is a B&B run by Belgian host who have lived in Sri Lanka for more than 20 years. Our stay was in an independent bungalow styled room set among coconut trees facing the Ging Oya River. It was almost like a luxurious camping experience. The lodge though away from the city center has local homes as its neighbors. Ging Oya is an eco-friendly lodge and they use water from a local pond and so be prepared for a bath in brackish water and have Deet ready to tackle mosquitoes in common areas.
The local beach is a 20-minute walk from the lodge and we enjoyed it on two afternoons. On both the days, we had none one sharing the waters with us except for very few locals walking across it. The views on the other side of the beach were equally good with lush green trees. Not sure if one can swim in the waters though as it was rough and there are no lifeguards.
On the morning of our last day, we took a tuk tuk to the city center of Negombo and visited St. Marys Church. It was beautiful inside with statues depicting the stages of cross and large mosaics on the ceilings. Our trip back to the airport took us around 45 minutes from Ging Oya Lodge.
It was a trip that offered us a mix of history, varied landscape and a beautiful beach. The other areas that we would consider in a possible next trip to Sri Lanka would be Anuradhapura and Polonuwara for more history, Nuwara Eliya and areas around for more scenic beauty and Gale for more beaches but keeping in mind that Sri Lanka is less authentic and more touristy!!
