7 Days in Sri Lanka

 With more than 1 shade of banana Sri Lanka has much to offer the visiting tourist.

Naturally rich landscapes, World heritage sights, plenty of tea and flavourful food,

Cheeky monkeys and endless Elephants.

Whale watching, beautiful beaches, historic cave temples and fun blue trains that connect

them all together.

For a country that came out of a 30 year civil war as recent as 2009, the so called Pearl

of the Indian Ocean shows no sign of being held back.

This is Suitcase Monkey, spending 7 Days in beautiful Sri Lanka.

(FAST MUSIC)

After the endearing moment when our taxi driver collected lunch from his Mother, we were finally

ready to begin our week long tour.

Starting in Negombo, we would first travel to Dambulla to visit its famous Cave Temples,

our first of 4 UNESCO World heritage sites.

Next, we make our way to the impressive Sigiriya Rock fortress, before setting off to Sri Lanka’s

former capital of Kandy.

We then journey south to Galle Port, a unique mixture of European colonialism and Asian

traditions.

Neighbouring Galle is Unawatuna, a tourist town offering sandy beaches and trendy bars.

And then finally, we take a train along the coast to Colombo, the commercial capital of

Sir Lanka.

With all that travelling ahead of us, our first afternoon and evening was pretty relaxed.

After settling into the Waves by Tranquil hotel, we wandered around Negombo, getting

ourselves acquainted.

In the evening we met the rest of our tour group

and enjoyed a relaxed dinner, watching our first sun set over the Indian Ocean.

(Slow orchestral music)

A sacred pilgrimage site for 22 centuries, this cave monastery, with its five sanctuaries,

is the largest, best-preserved cave-temple complex in Sri Lanka.

160 meters high, the caves holds almost the same number of statues and over 2000 square

meters of Buddhist mural paintings.

One tourist tip is to never take a photo with your back to the statue since its considered disrespectful.

(Orchestral Music Fades and slows)

(Drum Safari Music, upbeat)

(Slow meditation like music)

The Sigiriya Rock Fortress is one of Sri Lanka’s 8 World Heritage sites and what became for

me, my favourite part of our entire trip.

It’s not enough that nature created this 200 metre high rock, it’s also the incredibly

flat land that surrounds it, making for some awe inspiring views as you climb.

Built on top of the rock in the 5th century was a kings palace, which acts as the finish

line for those wanting to ascend.

It took around 40 minutes at a steady pace.

Exertion wise, it was the perfect balance of being tough enough that you felt a sense

of achievement, but not enough to actually give me a heart attack.

They do obviously recommend walking shoes but due to my light packing, and the sturdy

stairs along the way, my flip flops did the job just fine.

Half way up, covered by an overhang and where photos aren’t allowed, are a stretch of

wall paintings or Frescoes.

These paintings of females would have once covered the entire western wall, totalling

around 500.

Some believe they are the ladies of the king whilst others think they are taking part in

religious activity.

Although now only 18 remain, they are all left in remarkable condition and act as a

good break during the walk.

Just before the summit, lie the remains of what was once an enormous gateway to the palace.

A giant pair of lion's paws carved into the bedrock are all that remain, since the upper

body was destroyed.

It is because of this lion, that the palace was named Sigiriya.

The term Sigiriya originates from the word Sīhāgiri, which means Lion Rock.

Once you have passed the lions paws, the summit is tantalisingly close and it certainly doesn’t disappoint.

(UPBEAT MUSIC)

(Music Stops)

"Right"

"Where's the lift?!"

(Upbeat music)

After 45 minutes of taking in as much as we could at the summit, the walk down was actually

surprisingly quick.

And like all good attractions, you exit through the gift shop.

Following a quick shower and recoup at our Dambulla hotel, we set off once again.

Now we had Kandy firmly in our sights, a small cultural city with plenty of character.

Along the way to Kandy we had 3 stops, the first being just 5 minutes down the road.

The oddly titled Dambulla Dedicated Economic Centre is Sri Lanka’s largest fruit and

vegetable market.

Whilst this is a mainly a wholesale destination, the hustle, bustle and massive fruits on offer

are still an interesting sight.

And wherever you are in Sri Lanka, I would recommend you stopping by a local market like

this, if you get the chance.

The second stop was at a Sri Lankan spice garden.

Here we listened to a talk about the spices they grow, the ailments they can help towards,

walked around the gardens themselves, drank some Sri Lankan tea and everyone got to have

a free massage at the end.

Then, we left via the gift shop.

As we got closer to Kandy, and the mixture of traffic and greenery increased our final

stop was at the Amith Gem Museum, which is in Kandy itself.

Central Sri Lanka is rich with gemstones and our guide took us through the whole mining

process, showing off some shiny stones to finish.

A gift shop, this is not and after some heavy browsing Chiaki purchased this peridot gemstone.

A few minutes jump back into the van and we finally arrived at our hotel, our home for

the next 2 nights.

This was our first 2 night stay in 1 location so a welcome change to the schedule, allowing

us to explore Kandy more at our steady pace.

Having said that, After a quick rest, we made a beeline to The Temple of the Tooth, a must

visit when in Kandy.

(Chanting and drums)

The Temple of the Tooth is a very sacred and important place for Sri Lankan Buddhists.

Legend states that after the Lord Buddha was cremated, his remains were distributed for

worship.

Of all of his remains, his 4 canines were considered holiest of all, and this temple

is the resting place of one of those relics.

After being smuggled into Sri Lanka it immediately became an important symbol, the belief being

that whoever possessed the tooth, had a divine right to rule the land.

Nowadays, the casket is removed from its shrine once a year during the Esala Perahera or Festival

of the Tooth.

This footage here, taken in 2015, shows how the elephants are dressed, with the casket

placed on his back.

And its this corridor, where the casket starts that journey for thousands of people to witness.

(Drums and chanting increase)

As you move further inside the temple, you can’t help but be overwhelmed by the drums,

the noise, the music and the hundreds of people jostling for position.

If you are intending to visit, be aware it can get incredibly busy.

As you ascend the stairs towards the relic, there are 2 lanes of traffic.

One where people can get much closer, and the one we took, where you’re walking by

from afar.

It’s all a very palpable experience and if you are in Kandy, one that is not to be missed.

(Relaxing music)

Kandy was Sri Lanka’s last capital before it fell under English rule.

And a history of European colonisation can be seen around the city.

It’s a relatively small, flat area of land, cushioned between its surrounding hills, making

it perfect for a few meandering hours.

In March 2018, there were some fairly substantial riots held here.

However as tourists walking the streets, literally 2 weeks later, we saw zero sign these riots

had even taken place.

And Kandy, much like the rest of our experience in Sri Lanka, felt safe and welcoming.

(Man speaking in Sinhalese on microphone)

Oh and just in case you can’t speak Sinhalese, this man here is saying if you are enjoying

this video, please drop us a like, and subscribe for more.

What a kind gentleman he was.

(Funky Bass Line)

About an hours drive from Kandy, just passed a Thomas the Tank Engine museum is the

Kadugannawa Tea Factory.

Tea is one of Sri Lanka’s biggest exports so its certainly worth a factory tour if you

are close by on your trip.

After a refreshing cup of tea and an exit through the gift shop, we set out on what

would be our longest drive of the trip, around 4 hours with a few rest stops along the way.

(gentle guitar music)

Our lunch time destination was Galle Fort, which is a lesser known Sri Lankan attraction

and been described as a bit of a hidden gem.

The few hours we had in Galle certainly left us wanting another day or 2 here.

Although built by the Portuguese and fortified by the Dutch, it feels like a melting pot

of cultures that go far beyond these 2 initial settlements.

There are many clichéd words that can be thrown at Galle Fort, but its hard not to

use them anyway since they all ring so true.

With its colonial buildings, trendy cafes, quirky boutiques, exotic flavours, and grand

artitecture, it’s a perfect town to just wander its rambling streets.

It’s also worth noting that Galle experienced waves as high as 6 meters during the Boxing

Day Tsunami in 2004.

With Galle Fort itself being surrounded by 3 sides of ocean, it must have been hit hard

but Sri Lanka has done an unbelievable job at restoration.

(Piano relaxing beat)

It might go without saying that Unawatuna was a culture break following Kandy.

It was the closest I’d seen Sri Lanka get to Thailand and acted as a complimentary change.

Tomorrow morning we would be heading out for a whale watching tour so we had an early night

after a very long day.

(Relaxing beats)

Now, we all know the photo we hope to take if we go whale watching.

Well I’m putting it out there now that this… was my best whale moment caught on video.

Such is the unpredictable nature of nature.

So what became apparent was the experience was more about the anticipation of where she

would appear and then the excitement of when she finally did.

Whilst feeling a bit like Chief Brody on lookout, the stillness and peace… suddenly breaks…

(Lots of shouting from crew)

and is filled with engines moving forward, the locals getting excited there won’t be

any refund demands for today, and then its a race for your boat to catch up, before she

dives back down again for air.

And when she did, it was fun while the anticipation grew once more.

(Silence)

There is an argument to be had about whether this number of boats chasing a mammal is a

good thing but when all is considered it was certainly an experience I won’t be forgetting

any time soon.

After an hour and a half, we turned back to shore for a long journey home.

Tomorrow would be our last full day in Sri Lanka and it would begin with the countries

iconic blue train.

(Relaxing house music)

A train ride in Sri Lanka has almost become a destination in itself.

The journey from Kandy to Ella has even earned the title of most beautiful train journey

in the world.

For us, we boarded around 6am, which helps with getting a seat, something that is hard

to find as the day goes on.

(Upbeat Dance music)

After pulling into Colombo, it couldn’t have been more of a contrast to the easy going

lifestyle of Galle and Unawatuna.

Like many this size, there are several sides to this city.

On the one hand it has its hard working streets and markets with an authentic flavour.

Being the main entry point into the country, it obviously caters to tourism.

Then it has its government buildings, offices and monuments.

And finally, a newer, up and coming district near the coast.

China is putting a lot of money into aiding this side of town and Sri Lanka seems to be

putting its energy to making its city a more safe, clean, tourist friendly, welcoming place

than it already is.

Although this might seem like the end of our holiday, we were actually only just getting

started.

The Maldives is an hours flight from Colombo and it would almost be rude not to stop by

before returning back back to London.

It’s a really recommended extension if you visit Sri Lanka so please subscribe to see

the reality of paradise (also done on as much of a budget as you can for The Maldives).

At Suitcase Monkey our holidays are our movies so until the next one, please check out our

back catalogue of travels to Japan, Kenya, Italy and Marrakesh to name a few.