Jul 22, 2005 - leaving sri lanka, and more pictures....

I have to run to the airport but I wanted to upload some pictures before I leave... this is the most beautiful, amazing country...Words just can't do justice. A background to some of the pictures: Ella is a little, beautiful town in the mountains that was about 4 hours by bus from Kandy (the main 'hill country' town)- had the best rice and curry of my life there, cooked in the kitchen of a wonderful lady who took such good care of us that I didn't want to leave!; the Dambulla caves are about 3 hours north of Kandy- and include ancient...

Jun 10, 2005 - Adrian: Sri Lanka

Well this is our first stop of many. We only have a limited time on the net so ill give a brief overview. 1; Uncle Ryan was late to the airport so we were standing around the International airport like a pack of mad bombers. 2; Dinner that night at my aunty Wendy's house i choked on a Fish bone which resulted in going to a local quack where after a bit of searching managed to pull out a bone 1 1/2 ~ 2 inches long from past my duffel bag! 3; Ventured out into the world on our own and caught a Bus into Colombo where we did a bit of shopping...

Jun 9, 2005 - first day in SL

Greetings from Moratuwa, Sri Lanka!!! I can't believe I'm here. It's hot, muggy, rainy, tropical. Big palms and coconut and banana trees everywhere! The plane trip was fine, I slept most of the way from DC to London, and then had only a brief layover, then the flight from London to Dubai I slept most of the time, too.... I was surprised by how much food they give you on British Airways. We had lots of meals, and it was all pretty good. Then in Dubai- (we landed at 10:30 and had a layover 'til 3:30 a.m.)- wow, what an airport!!!! It's the...

Mar 26, 2005 - one night in Sri Lanka

Thank you Sri Lankan Airways, you offered the best south India-Bangkok fare and you included a stop-over in Colombo! I love good deals like this. I was pleasantly surprised to find that our included accomodation in Sri Lanka was indeed better quality than any other place I've found on my own. We were smack-dab on the beach front and had rooms with a sea-view, TV, AC and built-in sound system. Not a bad deal. I spent the afternoon lounging in a beach chair under a giant umbrella (lest I forget my sunburn ordeal in Varkala) and making friends...

Mar 12, 2005 - Sri Lanka - Ella & Colombo Airport

Ayubowan!!! Our last day in Ella was simply amazing. We decided to be brave and try to reach the summit of Ella Rock and we did. although it was really hard and we sweated like never before!!!! The view was so imposing up there. I have no words to describe it this time. Hope you get a clearer picture when we hang some photos of this day. Up there, we met David from Hampshire, whose wife is in love with all sorts of bird-life (I gave him our address and something tells me she would get on very well with my mother...). The scenery in Sri...

Mar 6, 2005 - Sri Lanka!!!!

Ayubowan!!! Here we are! In Sri Lanka! New country! New experience! The flight was one of the easiest flights I've experienced in my whole life. So it happened that we had a first-class ticket (although we didn't know) and we ended up havind breakfast for free at the 'First Class Lounge' in the airport, our own bus to take us from the terminal to the aeroplane and seats twice as wide as what we are used to. But this wasn't everything, we were given a menu to choose what we wanted to have for lunch (in a one-hour flight!) and we chose salmon...

Feb 27, 2005 - Negombo, Sri Lanka

Glen left for India the next day and I got moved downstairs to another room because they were working around my room. The new room had A/C but it would cost me another 600rs to turn it on. I griped and said that since they moved me to an A/C room it should be included. The guy refused so the next day I checked out. They changed their tune at that point since they had thought I might be there for 4 or 5 more days, but I said so long and moved back to the Catamaran Hotel where I was the week before. I didn't do much for the next few days but...

Feb 14, 2005 - Negombo, Sri Lanka

I landed at Colombo at 4am. without a reservation. I decided to wait until sunrise so when I took a taxi to wherever I could find my way around a little better. Past customs I changed some money and walked down a hall filled with tour agencies. I stopped at one and arranged a hotel in the very African sounding town of Negombo, about 20 min. away. Most tourists, it seems, don't stay long in Colombo unless they have reason. Negombo is on the beach, so I booked a room at the Sunflower hotel and had to wait about a half-hour for the earliest...

Dec 4, 2004 - Sri Lanka

Tonight I head back to India after a phenomenal ten day vacation in Sri Lanka with John. From beautifully maintained ancient cities, to lush tea plantations, to stunning scenery, to hikes up hill top fortresses, to witnessing a Budhist wedding, to relaxation on the beach, to a brush with wild elephants (and a hotel mouse). I now know why they call Sri Lanka the jewel of the Indian Ocean.

Oct 14, 2004 - Back in Colombo

Well, we made it! We are now back in the big city; when it comes to Sri Lanka its now, "been there, done that". We got up early and drove straight to Colombo and are checked in to a nice hotel, not the grotty Galle Face.. we don't like sharing our room with others, particularly if they have more than two legs (although to give the roaches and rats credit, they don't make much noise). Today we are getting organized for India which includes making calls for reservations, organizing our packs and updating certain websites. We also put our...

Sep 30, 2004 - Long flight to Sri Lanka

We have left Johannesburg and flown to Sri Lanka; for reasons known only to the one-world alliance air-lines and because of the restrictions of the round-the-world ticket we are travelling to Colombo via Hong Kong! Essentially going way too far east then turning around after a 10-hour wait in Hong Kong and going back, west, to Sri Lanka. Thank god we decided to go business class.. it makes it much more bearable. Sarita and I watched movies for most of the 13-hour flight to Hong Kong from Jo'burg. The food was good albeit not as eastern as I...

Aug 19, 2004 - Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Top 5 Experiences 1)Pinnewela Elephant Orphanage (you'll just have to see the pictures!) 2)The surprise that was Blue Water and Glenross combined. 3)The satisfaction after climbing up 1,618 stairs at Sigriya to be met by a wonderful view. 4)Delicious food wherever we went and the sheer amount of it! 5)Watching a pony escape, chased by Douglas (the waiter), in turn chased by a crazy dog at the hotel in Dambulla...and we'd only had a couple of beers! After all the months spent talking about it, we left our mothers and Sonia at the...