Travelling Through Sri Lanka

December 2024

Dambulla Rock Temple

In my previous post, I wrote about the history and political / economic strife that has played a major part in the life of Sri Lankans over the last 50 years. But people travel to Sri Lankan not to visit its capital Colombo but to visit temples, beaches and wildlife that the country is known for. I decided to splurge on a 10-day tour of the island Wildlife Tour of Sri Lanka for 10 Days. Go wild in Sri Lanka as you head on safari in Yala, Udawalawe and Bundala national parks, searching for elephants and leopards. Go whale watching in Mirissa, tour the captivating capital of Colombo and take in the country's cultural highlights, from hilltop Sigiriya to Polonnaruwa and the Dambulla Cave Temple. Throw in a scenic train ride to Nuwara Eliya and you've got the best of Sri Lanka in 10 incredible days.

Day 2 - The first day was the meet and greet and a quick tour of Colombo. After a great night sleep, it was time to hit the road in our ten-seater minivan. We drove inland to Dambulla Rock Temple. This ancient complex of caves dates back to the 1st century BC and contains over 150 images of Buddha including an impressive 14 meter carved statute.

After exploring the ancient site, we continued to Polonnaruwa. Once the capital of ancient Sri Lanka, Polonnaruwa was built between the 10th and 12th centuries and quickly became the thriving commercial and religious epicenter of the country. Made up of a series of stunning temples and religious buildings, the site is vast and in parts, stunningly beautiful. After dinner, we continued on to the Royal Palace.

Day 3 - In the morning, we explored Sigirya and the famous Lion Rock Fortress. Built over 1500 years ago, the citadel stands 200 meters high in the middle of the jungle and an important stronghold over the town,

In the afternoon we visited a local village of Kayanwala where we took part in a cooking demonstration and enjoyed fresh Sri Lankan food of curry, dahl and spiced rice.

Day 4 - This morning, we took a sightseeing tour of Kandy, the last capital of the Sri Lankan kings, with stops at a local gem museum and a tea factory. The country has the highest density of gems in the world, including sapphire, ruby, cat’s-eye chrysoberyl, spinel, garnet, beryl, tourmaline, topaz, quartz, and many others, including Princess Diana's famous blue sapphire engagement ring. Sri Lanka is the fourth largest producer of teas in the world and home to Ceylon tea factory. In the evening, we visited the Temple of the Tooth Relic. Legend has it that one of Buddha's teeth was taken from him as he laid on his funeral pyre. It was smuggled into Sri Lanka in 313AD. As well as watched a culyral dance perforamnce and fire show.

Day 5 - Had a chance to sleep in before we boarded our minivan to Peradeniya Railway for an incredible and interesting train ride to Nuwara Eliya. This train journey is considered one of the world's most beautiful as it chugs its way through the mountainous region of Sri Lanka, past tea plantations and waterfalls. Just as we were approaching the mountains, one of the train engines stalled. It took well over two hours to repair the engine. Close to six hours later we arrived at the Nanu Oya station where our trusted minivan waited to take us to the hotel for the night. A former British country house with a proper bar and snooker table.

Day 6 - The first half of the tour was focused on the history and religion of Sri Lanka. From Buddhist temples to British tea houses. As we awoke early, we boarded the minivan to take us to one of the most famous national parks in Sri Lanka. Udawalawe NP. The park was created to provide a sanctuary for wild animals displaced by the construction of the Udawalawe Reservoir on the Walawe River. It is one of the smallest national parks, has the highest concentration of Asian elephants in the world. Elephants to the left, elephants to the right. We shouted and snapped photograph after photograph of these beautiful animals.

Day 7 - Alas it was time to say goodbye to some of my fellow tourmates. About half the group left to travel back to Colombo, while the rest of us travelled on to the second largest national park in Sri Lanka, Yala NP. The skies dawned gray with monsoon rains, our jeep windows down and fogged up. But I would not be deterred. This is the park I wanted to see the most. It has the highest concentration of leopards in the world, and it also is home to the elusive sloth bear. We entered the park to more elephant sightings, however trail after muddy trail left without any animal sighting left us in a melancholic mood. As we were approaching the home stretch, a call went out. It was a leopard sighting. All the jeeps raced to the tree the leopard was hiding in. And there she was. On the way out of the park, we noticed all the jeeps stopped. Could it be. Do dreams come true. Yes. Way out in the distance, close to the water's edge, was a sloth bear, its gait unmistakable. (Cover photo is for show, we were too far to get any photos)

Day 8 - This morning, we left Yala national park on our way to Bundala National Park. Located on the coastal ocean. A natural wetlands home to over 200 species of birds, and small primates. In the afternoon we continued along the coast for our overnight stay in Mirissa.

Day 9 - The last day on the road, we continued along the southeast coast of Sri Lanka towards Galle Fort, a UNESCO world heritage site. First constructed by the Portuguese in 1588 then expanded and fortified by the Dutch during the 17th century. We explored the fort and had lunch overlooking the sea before we made it back to Colombo

Months later I still wonder if this was the right tour. I wanted to see the landscape and wildlife of Sri Lanka and learn more about the religious culture, but I felt like i had missed out on alot of the sites that other tour companies had offered.