Ann, thanks for the tip about the nature walk. We went this afternoon and enjoyed it very much. As for the chasing, it's something we had to confront it this morning. I will share more when I post about Yala.

Mohammed, I'm glad you are enjoying my report, and thanks again for the tip about Hambantota. To be honest, I wasn't sure how the live posting would turn out, but it seems to be going alright so far. We had the opportunity to try woodapple juice and jam in Ella; the juice was not a favorite but the jam with butter on bread was delicious. Tried mangosteen too.

SLifestyle, thanks for commenting. Would love to hear your perspective.

And here's the next installment...

Kandy

From Dambulla we journeyed two hours south to the former Sri Lankan capital of Kandy, our home for two nights. Kandy was the city from which the kings of Sri Lanka lived and ruled until the year 1815, when it fell under British sovereignty. It is famous for being the home of the Temple of the Tooth Relic, revered by many Sri Lankans in that it continues to hold the remains of one of Buddha's tooth that was brought over from India long ago.

On the way to Kandy we stopped at a spice garden, Highland #25, near the town of Matale. We were given a tour of the garden by one of its resident experts. We saw a papaya tree, a red pineapple bush, a vanilla bush, a coffee tree, a cacao tree, and a couple other things. What we didn't enjoy was sitting through a presentation of all the products available for sale as we had no interest in most of the non-spice items available. We did make a handful of small purchases of cinnamon, vanilla beans, and spice tea.

Soon after the spice garden we drove through the town of Matale, populated by a large number of Tamils and a significant number of Muslim Sri Lankans. Passing through we noticed a change in the alphabet used on signs all along the main drag and loud Indian-style music throughout. The people seemed to go about their business, getting to and fro, making daily purchases, etc., like any other Sri Lankan town. I understand that there was some limited unrest in and near Matale during the civil war not too long ago, but things appear normal today, at least from the surface.

Arriving in Kandy we were taken to a gem showroom. We were introduced to the Sri Lankan blue sapphire as well as other gems available. While we did some browsing we didn't make any purchase as the prices were higher than similar quality jewelry we've seen in other countries during our travels, and in some cases, right in the United States.

As practicing Buddhists we were excited to visit Kandy on poya day. We had a nice vegetarian lunch at a local restaurant recommended by our driver and then headed to the Temple of the Tooth Relic. Given that we were here on a holy day the temple was abuzz with activity. We saw lots of men and women dressed in white, some chanting, some praying, and others just milling about. The temple was much newer than I expected even though I knew that part of it was recently rebuilt in the aftermath of the 1998 bombing. We took our time here wandering about and taking in the atmosphere. It felt special to be here on poya day and we enjoyed our visit although I wouldn't say this was one of our favorite temples.

From the Temple of the Tooth we walked over to the Queen's Hotel to take a peek and wander about its shops even though we did not find anything worth purchasing. We also took a leisurely afternoon stroll around Kandy Lake before heading to an evening cultural show.

We took in a cultural show not too far from the Arthur's Seat viewpoint. The show was about an hour long and included ten acts. The show was of the variety style and was geared towards tourists; however it was a good way for us to spend an evening. Especially memorable were a couple of the high-flying acrobatic numbers. The show ended outside the main hall where the artists performed a fire dance.

For our second day in Kandy we went out of the city and into the surrounding hills. We took a two-hour, three temple loop tour in the morning following by a visit to the nearby botanical gardens midday. The three medieval temples were Gadaladeniya, Lankatilake, and Embekka. One could get from one temple to the next on foot although we opted to go by vehicle as we wanted a more leisurely day.

We started our temple hopping at Gadaladeniya. This 12th century temple is home to a small stupa with four shrines around its base and a much larger temple cut out of granite that houses a large Buddha statues and frescoes still in good condition.

Our next stop was Lankatilake Temple, also from the 12th century. Lankatilake is unique in that the temple is made up of two halves, one Buddhist and the other Hindu. The Hindu side was closed during our visit although we were able to enter the Buddhist side. Visitors are greeted by a monk who opens the temple doors for you. Inside we were immediately awe-inspired by the beauty of the Buddha sitting in meditation pose flanked by two smaller Buddha statues on each side. His beautiful blue eyes, made from real sapphire, seem to gaze out at you. The Buddhas are decorated with fine ornamentations of animals and mythical creatures and surrounded by beautiful frescoes covering every inch of wall. The exquisite interior is matched with a stately white exterior decorated with white elephants. The whole temple sits on a very beautiful setting surrounded by the Kandyan countryside. While we were here we also were able to witness a small puja ceremony, our first in Sri Lanka. Lankatilake was by far our favorite of the three temples.

Lastly we hit up Embekka, a Hindu place of worship well known for its drummers hall filled to the gills with very fine and detailed images carved in wood.

Following our visit to Embekka we headed back to Kandy by way of the Peredeniya Botanic Gardens. The gardens is one of the largest if not the largest in Sri Lanka. It contains a wide variety of flowers and plants from Sri Lanka as well as other parts of the tropics. We spent a good three hours here strolling among its gardens and along its palm-lined avenues. It was a very pleasant way to spend the rather hot middle of the day that day.

From here it was back to our hotel where we spent a lazy afternoon on our balcony overlooking the swimming pool and the hills of Kandy beneath.

Elephant Stables

Our home in Kandy for two nights was the Elephant Stables, a newer boutique property situated in the hills above the city. When making our booking both the Elephant Stables and the Kandy House were available, and we opted for Elephant Stables because there was the availability of air conditioning in the rooms and we knew we would prefer it.

There are six rooms in all and we stayed at the Lemongrass and the Saffron rooms. The living quarters of the Saffron room was a bit larger but the Lemongrass came with a huge bathroom with two sinks and a spacious walk-in shower. The Lemongrass also came with a balcony while the Saffron room did not. I enjoyed the balcony, especially with a cup of tea after a day's sightseeing.

The service here was terrific and always came with a smile. And the meals were great too. Breakfast was made to order and for dinner we had a choice between two Western-style main courses each night or we could choose a mix of rice with Sri Lankan curries. We cannot comment on the curries as we opted for something different for the two nights but everything we were served were delicious.

Up next, Tea Country...

The various temples you visited outside of Kandy should lovely. We'll put them on our list for next trip.

Loving your report. I really liked Kandy and wish we'd had 2 nights there.... Looking forward to hearing about Tea Country, a highlight for us.....

TP - glad you enjoyed the walk - one of the advantages of live posting is that suggestions can be made as you go along!

I don't remember which Spice garden we went to - but our experience was not dissimilar, though fortunately we managed to avoid being sat down and lectured. and we missed being taken to a gem shop, thank goodness. But our driver did take us to the most tremendous hindu temple which I'm pretty certain was near Matale.

We also enjoyed the gardens in Kandy very much - did you see the roosting fruit bats and the orchid house? we were there for ages.

Keep it coming!

TP - I'm so enjoying this trip report! You write your experience so beautifully, I can really imagine the experience.

Sri Lanka is definitely on my radar for the not too distant future, and this will be an important "go-to" report when I do my planning.

Many thanks again - I love that it's a "live" report!

We went to that Hindu temple too Anne, fascinating.

Kathie, the temples outside Kandy are still off most travelers' radars and hope it remains that way for your visit. We only came across a handful of tourists at each place and one school group at Gadaladeniya.

Sméagol, we had a wonderful and very relaxing time in Tea Country too. Will try to get some of it up either today or tomorrow.

Ann, we passed by a very large Hindu temple in the heart of Matale (may be the same one you and Sméagol are referring to) but could not go in because there was a special ceremony under way and it was off limits.

Paule, you're welcome. Glad you are enjoying my account and gleaning some useful information.

TP - Thank you for 'live' report. I'm very much enjoying it especially since I'm finalising a last minute trip to SL at the end of March. Don't want to pre-empt your Yala report but I'd love to know whether you had any leopard sightings. We've done quite a few safaris in Africa so contemplating sacrificing Yala National Park for more time in Hatton / Tea Trails.

Cynnerella, you're welcome. No, we did not see any leopards at Yala; we were there for three days.

Cynnerella - we asked our guide on our "safari" at Yala how many times he had seen a leopard, which we were expecting to be quite often, given that he was doing two trips a day. We worked out that he saw one on average once every 20 trips.

So the chances of an ordinary tourist seeing one are quite low.

Greetings to my Fodors friends from Doha, Qatar. We just concluded what has been an absolutely amazing journey across Sri Lanka, and glad that I've had the opportunity to share some of our experiences with you. I will post the next installment as soon as I'm able.

Thanks for thinking of us while you travelled, TP.

I'm looking forward to the next exciting instalment.

Once again, thank you for the wonderful "live" trip report -- it's been so much fun to travel with you! Looking forward to the rest.

Paule and Ann, you're welcome.

Didn't want my friends here to wait too long, so here's another installment as I await my flight here at the Galleries Lounge at Heathrow.

Into Tea Country

Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon, is probably most famous around the world for its tea. Tea is the defining legacy of British colonial rule in this country. Back in the 19th century Britain brought tea plants from China to be grown in large volumes in the favorable climate and soil conditions found in parts of central Sri Lanka. Many of the tea plantations established in the 19th century remain to this day. Tea continues to be a way of life here.

From Kandy we continued our journey south into the heart of Sri Lanka's tea country. We spent a total of five nights here, dividing our time between Kandapola and Ella. We stayed at the Tea Factory in Kandapola, just outside of the town of Nuwara Eliya, and at the Secret Ella. Our original itinerary gave us four nights in tea country and our plan was to spend all of it at the Tea Factory. After trading emails with BSL their recommendation was that we split up our time between the Tea Factory and someplace in Ella given our interest in hiking; Ella would give us more varied mountain scenery. As a result we decided to add an extra night to this portion of our trip and stayed 3 nights at the Tea Factory and 2 at the Secret Ella.

We also wanted to include a scenic train ride during our visit to Sri Lanka and understood that here was the place to do it. The ride through tea country is consistently on lists of the world's best train journeys. Again we worked with BSL to help arrange our tickets.

On the morning we left Kandy our driver picked us up at our hotel and drove us to the train station at Perideniya Junction, near the botanic gardens we visited yesterday. From Perideniya we traveled 3.5 hours by train via Hatton to Nanu Oya, the nearest stop for Nuwara Eliya and the Tea Factory. We passed through several small towns and snaked across tea-covered hills that I until now only saw in photos and postcards. All around us, especially during the final hour of our journey, were vistas of tea fields upon tea fields and the surrounding mountains. We also saw a couple of waterfalls, rivers, and dams but tea was the star attraction. We rode mostly with other tourists in a 1st class non-air conditioned car in the last of a four-car older train. The seats were old but the picture windows were larger than I had expected. The train journey was a highlight of the trip; it gave us the opportunity to see some of this rich and varied country from a different perspective.

A quick note for photographers: heading south from Kandy seats 1 through 22 are on the left side of the train and seats 23 and higher are on the right. Sit on the right side for panoranic views of the plantations and surrounding mountains and on the left for close-ups of the tea fields.

Upon arrival at Nanu Oya we were reunited with our driver and our luggage. From here it was approximately another 45 minutes to the Tea Factory.

Three nights meant two full days at the Tea Factory. We had a early start on our first day, setting out from the hotel at 5:30am for a visit to Horton Plains National Park, about 2 hours away. We spent about four hours at the park doing a 9 kilometer circuit on foot to Little World's End, World's End, Bakers Falls, and Chimney Rock Pool. Horton Plains sits on a high plateau covered with grassland and interesting trees that I haven't seen elsewhere (does anyone know what is the name of the tree?). World's End is basically a lookout point that sits at a precipe overlooking valleys, lakes, and tea plantations below; we had clear skies during our visit and was able to get a good view. The walk is mostly on dirt paths and dry riverbeds - not very difficult for an average person.

On our second day we went into the town of Nuwara Eliya for a few hours. Nuwara Eliya is basically a tourist town that's used as a base for visitors to the tea fields and Horton Plains. Popular with Sri Lankans looking for a quick holiday, the town aims to recreate the look and atmosphere of an English countryside village. We didn't do much but strolled around a bit and enjoyed a nice long, leisurely lunch at Magnolia Restaurant inside the colonial-era Grand Hotel. Together we ordered a seafood plate and a Middle Eastern style mixed grill to share and it was absolutely delicious and worth the wait (the service was slow but we were in no particular hurry).

We also visited the Pedro Tea Factory just outside of the town of Nuwara Eliya on the way to our hotel. Pedro is one of the largest tea processing facilities in the area. The downside is that because of the type of tea being processed at this facility it mostly runs at night, which meant that we were unable to see the equipment in operation while we were there.

Tea Factory

Converted from a real tea processing facility built in the 1930s and converted into a high-end hotel a few years ago, the Tea Factory was a very unique place to call home for a few days. We greatly enjoyed the charm of the facilities, the equipment they have around, and the lovely grounds on which the hotel sits. The service here matches the quality of the facilities. Throughout our stay we were only met by friendly staff. And the meals at the hotel's main restaurant were wonderful. We especially enjoyed the curries here, much like we had at the Kandalama.

The hotel operates several activities throughout the day, one of which was a chance to play tea plucker for an hour. We joined in on the activity on the afternoon of our second day here. Led by a local tea plucker that lives in a nearby village supported by the hotel and works on their tea estate, we were dressed in sarongs (men) and saris (women) and taken to the field right in front of the hotel where we were put to work. The plucker / guide gave us tips about how to pick the best leaves. I really enjoyed chatting with her about teas, her life as a tea plucker, and the situation of lives in the village. The hour flew by. Once we were done, we were taken to the mini-tea factory that the hotel operates where the tea we plucked was processed. The tour was much actually better than the one at Pedro. And as an additional touch, the hotel / tea factory processes the tea we plucked and gave it to us in nicely wrapped packets as souvenirs upon our departure.

Tomorrow, Ella...

That sounds delightful, TP - probably better than what we did in the Tea country, but perhaps next time. I'm interested that BSL helped you with the train tickets - they told us that they couldn't. Perhaps demand has changed that.

something we found in NE which it looks as if you missed was the Botanical gardens, complete with rose garden, and an excellent [and cheap] cafe.

Still enjoying your trip! Thanks for this great report.

And thanks from me, too! And still loving this...and just a bit disappointed that it's coming to an end!

It's partly because of your last trip report that we're going to Indonesia next year, and I've pretty much decided, after reading this report, that Sri Lanka will be the one after that!

Ann - BSL booked our train tickets too last year, so looks like things have changed. They were super helpful.

Ann, tea country was a joy and perfect after several days of more intense sightseeing in the Cultural Triangle. Definitely missed the botanic gardens in Nuwara Eliya. Somehow I knew of its existence in the back of my mind but did not make an effort.

Kathie, you're welcome and thanks for commenting.

Paule, you're welcome. Glad I'm giving you some travel ideas. I receive more from all of you than I am able to share, and that's what makes this forum great.

Sméagol, I assume it was as easy for you as for us. We let BSL know that we wanted to do a train ride and where, they advised on how to best incorporate into itinerary, we agreed, and they booked the tickets.

Now it's back to work. Will try to get something up over the weekend.

TP - it may have been safer to miss it - just after we went some visitors to the garden were attacked and badly stung by hornets, but i suppose that could happen anywhere and we had no problems.

our time in the Tea Country was very restful - perhaps too much!