17/09/2018 - 24/09/2018
‘Hello Madam, tuk tuk?’…..The first words that greeted us going through the arrivals hall of Colombo’s airport and the same phrase that would be repeated to us again and again throughout our time in Colombo and indeed the whole of Sri Lanka. A friendly phase by an even friendlier bunch but to be honest an extremely grating one at that after you've said a firm ‘no thank you’ to the 10 tuk tuk drivers lined up in a row along the street wetting their lips at the thought of a few extra bucks from tourists. For those who don’t know what a tuk tuk is….eh what, have you even lived? But let me explain anyways for those that might be a bit unfamiliar to the term. It’s the epitome of asian transport , a 3 wheeled rickshaw with a canvas roof and small cabin for the driver and two passengers it can only hold. From our experience, in Sri Lanka anyways, it is not only passengers they seem to carry here but they also seem to be used as bread vans and ice-cream trucks, amusingly for us playing, the Fur Elise Beethoven track as they hurtle down the street!
We were just a little bit sad to leave Iran, in fact we were really sad to leave Iran but there was so much more of the world we had explore so not to worry as we were to leave one amazing country for another and that country would be the Buddist state of Sri Lanka.
Our first port of call was the bustling commercial hub of Colombo. A hectic, gritty, often smelly city yet one full of it’s own certain charm , character with the streets alive with an array of intertwining sounds and smells and of course the site of hundreds of tuk tuk’s racing through the traffic beeping their annoying screeching horns as they go, a sight which is quite the novelty for us western backpackers. Many people say to leave the city as soon as you get there but we decided to stay a night and spend some time wandering the streets and soaking up some of that gritty charm. Our first stop after haggling hard (which is what you seriously got to do here!) and getting whizzed around in a slightly bandy tuk tuk was the street markets of Pettah Galle Face where all things of everything can be found. For me my favourite was walking through the food markets, despite its lingering funky smells, I was enthralled by the overflowing stands, high-piled with a huge array of fruit, vegetables and deliciously fragrent spices, many of which I had never seen or knew existed adding yet another layer of curiosity to my already wandering eyes. Quite intriguing for me was the sight of bananas clumped together on their leafy sheath, chopped down fresh that day from the tree rather than separated out on the shelves of Tesco. Even more so they were considerably smaller in size than the ones we get back on those shelves in Tesco and strangely way cuter, if you can even use that word to describe fruit, but hey, I just did.... miniature bananas are cute!
Among the crowded streets we managed to find various places of worship, quite symbolic of Sri Lanka’s multi-cultural heritage like the Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque with its vibrant coloured red and white brick work. It was a nice building to look at from the outside but not much to offer from the inside us being non-muslims and the fact we were probably spoiled by the exquisite mosques in Iran but having said that it was a nice architectural display right in the midst of the busy shopping bazaar. We also paid a visit the Hindu temple of Sri Kailawasanathan Swami Devasthanam Kovil (Nope, I can’t pronounce it either!) beautifully encrusted with Hindu symbols and statues up and along the temple walls. It also boasts a beautifully coloured and ornate roof which I wasn’t really supposed to take pictures of but kind of did anyways!
On our way back to our hostel as night was beginning to fall we took a quick detour to independence square, a place of national importance for Sri Lankan people as it marked their freedom from British rule. Just like the street markets of Pettah Galle Face, it was full of all kinds of people . Walkers, runners, families and most notably a large group of people congregated beside the square in protest. As we awkwardly walked through the crowd wondering what they were in protest about I mustered up the courage to ask a young guy beside me who I was hopeful would speak some English and, hey presto, he did as he explained to us it was to do with a Sri Lankan native living in Australia who was recently arrested on conspiracy of terrorism, something the Sri Lankan people felt was unjustified due to lack of evidence. I nodded in curiosity and then we quickly made our way out of there, clearly the nosey tourists and outsiders of the large group.
Our one night in Colombo was fleeting, awash with overly eager tuk tuk drivers and yes it’s busy, noisy, endlessly hectic but surprisingly I actually found myself kind of liking it. The streets seem to boast their own certain charm and unique character, full of daily shoppers browsing the endless number of stalls looking for a bargain and purchasing their dinner ingredients for that evening and the seemingly 100’s of vendors pining for some business. The streets are certainly alive, a pulsating beating heart at every corner and in every nook and cranny but for now it was time for us to leave that hustle and bustle behind, and spend the next 3 hours on a bus headed for Dambulla. Dambulla is a city situated in the central Province of Sri Lanka and where we would get up nice and early like crazy people (4am to be precise!) to hike up Pidurangala Rock to watch the sunrise and to get a birds eye view of Sigiriya Rock. As we hurtled out of the crowded streets of Colombo I was immediately struck by the jungle covered plains strewn with exotic looking plants and trees where mangoes, coconuts and cinnamon grow freely, exactly the image of Sri Lanka I was hoping for.
One comes to Sri Lanka for the wildlife, beaches and endless tea plantations so before our early morning hike we decided to take a last minute trip to Pophams Arboretum, 7.5 acres of thorny scrub jungle to hopefully get the opportunity to see some slender Loris, a small nocturnal primate and a rarity to spot in the wild in Sri Lanka, even at night time when they come out from beneath the foliage to scavenge for food. Each of us wearing a ridiculous looking headlamp, our guide lead us through the trees for about 1hour and 30minutes and in that time we got to see 3 fleeting glimpses of Lori hiding high in the branches above. How our guide spotted them in the darkness of the night I have no idea but it was quite the impressive talent! They were much smaller than I had expected which made my ‘awwwww’ sound as I spotted them even more annoying girly and although our site of them was short, of which Paul was a little disappointed, it gave me great pleasure in knowing that these lovely little creatures have the space and freedom to roam high in the tree canopy of the park relatively unperturbed except for the flashes of our headlights as we tried to spot them.
The next morning we dragged ourselves out of bed to do our sun rise hike at Pidurangala. We opted for this hike instead of the more famous one at Sigiriya as the entry fee was much cheaper and being travelers on a budget this was of course our main swaying point but it also gave us an opportunity to see Sigirya Rock in all its glory rather than standing on said rock. The hike itself was dark, being 4.30am in the morning with my headlamps battery giving up half way but it was a relatively easy walk up some cobbled steps until we got near the top boulders which we physically had to climb on our hands and knees to get over in order to reach the top. As the sun rose far in the distance illuminating Sigiriya Rock, it was presented to us, along with the many stray dogs that had gathered pining for some breakfast grub, as a massive lone bolder among the jungle foliage below. It was quite the stunning sight despite the lingering cloud cover and what added even more so to the jungle atmosphere was the faint sounds of monkeys howling to each other, echoing throughout the plains below.
As we were done and dusted with our early morning venture, instead of going back to bed which we probably usually would have done we opted instead to not be so lazy this time and take a day trip to a few of the ancient sites. I must mention that the night before Paul went down to the streets of Dambulla to do some haggling with the tuk tuk drivers, haggling being something he is becoming quite the expert at after watching endless youtube videos on the subject and how not to be ripped off as a tourist. He got a good deal with a nice, somewhat English speaking tuk tuk driver to drive us around for the day to some of the sites. Our first stop was to Ritigala, an ancient Buddist monastery and mountain in SrI Lanka. I must admit, the monastery ruins although pretty cool, off the beaten track and shaded by the huge forest trees weren't half as exciting as the wild monkeys we saw jumping through the trees full of endless animation and a sight I could honestly watch for days. To be honest we spent more time with our heads tilted upwards watching the monkeys scurrying from tree to tree than taking in the sites of the monastery but I’m not one bit sorry as the monkeys were just adorable and again a joy to see in the wild where they belong. What would have been the icing on the cake for me would have been spotting an elephant along the road as we exited the ruins but unfortunately that wasn’t to be, but this was Sri Lanka where elephants roam freely so there was still time!
Our final stop of the day was to the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, once a thriving commercial and religious centre of Sri Lanka but now an ancient city full of bricks and big buddhas. We spent a few hours roaming the archaeological park, a delight to explore even in the midday heat with hundreds of tombs and temples, statues and stupas. By the end though we were jaded and I'm pretty sure out tuk tuk driver was too. Unbelievably for us though, on the way back to our hotel and with our eyes drifting in and out of sleep with the bumping motion of the tuk tuk, we were starkly woken up by the site of a heard of elephants sauntering through the trees at the side of the road. It was just a glimpse but in that quick few seconds I felt like my trip in Sri Lanka had been made. I had the opportunity to see elephants completely in the wild and it was just wonderful. Paul said that I didn’t need to pay to do a safari now as I had seen monkeys and elephants in the wild...he was joking right? Animals is my thing!
As mentioned above, one of the reasons people come to Sri Lanka is for the beaches and so for the next three days we would do just that in the town of Trimcomlee at the beach of Uppuveli. We could have done a few day trips like rent mopeds and drive to some of the sites or go snorkeling but instead we spent our time lounging around on the exact same sun bed in the exact same spot on the beach for three days and we didn't feel an ounce of guilt, just what we needed! The water was clear and warm, albeit a bit choppy and the sand was soft. Even the local cows came daily for a bask under the sun which really made us giggle.
Spending time in Sri Lanka, among nature and seeing animals in the wild where they really do belong has made me very aware of how fragile our planet really is and how precious our wildlife is. We could have taken a snorkeling trip to some islands such as Pigeon island to try and spot some turtles but we had read reviews that a lot of the coral has now been damaged by tourists which upon reading really made me feel sad and quite frankly, really angry. We have decided from now on to make a conscious effort to not take part in any excursions that are currently ruining the wildlife and environment and to do our research on organisations that claim they are for conservation but in reality are for exploitation and profit.
But hey, enough of the self gloating, its time for us to hear the phrase 'Hello Madam, tuk tuk??' a few more times as we move inland towards the real jungle district of Sri Lanka.
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