Dilmah do try it

For the first time in over four months we had to shoulder our packs which seemed to have accumulated far too much stuff and caught a train to the famous Greek city of Alexandria. The short taxi ride to our hotel was hilarious though a little hair raising as our ancient driver and his beloved fiat car just tooted and wove through the traffic with very little regard for others all the while either  laughing uncontrollably or coughing up his left lung. We took a long walk along the wonderful promenade and joined scores of locals at the point recreating and watching the evening sunset which potentially is our last on the amazing continent for quite some time. We had a nice fish dinner and a good nights sleep so we were ready to tackle the modern library of Alex which was built in recognition of the ancient one which was destroyed numerous times in the past. Although the Norwegian built building was very clever and grand the collection of books didn't match the prior collection. We had one final shawarma before it was time to board a comfortable bus to Cairo and its huge sprawling airport. There were five of us all flying out at different times of the early morning so we kept each other awake with final stories and reminiscences before we tackled the shambolic nature of the crowds mostly white towel wearing Muslim pilgrims off to Mecca.

 

It was goodbye fabulous Africa and hello to family holiday in Sri Lanka. Although a relatively short travel time on Emirates it was a long day on little sleep. Upon arrival in Colombo we were hastily picked up and whisked away to the far east of the island where Nick’s parents and brother were waiting. After a good nights sleep we were straight into it. The beach we were on was beautiful with cliché golden sand and coconut palms and a nice wee swell. The first family outing was a boat trip to pigeon island where a small degraded coral reef is hanging on. There was still a fairly good variety of fish though and although the wind had stirred up the visibility we still spotted meter long black tip reef sharks lurking in the shallows. We had worked up a hunger so found some spicy samosas washed down with a cold lion beer and a refreshing dip amongst some nice wee breakers.

We piled into our hiace van and Kelum our driver cautiously drove us down the narrow roads crowded with traffic to the old Portuguese fort and Hindu temple. We had to quickly switch from ancient Egypt and come up to speed with Sri Lanka and its Buddhist and Hindu history. After scoffing far too many samosas we braved the muggy heat and explored the ancient temple complex of Polannaruwa. The temples were built in the 11th and 12th century and situated in a massive garden complex complete with elaborate irrigation and pool networks. We saw a couple of massive Buddha and these huge round stupa (see photo it's easier than writing an explanation). The sun was setting as we made our way around the last large temple and were very amused by the numerous monkeys. There were two species catching up on the days gossip and play, the very common and annoying macaque with lots of tiny babies and the very cute long tailed black faced monkeys who were happily swinging on power lines and trying to make each other fall out. It was dark when we took a shortcut down a side road and came face to face with a large elephant strolling along. We had to shout our driver a beer to ease his stress levels as we tucked into an epic feed of chicken and half a dozen different curries. 

The next ancient temple on the agenda was Sigiriya which involved a steep climb up some ladders to a rock outcrop which gave great 360 degree views. Halfway up in a cave there are some rather seductive painting of females which were painted over 800 years ago. There were also some large lion paws carved into the mountain and guarded the entrance up the final climb. We scampered down through some large granite boulders that had been carved with intricate drip lines and water canals. 

We can't get enough of safaris and elephants and luckily enough the rainy season hasn't quite started so the elephants are congregated in large numbers on the dry grassy lake shores. After lunch we piled into our Indian land cruiser (Mahindra) and set off along a bumpy dirt road. Way in the distance we saw a lone male before spotting a couple of small groups. Elephants are always so amusing and after watching these for half an hour or so we drove off in search of some more. Rounding a corner we were blown away to see a herd of nearly 100 complete with a couple of tiny babies which could have been no more than a week old. We spent hours observing them feed and it wasn't until the rain laden skies finally burst that we cautiously made our way through the herd, which only drew a couple of load protesting trumpets from the protective mothers. Only 8% of male Asian elephants have tusks as opposed to all African elephants and they are also noticeably smaller and have longer trunks. One large male with big tusks seemed to be in charge which is also slightly unusual and when the thunder started cracking overhead the elephants quickly bunched tightly together for protection and headed for the shelter of the jungle. We happily got soaked in the back of the ute on the drive home but quickly warmed up with a rum and ginger beer and amazing curry complete with 6 different veggies. 

There is no rest when travelling with the olds and we were up at 6am before breakfast to climb the nearby rock outcrop. It was only a 15minute scramble up to the top past a large resting Buddha. Next up after a short drive was the cave temple of Dambulla. We climbed up the 100 or so steps and entered the complex not knowing what to expect. It was incredible, there were five caves each with many Buddha statues and elaborate paintings. The oldest cave had over 22000 painted Buddha on the ceiling and the colours had lasted so well given they were done sometime just before BC. In each subsequent cave the decorations were newer but less well preserved but it was cool that it had maintained its significance as a place of worship for so long. Enroute to Kandy we stopped off at a spice plantation which wasn't terribly exciting, the swim in the pool at our hotel was much better. 

Kandy is situated within a narrow valley, surrounded by steep hills and was much cooler than the coast. September is the start of the wet season and we got thoroughly soaked as we made our way around the massive botanical gardens. We sort shelter from a shower in the impressive orchid house before finding a nice seat next to the lawn mowers to eat our picnic. We had to fill a little time before the culture show so pretended to be interested at the gem shop where we got a tour and explanation. The wood carving shop next door was more impressive and provided a bit of inspiration on how to build the next coffee table. The culture show involved plenty of drums and a squeaky wee horn plus a few dancers in elaborate costumes. The boys did a few backflips and ate some fire. We had to quickly leave at the end of the show as the daily puja (prayer ritual) was about to begin at the temple of the tooth. The foreign entrance fee was pretty steep and the temple which allegedly holds one of the great Buddhas tooth was crowed with people worshiping and brining offerings. For only an hour the doors are open on the small shrine deep inside the temple and the huge gold bell shaped case housing the tooth is all that's visible. There was much pushing and shoving as dedicated people tried to catch a glimpse through the open door, luckily our height advantage gave us a fleeting glimpse.

Leaving behind Kandy we headed up into the misty hill country. Along the way we stopped off for a quick and easy rafting trip which provided plenty of entertainment as we tried to push each other out while bobbing down the class three rapids and on one rapid we all ended up on top of each other in the middle of the raft. We swam down the final rapid and then played king of the raft, with people trying to clamber aboard quickly being pushed back in, our poor guide didn't know what to think of us crazy kiwi family. We stayed the night at the foot of Adams peak in a hotel that served up a great curry buffet. The other guests opted to hike up the mountain for sunrise while we took the leisurely 7am departure. We passed many sour looking faces as we climbed as most people found it pretty tough climbing the 5000 odd stairs and disappointed that the sunrise was cloudy. We on the other hand kept morale high and had the top to ourselves with great views out over the forested hills below. The steep stairs and hot sun kept us sweating all the way down but a cold shower soon sorted us out. We had a couple of hours drive to Naurawa Eliya which is a cool wee town set amongst tea plantations and full of old colonial style buildings. The monsoon rain was lingering around so the best wet weather option was to head over the the huge old Grand Hotel for high tea. The selection of cakes and savories was dam fine and kept the boys hunger at bay while the Dilma warmed everyone on such a grey afternoon. Tom had bought a bottle of classy Porto port for Nick’s 30th which the stories flowed well after dinner had been finished.

We streatched out the tight muscles with a stroll around the town and purchased some avacados and bread for a picnic lunch before boarding the train to Ella. Luckily we had booked our seats as the rest of the train compartments were chocker with people including more tourists than we had seen in the last four months. The scenery out the train windows was awesome with steep sided tea plantations giving way to shear drops and tropical forest. The rain didn't really dampen the spirits too much and at every tunnel the locals made tooting noises as they hung out the doors and windows. 

Ella is situated way up in the steep hills and our accomodation had a great view looking down the valley and out across the flat plain to the coast way in the distance. The chap who put together our itinerary was also there with a couple of other guests so we met up for a drink which turned into us polishing off two bottles of the local coconut arrack, a fairly strong liquor similar to whisky. Little Adams Peak was visible from our accomodation too so we set off to climb that the next morning. It was a pleasant stroll through the town and tea plantations with only a short steep climb at the end. We had great views but could see the clouds building so continued on to the 9 arch bridge. We got there just in time to see one of the old slow passenger trains chugging over the bridge and the driver gave us a loud friendly blow of his horn. We took the scenic 4km long walk along the railroad track for our return and had a pretty good feed at the not so traditional chill restaurant. We were amazed by the number of tourists in this small town with every shop either a guesthouse or place to eat. We got thoroughly wet on the way home as the clouds burst and swallowed up our view so Lucy and Nick gave the boys a hiding at 500. 

It was a beautiful morning as we drunk fruit juice and ate omelettes for breakfast before heading off to Ella rock. It was a nice walk through the town before we hit the narrow paths amongst the village and vegetable terraces where we got a bit lost and the rains came. It was warm enough and the clouds stayed high enough for us to get a view out though mist kept intermittently rolling in. We were pretty well dry again by the time we made it back to town and after lunch headed to a green tea factory to learn how it's done. We donned hair nets and watched as they unloaded bags of fresh tea into a kiln to partially dry it before it goes into a mixer to mash it up a bit. The final drying takes 16 hours then it is ready to be sorted by a mechanical sifter. Normally they get 5 different sizes which are used for different purposes, the smallest is the worst quality and made into tea bags but this only happens after the tea has been sold to a blender/marketer. Black tea on the other hand comes from the same plant but the picked leaves have just been left to oxidise for 4 days first. 

It was time to pack our bags again and head for the beach where we hoped the rains wouldn't reach. The drive down to the flat plains was nice with lots of rice paddys surrounded by coconut palms and grazing water buffalo everywhere. The temperature at Aragum bay was much warmer and stickyer so we quickly ditched our bags and went for a dip. Aragum bay is a funny cultural mix as the population is mainly conservative Muslims and the surf reputation means there are plenty of foreign beach bums chilling. The point seemed to have the best waves so after a couple of wicked pumpkin rottis we hired some boards and got wet. It was the first time we had surfed since Central America 2 years ago so we were a bit nervious especially as there were a few shallow rocks to avoid. We got a couple of waves in before sundown and had worked up an appetite which was satisfied by the plentiful fresh seafood. 

Tom’s resident friend was running a surf camp so we managed to convince our driver to squish our boards in the van and head down to whisky point surf break which is about 15km away. When we arrived there were far too many people all trying to catch a wave and if that wasn't hard enough when you got a wave you had to dodge all the learners who would just drop in on you. Luckily the water was warm and sun hot so we could outlast them and eventually got some really good waves. The pumpkin rottis were so good and so cheap that we couldn't go past them for lunch again. The afternoon rains held off to as we found the quieter foreign area for swimming and even a place that sold cold beers which were also a bit hard to come by in the Muslim area. We ate at the slightly grungy looking hostel because it had tap beer and the Thai food they served was actually awesome. Nick and Tom decided that since it was a Saturday night they would check out the beach party which took a long time to fill up but did eventually get going around mid night though the boys opted out soon after so they would be up for another day of surfing.

The oldies decided to have a morning at the beach while the youngens headed off in a different direction to Panama surf break. Although the waves were smaller than yesterday there was hardly another surfer in sight and thankfully no surf school. It took us a while to work out where to sit as there were a couple of rocks right in the middle of the wave but once we had that sorted it was happy days. Lucy and Tom were catching everything while Nick couldn't seem to be in the right place when the eventual sets came through. The wave of the day saw Nick and Lucy surf together and high five each other before parting around a horrified looking chick who was in their way before riding right to the beach. Once our arms felt like lead we stopped briefly at a lagoon which was full of crocodiles and saw plenty of different bird species which kept the twitchers happy. 

Sadly it was time to leave Aragum bay and its surf and hit the road south. The drive times in Sri Lanka are so slow as there are always buses, tuk tuks, scooters and tractors plus so many dogs clogging the narrow roads and we stop so often for photos. We stopped a couple of times to take pictures of wollowing buffalo who often are completely submerged and then had to stop a few more times when we saw lone elephants on the road. One big guy was right in front of the caution elephant sign while another had been given a loaf of bread by a passing local and was happily eating it in the middle of the road. Our accomodation for the night was a beach front cabana, coconut trees and a noisy heavy beach break which meant no swimming. To cool off we had to walk down the beach and clamber around a rocky headland where we found a tiny wee fishing harbour and a more sheltered part for swimming. Everywhere the coastline has been stunning with beautiful beaches though some of them have been very rough, it quietens down in Nov through to April. 

Our final three nights as a family was at a so called Java Beach Resort. This was a very quiet place which seems to be forever being built. It had a rather unique feel and the effort that had been made to allow the coconut trees to continue to grow through the four story building was impressive though not at all successful as it meant the place leaked like a sieve when we had a good tropical rainstorm. There wasn’t much around in the way of eateries so we headed a couple of km down the road to Mirisi where we found an ice cream and fish curry roll. No one was particularly hungry as we had had the traditional celebration breakfast of coconut rice and chilli and fresh fruit which was delicious. Mirisi was much more built up than some of the other beaches and had a really nice laid back beach vibe. 

Actually everywhere we have been with maybe the exception of Aragum Bay has had fabulous locals who are all very honest, laid back, keen to help and all are busy working in some shape or another. 

We had a lazy morning walk along the beach before heading further south for lunch at Unawatuna and had just sat down when the heavens opened, luckily we found a table with good shelter and ate happily as it poured around us. Unfortunately the rain didn’t ease at all and our afternoon jolly to Galle was a very soggy affair. Thankfully our trusty driver had a large umbrella for each of us and we had great fun stomping in puddles and trying not to have our umbrellas turn inside out while we navigated the ancient fort and allies in this Unesco city. It got a bit wet for mother dear so we found her a nice coffee shop while the boys tucked into a banana pancake and ice cream. The rain didn’t let up so there was going to be no nice sunset so we piled into the van and headed back for an arrack and ginger beer.

And so in what seemed like no time at all it was our final day together. We walked along to Waligama beach and basically just swam, read our books and hung out. The beach tennis bats that Nick has carried with him all around the world also finally got some use and the mango and banana lassies kept us hydrated. Our last meal was at the ocean moon restaurant which had great whole fish and cheap beer and the most entertaining waves ever. The huge beach break was causing waves to refract in all sorts or weird directions and thus created fountains of water to shoot in the air and race along as if being chased by a shark. It was also time to say goodbye to our driver Kelum who was so good. He got us where we needed to be safely (not easy on some of the narrow roads with speeding buses) and happily waited for us while we went surfing or sat on the beach. If anyone is ever coming to Sri Lanka and needs a driver I can highly recommend this company! http://www.srilankatailoredtours.co.uk/page32.html

Kelum our awesome driver

We waved goodbye to mum and dad as they set off for southern India. We chatted to a sweet Aussie couple travelling with a little tot and then had some fun trying to flag down one of the speeding local buses to Unawatuna where we had a couple of nights. It was an exciting though slightly daunting feeling saying “see you in a couple of months” at Xmas after being missing in action for so long. Us kids had two nights in Unawatuna where we just blobed out on the beach for the afternoon. We burnt our mouths on some incredibly hot samosas though thankfully found a much tastier veggie curry buffet for dinner which cost a grand total of $3.50 each. 

After a lazy morning and a tasty backpacker style breakfast (eaten in our room out of Tupperware) of buffalo curd and ate some value pack museili we went for a stroll to jungle beach. Being a Saturday there were plenty of locals on the beach enjoying picnics and we found a spot for a swim but the piles of rubbish strewn everywhere drove us back to the main tourist beach for a swim and tomato and avacado sandwich. The internet has been of very good quality in Sri Lanka which made planning for India much easier and keeping an eye on the All Blacks score. We couldn’t go past the curry buffet so we headed back there for dinner and an evening of playing 500. Nick had terrible cards and the only hand where he would have easily won all ten tricks Tom called open masear and won the game by losing everything! 

It was one last quick swim with Tom before we jumped on a bus and headed north while Tom turned around and retraced our path back for some more surfing in Aragum Bay. The bus ride in the elaborately decorated bus (it had loud stereo, fancy lace curtains, flashing lights, blue trim and elaborate surfing images over the roof) was crammed and stuffy but only lasted 40min. We made it to our room just as the rains poured down though it was over in a jiffy. We had a nice long walk along the beach which was nearly deserted and then a swim at the nice main beach which was backed by a massive hotel full of Russian guests. They are such an interesting people with stunning petite girls and huge fat men and all have horrible tacky tattoos, it was quite the spectacle. 

The place we stayed at was run by a very sweet local old local couple who were so tiny. They were very hospitable despite a severe language barrier. A highlight of Hikkaduwa was hand feeding some huge turtles seaweed. These guys appeared to just come and go freely from this choppy reef and at one stage there was four cruising around in the knee deep water. The beach was nice though some of the development along it was very run down and far too close to the beach which resulted in the beach all but being eroded away. We gorged ourselves on buffalo curd and delicious rottis and swanned and sunned away the afternoon. 

Our final night in Sri Lanka was in Negombo which is just outside the booming skyscrapers of Colombo and right beside the airport. We took a long slow train there and it wasn’t nearly as crowded as expected. It was great to hang out the windows and rattled along the scenic coast line. Sri Lanka has been a great place for a family holiday, the people are all very friendly but not pushy and the laid back atmosphere is really nice. The mixture of stunning beaches, surf, ancient cultural sites and fabulous wildlife means there is always plenty to see and do. We also found out that lying on beaches for days on end is no longer as entertaining for us as it once was and we need to be a bit more active. I think we will be in for a bit of a shock when we land in Delhi and have to deal with the throngs of people, but like any of these things you just have to get on with it and take it all in your stride, be positive and learn from the new experiences.