The Island Explorer

I still couldn't get over my amazing experience in Sigirya the day before that I looked forward to the rest of our Sri Lankan tour for the next 3 days. We checked out at the Heritage Kandalama to move on to the tea lands of Hatton in the central hills of Sri Lanka.

After that mind blowing experience in Sigiriya, only one thing was on our mind: FOOD. We managed to pass by a resort that looked posh and interesting. So, we inquired at their gates and were allowed entry. The resort was called Vil Uyana.

It was THE experience of Sri Lanka, to think that I didn't know anything about it. It would rival any Cambodian temple, all to greater heights literally. I will be senselessly raving about this part of my trip to Sri Lanka, since up to this writing, I cannot get over the experience I had in Sigiriya.

We begin our escapade across Sri Lanka, a speed tour more accurately as we only had 3 days to cover the places that we wish to go to. From Colombo, we would travel 4 to 5 hours all the way to Dambulla, where the Sigiriya Rock is located. I was surprised at the length of travel, since the roads were bad and everyone drove recklessly. I was in fact challenged to drive in Sri Lanka, but I figured it would be safer to stay at the passenger seat. We made it to Dambulla after 4 gruelling hours, for a distance that is only 120 km. That was pretty slow.  We passed through a landscape that seemingly looked like South Africa. We drove up dust roads with signs of animal warnings like monkeys and elephants. I was in Sri Lanka indeed, and the scenery has gotten me really excited. And when we arrived at our resort, the Kandalama Heritance, I was already brimming an irresistible smile.  Perched on the top of the hill, the award winning Kandalama Heritance is a classic destination

I never thought I would be setting foot in Sri Lanka soon. I had close friends, Paulo and Tala, living there, but when they told me they were already leaving Colombo to move to Singapore, I found myself struggling to plan a trip. So as soon as my calendar got freed up, I booked my plane tickets to Colombo. I had no expectations of Sri Lanka. I was aware that Lonely Planet called it one of the destinations of the year. I hear a lot of travel enthusiasts giving high praises to this small teardrop shaped island below the Indian subcontinent. So when I woke up to a breezy morning on the apartment of Paulo and Tala in Colombo, all I thought about was where the hell I was.  Nevertheless, I was overly excited to explore the Colombo and the rest of Sri Lanka in just 5 days. We wasted no time, so the day after I arrived, we began our whirlwind journey. More on that of course in my next posts.  We'll be focusing the story now in Colombo, the laid back coastal capit