Even before we had reached the Denver airport, we suspected that we might run into some trouble with our flights... We had booked a separate ticket to Seattle, with our long haul flights booked from there and back through Turkish Airlines via Istanbul . Unfortunately, our flight from Denver was delayed quite a bit. At first, leaving us with a 40 min connection, but we feared much less. We tried all of the ideas we could come up with, including flying to Seattle on any different airline, and changing our tickets with Turkish Airlines, but none of them would work out. We were left with boarding our flight to Seattle, which was slow to take off and by the time we landed, we had only 10 minutes before our flight was to take off. Feeling very doubtful, we ran to our gate, only to see our plane there and the gate agents telling us we could not board as they were already departing.

Back to our worst case scenario, we called and cancelled our roundtrip flights, asking for a refund. We had to take a partial loss but it was our only option. Thinking we were going to be stuck in Seattle for the night, as it was already 9pm, we left security and then sat down to see if we could find a new option. Luckily, we were able to find new flights that were to leave just after midnight flying on Starlux Airline from Seattle to Taiwan and on to Singapore. From Singapore, we found another round trip on Sri Lankan Airlines and Singapore Airlines on the way back, getting us to Colombo about 15 hours later than planned.

We started with a simple breakfast at our hotel - fruit, toast and eggs - and our driver picked us up around 9am. We made the mistake of unknowingly drinking tap water with our breakfast and crossed our fingers that we would be ok. (luckily, we were!). We drove to the Dambulla cave temples complex and it started to become clear that this may be our driver's first time taking people around. As one of the major sights to see in Sri Lanka, he had no idea where to enter or park, or much about it at all. After enjoying the cave temples, we headed for Sigiriya, stopping for lunch at Kenoli Restaurant. We had our first Sri Lankan chicken curry, which was delicious. We had to ward off several attempts by our driver to drop us at touristy fake "villages" that included things like riding in an ox cart around the field and having a buffet lunch with the other tourists. We said no thank you, and once we drove by the area, we saw that there were several of these fake villages set up near Sigiriya.

Since our lunch was fairly late by the time we made it to Sigiriya, we had just enough time to find our hotel, check in, rest for about 30 minutes and get ready for the hike up to the top of Piduangala rock. Hiking up the rock for sunset did not disappoint and will probably be one of the highlights of our trip. Back at our hotel, the Roo Mansala Boutique Hotel, we enjoyed a freshly prepared dinner of fried shrimp appetizer, shredded passion fruit leaves salad, and lake fish with coconut sauce, which was all delicious! The hotel asks for your order in advance of dinner so they can get only the freshest ingredients!

Dambulla Cave Temples

Also known as the Golden Temple of Dambulla, it is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and one of the oldest and best preserved cave sights in Sri Lanka. To enter, you can walk up one of two ways, each taking you up a long set of stairs to get to the rock area with natural caves. The walk up takes you up sets of stone steps and is a little less than a mile round trip and 400-500 ft elevation gain. Inside the caves, you will find many Buddha statues and intricate paintings. We were impressed with how well the painting was preserved, covering the ceilings and walls. There are large Buddhas laying down as well as many other Buddha statues lining the caves. Many locals were bringing fresh flowers as offerings. There are 5 caves to visit and you must make sure to cover your legs and shoulders. The entrance fee was 3,000 LKR, about $10 USD. You can rent coverups in case you forgot to dress in pants and longer shirt, for only 100 LKR per person.

Piduangala Rock

The hike up Pidurangala Rock leads you to one of the most rewarding views in central in Sri Lanka. Located just across from the famous Sigiriya Rock Fortress, the trail winds through a temple at the base and gradually climbs through forest and boulder fields. Near the top, you have to do a bit of scrambling over larger rocks before reaching a wide, open summit with breathtaking panoramic views of Sigiriya Rock, also known Lion's Rock and the surrounding jungle for miles and miles on each side. We chose to do this hike in the late afternoon, starting around 4:30pm to enjoy cooler temps and the sunset light. The trail ends up being about a mile round trip and ~400 ft elevation gain.

The cost is 1,000 LKR, about $3 US, which is well worth it. Even though we were definitely not alone for this sunset hike (many other tourists had the same idea!), the top of the rock is so large that you are able to spread out and each enjoy a piece of it during sunset. We were able to fly the drone and get some pretty fantastic views of Sigiriya Rock in the setting sun. You pass through a small temple at the bottom, but they will lend you coverups to wear for the 2 minutes and you can leave them after exiting the temple property. The hike down is assisted by some lightposts, but it's recommended to bring a flashlight or headlamp for personal use. Definitely don't skip this while in Sri Lanka, and we highly recommend sunset over sunrise.

Sigiriya Rock Fortress, or Lion's Rock

Sigiriya Rock Fortress is one of the most famous historic sites in Sri Lanka, rising dramatically ~600 feet above the surrounding area. It was built in the 5th century by King Kashyapa I, who created a royal palace and fortress on top of the rock to protect himself from rivals after seizing the throne. The complex once included elaborate gardens, water features, frescoes, and the famous Lion's Gate entrance that gave the site its nickname, the “Lion Rock.” At the top, you can explore multiple levels of what was once the king's fortress. Apparently they have an issue with agressive bees / wasps, as we saw many signs for them along the way. We heard that they may come out later in the afternoon and not as much in the morning. Signs will advise you to stay silent to not stir up the wasps!

The entrance fee is much more than other nearby attractions, at about $35 USD per person. Once inside, you walk through the outer gardens, then the boulder fields, and finally begin the climb. You will climb a series of staircases to the summit, passing ancient paintings and terraces along the way before reaching sweeping views of the surrounding landscape. Most people visit early in the morning or late afternoon to avoid the heat and crowds, some even starting before sunrise. We opted to have breakfast at our hotel and then started the climb around 9am. It was already very hot, but we could imagine it would be worse later in the day. There are a few places to take a break under some trees before making the final climb to the top. Those who are wary of metal staircases and heights, may have some challenges to overcome on this one, as many of the stairs were open back and on the edge of the rock.

National Spice Garden

There are many so-called Spice Gardens en route from Sigiriya to Kandy, but we can highly recommend going to the National Spice Garden. Run by the Sri Lankan government, this place is legit. Drivers will attempt to take you to one of the other roadside "spice gardens" because they receive a commission for taking you there. Many of the reviews that we read about those places were very poor, saying they are traps and had barely any plants to see, pushing you toward the gift shop. After reading those, and knowing that our driver planned to take us to one, we researched the National Spice Garden which had all positive reviews.

They gave us a free personal tour, as we were the only ones there at the time. Our tour guide knew every detail of the plants that they are growing there, and they are doing a lot of careful planning and research to make the spices successful in Sri Lanka. Some of the highlights were the black pepper vines, finding out that vanilla beans actually grow from a special kind of orchid, learning about Sri Lankan cinnamon and what makes it superior, and learning about clove trees and how they are harvested. They have a gift shop where you can purchase all of these and more, for extremely cheap prices! We ended up happily purchasing a variety to bring home.

Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic)

We visited the Sri Dalada Maligawa, also known as the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, in the evening after our arrival in Kandy. We recommend this time to come, as they are often performing a ritual with drums and horns, making the temple come alive. There were quite a few devotees there in the evening, and they were waiting in line to pray in front of where the tooth relic is kept. The tooth is said to be a canine from the Gautama Buddha, dating back to 543 BC when it was taken from his funeral pyre. From there it was kept in India for many years before being moved to Sri Lanka. The tooth is said to protect from droughts and disasters and is a highly sacred item in Buddhist culture.

Entrance to the temple was 2,000 LKR for foreigners, and you must cover your shoulders and knees. We noticed a majority of people here wearing all white, which we were not aware of at the time but apparently it is a respected thing to do in Sri Lanka when visiting a Buddhist temple, representing peace, humility and purity. When we entered, we watched the men with drums and horns before making our way around the inside of the temple, finally coming upon where we think the tooth relic was stored behind doors. You can not see the tooth, as it is stored within 7 golden boxes, forming the shape of a stupa. They will bring out the golden stupa during religious holidays.

Back in the car, we had a long day ahead of us. We had originally planned to take a long and scenic train ride from Kandy to Ella, but due to the recent typhoons, many of the portions of train are not operational. In the end, we think this turned out the be a blessing, as 7 hours on the train would definitely have been a long journey, especially in the heat. The drive was also very long, at 4-5 hours, but we felt that we saw a lot more of the country driving versus being on the train. We planned a few stops along the way, first at a waterfall and then at one of the many tea plantations along the way. Driving took us up much higher in elevation and the road was extremely curvy all the way up and down for many, many hours. But all around were the tea plantations, small villages, and cooler / different climate than we had seen before. We noticed that a lot of vegetables were being farmed up there, and even some fresh strawberries!

We finally made it to our hotel in Ella, the Ella Hide View hotel, where we were greeted with a fresh juice and could enjoy the view of the hills below. Our hotel was situated above the crowded town, and we were actually semi cold for the first time on the journey! We chose one of their newly constructed rooms, and we would learn that many places in Ella are busy building new rooms and hotels to meet the high demand. We took a tuk tuk to town for dinner and had an excellent meal at The Clay Pot restaurant before spending a little time walking around the town. The town was filled with live music, countless restaurants and places to stay, tourist shops, and was definitely a major backpacker destination.

Ramboda Waterfall

The Ramboda Waterfall is a must see stop when making the long drive from Kandy to Ella. The access to the waterfall is through the nearby hotel of the same name, and you pay the hotel a small fee (less than a dollar) to walk through the hotel and then down the path to the waterfall. From there you will be treated with views of the multi-tired waterfall. We took our time taking some pictures and flying the drone, and also admiring the paintings of a man who was there creating and selling his artwork. We bought one to bring home and add to our collection for only $6. The hotel has a restaurant where you can eat or just order drinks while admiring the view of the falls.

Bluefield Tea Gardens

Shortly after leaving the waterfall, you will enter Sri Lankan tea country! The road twists and turns for many hours from here on out. Along the way are many very large tea plantations to choose from. We decided to stop at the Bluefield Tea Gardens and were not disappointed. At Bluefield, we were greeted immediately upon our arrival and set off on a personal tour. On the tour, you could wear the local dress of the tea pickers including a basket for the leaves as a backpack. It sounded cheesy at first, but was kind of fun to get to experience learning how to pick the leaves and try to get them into the basket on your back. We had the opportunity to walk through the fields and take some pictures and then went into the factory where we saw the entire process of making the leaves into tea. Our guide was excellent and very imformative. After the tour, you can taste the tea and buy some to take home from their gift shop.

Sri Lanka is known as home to some of the most premium tea in the world. The British brought the tea industry here during their colonization and established many of the tea plantations that are still at work today. The tea is all hand picked, harvesting up to 4 times a month, and many tea pickers working in the fields each day. We were told that many of the tea pickers have come to Sri Lanka from southern India. Overall, their working conditions seemed to be ok, with a beautiful setting to live in the hill country, and much cooler temperatures than lower elevations.

Today we had the day to spend in Ella and surrounding area. Since we didn't take the train yesterday, we decided to do a short trip on the section of train that was still running, basically up to the next town. Instead of taking the train back, we had found a hike where you can walk back through the tea fields and over the famous 9 arch bridge and then back to Ella. We spent most of our day doing these two things and did some shopping in town before heading back to the hotel. Later, we took a tuk tuk back down the hill for a filling and delicious dinner at Cafe C, where we had Sri Lankan curry and rice and the popular dish kottu, which is chopped up roti bread mixed with chicken, vegetables and spices. Both of our dinners in Ella were amazing and it seems to be a hot spot for freshly well cooked meals, as all of the restaurants have very high ratings.

Train from Ella to Demodara

This is a very touristy route and it turned out that everyone in the town seemed to show up for this train ride. The popular thing to do is to hang out your window or the train doors that are open and take pictures of the train, the scenery and yourself while riding. Because of this, people were pushing and shoving to get on the train for the premier spots. It was pretty annoying and we started to question why we were doing this. We opted to get on the train near the end of the crowd, securing a spot standing by the door, but it turned out to be the lesser scenic side. Either way, the train only lasted about 20 minutes until the next station. And while we did go over the 9 arch bridge, you couldn't really SEE the bridge from the train. Once off, we were happy that we had decided to hike back while all the others were meeting their drivers to go back to town.

Hiking from Demodara to Ella

No one else from our train seemed to be doing this, but there is a trail that you can hike back from Demodara to Ella. We were asked by countless tuk tuk's if we needed a ride, but kept explaining that we are walking, we like to hike! Once off the road, the trail takes you up through the tea plantations. It was a bit hot, but we had great views along the way. We encountered several groups of hikers that were going in the opposite direction, as this is actually a string of trails that you can take. Perhaps more people hike from Ella and then take the train back. We were able to fly the drone over the fields, pass by some local farms and houses, and then the trail takes you right to the 9 arch bridge viewpoint.

We decided to wait there, resting in the shade, to see the train pass over the bridge. We weren't 100% sure of the schedule, and knew the trains didn't necessarily run on time. There were a lot of people there driven by tuk tuks to take picutres and wait for the train. Finally, the train came by, just as it started to downpour of course, and everyone got their pictures of the train passing over the bridge. We enjoyed a cold beer while waiting for the rain to subside and then finished the hike back to Ella. It was about 5 miles for the hike, but we were glad we did that as opposed to taking the train or a driver back.

The Nine Arch Bridge

Completed around 1920 during British rule, the 9 arch bridge is one of the most iconic sites in Sri Lanka. The bridge spans a large jungle ravine and is built out of only cement, brick and stone, with no steel. It is still used today as a main line of the Sri Lankan railway and is one of the most photographed sights in the country. We experienced the hype as so many tourists gathered to get their selfies and a chance to see the train crossing the bridge. Although very touristy, this is a must see when in the area, and were glad we took time to admire it and see the train come by.

We left Ella this morning and made the 3 hour drive over to Sri Lanka's most famous national park, Yala NP. Right outside of Ella town, you can stop at a nice waterfall right on the roadside called Ravana Waterfall. We enjoyed spending a short time and taking some pictures there. From then on, we made our way down from the hill country and soon were almost at sea level. We noticed the vegtation here was more tropical, with a lot of coconut, rice and banana growing. The atmosphere became noticably centered around safaris, with many signs advertising them and some safari vehicles on the road. We had prebooked our safari with our hotel at the Hilton Yala Resort.

Just after noon, we pulled up to the Hilton and were glad to be out of the car for the day. We had purchased their all inclusive package which includes your 3 meals, drinks, and 1 safari (either late afternoon or early morning). We spent the afternoon having a long lunch, followed by pool time and then joined the guided beach walk group. Yala is unique because some of it is only steps from the beach and Indian Ocean. Our guide on the beach walk would also be our safari guide the following morning, and he was fantastic! The beach features some large rocks and sand dunes, making for great views in the setting sun. Later, we had dinner at the restaurant where the chef had prepared a special meal for us after we mentioned southern Indian coconut curry during lunchtime. The meal was excellent and we are super impressed with the Hilton's head chef, as he personally greets each table several times per meal and you can tell he truly has a passion for what he does.

Ravana Waterfall

The Ravana waterfall is located roughly 15 minutes outside of Ella on the way towards Yala. It's right on the side of the road and a popular stop for a quick waterfall view. When we were there, the water flow levels were not at their highest but it was still a nice view and you can walk up a small path to get a little closer and even dip your feet in the running water. As it was quite hot out, this was nice and refreshing.

Hilton Yala Beach Walk

The Hilton provides two guided beack walks per day, one in the morning and one the hour before sunset. We met up with our group around 5pm for the beach walk which was really only a 2 minute walk down a sandy path, as the hotel is located right next to the ocean. Our ranger was Risesh, and he was very knowledgeable about the animals and sea life on the beach. One of the cool things we saw were these tiny fish that can stay out of the water and jump around the rocks, eating the small bits that are washed up by the sea. We also identified several animal tracks on the beach. The beachfront is covered in large rocks and boulders and then some sand dunes. We had some time to take pictures and fly the drone while wandering around the beach and dunes before heading back to the hotel. On our hotel path we were greeted by the gray langur monkeys putting on a show in the trees.

Yala National park is Sri Lanka's 2nd largest national park at almost 1,000 square km in size. The park is divided into 5 main sections, with Block 1 and Block 5 being the most popular to visit on safari. We spent the morning on safari in Block 1 and were not disappointed! After the safari, we returned to the hotel for a filling breakfast and to refresh and pack up. Once more, we were in the car for ~3 hours for the drive from Yala to our beach town near Mihiripenna Beach. We chose this beach because of its location on the northern side of some of the more popular beaches, but still within distance to visit any of them. We checked into the Sielen Diva Boutique Hotel, were we would spend our final 3 nights in Sri Lanka. We decided to leave the hotel for sunset and dinner and found one of the many beach bars to sit at and enjoy the sunset view. Afterward, we found the most authentic Thai kitchen, just an adorable Thai lady at her house, where she runs a small restaurant. The food was 100% authentic and we left there planning what we would order next time if we got to come back!

Yala National Park Safari

We opted for the early morning safari and had an early wakeup of 5:45am, a quick coffee in the hotel lobby, and then got in our safari vehicle. We were the only two in our vehicle with our ranger guide Rimesh, so it made it extra personal. The park opens at 6:15am and we were there to get in right on time. Yala Block 1 was only a couple minutes drive outside of our hotel, and the Hilton pre-purchases our tickets to the park, so we were able to bypass a very long line of vehicles on our way in. We know that there are many other tour guides out there looking to sell you a safari, but this is one of the benefits of paying a little more to go with our hotel. We also noticed that many of the other vehicles only had a driver, but not a guide sitting with you helping to spot the wildlife and give you information about everything.

 
Our drive lasted about 3 hours and in that time we were extremely lucky to see almost all of the major animals up close. We started by seeing several jackals on the way in. Then some water buffaloes and birds such as storks, cranes, and egrets over the vast water. We saw a striped neck mongoose (also known as the king mongoose), the largest of several mongoose in Sri Lanka, a mama and baby elephant, peacocks, crocodiles, several colorful smaller birds, an eagle, and then a smaller gray mongoose who stopped to pose for us to take photos. Then we heard the news that a leopard and her cubs were by the road. All of the vehicles rushed to see her, creating quite the traffic mess. We were able to see the leopard named Strawberry and her 2 cubs who were hanging out right by the road. We watched her for some time while they got up and walked and the cubs climbed up a tree learning how to hunt. At one point, she was only about 10 feet from our vehicle, making for really amazing photo opportunities! Then we came upon a small herd of elephants and got to watch them up close while they walked and ate the bushes. There were several babies and a younger male with tusks, which is rare. We had a quick snack and saw several other animals as we exited the park.

We were excited to finally sleep in a little today and enjoy breakfast at our hotel before setting out to explore some of the local beaches in the area. We decided to start at the furthest and work our way back. Right outside our hotel, we met a friendly tuk tuk driver who offered to take us the 40 min drive to Mirissa Beach and said he would wait there for us as long as we wanted and take us back for a round trip price. We took him up on the offer and got to drive past the other beaches along the way. We spent the most time at Mirissa beach, then visited Ahangama beach and then returned to our hotel after a full day. After relaxing by the hotel pool, we watched the sunset over the stilts set into the water. The stilts were once commonly used by fisherman who would perch on them while fishing. It became known as an iconic scene for photography in Sri Lanka. Now, they are used much less, but the fisherman have caught on and will charge you money to pose for pictures on the stilts in the middle of the day at some of the more popular beaches. We opted to just photograph the stilts without the fake scene, as they still look pretty nice. After watching the sunset, we had dinner at our hotel and called it a night.

Mirissa Beach

Mirissa beach as a nice wide beach with soft sand and warm water. This is one of the major hubs for beach tourists when visiting Sri Lanka. Our tuk tuk dropped us off and we walked down the beach to explore. First stop was parrot rock, which is a small rock island that you can walk to easily in lower tide. The water was mostly shallow with a small spot that was about waist high. You have to climb up some steps and a semi-rickity wooden bridge to get to the top of the island. From there, you can see stunning views of the Indian ocean and Mirissa beach. It's definitely worth it when in the area. From afar, we could see coconut tree hill, a smaller hill with an abundance of coconut palm trees, also a popular stop.

We stopped by a beach bar called 11:11 for a cold beer, and then checked out a popular ayurvedic spa hoping to get a massage or treatment. Unfortunately, they didn't have any openings until 4pm. Back on the beach, we stopped for lunch at W&D Beach Restaurant, one of the MANY places to sit and have a drink, food or just relax on their lounge chairs. We ordered a Sri Lankan prawn curry and rice which turned out to be one of the best that we have had!

Ahangama Beach

It was getting later in the day so we only did one more beach stop at Ahangama Beach. This was another popular area, as the town of Ahangama had a lot of shopping, restaurants and places to stay. This beach is more geared toward surfing, with less of a walkable beach, especially as the tide comes in. There are many small shops renting surf boards by the hour all up and down the coast, so Bryan rented one and went out to surf. It started out less crowded at first but by the end of the hour, people were streaming in. He had a good time catching some waves and then we headed back to the hotel for the night. Having our tuk tuk driver for most of the day only cost us $25 and he is already planning to take us anywhere we need to go tomorrow.