Mirissa

Upon arrival we got a tuktuk to the train station ready to get back on that familiar train continuing on to the area Mirissa.
Mirissa is known for it's gorgeous beach and we were now very ready to slow down and have some sun, sea and sand!

As standard with Sri Lanka they follow their own timelines, meaning the 9:35 train actually didnt leave til 10:15am, however it was very quiet meaning we had lots of space and got to look out of the window as well as having that amazing breeze. When we arrived it was a short journey to the main road where as usual it runs parallel with the beach and is where the majority of guesthouses and shops are. Our guesthouse was down a side street thankfully which made it a lot quieter at night. First thing we noticed is there are a lot more mosquitos here but thankfully we have a four poster bed with a a good net over it so that helped (not that we don't have some bad bites! I had forgotten the relentless of the itching...).
That afternoon was a quiet one as I hadn't been feeling that well, seemingly coming down with a bad head cold or something similar, and so we relaxed and settled in with an afternoon siesta. Later on we wandered onto the beach and wow! It was beautiful. White sand, crystal clear water and it sweeps round in a lovely bay shape. We couldn't wait to get in it!

Over the next 2 days we spent days on sun loungers, going in and out of the warm but refreshing sea every hour and relaxing the daytimes away. The first day, although we thought we were very careful we did both get fairly bad sunburn (Phil especially so with a very red back and shoulders!) So the following day we were much more careful and stayed out of the sun more. There's a lovely sea breeze so that might be why it feels so pleasant, it misleads you into thinking it's not so hot! We'd spend sunsets and the evenings also on the beach, having fresh sea food they catch that day and display for you to choose, then eat it with just candlelight with the waves crashing next to you. Such a relaxing place and reminded us of a more built up version of the island Koh Rong off Cambodia which we adored being on 3 years ago.

After a final relaxing evening we had an early start ready to go whale watching. At 6:15am a tuktuk arrived ready to take us to the harbour to go with a well respected company Raja And The Whales. Off the coast of Mirissa it is considered one of the best places in the world to see whales, in particular blue whales. Except for Antarctica here is the largest concentration of blue whales so we were very hopeful we'd get to see the largest animal on the planet that day! This tour company is double the price of others in the area however we knew we wanted to go with them after not only great reviews but their knowledge and respect of the whales, which they definitely showed, for example not chasing then down or 'blocking' them in, explaining to us about what is good for them throughout the tour. They were so passionate about the animals and it showed with their approach. They also really know their stuff, taking us to areas where there were no other tourist boats. Within 10 minutes out in deep water they spotted one however we missed it (when a blue whale dives it can be down there for 45 minutes!) So they moved on and boy were we in for a treat. About an hour later we were told they'd spotted a whale and we're waiting to see it again when suddenly right next to me and Phil a Brydes whale came up about 15 metres from us, what an awesome surprise. Then suddenly seemingly without warning we seemed surrounded, everywhere you looked we saw blow holes spouting all round the boat at different distances, you hardly knew where to look! We saw a pair of blue whales come up fairly close but more amazingly, swimming in our direction, closer and closer, til they looked like they were going to crash into the side of the boat. It was kind of scary as you started to really see the size and the blue shimmer of their bodies under the water. They then went round the back of the boat at this point, we were just drifting to not disturb them. As they went round the back of the boat they were probably only 10 metres away if that and then they both flukked their tails and dived down which we'd all been waiting for. This couple kept appearing as we moved on, swimming in perfect unison and treating is to regular dives down. We were then even lucky enough to have another pair join the party and another Brydes whale.
Completely awe-inspiring is the only way I can describe the feeling. Shortly after this we headed back, also seeing a large manta ray too and we were on a high. We'd just seen not only a solidarity creature in its couples, but one of the rarest to see in the world and so close. Incredibly lucky and a definite highlight of the trip so far. A big thank you goes out to my cousin Kate, Mark and Rufus for gifting us this opportunity for birthdays and Christmas. It was truly special!

We now won't see the sea until Negombo at the end of our trip in Sri Lanka and it will be missed.

BethRead more