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Sri Lanka & Istanbul
  • Claude Lester
  • Lisa Terry
  • Claude Lester
  • Lisa Terry

Sri Lanka & Istanbul

A 18-day adventure by Claude & Lisa Read more
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  • Trip start
    January 22, 2026
    Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Ettukala

    January 22 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Day 1
    Landed at the Columbo airport early so Chef Kanthi wasn't there yet! He found us and took us to the bus - no sign of the driver. Kanthi keeps calling him to say we're waiting by the bus. Only for the bus to pull up 🤣
    Lais(?) handed out but we're all on the bus so no arrival photo.
    Photo at hotel was also forgotten...
    The details a woman organising gets right (last time we were here)
    However the beach view from the hotel foyer was glorious.
    Girls (mostly opted for swim and drinks on the beach while the lads (& Naomi) went to the Sri Lanka England cricket game.
    Coming out for dinner we walked past an empty restaurant with a Mariachi band playing and our restaurant has a Country set going on 🤷🏼‍♀️

    It'll be an early night tonight as it's our longest day on the road tomorrow...

    Oh and not to forget that Lisa booked the wrong flight! and despite Kanthi heading to airport to meet her at 5.30am today she doesn't arrive till 5.30am tomorrow 🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    A looong day driving to Jaffna

    January 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    After Lisa finally managed to join us at breakfast straight from the airport she grabbed a shower & some food and we were off.
    The full length of the island via a Church to Mother Mary which despite being Christian is used and considered a site of miracles by all faiths. It was also a place of sanctuary during the civil war until the government forces went in and killed everyone claiming they were all terrorists while others claimed there were all innocent civilians.
    After a delicious lunch of rice, paratha and various curries at an army run canteen which set us back about 50p each we headed back on the road although the road was a bit missing in places due to a cyclone back in November and the driver seemed lost and had to keep asking directions. A brief elephant sitting by those at the front of the coach.
    Arrival in Jaffna and we're staying at an old colonial building with a art collection of Sri Lankan artists. I'm in the David Paynter room.
    Our first impromptu cooking demo with Jeff as soux chef. - divine Jaffna mutton curry. A dry curry that was truly heavenly with fragrant spices. And a purple yam/coconut milk pudding.
    Early night all round    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Rainy day in Jaffna

    January 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ 🌧 25 °C

    Breakfast surrounded by brides, grooms, bridesmaids galore. They book the hotel for photo shoots but it's not big enough to host 1000 people normally at an Asian wedding.
    Sadly the boat trip was cancelled due to weather and lack of visibility. So we went for a walk around the local streets and stopped for tea/coffee in a local cafe.
    Then onto the fort. Originally built by the Portuguese it was rebuilt by the Dutch in the star formation designed for superior defensive capabilities.
    Back to the hotel for a little downtime.    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Bodhi and Uga

    January 25 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Quick cookery lesson after an invitation from the chef into his kitchen and practical session for Lisa making a dosa filled with spiced potatoes.
    Then off to our next location. A temple complex to the Bodhri originally a sapling tree given by Emperor Ashoka of India's daughter to King of Sri Lanka. 3000 years ago. There were other trees planted around to protect it as it grows and now golden structures support its many old limbs. The eternal flame is there being drip fed by oil offerings from devotees.
    Drive to Anapurna to a paradise hotel where we had a villa and plunge pool each in 56 acres with paddy fields, wildlife, horse riding, archery and kayaking but sadly not there long enough to try anything but wander around admiring it all.
    Meal was international mixed with Sri Lankan style. Still prefer straight Sri Lankan curry myself. I tried walking to breakfast from my villa and got lost and ending up hitching a rude with one of the gardeners in his golf cart 🤣
    Swim after breakfast with 2 monitor lizards snoozing and cuddling at the side of the pool. A troop of langhurs were frolicking on the other side with one of the kids really enjoying dropping out of the tree to land on his siblings. Lisa was doing very elegant & super flexible yoga on the edge of the pool and a lady practicing some Indian dancing was opposite her. And a peacock, a mongoose and another monitor lizard joined us. Very idyllic.
    Minor panic as I couldn't open the safe prior to departure.    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Kandaswamy temple

    January 26 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    Got very wet dirty feet getting into the temple dedicated to Shiva
    Participating in the devotions as we followed the monks to different stations to various of Shiva's sons and subordinate gods.
    In the evening we went off to a colonial home for a cookery demo and dine experience making crab curry, sambol & kutu.
    Delicious.    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Boat trip & traditional village lunch

    January 28 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    We were taken by tractor cart (I think I could have walked faster) to get the boat to the village for lunch. I volunteered to help row. Haven't calculated on my bum being considerably larger than the bit of boat I needed to perch on as a seat and the footwell also didn't really fit my calves 🤷🏼‍♀️
    I definitely pulled my weight when we had to navigate through the water hyacinths in reverse, and earnt a blister for my efforts.
    The lovely ladies welcomed us to their traditional wood fired kitchen and as usual a phenomenal number (over a dozen) of "curries" with red rice kutu. She showed us how they peel, open and scrape the flesh of the coconuts, extracted the coconut water then made 1st 2nd extract coconut milk. Then how they separate the chaff from the rice and pound it and then mill it.
    Delicious lunch. Wild mango was great. Gourd was a new flavour and good. Fresh fruit and battered honey coconut balls which were yummy.
    Back to the coach
    Saw a happy munching wild elephant and her calf at the side of the road.    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Galgamuwa

    January 29 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Surprised to be cold in the night but we are in the mountains.
    Fab breakfast as ever then off to a boat safari on a huge reservoir where 500 or so wild elephants live. Brahmin kites, white bellied sea eagles, pelicans, migrating terns, and the finally about 25 elephants including quite a few babies, grazing happily.
    Lazy afternoon by the pool with a beer followed by a snooze.
    Dinner came with a traditional dance venerating the trees and the ancestors of the Veeda tried and a blessing for Lisa and I.
    Early night required and finally a good night's sleep    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Lunch at Nilu's kitchen

    January 30 in Sri Lanka ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    Chef Kanthi's friends' new business where he helped design the outdoor kitchen /dining layout. Such amazing food
    Followed by a stroll through the Botanical gardens
    And another phenomenal pool at the hotel.
    Lovely Javanese massage by the unlikely named Sean. He was a lovely petite Sri Lankan with extraordinary eyebrows. After he straddled me for an hour my back finally felt it could move again! Always interesting that they massage the stomach and chest here.
    A sleepless night for no particular reason but whilst tossing and turning I listened with interest to what sounds like rat turf war occurring in the ceiling above me with frantic scurrying back and forth followed by bouts of shrill squeaks and squeels.    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul
    1

    Columbo by jeep

    January 31 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Hair raising in vintage US army jeeps
    Visiting various historic British & Dutch institutions, the hotel where Queen Liz stayed twice, the maritime museum, the beautiful brickwork of the red Mosque and others.Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul
    11

    Last Sri Lankan hotel

    February 1 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Dikwala Beach resort.
    I ordered a mocktail with dinner as it was a religious day and no alcohol is served. It was described as rosemary with coconut but when I queried it on both flavour & colour someone was summoned from the kitchen to explain that the rosemary is boiled with red cabbage first 🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️ I mean why?
    It was disgusting and I resolved never to order a mocktail again but stick with gin!. As it was handed to me, a small fishbowl with bright blue liquid and ice in which sat an over sized lightbulb containing pink liquid, I was told to only drink the pink liquid not the blue! Bizarre and revolting.
    Finally 3 nights in one place...
    A cookery demo with the head Chef & Kanthi making some amazing prawns.
    Early night with no further dinner for me.
    A day by the pool interspersed with eating and drinking.
    Last day some of us went on a snorkeling trip - fabulous fish not much coral although some encouraging new growth.
    Then off to local town to Smoke & Bitters.    Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul
    1

    Last night

    February 3 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Cocktails at Smoke and Bitters one of the top 50 cocktail bars in the world followed by dinner at a fusion restaurant where the Chef is a lad from Cornwall who Chef Kanthi trained in Brighton.

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Blue Mosque...and cats

    February 5 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    Lisa was trying to adopt every cat we ran into...
    I astonishingly didn't have a scarf with me so was lent one...
    Stunning architectural & decorative details

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Hagia Sofia and cats

    February 5 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    Historically fascinating it was a very early church (burnt down) to rebuild, remodel, extend, concert to mosque, turn into museum, back to mosque. All the crosses and most of the faces have been removed according to Islam beliefs but a few faces remain where they're not visible by the worshippers.Read more

  • Sri Lanka & Istanbul

    Last day in Istanbul

    February 6 in Turkey ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

    My breakfast juice of fresh orange & pomegranate!
    We took the hop on hop off us but we hopped off halfway round and walked back along the riverside. Lunch and a fabulous beer flight!
    And cats

  • Trip end
    February 8, 2026
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