Reset search
Sri LankaSri Lanka
SatelliteEdit route

Sri Lanka

June 2022
Where elephants roam wild and free Read more
  • 9footprints
  • 1countries
  • 5days
  • 31photos
  • 0videos
  • 405kilometers
Follow Calendar Share Bucket list
Date ascending
  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 1

    Colombo

    June 8, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Coming to Sri Lanka was pretty difficult due to the economic crisis happening. My inward and outward flights were cancelled so I had to double down and buy even more expensive tickets since only Sri Lankan airlines was left operating and they total monopoly on the prices. The flight from Bangkok were mostly Sri Lankans and I could literally count the number of foreigners with my hands. The airport was desolate and I could definitely see the effects of the financial crisis. I was the only person in immigration and the guard barely made any effort to check and just let me in without checking if I had the required insurance. As I passed through customs, one of the guards held me off just because I only had a backpack with me. I was a bit nervous they would find my edibles but I was able to get off scot-free, my bag however lost one of its zippers while passing through their machine. There were a bunch of money exchanges competing with each other for every dollar the tourists are bringing. The taxi drivers also were quite ready to try and get me to take a ride with them but I already had plans to take the cheapest option: the bus. I had a simcard with me and I was asking for directions on where to take the bus and one of the guards told me that the bus I wanted to take was taking off and advised me to run after it. I thought if he was being serious but I did run after it and it did stop for me. So with this, I am quickly getting accustomed to the Sri Lankan way. Enjoying the internet for the first time while on the road with a 5 dollar sim card was pretty epic. Colombo was somehow meeting and missing my expectations. It was definitely one of the most impoverished places I've been to so far. More than just dirty, it was also lacking a lot of infrastructure and development in general. As I got off the bus, one of the tuktuk drivers managed to get me to ride with him even though the train station was only a couple of meters after using the suffering and poor country card. I gave him some extra nevertheless. After getting my ticket at the counter, I ate some bread and waited for around 2 hours for the train to Habarana which was going to be another 6 hours or so.Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 1

    Habarana

    June 8, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    The train was so hot and cramped at first, I was worried if I was gonna make it at this rate but as the windows opened and everyone got settled in, the temperature became much more manageable. Still, it was a non-airconditioned train ride so I was really getting the full local experience. I thought I was lucky enough to be seated next to the window but as it turns out I had the alley seat as someone else took it. The train ride was overall pretty pleasant, it also got a bit boring as I was conserving my battery and listening to some tunes. It got a bit more fun when I discovered I could sit by the train doors with a nice view of the country side and feeling that fresh breeze. Time passed by and soon the sun was setting beyond the horizon of the fields and mountains and it made the train ride absolutely worth it. I started to get a bit angsty as night settled in, I was hungry and thirsty but still had a couple of more hours before Habarana. I was in contact with Lasantha, the owner of the homestay I had booked in Agoda.

    After some grueling hours of waiting, I finally touched down in Habarana and Lasantha was right there waiting for me. Habarana at this time was pitch black, it was provincial and even less developed than Colombo but in this case, this was a good thing as it is much closer to nature. Lasantha drove me to his home where I was showed my room which also didn't have air-condition much to my dismay. We talked a bit at the veranda outside while I waited for dinner which was all Sri Lankan cuisine. I was so hungry, I chowed down and ate as much as I can while we got our plans in place for the days ahead. It also turned out that they did have an air-conditioned room that I had to pay a bit of extra for to which I obviously did. Now with this, I was quite satisfied and finally ready to unwind and rest.    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 2

    Sigiriya

    June 9, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Waking up to my first morning in Sri Lanka, I was greeted by a hearty breakfast on the veranda. I ate while feeling the morning breeze and enjoying the fresh air which was a far cry from Colombo's. Lasantha was going to be my tuktuk driver today and our first stop was Sigiriya Rock. On the way, I had realized I had forgotten my wallet and only had dollars with me instead. I didn't want to waste any more of Lasantha's fuel so we pushed on forward with me hoping that things would turn out alright. Lasantha exchanged some of my spare dollars for some Sri Lankan rupees so I could afford the entrance tickets for Sigiriya Rock which was actually pretty expensive but I would say it was well worth it. Even just the grounds itself was amazing, there was a huge gathering of monkeys just walking around the pond and I just went full photographer mode already, taking note of how other photographers took their shots. The tour guides were out in droves and I was approached by one almost every few minutes until I made it to the road leading up to the actual rock. It was massive and a sight to behold. I helped a Spanish couple take some of their photos and I let them take mine. There were a lot of ruins and caves below the rock and I tried my best to go around and try to see every corner and angle I could take a shot from before beginning the first hike of the day.

    It was a great feeling to get the body moving and it wasn't too hot or sunny so I was able to hike up with a pretty good pace, taking minimal breaks in between. The hike were mostly just stairs, some ancient and some recent. The threat of the hanging wasp nests made me a bit weary especially seeing some first aid tents stationed at one of the checkpoints. Once again, I felt extremely lucky to have this otherwise crowded tourist spot all to myself. There were a few other hikers but I rarely crossed paths with them until the famous lion statue. During the ancient times, a giant lion stood guard at the final stairway leading up to the fort built above the rock. Hence why Sigiriya Rock is also known as Lion's Rock. How an ancient kingdom was built on top of such a peculiar location remains such a mystery for me. I waited for a few tourists to pass by so I could take a photo of the claws, the only thing remaining from the lion statue before finishing the rest of the hike. Reaching the top of a hike is always a satisfying feat, all in all it took more than an hour from the bottom to the top. The remnants of an ancient kingdom was all that is left at the summit, mostly the foundation and some man-made pools. Not much walls were left standing but it was quite fun to imagine what it must have been like. They were a couple of dogs just chilling at the top and some random dude who was meditating which was a pretty good idea except his form was all wrong. It was cloudy so the I was able to explore the area without frying to a crisp. At the other end of the summit was a path leading to an octagonal pool and more caves. The surrounding area was pretty much covered in trees and lakes with a giant Buddha statue standing out the most, his hand blessing the exact direction of Sigiriya which I am sure is not a coincidence. I could also see Pidurangala Rock, I was planning on hiking this at sunset to see Sigiriya from another angle. Once I was satisfied, I started to hike down and was led to another part of the rock that contained some ancient cave paintings of the wives of the king. There were a lot and the guide showed me a special wife that had the "Mona Lisa" eyes, eyes that seemed to look at my direction, no matter where I situated myself. The way down was much peaceful, still without any people except for the occasional vendor trying to sell me some weird contraption. Lasantha was there waiting for me just as we discussed earlier so I followed him to his tuktuk so that we could go to Dambulla next.    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 2

    Dambulla

    June 9, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    Before going to Dambulla, I opted to grab some lunch first as the hike did use up a lot of my energy. I requested Lasantha to take me somewhere cheap and we ended up in a bakery where I ordered two kinds of bread and hoped it would be enough for the rest of the day. I treated Lasantha his share as well. We also had to refuel our tuktuk and it was then that I saw just how dire the overall situation was for the Sri Lankan people. The fuel shortage extended all the way to Habarana and the lines for the fuel extended several kilometers, these tuktuk drivers probably had to line up for several hours or even the whole day just to get their share of gas. Tourists get first priority and Lasantha was able to squeeze directly first in line, with much of the other drivers letting us pass. There were even soldiers stationed at the station to probably keep the peace as tensions were quite high.

    Dambulla was a short ride away from Sigiriya with a tuktuk and Lasantha dropped me at the starting point and told me to meet him at another spot so he could take me to the Golden Buddha. I told him that I wanted to hike there instead so he can just wait for me there. The Dambulla Cave Temples were the main attraction here and the Golden Buddha was an added bonus that I didn't even know existed. I was starting to feel the fatigue as I started to do another hike up to the caves. On the way up, there was a lady offering some flowers to give to Buddha, she said give how much you want so I gave her a dollar which I thought would make her happy but it was much to her dismay. On hindsight, it was probably worthless. I still didn't have much rupees me at that time unfortunately. At the entrance to the temples, I had to leave my shoes at the shoerack outside, and the signs explicitly mention that it is not allowed to bring them inside the bag. The moment I saw a rugged fellow "guarding" the shoes, I knew I had to cough up some more cash aside from the ticket that I already bought. I entered the compound and was immediately approached by a tour guide. He was following me around and started to explain stuff to which I cut him off and told him that I don't need a tour guide so off he went all disappointed. I really wanted silence to appreciate such places and the cave temples were exactly that. It was quiet, without people and the cave interiors had a different level of energy. There were a lot of Buddha statues in various positions and Buddhic cave paintings coated the cave walls and ceiling in hues of red, black and gold. I left the flower I had at one of the altars for Buddha. There were around four caves that I went from one to the next, meditating in front of Buddha at the most grand one. There was a small group having a tour and every time they were about to reach my cave, I would go to the next one just to keep the tranquility going. I left the temple grounds to get my shoes back and I asked this local family how much to give the guy since they also got out of the temple at the same time as me. They advised to just give whatever so I just gave the lowest denomination I could. I continued on to the other side of the mountain for a trek to the Golden Buddha. There were much more monkeys hanging around this trail and I have no idea why but there were a lot of couples chilling here as well.

    The Golden Buddha here is advertised as the world's largest Buddha statue in the Darmachakra Mudra. It was pretty huge indeed, as I was approaching it, there was a lone monk who passed by me. Lasantha was there waiting and showed me a way deeper inside to get a better view. At this point in time, the sun was overbearingly hot but I managed to snap a couple of good photos. Lasantha was telling me that he can take me to the lakeside near Pidurangala Rock for a walk but there was still a lot of time before sunset and I wanted to visit Popham's Arboretum which was 3 kilometers away so I convinced Lasantha to add that to the day's itinerary.

    I didn't know much about the Arboretum except for the stuff I read online in that it was a good nature trail. They said that there was a choice to donate or not but it turns out it wasn't voluntary so I don't think they should be calling it a donation. I tried to fill my canister with some water but it always ended up full of ants. I have no idea why but I still chose the longest trail which would take more than an hour to complete despite the fact that I was climbing the whole day and was going to be doing another hike later in the day. I was following the signs which was all color coded, yellow being the one I chose which extends to around more than 2 kilometers. I once again found myself all by my lonesome but this time entrenched deep within the bosom of nature. My shoes crept on dried leaves as I pushed on deeper and further away from civilization. It was definitely meditative to just keep walking without any thoughts, I was simply just another living being making my way around. There were a lot of wildlife all around especially birds and insects. At times, when the wind stopped blowing there would just be total silence which sometimes made things a bit unsettling. I might have taken a wrong turn or two and had to back track to find the right sign posts again but I eventually finished the whole trail and found myself back at the starting point. I was served tea and after resting for a bit, we headed off.    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 2

    Pidurangala Rock

    June 9, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

    Riding the tuktuk was one of the best ways to discover Sri Lanka since I was much exposed to the sights and sounds of the country. From Dambulla, we made our way back to Sigiriya so I could do my third and final hike of the day. I had seen Pidurangala Rock from Sigiriya Rock in the early morning and now as the sun was setting, it was time to tackle the other side. Lasantha dropped me by the lakeside so I could do a short walk by the lake before dropping me near the trailhead of Pidurangala. I had to pay for a ticket and actually take off my shoes since I was entering sacred grounds. There were cave temples here as well, similar to the ones in Dambulla. It was quite fun though a bit uncomfortable to be hiking barefoot. I felt very much grounded as I stepped on soil, rocks and leaves. I was hiking barefooted for a long time and was wondering until which parts were considered secret as I had already passed a couple of cave temples already. I decided to just put my shoes back on and made my way up until I arrived at a mountain-carved reclining Buddha so maybe I hastily put them back on a bit too early. I paid my respects and started the climb up again, the final ascent becoming much more difficult with steeper boulders that required some scrambling. At the top, I was rewarded with an even more magnificent view. Sigiriya Rock towered over the Sri Lankan country side and commanded much attention with it's shape and size. There was also a lone monkey near the cliff-edge that became my photo subject of the day as I took shot after shot, trying to get the best photo composition. The summit was windy and there were a few other people hanging around. I saw a huge group of people and a camera man taking a groufie so I offered to take their photo instead to which weirdly enough everyone started clapping. After my good deed of the day done, I sat down and meditated a bit and gave myself time to wind down from all the activities for the day. I couldn't believe I managed to pull off this much hiking. As I waited for the sun to set, I was suddenly approached by a bunch of girls from the group a while ago. Turns out, they were from an English language school and I assume they were quite curious about foreigners and were quite keen on practicing English. They were from a village a bit further away and I actually haven't spoken to anyone my age as well ever since arriving in Sri Lankta so I enjoyed exchanging some pleasantries with them. Though it felt a bit awkward as I was completely surrounded and I was being bombarded with questions left and right. I was also offered some peanuts to which I graciously accepted as I was quite famished after all the hiking and a small lunch. They said I have to try Kottu, one of the famous dish of Sri Lanka so I made a mental note of this. The girls soon left and I was happy to be alone again but it wasn't over as around four guys soon came over and stood awkwardly so I invited them to sit with me. We made some small talk before they excused themselves as it was time for them to leave. Now, I was finally alone for real. It looks like the sunsets were eluding me for most of the trip no matter how much I chased them as it was another cloudy day. I was quite satisfied with that monkey shot anyways so I took my time to just relax and explore the area and decided to start heading back down as it was getting dark. On the way down, I made some small talk with a couple before overtaking them. I safely made it back and Lasantha was already waiting to take me home.

    Back in Habarana, I got to experience the blackouts which happened every day across the whole country due to the economic crisis. The government had to cut power for 2 hours per day to save energy and costs. I quietly ate my dinner with an emergency light, it wasn't all that bad since the night was cool and breezy.    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 3

    Minneriya

    June 10, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    I had planned to go all out yesterday so I could get the chance to sleep in and rest for half the day today. Only one thing was in the itinerary today and that is going for an elephant safari in Minneriya National Park, Sri Lanka was famous for its elephants afterall. Lasantha hooked me up with one of his pals, Sanji. I was able to get a private tour for the same price as a public one. It was time to finally put the edible chocolate I got from Thailand to good use. I sat in front of Sanji's jeep and ate them on the way to buy tickets. Right after buying the tickets, we were off to the jungle. I really liked Minneriya because it was literally empty as was most of the places I've visited so far but partly because everyone was in Habarana Eco-Park where most of the elephants were migrating through at the moment but I had wanted to see Minneriya for myself since it was a national park and quite frakly, I wasn't disappointed as it had this giant lake and there were hundreds of white birds hanging about, it was surrounded by mountains as well and I got to see monkeys and an eagle but most of all, I got to see tons of elephants so I was a happy kid. I got pretty good photos despite my phone not having any optical zooms. There were even some really close encounters such as when an elephant emerged from the jungle and we stared at each other for such a long time. It felt like it was staring into my soul. One other elephant got a bit territorial and made some charges at us. There were some herds all walking in a line and baby elephants as well, I was very satisfied with how the day played out so I thanked Sanji and asked him to take me to Habaran Eco-park the next day. He asked me to drink some alcohol while going for it but I told him I prefer weed and he said he could get some for me so I was stoked.

    Back at the homestay, I got to experience another black out while I was busy answering all these messages that I kept getting from those Sri Lankan girls the other day, I kinda regretted giving them my Whatsapp a number at this point.    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 4

    Polonnaruwa

    June 11, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Another day on Lasantha's tuktuk, this time we were heading to the Sacred City of Polonnaruwa. One of the ancient cities in Sri Lanka and part of the cultural triangle, Polonnaruwa was made out off various structures from different time periods. A lot of them were now ruins but some were still pretty well preserved. I planned to use a bike here and go to the pre-planned places. A lot of them were just names for me and only upon arriving at the actual destination was I able to appreciate. There were some kind and curious people offering me drinks and saying hello and the occasional vendors to wish I had actually purchased one of them elephant carvings as they were selling it for dirt cheap. Most of the spots seemed pretty okay for me, some were quite unique in terms of scale and architecture such as the Dalada Maluva. It had a dome like structure in the middle housing a Buddha statue. Both Pabalu Vehera and Menik Vehera had the giant brown stupas with Rankoth Vehera being the largest one. I remember circling the entire are barefoot. I picked up some clay plates that I put into one of the chambers housing Buddha. It had several of these chambers around and it looked like it wasn't that well-maintained so I took it upon myself to at least fix or put up some Buddha idols that had fallen over or were hidden behind objects. Alahana Pirivena, housed an impressive giant statue that towered over the rest of the ruins. I went to the Lotus Pond next, passing by Gal Viharaya which was where I was supposed to meet Lasantha. The Lotus Pond had a peculiar shape so I really wanted to get a shot of it meanwhile, the last push towards the Thivanka Image House was draining me after biking the whole day but I made it and for me, the Image House had the best preserved sculptures and carvings around its walls, the inside housed a lot of bats which was pretty neat too. I then went to Gal Viharaya to see the carved Buddhas and was finally ready to go back to rest since I was going to the Eco-Park with Sanji after.

    On the way back, Lasantha was trying to convince me to go for a Sri Lankan Ayurvedic massage and there was a lot of back and forth and I searched for several other candidates but he seemed quite adamant about me taking that one, probably since he will be getting his commission. The massage sounded pretty good though and it was perfect after so much traveling. On the way back, we also saw an elephant crossing the road. It was such a delight to see and it was the same for the Sri Lankans as they all got out of their cars all excited like as the majestic beast passed by. Back at the homestay, I finally got to try kottu after requesting it and also caved in to Lasantha's massage recommendation after a hefty discount though it was still very expensive for my taste but hey, I'm only here once so might as well go for it.    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 4

    Habarana II

    June 11, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    I got to rest for a few minutes after eating lunch before Sanji arrived to pick me up for another safari. We went to buy the tickets again and we were off into the jungle once again. I had the wrong impression of Habarana Eco-Park, as I thought it was just a small wannabe park compared to Minneriya but I was deadwrong as it had much splendor in terms of its flaura and fauna. Sanji took me to a secluded spot where I blazed up. It was much more crowded though as this was of course where the all the elephants were migrating through so there were a lot more jeeps hanging around and it was hard to find solace so Minneriya wins a bit more in that regard. But the elephants, oh the elephants! There were a lot, huge herds with cute baby elephants. They felt a bit threatened, I could tell as they shifted to defensive positions as they got surrounded by jeeps. Sanji also took me to this hill and gave me another joint that took some time to light because of the wind but it was great and I got to see the sun set beyond the horizon of green trees. All in all, it was a pretty tiring day after Polonnaruwa but it was still a good time. I would say Minneriya was the much better experience. The way back was very chill and I was quite excited to try out the Ayurvedic massage.

    Lasantha took me to the place and it is definitely much higher scale in terms of its aesthetic. Everything was built inside mud huts, the night was cool and I could hear crickets chirping in the background as the receptionist explained to me what was included in my package and the concept of Ayurveda which was the science of life. The package included the actual massage using special oils, herbal sauna and one of the main points that I wanted to try out which was the Shirodhara treatment with a hot shower to end the session. My masseuse, Sylva, was absolutely amazing with her hands, it felt like flowing water and my fatigue all around my body quickly melted away. She used these special oils and made sure to work on every part of my body from head to toe. Next was the actual Shirodhara, she poured a steady stream of warm medicated liquid on my forehead and made shapes on it but most of it was centered on forehead. I got a lot of ASMR from it and I could understand why they would call it a nervous system massage. It's what really sold me on the Ayurvedic massage since they really work on both body, mind and spirit. After the whole treatment, I was led to a herbal sauna where I bathed in some very healthy herbal fumes for half an hour and after I took a nice shower and emerged anew. I made sure to thank Sylva properly. I managed to avoid the powercut as well by taking the massage so all in all a good day!    Read more

  • Treading Through GaiaSri Lanka
    Day 5

    Colombo II

    June 12, 2022 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Sanji came to pick me up in the morning since Lasantha had to be somewhere else. With his jeep, he took me to the bus stop and stood there waiting with me until the bus to Colombo arrived. The bus was cramped and still without any air-condition so this was going to be another one of them bumpy rides. The ride started of a bit too warm for my tastes, I was seated right at the alley side next to an old man with my bag underneath so there really wasn't much space. There was also a lady who was standing next to me for a bit, the old man kindly offered to carry the lady's bag on his lap so she wouldn't have to. I also noticed a Ganesha poster right at the front which was always a welcome surprise. For the next couple of hours, people came and went until I got to have a seat by the window. I was able to see more of the country side as we passed the various towns along the way while the weather went from sunny to rainy to cloudy and back to sunny again.

    In Colombo, I had just one spot on my bucketlist which was the Jami Ul-afar Mosque, a mosque with a peculiar design of pink and white. Almost akin to a Russian castle. From the bus station, I walked passed the market and some alleys til I got to the mosque which was unfortunately closed to visitors. I still got a nice picture of the exterior before starting the walk back to find the bus going to the airport. I was asking for directions but was being pointed back and forth and I was getting more confused with all the backtracking until someone actually pointed me to the right direction. Along the way, I saw someone carrying some groceries and one of his green bellpeppers fell outside the fence to the high way. Seemed like he had his hands full so I left my bag at the side of the road and climbed over the fence to fetch his missing bellpepper. He thanked me and that was my good deed done for the day. I found the air-conditioned bus going to the airport and from there it was another hour or so to Negombo. At the airport, everything went pretty smoothly this time around and after more waiting, I got on my plane to Dubai.    Read more

  • 2024© FindPenguins
  • Home
  • About us
  • Blog
  • Group Tracking
  • Press
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy & Cookies
  • Support
  • Legal notice
  • English