Before starting on the new blog, I forgot to add a story from my time in Galle which has to be told. You may or may not know that in Sri Lanka they are cricket mad. Galle has the national cricket ground there and you can see the ground very clearly from the top of the fort. Many many times when I was staying in Galle, I heard that ‘The Barmy Army’ (English cricket team) were coming to Sri Lanka in March and how excited they were to be hosting them ?. I was also told how they were ordering in loads of extra beer ‘because the English love the beer’ ?? This just really made me chuckle.
After the whale watching trip finished, I went back to my accommodation in Mirissa to wait for my taxi to Ella. A man turns up in a pretty beaten up car and collects me and my luggage. I now have a 3 hour journey with Janala. Janala (I think that was his name, still not 100% sure), ended up be a very persuasive man and someone I could not get rid of for week!!! More on that later ?. Long drive to Ella through the mountains, all very beautiful.
My new accommodation was on the side of a mountain and it required grit determination to get me up and down to my room…the view was fantastic though and it kept me from making unnecessary trips to the hotel restaurant!!
The little town of Ella was brilliant, full of tourists and with a really lovely vibe with plenty of places to eat and enjoy watching the world go by. The following day, Janala had talked me into (this will become a theme), using him to see the main sights around Ella. I wanted to see if I could climb Little Adam’s Peak, but wanted to go early before it got too hot. I had also wanted to see the 9 Arches Bridge, but this would be another, hike and thought it might be too much for one day….Janala had other ideas. He picked me up at 6am and took me to the bridge 1st, as he said that it will get much busier as the day goes on. It was quite a steep climb to the view point, we then walked along the track and through a tunnel, but was definitely worth it. I managed to see 2 different trains pass and the view was spectacular.
After the trains had passed, we got a TukTuk back down to the main road (why we couldn’t have got it up to the bridge as well, I’ll never know ?) We then headed to Little Adam’s Peak. I’m still very conscious that I am pretty slow and unfit and was happy to plod up the mountain in my own time, but Janala was having none of it….he stayed by my side all the way there and all the way down again. It started raining when we were on the mountain but I was happy with this as it kept me cooler. Little Adam’s Peak achieved and all before 9am. It wasn’t really a difficult climb, it’s mainly steps to the top, tough on the knees coming back down. Once again the view was spectacular and I felt very proud of myself for doing it.
We stopped off in Ella for breakfast before yet another excursion, because Janala was finished with me yet!!! This time we went to Buduruvagala, which is a Buddhist temple, carved into a rock face. The drive there took in more gorgeous scenery and the temple was beautiful. I’m glad I got talked into this.
Well, that was all quite enough for one day. I got dropped off and abseiled down to my room and had a nap ??. Janala offered me his services for the following day but I said I wasn’t going to be doing anything that would require him…..don’t worry, more Janala stories coming up!!!
The following day, I took it easy, resting my poor knackered knee until it was time to attend a cookery course!! Once again, another recommendation of a ‘must do’ saw me sign up for some traditional Sri Lankan cooking. I arrived at the designated spot for collection, where a really nice Ozzie girl was waiting as well. A man in a truck turns up, asks us if we are cooking ‘yes’ and we get into the back of his trunk. As we drive away, the Ozzie girl says ‘we’re very trusting aren’t we, just jumping into the back of a truck???’ ? I literally never even thought about being in any danger. I would kill my kids if they did something similar!!
Anyway, no harm done and we are taken to someone’s home, where loads of things are ready for us to get cooking. There was 10 of us altogether and it was a great evening. We made 6 different curries, a starter, dessert and sides, and it all happened to be vegan. The food was lovely, although a little to much chilli for my delicate English palate ?. My only complaint was that we didn’t actually do that much cooking, it was mainly a demonstration, which was fine, but I get a bit restless if not kept busy.
The next day saw the return of Janala ?. What I would like to explain at this point is, that in Sri Lanka it is nearly impossible to be able to self drive yourself, and if you did, you would probably die. So most tourists hire a driver/guide to take them around. When I arrived I had initially thought of doing this and contacted someone who was recommended to me, but I felt it was a lot of money and I didn’t really want to be ‘stuck with someone, making small talk for days on end. Thus, I was just going to get taxis/TukTuk/trains as and when I needed them. However, Janala had other ideas and me being me, somehow got talked into keeping him on. At the time he seemed to make sense but now on reflection, I should have been firmer and said no. Anyway, Janala turns up, collects me and my luggage and takes me to Ella Train station. Here I was catching a train to travel on one of the most beautiful routes in the world. I was dropped off to catch the train, and Janala was driving my luggage to meet me in Nanu Oya (This is another thing that a lot of tourists do, because we are to precious to carry our luggage on a train ?) The journey was wonderful, but lots of naughty youngsters hung out the doors and windows taking pictures ?
Janala met me at the other end and took me to my new accommodation. He then offered to show me around Nuwara Eliya. Nuwara Eliya is also known as little England and a lot of the houses are very British in style. We walked, around a lake and then had dinner together….. I just couldn’t shake him off. I did decline his offer of drinks at my digs ?
Looks like Saltdean 
Next morning Janala turns up with a Slovakian woman and her 6 year old daughter in tow. They had apparently got talking and she wanted to see similar things to me that day and he thought it would be ok for her to join us!!! To be fair, it was ok, it was great to have someone different to small talk with. We initially were going to go to the Botanic Garden, but when we got there it was quite expensive, so we decided to give it a miss. Instead we stopped off at a pretty Hindu temple. I got a blessing for a happy and healthy life.
Blessing…not blood 
After the temple we visited a tea plantation, and learnt all about tea from picking to packing. I even had a cup of tea….my 1st time. It was ok once I had added 2 sugars.
Following the tea plantation we went back into the town for lunch. At this point the Slovakian woman started having an argument with Janala, saying we weren’t doing anything that he had promised her and that she was getting stressed out…. I was getting stressed out by all this negative energy (??, her words not mine, I’m not a hippy yet). Anyway, I said “you lot go off and do what you need to do, I’m going for a walk around the park and look at the architecture”. FINALLY some peace and quiet!! But no, Janala had other ideas. There I was sitting happily, quietly in the park, when he turned up (how the hell did he find me!!). Apparently Slovakian woman had decided to dump him and go off on her own (how did she manage that, I need some advise), so he came back to me, because he was my driver ?
The next day saw me transferring to Kandy, with Janala as my driver. Another long but pretty drive, and we stopped off for road food on the way. As much as Janala had been driving me mad, I was doing/trying things that maybe I wouldn’t have, if I had been travelling independently!!!
I checked into my new hotel and then I wanted to visit the war cemetery to pay my respects. This is a cemetery, looks like hundreds that are across Europe. It is looked after by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. The Kandy War Cemetery is a British military cemetery for soldiers of the British Empire who were killed during World War II as well as a soldier who died during World War I. There are 203 buried consisting of: 107 British, 35 East Africans, 26 Sri Lankans, 23 Indians, 6 Canadians, 3 Italians, 1 Frenchman and 2 unidentified persons. Of the 203 dead, 151 were army, 32 were air force, 16 were navy, 2 were unidentified, 1 was merchant navy and 1 was from the national fire service. Beautifully looked after cemetery and very moving as always. Lest we forget ?
After the cemetery we went to visit the famous Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic. I brought some flowers, mainly because they looked lovely, as a ‘gift’ to Buddha. Another great looking temple, very busy.
Finally, that day, Janala recommended seeing a show of National dance and music. Once again a great suggestion, but once again he sat by my side throughout ??♀️
The following day I had planned, with Janala that we would visit the Kandy Botanic garden and also Sigiriya Lion’s Rock which is another UNESCO listed world heritage site. There are a lot of steps to the top of the Rock and I knew that I wasn’t going to do the climb, but I did want to see it. On the way to the rock, Janala asked for money for petrol, which was fair enough as it was a long way. He then also asked for extra money for his ‘time’. I explained that I had already given him money for the time in Kandy. He went on and on and it all became very uncomfortable, I’m not one for confrontations!! I then asked him how much he was going to charge for taking me to my next destination, the following day. After he gave me his price, I messaged my original driver in Colombo for a price and it has half the amount Janala was charging. We got to the rock, and I had a wander around and visited the museum there, finally alone, I think he’d realised I was pissed off.
While in Sigiriya I was unfortunate enough to witness elephants being used to give tourists rides. It was so awful to see theses beautiful animals having their legs chained together and being forced to walk along the busy roads for the ’enjoyment’ of humans ?. It was a long uncomfortable drive to and from Sigiriya. We made a couple of stops, visiting another Buddhist temple and a very large Hindu temple.
On the drive back to Kandy, I confronted Janala about the amount he was charging me for the transfer the following day and that I had found another driver much cheaper. He then went on and on about how he wasn’t just a driver, but a guide and a friend and that he was worth it!!! More uncomfortable silence…. he wouldn’t drop his price and I couldn’t get rid of him….bloody hell Michelle, grow some balls ?. By the time we got back to Kandy, the last thing I wanted to do was spend any more time with him, so I said I didn’t want to go to the botanic gardens and to take me back to my hotel, which he did. After a ‘grow some balls’ conversation with my mum…..yes 51 and I still need my mum to give me a pep-talk, I BRAVELY texted Janala and said he wasn’t needed the next day and thanks for everything!!! I was expecting a push back, but he accepted the message and wished me well!!! I am still trying to stay positive about my time spent with Janala, yes he was kind and helpful, he made suggestions of things to do that I hadn’t thought of, I ate in places I would never have gone too. If only he hadn’t got greedy and I hadn’t felt manipulated to keep him on. I guess I am just work to him at the end of the day.
The next day my new driver turns up to transfer me to Negombo, my final stop in Sri Lanka. I thought a couple of days by the beach before moving on would be nice. New driver (he was only young BTW) asked me if I would like to go to his house for a cup of tea, as it was on the way, and meet his wife and see his rabbits?? No I said, all full of new found bravery, can we go straight to Negombo. Within half an hour, I sitting in a strangers house, looking very awkward, while I could see his wife preparing food. New driver’s English wasn’t great and for a moment I’m thinking I’m about to be fed rabbit curry ? All ok though, wife brings out fruit and milk ??♀️ More awkwardness because I’m not really sure what I was doing there….I eat my fruit and then got taken to see some very healthy looking rabbits ?? I thanked and hugged the wife and we are back on the road. Another long and uncomfortable drive to my hotel. The distances aren’t loads in Sri Lanka, but the roads are so overcrowded with traffic that to get anywhere, takes ages. When we finally arrive it was a nice hotel overlooking the ocean. I sat on my balcony and watched the sun set.
After a good nights sleep, I dropped off my laundry, and took a TukTuk into the main part of town. I visited a post office and then walked along to a Catholic Church. This area of Sri Lanka is very Catholic/Christian because of the Portuguese/Dutch/British colonising it years ago. When I got near the church I could hear music and singing so went to investigate. It turns out that a wedding was in progress so I stood at the back and watched for a while. The good thing about the Catholic Church is that although the mass was in Sri Lankan, it was basically the same, so I could follow what was going on. I even participated in the ‘Peace be with you’ bit, although we didn’t shake hands we just put ours together and bowed at each other ??. I left the church shortly after that, feeling I was intruding a bit too much, and continued walking. I visited the local market, and then another Christian church before returning to the hotel, and a swim in the ocean. All in all a pretty perfect day.
So that is it, my time in Sri Lanka is over. I have an early flight tomorrow to Kuala Lumpur, where I’m going to stop for a few days, on route to Vietnam. More lessons learned…..I still need to be stronger at saying ’NO’, I can get over homesickness, Sri Lankan people are lovely, I still need my mother from time to time (she’ll love this bit), I definitely prefer potato to rice and finally, I still hate my mouth over heating from too much chilli/spice ? (But I am getting better).