I am very excited to share this epic journey I’ve just had to Sri Lanka. It is a magical place which warmed my soul. I wanted to go some time ago but couldn’t be possible. This country is calling me since long time ago and finally it was the moment!
It was an adventure filled with the craziness of the indian style, amazing mountains, tea plantations, waterfalls, palms everywhere, breathtaking beaches, special travelers, sacred Buddhist sites, hiking, train rides, surfing and nice surfers ;), elephants (including getting chased by a wild one!), amazing food, special people and more.
I learned so much about not only some exciting plants, foods, Ayurveda, ways of living, personal stories,… by talking to local experts, to local people and visiting sacred places, but I also learned more about myself!
Let’s now take a little trip to this amazing island called the tear drop India, shall we?!
First day I arrived to Sri Lanka, I took a bus from the airport to Mawanella, a small town near to Kandy were I met with Rosh, an Ayurveda doctor who I met by coachsurfing and who offer me his place my first nights. He told me a lot of things about the interesting Ayurveda and show me around the garden where the herbs and plants use in this natural medicine are growth. I saw natural sandalwood, cinnamon, cocoa, aloes, vanilla and more.
Also he introduced me in the typical Sri Lanka food, rice and curry. I love that the traditional cuisine is so veg-centric and fresh, and mostly naturally vegan and gluten-free! Just a dream difficult and expensive to find in Europe! Sri Lanka food abounds in natural produce- which is all or largely organic, and non-GMO. I LOVED visiting the local markets and seeing all the beautiful colors, as well as the bustling, vibrant energy of bargaining and trading.
First days in Sri Lanka remembered me a bit my first trip to India, how people look like, lifestyle, the smell of mixed species and especially the crazy drivers, honking and overtaking without measures. Endless bus trips, overcrowded, hot hot hot, dirty and crazy, landscapes were my painkillers all time.
Next stop was Nuwara Eliya, where a lot of the Ceylon black tea is grown and you can go on fabulous hikes. It is breathtaking! Amazing green mountains, fresh air, waterfalls and charming village on the hills. For a country about the size of Ireland, Sri Lanka has an incredibly diverse array of climates, these mountains were really cool. I stayed in Nilmini’s house, amazing family that host me for a night. Also I met Ajo who show me arround and tell me all about the place.
Next day I took a bus to Arugam Bay, knowed as a surfers paradise. This is a super awesome, chill surfer town, where you can hang and explore for days (or a few weeks!). I came for 2 days and I couldn’t left the place after a week. Definitely, my best days of the trip. It seems when you arrive to a magical place with energy, your own power can grew as you can’t imagine… Making that everything will be possible. I really found my place there, feeling alive, happy and on peace. It was due to a group of things: the energy of the place, the nature gifts, the people with who I crossed paths, how I felt there and how I was there. Yoging, surfing, writting, painting, dancing, ciclying, knowing everyone on town enjoying the sea, sunrises, sunsets, nature, wild animals and real food.
Just as the dozens of fishing boats are pulling up around daybreak, the surfers are headed out for the break!
This was a surf break called Panama Beach that you had to take a tuk-tuk about 30 minutes to get to, through the jungle and dirt roads.
Great local cafe/juice bar called Hideaway. They have their own garden, lots of king coconuts, vegan lattes, and green smoothies. Come by if you come for sure!
Certainly no shortage of king coconuts! I had 2-3 a day. And look how this creative local chopped us up some little mice coconuts 🙂
Motorbike road trips
Amazing sunsets
Always in good comapany
Ah…Sri Lankan food!!! SO good. Delicious fruit with amazing flouvor. The main ones available are pineapple, papaya, mangoes and bananas, but there are others as well as you can see here and I tried for my very first time – wood apples, dragon fruit, starfruit, durian, red bananas and jack fruit!
The traditional lunch is rice and curry- which translates to many separate bowls brought out of daal, a variety of local vegetables- such as bitter melon, beets, okra, pumpkin, and some salads like cucumber/tomato. My favorites dishes ever, it seems they made them just for me 🙂
They also cook with coconut oil, and because they do not use or top dishes with ghee, and use a lighter amount of spices. Keep in mind that I would refill the veggie dishes and daal a few times, eating a pretty large amount. But I was active and the food was light and non-oily, and I didn’t get bloated or gain weight!
Locals love to speak and ask foreigners and they always make the same questions: your name? Chandra? Beautiful name! It is a sinhalese name! your country? Ooouh Spain! Messiiiii! You single? Why? You beautiful, do you wanna married me? They are really funny, you will be always laughing with them.
When I felt ready to leave Arugam Bay, I went to Ella. Beautiful as Nuwara Eliya, charming town on the hills surrounded by amazing mountains, tea plantations, waterfalls and full of nice people.
Riding the train from Ella to Kandy through the mountains and along the edges of cliff drops was just beautiful. You go through all these mountain tunnels, through the forest and the tea country…and amazing journey onto itself.
Another place you can miss in Sri Lanka is Kandy, knowned as the cultural capital of Sri Lanka. I found there, just by chance walking arround a wise ayurveda doctor than in less than 1 hour discover things of me that still I can’t belive. I strongly belive our medicine should learn a lot of things about ayurveda. He gives me a treatment of herbs that I will try once at home.
My last days in Sri Lanka were in Hikkadua, it was low season but the place still a paradise. Relaxing walks through the beach, snorkelling and sleep hearing the waves music.
Unfortunatelly, the trip didn’t finish as I would love it. I experienced a very horrible moments in the airport when they told me my fly was cancelled. It was my fault for buying the tickets to people that I trusted and that finally they turned out to be a scammers. After crying as a child fulfilled of impotence I had to buy a new ticket spending the money saved for my new goal. I wish nothing but the worst for this people that is earning money like that. Now is time to forget and just keep the good experience in my memory, keeping away of my life these type of people.
I’m so glad you came on this little journey with me, and hope that you feel inspired from seeing and hearing about this magical place… Please don’t miss the opportunity of discovering this country!
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