“In Sri Lanka, when two strangers meet, they ask a series of questions that reveal family, ancestral village, and blood ties until they arrive at a common friend or relative. Then they say, "Those are our people, so you are our people." It's a small place. Everyone knows everyone.

Nayomi Munaweera,

Note to Self!

1) When arriving in a new country or city, aim to arrive in daylight hours

2 Avoid arriving on a national public holiday!

Naturally, on a recent trip to Sri Lanka I land at Colombo’s rather charming airport at 12.30am on Christmas Day!

Sri Lanka is a predominantly Buddhist country and the government there recognizes all religious holidays so, of course on the day of my arrival everything in the capital was closed. It is also illegal to serve alcohol anywhere in the country on a religious holiday be it, Buddhist, Muslim or Christian. Pretty cool sentiments. Well maybe not the alcohol bit,…it’s hot, I would love a beer.

Since I was a boy I have long hankered to visit Sri Lanka when the island was known as Ceylon, Coveted and ‘colonized’ by the Portuguese, the Dutch and finally the British. These colonial ‘masters’ were after one thing, Cinnamon. Considered more valuable than gold in the 17 & 18th centuries meant that fleets of sailing ships arrived in droves to carry off this sweet smelling treasure bound for the markets of Europe and beyond.

Sri Lanka is not a big country, just a few hundred miles from top to bottom. It’s land mass resembles a perfectly shaped teardrop that perhaps, when the earth was forming, slipped down the cheek of India and landed gently in the azure blue waters of the Indian Ocean.

Blessed with high mountains,( perfect for growing tea, ) large areas of dense jungle, savannah plains, and beaches so white they almost blind, and, with a pleasant all year round climate; this really is, paradise personified.

My first few days in Colombo however didn’t impress. The public holiday meant I could hire a Three Wheeler, or Tuk Tuk, as they are known in India, with little trouble at all. In this, the most efficient and popular form of transport I was able to whizz around the deserted, wide city streets, normally choked with thick traffic with ease.

These days Colombo seems to have broken out in a rash of development. Large cranes pepper the skyline like tall, leafless trees in winter, all racing to construct tall apartment or office towers along the picturesque foreshore. I got the distinct impression that this was a city or indeed a country in a hurry.

 A thirty- year civil war between the north and south only ended in 2011 and, coupled with that, a terrible tsunami struck in 2004 killing tens of thousands of its population. At the time of writing Chinese consortiums are working around the clock, building a new port as well as other projects such as the Lotus Tower, a telecommunications tower that looks like a gigantic hand grenade that has been placed atop a 600ft slim, concrete tower. Given the country’s war torn history, one would have thought that the architects would have designed something a little more ‘sensitive.’

I have a weakness for British colonial architecture and so I sought out a few gems that have stood the test of time, one of them being the Galle Face Hotel.

This magnificent grand old lady has played host to writers, actors, heads of state and a sprinkling of pop stars including, Somerset Maugham, D.H Lawrence, Mark Twain, Noel Coward, Richard Nixon, Sting and Bono to name a few.

There wasn’t much to keep me in this sprawling city and so I headed south- west to the hills and, Kandy, the cultural capital of the nation. Escaping the city sprawl, I soon expected to be in open countryside but am sadly disappointed as we struggle through thick traffic past an endless row of strip malls all seemingly selling the same things.

Kandy was pleasantly cool and the city is peppered with a number of British Heritage listed hotels surrounding a man- made lake dating back centuries, which pleased me greatly. However after two days there I was itching to move on, still not convinced that Sri Lanka was the place for me.

From here the roads suddenly become quieter as they snake up into what is known here as, “the high country.’ Finally Sri Lanka was beginning to seduce me as she revealed her stunning beauty as we traverse the rolling tea plantations. Lipton, Rothschild, Pitco and a variety of other famous brands got their start right here in these mountains that this morning are draped in a fine, almost transparent mist.

The higher we go, the tea begins to peter out only to give way to spectacular rain forests intersected by rushing streams and rivers that tumble down from a multitude of abundant springs turning into spectacular waterfalls on their journey to the sea.

At this stage of the journey, I am heading for Sigariya, a 14th century citadel dominated by Lion Rock a sacred landmark that requires the visitor to climb 1622 steps to reach the summit if you want to enjoy the view! From the top looking out over the plains one can see the giant statues of Buddha that sprinkle the landscape. They are impossibly huge and most have been built atop hills and high ground so that they can be seen for miles.

Sri Lanka, like India and Africa has an abundance of wildlife and so I feel compelled to do a ‘safari’ into the Yala national Park, staying in a tented camp for two nights. Now, when it comes to game parks I have been spoiled as I have experienced many in Africa so of course Yala was unfortunately a bit of a disappointment. I am still yet to be fortunate enough to see a leopard in the wild and this time was no different ( one did appear but was driven away when about twenty game viewing vehicles descended upon it)

This park needs some serious environmental management if it is to thrive. It’s fairly small, yet nearly 400 game viewing vehicles are plying the park’s dirt roads at any one time and consequently on two occasions we found ourselves stuck in traffic! However, the park has some spectacular bird life and elephants, buffalo and deer seem to abound at every turn.

Now to the coast and it is here where my real love affair with Sri Lanka was consecrated. The beaches are pristine, the water deliciously warm and the sun always seems to shine. I round off this brief trip with a stay at the Galle Fort Hotel (a building dating back to 1785) inside the massive walls of the Galle Fort.  This town has been restored to its original grandeur and is altogether charming. I was reluctant to leave!

I have glossed over much of what Sri Lanka has to offer and I will at some point return to this story and cover the impressive temples, the wonderful people and its fascinating history. It is indeed a small place but it has so much to offer and, even though it took a while, it certainly captured my heart!

Photographs copyright E.J. Lenahan & Paul v Walters