I am sick of buses!! After catching them to many destinations around Sri Lanka, the most common element between them is that they are all packed fuller than tinned sardines in a Tokyo train. Our last bus trip was to Tangalla, which required a full day on three different buses to reach from Nuwara Eliya. Unfortunately, we were unable to meet Vicki. We were unable to get in contact with her because all the internet cafes were closed due to the Wesak holiday. The first day of Wesak, a week long festival, is Poya, during which free food stalls open up on the streets. Motorists are flagged down by pedestrians to indicate a location where food is given out, which can range from tea and biscuits or punch to rice and curry or desserts. Apart from these food stalls, which are spaced far apart, all food shops are closed for the holiday. Luckily, our hotelier took us for a ride with his family to visit several of these food stalls. The ride was hours long through the Sri Lankan countryside, and we ended up in a nature reserve, where we saw wild elephants hiding in the shade of road-side trees and bison bathing in the lake. Showing ever more generosity, our hotelier took us to see the lantern displays that are a key elemant of the Wesak festival in the evening, and then provided us with copious amounts of the most delicious rice and curry that we have had yet. Thankyou, Ravindu Guesthouse!
After two nights spent enjoying the festivities, we moved on to Galle. Although I usually have low expectations of cities, this turned out to be one of the nicest places in Sri Lanka. Staying in the fort at a place called the lighthouse view hotel, we had fun exploring the whole fort on the first evening there. Galle contains many lovely boutique shops, which we spent the day perusing before we took the train to Colombo, and the flight to Jordan, and the beginning of my exploration of Europe – the next big stage of the trip!
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