Sri Lanka 2026

This morning, we said goodbye to Kandy and sang Happy Birthday to one of our group as we left the hotel. We then drove a couple of hours towards Kitulgala where we did white water rafting, amazing fun! Part way along, at the swimming area, we all got our for a leisurely swim/float down river for a few minutes and were expertly lifted back into the raft by the shoulders of our life vests! We were the only raft not to capsize and we were perhaps a bit too pleased about that! We finished at our lunch stop where there were lots of Sri Lankans celebrating their return from climbing Adam's Peak. An option for us tomorrow but only 3 of our group are doing it, looks far too much like hard work and it's a midnight start! After (another) buffet lunch we took the ferry across the river And a walked back to the bus through a village and over a rickety suspension bridge We were welcom...

This morning we had a bit of a lie in....not sure how we managed to sleep through the dawn chorus! After a good breakfast we had a short guided bus tour of the town and were dropped off to spend the day as we wished. Firstly we went to the fish and meat markets. There were far more flies than fish, the smell was none too pleasant either! We walked through the underpass with it's colourful murals and into the fruit and veg market. Incredibly hot and humid inside as it had a metal roof. The stall holders were friendly and chatty. passing the clock tower at the centre of town a view of the Buddah statue upon the hill and a tuk tuk car park On to the clothes market which was certainly not hassle free, so we walked straight through and on into the shopping mall (with air-conditioning!) After a cool down we took some photos at the lakeside. Lots of bird life nesting in very close p...

We were woken by birdsong around 6 a.m as usual, it was lovely to sit on our balcony for a while before breakfast and the heat and humidity built. The entrance to our hotel We had an early start and set off at 8 a.m for the Temple of the Tooth, which houses the most important Buddhist relic in Sri Lanka. It was a crowded and atmospheric visit. The smell of incense mixed with jasmine flowers hung in the air. People wear white as a sign of purity. Raj, the royal elephant until the 1980's, was stuffed and now has pride of place in the museum. Around the room are photos depicting his life. Around the grounds Then into the modern temple  Where the story of the Buddah's tooth is depicted on the walls On into the main temple to join an evergrowning queue of people waiting in the increasing heat and humidity to give their offerings to Buddha A table set wth some of the offerings ...