© Sean Stephen

It was my first visit to Anamaduwa with the Red Dot Team and based on what I had heard in the past from colleagues who’d been to The Mud House, about two hours north of Colombo, I was really looking forward to it. The biggest question was would I be able to survive two nights away from civilization, without things that we today consider as basics – my phone, TV, motorized transport and coffee?

© Sean Stephen

Despite the fact that we reached The Mud House a quarter past midnight, much later than we had intended, Tom and Kumar the owners of Mud House still gave us the warmest of welcomes and ushered us with torches on a walk through the shrub jungle for our dinner. The dining area looked quite medieval owing to the kerosene lamps and candles that lit the vast dining space.

© Sean Stephen

Once we destroyed our dinner, we were each shown to our huts. Mine was outside the main compound and as a result we boarded a Mud House tuk tuk for our last form of motorized mode of transport.

The next day after a healthy herbal soup (Kola Kanda) and one of the best and simplest of local breakfasts we made our way on our bicycles to a large ground where the staff of Mud House along with the villagers had a full day of Avurudu (Sri Lankan New Year) Games prepared for us.

© Sean Stephen

With games like ‘Kotta Pora’ a pillow fight where two contestants have to maintain their balance on a log while trying to knock their opponent off, tug of war and Kana Mutti, where a blindfolded participant has to find their way to a row of clay jars and smash the one with the lotus flower inside, the games were all planned masterfully and traditionally. By the end of the day we were all knackered and to help us rejuvenate, we were all brought cups of Iramusu Tea, a herbal drink that has a multitude of benefits that includes the purification of blood and helps with developing a clean system.

© Sean Stephen

At the end of the games, rather than being gifted with the usual cheap gifts you’d expect at a sports event, the winners were gifted jars of local condiments from the village such as Lime Pickle, Achcharu aka Sri Lankan Pickle (consisting of pickled onions, chillies, and other goodies) and also something truly special – a bottle of pure wild bees honey (together with waxy bits). To me the honey was the pick of the lot and was the symbolic ‘heart of Anamaduwa’. Every taste I took encompassed the flavours of numerous flora of the region – it definitely is something that I’d only bring out on the odd special occasion.

© Sean Stephen

You may ask, well did I survive two nights deprived of technology? Well, after I got home and switched on the TV, it seemed so alien that I had to switch it back off. I honestly can’t wait to be deprived of technology once again.

Pedlar’s Inn is an excellent small café in the heart of Galle Fort, a very good stopover if you’re looking for a bite to eat while you catch up with friends, or to take some quiet time reading a book. The café is situated on Pedlar’s Street which can be reached from Lighthouse Street or the ramparts.

© Naren Gunasekera

Ambience

The café is popular with locals, foreign expatriates and tourists and has a cosmopolitan and fun atmosphere with a steady stream of guests throughout the day. At breakfast, lunch and dinner it can get busy and you might have to wait for a table while for the rest of the day it is laid-back and the perfect place to sit down with a good book. Seating comes in a variety of forms: you can either lounge on comfortable sofas arranged around tables or on tables and chairs on the verandah or in a nice quiet garden area at the back where you can sit among leafy green trees and enjoy a bit of fresh air.

Food

The menu is simple offering a mixture of Western and Asian dishes with an emphasis on typical café-style food. You can choose from a selection of sandwiches and pastas. We ordered tuna and smoked chicken baguettes. They came with a side of fries, which was unexpected and welcome. Unfortunately, though, the fries were overcooked and too salty for our taste buds. There was also a nice fresh salad.

© Naren Gunasekera

Drinks

We universally decided to wash the meal down with one of the lesser known brands of ginger beer in Sri Lanka, Lion Ginger Beer. It has quite a distinctive flavor and kick compared to the regular Elephant House Ginger Beer and I highly recommend it to anyone who thinks they can handle it. Pedlar’s has a wide range of fresh fruit juices as well. The café does not have a liquor licence and therefore does not serve beer or wine.

Other

There is free wi-fi for those wanting to check their e-mails and there is also a good shelf of books to keep you occupied while you wait for the food. Parking is limited as you are inside the fort but this is easily walkable if you are staying inside the fort. The food and location is quite child friendly. The café closes on Friday lunch for prayers

© Naren Gunasekera

It was clear when we got to Sri Serendipity, the quirky café owned by our host Juliet Coombs, that we were in the right place. The Coombs family hail from a lineage of merchants who made their home inside the Galle Fort centuries ago and pictures and books telling of the Fort’s history adorned the walls. None of us had actually met Juliet; all we knew was that she was an international reporter who had fallen in love with Sri Lanka and, in the process, had also met the love of her life in the Fort.

Soon after we arrived, a large group of tourists walked in led by a lady who was dressed in a black outfit complemented by a pair of long leather boots. She would later introduce herself as Juliet Coombs. After a brief introduction and placing our fresh-juice orders in advance, we were off. Juliet was attired in one of the most uncharacteristic outfits you’d expect for a walk in a tropical country, but she seemed quite comfortable. It was far from what we were feeling, panting and sweating just to keep up with her pace.

Juliet showed us that all the walls were entirely made up of fossil corrals and clay! Not only that, she’d later reveal that all the original houses inside the Fort were also made of the same, providing a strong structure that kept houses nice and cool. She also pointed to one of the boats close to the horizon and said that before the tsunami of 2004 hit the Southern coast, the waters receded that far out, revealing 26 shipwrecks – vestiges of the fort’s defences. We then were guided to a few of the ammunition stores which housed cannons, gunpowder and even shells. They might seem pretty ancient, but according to Juliet a few of them still house live ammunition and gunpowder, so a word of caution to all smokers. Taking a break from the fortress walls, we made our way through Church Road where the rich aromas of street foods filled the air and merged with the smells of burning incense sticks close to the mosque. Juliet told us that the mosque that sits on Church Road is believed to have been a church that was later converted into a mosque. I don’t doubt it as architecturally it doesn’t look like any mosque I have seen before. We later visited one of the many museums in the Galle Fort where we saw how semi-precious stones were still cut traditionally. And looked through some of the ancient crockery, and cooking utensils brought in during colonization.

Before we ended our walk, Juliet stopped abruptly at what seemed to be an ordinary postbox. It turned out that this post box is a George V Royal Mail box, made out of one block of stone. The sturdy box weighed at least a ton and all our efforts to try and lift it were futile. After our long, yet thoroughly exciting walk, we headed back to Sri Serendipity where we asked questions and continued our discussion on the Fort over the drinks we had ordered earlier.

We started off with a brand new property in the town of Chilaw in the North Western coast of the country. Chilaw is well known for its fish market, as well as the prawn farms, which produce most of the high quality prawn of the country. Irana Villa, situated in Chilaw, is the newest addition to the Back of Beyond group of properties, which focus mostly on properties with more of a rustic, homely feel.

We had breakfast here, Sri Lankan style. I must say I enjoyed the meal, as it was just like a homemade one cooked by my Grandma, Jane Nona, at her home in the hills near Gampola.

From there we moved on to Kalpitiya, situated in the North Western Peninsula of Sri Lanka, which is most popular for dolphin watching throughout the year, and whale watching during winter. Alankuda Beach is one of the main tourist destinations in Kalpitiya, where many properties in the vicinity work in partnership, to ensure that all travellers will experience much more at Alankuda, than any one property could provide in the whole region.

Dolphin Beach offers luxury accommodation, but with a unique tented feel. They plan to build a pool within the property in the near future, but until such time, guests are more than welcome to use any of the pools in the neighboring properties such as Bar Reef or Palagama Beach.

Bar Reef

You can either take a short walk, or use the hotel’s ‘Tuk Tuk’, which is free of charge to any guests who want to visit neighbouring properties. In the same way, Dolphin Beach has an authentic pizza oven, which is the only one in the area, and they will deliver orders to any other property too, if guests in other properties have a craving.

The Dolphin Beach Pizza oven

All the properties in Alankuda Beach are different to one another, but similar at the same time. The properties we visited include Udekki and Kohomba House as well. Kohomba House is sold as a unit, for families or friends traveling together. If we had to rank them, I’d say Bar Reef and Dolphin Beach would be at the top of the list, though Palagama Beach, Udekki and Kohomba house too are not that far behind, offering vibrant and interesting accommodation options. All the properties are managed very well, with the service friendly and at a very standard.

Our next stop was at Palpatha, situated around twenty minutes from the Wilpattu National Park, where we stayed the night. The staff here too was very friendly and accommodating of all our queries.  There is no electricity in the area for now, but all-in-all, it was not really missed. Instead of another night stuck in front of the TV we had a river bath in the evening followed by a small bonfire and a barbeque.

There is a mini power outlet in all of the rooms, which are solar powered. These units can charge mobile phone via USB, and they also supply power to LED lights in the evenings. Palpatha also boasts the ‘tented camping experience’, so there is no air conditioning, or fans in the rooms.

This came to us as a bit of a surprise, as we expected it to be quite humid throughout our stay there. However, we could not be more wrong. In contrast to the average temperatures of 27 degrees that we usually experience in Sri Lanka, early mornings in Wilpattu see temperatures of a cool 18-20 degrees. 18-20 degrees is very cold for Sri Lankans, who have grown accustomed to the humidity all our lives. We woke up at five in the morning, so that we could go for a jeep safari in the Wilpattu National Park. We put on the warmest clothes we could find – still lightweight by some European standards and left for the park.

Leopard tracks

Having been to almost all the National Parks in Sri Lanka except for Wilpattu, I personally did not expect to have an experience to match that of the Yala National Park. How wrong could I be?

Serpent Eagle

We had not even traveled a kilometre into the park, when we spotted a fully-grown leopard crossing the safari track around one hundred metres ahead. I was amazed to see a leopard so large in size, as well as so very different to leopard seen in the Yala National Park. The whole experience altogether was the best safari experience I have had up to date. The park itself is beautiful, and our tracker was very knowledgeable, sharing many interesting stories about his experiences in the park. I believe that people would have an experience to match that of the Yala National Park, if not better.

Our next stop was at The Mud House, an old favourite of the Red Dotters. They have made a few new upgrades to their property which include improvements to current accommodation, as well as more rooms and a yoga centre to be completed soon. New features include electricity in some mud houses and cabanas, and ‘the agricultural experience’, where almost all vegetation is grown in the property itself and also allows guests to take part, if they like to. Activities in the property include cycling, bird-watching and kayaking, which ensure that we would not forget our visit to The Mud House for a long time.

 The last property of our visit to the North Western coast was Cadjan Earth, set on a one hundred acre land. The lake house looks very nice, ideal for a family traveling together. The other unit, situated around 100 meters away is called the Tree House, which can also accommodate a family. I felt that this was the ideal place to complete our visit, to show us, as well as other travelers, that all areas of Sri Lanka has so much to offer.

Cadjan Earh

So back to work, for us Red Dotters, the only difference being that we now want travelers to see what we saw, experience what we experienced, in the North Western coast of the land we love.

A scene from the movie Jurassic Park

I’m not sure whether any of you have watched Jurassic Park, but I was just a kid when I did, and one thing that really stuck in my mind is that moment when Richard takes off his hat and his jaw drops at the sight of the Brontosaurus. The moment when we saw our first Blue Whale was no different as there’s nothing quite like the experience of seeing the largest animal to have ever roamed Earth up close.

Red Cliffs – The Bawa property

It all began in the wee hours of a Sunday Morning. I along with fellow Red Dotters had stayed the night at a beautiful Geoffrey Bawa property – Red Cliffs. We didn’t see much the previous night when we arrived as it was too dark, but the beautiful 180 degree view from Mirissa to the Weligama bay was definitely to die for and left me wondering why such a lovely property has been under the radar.

Red Dotters all donned up and on the lookout

After just a 2 minute drive to Mirissa Water Sports (MWS), our Whale Watching experts of choice, we collected our meal boxes and bottles of water and made our way to the docks close by where we were escorted on board our private boat. After donning our life-jackets, we took off into the great blue unknown.

The sun rises in Mirissa

The sun was just beginning to rise as we were setting out, and we caught sight of a few fishermen in their catamarans heading back to shore with their catch.

A fisherman heads back with his catch

It was a long boat ride and the waters were choppy at moments. Even after we lost sight of the shore, the ride was quite uneventful other than a giant turtle who seemed to wave at us with one of its fins before going under and a couple of flying fish (who amazingly could fly over the surface for a good 30 seconds!)

Frolicking Striped Dolphins

We were closing in on the shipping lines a few hours later when it started to get exciting. A large cargo ship had just passed by and a small school of 5 to 6 Striped Dolphins were using the waves the vessel had generated for to show off their skills. They weren’t as acrobatic as Spinner Dolphins, but they sure looked like they were having fun.

Another dolphin having fun

After another brief lull in activity, our spotters shouted out to us and pointed out a tiny fountain in the distance. How they spotted it I haven’t got a clue as it all seemed like a sea of waves to me. We picked up speed and cut off the engines as we were getting close.

A Blue Whale makes an appearance

The waters parted revealing a vast surface much like that of a World War II submarine, creating powerful and awesome waterspouts that reached at least 5 to 6 times my height. We were told by our crew that the sighting would quickly start to draw attention and sure enough 6 to 7 other boats filled with happy snapping tourists began to close in.

A Blue Whale shows its fluke before diving into the deep

Being the responsible tour providers they are, the crew of MWS decided it was best to move away so not to distress the animal and boy was it a great move for just as we passed the shipping lines, we came across so many whales that we couldn’t decide which way to go. On the day we spotted a total of 10 Blue Whales!

Boats closing in

After our thirst for sightings was quenched and as we noticed the area was slowly drawing more and more boats, we decided to head back to shore.

A wave of Bottlenose Dolphins at a distance

A few miles later, we spotted what seemed to be a large wave, but as we drew closer we realized that the large wave was actually a 400 strong school of Bottlenose dolphins! What was clear though was that these dolphins were not frolicking like the ones we saw earlier, but were rather seemed to be swimming for their lives- the reason? A large naval vessel carrying up to 100 passengers was tailing the animals, sometimes causing the school to split and head in different directions.

The ones to avoid – the large navy vessel

The vessel which was steering sharply, sometimes overtaking the animals and blocking their route was a sad sight and highlights the reason why people who wish to be a part of this experience should choose a responsible provider even though it may cost a bit more.

Up close and personal

Forget about bringing extinct dinosaurs back to life, experiencing the largest animal ever in its true environment is definitely something I will never forget and should be something we should all strive to protect.

Picture courtesy goodtrippers.co.uk

What do a bunch of Tuk-tuks and two goal posts have in common? Well, nothing that I can really think of, which is why the world’s first ever Tuk-tuk Polo tournament will definitely be a spectacle you wouldn’t want to miss!

Those fortunate enough to be in the Galle Fort in early March will have been able to watch practice sessions for one of the most curious events surely ever staged between the old walls.

The event featured two teams each consisting of three tuk tuks, with their own passenger/ player who was expected to make use of the driver’s exceptional maneuvering techniques along with some exceptional hand-eye coordination to whack a ball into the opposition’s goal.

The one-of event has been organized by the Ceylon Polo Club.

We were only over an hour out of Kandy when we spotted our first mini waterfalls and streams of spring water flowing through the rocks as we snaked around them. As we kept climbing, the roads became mistier, but a magnificent white Buddha statue which overlooks the valley acted as a beacon as if to guide our way.

The view before the descent

After a brief stop at a viewpoint, we began our descent and began counting the bends. I had not traveled this road since I was a child and the sheer drops weren’t as scary as I remembered them.

Somewhere between Mahiyangana and Pasekudah

On our journey through Mahiyangana,  we stopped off for lunch at a small guest house called Tikiri Villas . The flavours in the meal, especially in the greens, really stood out and it was obvious that we were in a very agriculture-centric region.

If you are looking for a budget holiday, and a chance to experience the simple things in life, this is definitely an undiscovered region of Sri Lanka to consider. The region hardly sees vehicles, so much so that farmers and villagers momentarily stop what they are doing just to see who is passing by.

The distant call of a peacock and the other bird-life in the area begged me to stay a bit longer, but we still had a long way to go.

We were passing through the area called Dambana, on a relatively dense forest road, when I noticed quite a big change. Almost all the men in the area wore sarongs, but had no tops. They all also had long hair and beards, but not in an unkempt kind of way. Some of them had even tied their hair in a bun.

A Veddha (picture courtesy of veddha.org)

It is then that I realized that we were in the land of the Veddhas, the Sri Lankan aborigines. Our chauffeur stopped to ask a group of them directions and I noticed that while I could understand some things they said, their dialect was still very different.

The Veddhas invited us to their village as they were to have a tribal dance that evening. It would have been a great experience, but we unfortunately had to turn down the offer as we were running short of time.

After a couple more hours of traveling of driving through lush paddy fields, we arrived at our destination, Uga Bay, which looked even more spectacular under the stars.

The Uga Bay beach

Be it the calm seas, the fine beach front where the sand is sifted regularly, or their splendid rooms, the Uga Bay hotel prides itself in perfection. The thing that impressed me the most however was our morning breakfast spread, which is one of the best I have had!

A quarter of the lip smacking Uga breakfast spread.

With an organic tropical fruit plate, oven fresh buns and cakes, delicious berry and vanilla-flavoured buffalo curd yoghurt, and an avocado smoothie all made and processed in-house, I thought I wouldn’t have space for the rest of my breakfast. It truly can be considered one of their trademarks and I will definitely go back for more.

The entrance to Uga Bay

Rubber and tea plantations

I have always been a sucker for adventure, scaling rocks without equipment, checking how fast I can go on a bike without a helmet and I even attempted to ballroom dance, which didn’t turn out too well. Whitewater rafting has always been on the top of my bucket list, keeping company with bungee jumping, sky diving, and a roller coaster ride (yes, I haven’t been on one yet)

While I was thrilled to hear that the Red Dot team had been invited to Borderlands for a rafting trip, the wait was a killer.

The drive from Colombo was quite relaxing and scenic, with gradual transitions from urban city backgrounds to the vast rubber and tea cultivations of the hill country.

View of the tented accommodation from the river

When we arrived in Kitulgala, we met Gwen, sales and marketing manager for Borderlands who introduced us to the Borderlands team and showed us around the 10 stilted VIP tents that overlook the waters of Kitulgala.

Braving the rapids

Once we put on water shoes and stored our valuables in the safe care of the staff, we were led to the equipment store that lies just along the main road. We then donned our lifejackets, helmets and collected an oar before we climbed aboard the Borderlands 4×4 that took us on a bumpy but exciting ride to the start off point.

By the waters, we were all given safety briefings and tips by Mahesh and Supun, our guides for the day, who then led us to the chilly but refreshing waters. Once we were comfortable with our equipment, we were divided among two rafts and we were off.

Kitulgala only found its way into guidebooks after the major Hollywood movie – The Bridge on the River Kwai – which was filmed here in 1956. From then on it’s become the centre for white-water rafting in the island.

Scene from 'The Bridge on the River Kwai'

While we had the occasional running aground due to the opening of the sluice gates every Sunday further downstream, it didn’t mar the experience at all.

After breaking downstream and taking part in a few awesome games including assisted flips into the water off our upturned raft, we began our uphill trek. Even though the track we were on was in regular use by fellow rafters, it seemed very much an unbeaten track.

We later descended carefully on all-fours over slippery rocks to a gorge with pools of varying sizes where we were about to experience a true challenge of mind and body.

Canyoning

Taking 12 foot plunges into pools of water, sliding down natural waterslides, and cheering each other on across the finish line, it was truly an unforgettable experience  and to me, the highlight of the excursion. We later made our way back to our rafts and raced each other back to camp. Some of us seeing that the water was calmer downstream got the go-ahead from our guides to jump back into the water and swim back. Others were just playfully thrown out.

We ended the evening with steaming pots of rice and curry that were waiting for us as soon as we got to camp, which we in turn wolfed down.

As Kitulgala is named after the Kitul tree, a strange looking tree from which treacle is collected, no visit to Kitulgala will be complete without the purchase of sweet Kitul jaggery which was readily

available at a roadside shop. Too bad there wasn’t any left by the time we reached home.

Pure Kitul Jaggery

Recent restrictions imposed on tented safaris, have also dealt a major blow to both operators, and tourists who want to mix luxury and the wild, and has resulted in the need for tourists and travelers to find a compromise at lesser known properties.

There is hope however, with the recent opening of the luxury Grand Udawalawe Safari Resort.

The property which possesses the region’s first Ayurveda hotel will provide a traditional holistic dimension to the ‘wild’ experience.

According to reports, the resort is positioned to be a 4-star property, also another first in the region.

Lonely Planet highlighted the growth rate of visitors to the island after the end of nearly 30 years of civil war in 2009 as one of the main reasons for it striking the numero uno spot on the list.

What was also highlighted was the number of eco-tourism hotspots across the country in addition to the wide variety of activities and atmospheres that make it one of the planet’s best value destinations.

Following Sri Lanka on the list of countries to visit were Montenegro, South Korea, Ecuador and Slovakia.