The Srilankan Highlands

Kandy

Kandy Lake

Back in Colombo, my plan was to take the train to Kandy which was the capital of Sri Lanka for over 200 years before taking the famed train from Kandy to Ella up in the Sri Lankan Highlands. The train ride from Colombo to Kandy takes around 3 hours.  

The World Heritage Site of Kandy is located in the central highlands at around 1600 Feet and became the capital of the Sinhalese kings in 1592 who preserved their independence during the period of European colonial rule until 1815, when the British ousted Sri Wickrama Rajasinha and exiled him to Vellore in India. Kandy became a centre for both Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism and its most important temple is Dalada Maligava or the “Temple of the Tooth”, where a tooth of the Buddha is believed to be preserved.

Temple of the Tooth

I stayed at Hanthana Jungle View Holiday Home which was at a height on the edge of a forest reserve and about 3 Kms from the city. The main area of the city is a large man made lake surrounded by various Buddhist and Hindu temples. In the morning, I set out walking and spent the day visiting the temples and going around the lake. There are restaurants and shopping areas along the lake that make for a pleasant day out. 

The temples I visited were the Temple of the Tooth and four Devalayas or temples for Gods. These are Vishnu, Kataragama (Murugan), Pattini and Natha (Avalokiteswara). 

Dance Performance

I hadn't heard of a Goddess called Pattini earlier. On researching further, I found out that Pattini (also called Kaṇṇaki by Srilankan Tamil Hindus) originated in South India and is considered a guardian deity of Sri Lanka. She is a patron goddess of fertility and health, particularly protection against smallpox. While female deities do not occupy major positions in Buddhism, Goddess Pattini is an exception. The Pattini cult in Sri Lanka dates back to the 2nd Century A.D and is an example of the Hindu-Buddhist synergism.

The Kandy lake is well kept and clean and made for a pleasant walk. In the evening, there was a traditional dance performance at YMBA (Young Men's Buddhist Association) which showcases Kandy and Sri Lankan dance forms and also includes a fire walk. Though tailor made for tourists, it gives a good introduction to Sri Lankan dances. 

Overall, Kandy is a pleasant experience and a must see before heading higher up to the hills. Next day I caught the early morning train to travel to the town of Ella.

Ella

Train to Ella

The train to Ella goes through some beautiful landscape before it reaches Nuwara Elia and then onwards to Ella. The train is surprisingly modern and spotlessly clean, unlike the trains in India. Its one of the best train journeys that I have undertaken in South Asia and a must do in Sri Lanka. I made the reservation online and the train was nice and comfortable, not at all crowded and mainly filled with tourists and upper middle class Sri Lankans. It was Thursday 9th November and the total journey took around 7 1/2 hours 

Ella is a beautiful hill town surrounded by forests. I stayed in a Hotel called Ella Waterfall view which had rooms dramatically facing the Kuda Ravana Waterfalls. One could sit in the porch sipping tea and watch the waterfall! In the afternoon, it rained and the waterfall turned big and brown. The hotel is 1.5 km up from the main streets and can be reached in a nice 20 minutes walk.

Ella Rock Hike

The next day early morning, a little way below from the hotel is the train line and I followed the tracks in the other direction for a trek to the Ella Rock View point. It took around 1 1/2 hours and it was a pleasant walk uphill through a black bridge, small waterfall, forested trees, cave temples and then a dramatic view from the view point. A little further up is view point 2 and from there I could see the Main Ravana Waterfalls far away which is on the main road and quite beautiful. According to legend, it is said that Ravana had kidnapped princess Sita, and hidden her in the caves behind this waterfall.

In the town near the railway station, there are tons of restaurants and shops filled with tourists and is a great place for meeting up, buying food and souvenirs, eating in the restaurants and people watching. 

Nine Arches Bridge

The following day, I walked down to the main road from the hotel and a few Kms from there is the hike to Little Adam's Peak Trailhead which is another view point and easily accessible. After finishing that, I took the route to go to the Nine Arches Bridge which is one of the most photographed sites in Sri Lanka and an instagrammable location. It gets quite crowded and one has to go there based on the train timings so that one can photograph the train moving over the bridge. There's quite a jostle to select the right spot for the photos!  

A few days in Ella and it was time to finish the journey and go back to Colombo. I took an express bus through Wellawaya going down south of the Island and taking the newly built E01 expressway to drop me at Makumbura east of Colombo. We went past the new Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport and the infamous port of Hambantota lay further south. The total journey took around 4 1/2 hours and is very smooth indicative of the infrastructure that Sri Lanka has been building with generous help from the Chinese. 

Overall Experience and Thoughts

Politics and Infrastructure 

I covered most part of Central and Southern Sri Lanka and plan to travel to the North and East in another trip. Overall, I found the country to be peaceful and no visible signs are apparent of the latest economic turmoil that the citizens had to go through. The political discourse in the Sri Lankan TV channels were civil and very respectful considering the cacophony and bias in Indian TV channels. There is an understanding that the country has to reestablish its credibility and the people are cautiously optimistic. 

Wherever I went, there was appreciation for India and her economic progress, Modi's leadership and the Chandrayaan landing on the Moon. India is regarded as a successful country and on the right path to a bright future.

Infrastructure and cleanliness is better than India which I have experienced in most of the South East Asian countries. All across kids can be seen going to school like in Kerala and literacy is high. 

Religion and Culture

Culturally, the big revelation to me was the diversity of people and religions. There are the Sinhalese in the south, Sri Lankan Tamils in the North, Indian Tamils in the highlands and tea estates. There are also Burghers who are descended from Portuguese, Dutch, British and other Europeans who settled in Ceylon. The Buddhists are predominantly in the south, Hindus in the North, Muslims mainly in the eastern coasts and Christians spread across in the major cities.  

The Sinhalese descend from Bengalis and Oriyas who had crossed over when Buddhism was introduced to Sri Lanka and 30% of the Genetic make up of Sinhalese is still Bengali. This is reflected in their food which unlike the Tamilian Sambar and Rasam consists of yellow dal similar to Bengal. However, food is cooked in Coconut Oil by Sinhalese and Tamils alike. Another similarity is the Kandyan Saree used by the Sinhalese where the style of draping is believed to have been derived from the Bengali style of draping a sari.

Food

Food is diverse and includes influences from India, Indonesia and Malaysia. There are Idiyappam and Egg Hoppers like in Kerala to Kottu Roti which is a Muslim and Tamil influenced dish. Indonesia influenced Sambal is used along with Rice and curries like Jackfruit, Dhal (lentils) and Fish. The Dutch Burgher community has Lamprais which comes from Dutch “lump” and “rice” is a combination of meat, rice and sambal chili sauce, wrapped into a banana leaf packet and steamed.

Summary

Overall Sri Lanka is a great and inexpensive tourist destination and gives a diverse and enriching experience. The beaches are lovely, the hills and highlands are pristine and beautiful and the cities bustling and full of life. Sri Lankans are an easy going welcoming people full of warmth and generally happy disposition in spite of coming out of a brutal civil war which went on for decades, ethnic tensions, recent terrorist attacks and political and economic instability.  For Indians, we can take an example or two from the Lankans, savor the stable democracy we have and keep our cities and countryside clean and tourist friendly.