Exploratory trip in the Knuckles Range

As we drive towards the area, on this sunny morning of June, the distant mountain ranges emerge in layers of blues, greens, gold and browns. Then the five distinctive peaks of the Knuckles Range become visible in misty blue atmosphere. The beauty of the scenery has to be seen to be believed for sure. The road has to be experienced as well: it is uneven and we had to get down of the car several time to push it!

We were lucky to meet the person in charge of the Wild Conservation Department (government body) who gave us lots of information about the Knuckles Range area. According to the Wild Conservation Department, the Knuckles Range is separated from the central highlands by the Dumbara valley in the south and east, and the Matale valley in the west. The mountain’s northwest –southwest alignment forms a barrier to both monsoon winds which has a direct effect on the island’s rainfall pattern.

The terrain in extremely rugged and the hills rise to heights of 1900 m. The blend of these features has created a unique set of ecosystems with a rich fauna and flora. Many spices found here are uncommon; some are even confined entirely to the Knuckles region. There are plenty of birds, monkeys, peacocks, wild pigs as well as snakes and reptiles. Monkeys are quite playful and would not hesitate to snatch bags if they suspect edible stuff to be in it!

A striking feature of the Knuckles region is its scenic beauty. From the Sir John’s bungalow where we stayed we had an amazing viewpoint amidst a really serene atmosphere in this old colonial cottage! Sipping the evening tea seated next to a roaring chimney was a fantastic experience and particularly enjoyable after a long day of trekking!

Eranga – Travel Executive- www.travel-in-lanka.com

A visit to the most amazing hotel in Kandy

During an exploratory trip in Kandy I have discovered the Helga’s Folly hotel. I have been amazed by this place. More than just a hotel, it’s an experience … From the outside, I was impressed by the bright colored walls. This originality has made me curious to explore the inside.

Once you go through the front door, you are transported into another world. In a profusion of details, you completely forget the outside world. Every room, wall and corner of the house is decorated in several styles: gothic, modern, antique, baroque … Everything here shows the creativity of the owner. The 35 rooms are unique, each with its own identity. It is an experience that awakens the imagination.

This visit aroused my interest about the history of this place. This magnificent property belongs to the Helga family, which is of Dutch origin. We can see pictures of them in the living room.

There is a swimming pool, a small cinema, a library and a very nice garden. It even seems that Kelly Jones of the British group ‘Stereophonics’ wrote the ‘Madam Helga’ song in reference to the hotel … During your trip to Sri Lanka, which for sure will take you to visit the center of the country, I will advise you to go for a drink or dinner at Helga’s Folly. You could even indulge spending a night there…

Thiviya – Travel Advisor- www.travel-in-lanka.com

The other face of Sri Lanka

Let me first tell you who I am and where I am from: I am a Franco-Sri Lankan originally from the Eastern part of Sri Lanka and have been brought up in France. I have decided a few years ago to go back to this island to discover its cultures, traditions, people and places… and I have always enjoyed my trips in the East coast.

Many questions from different people led me to put my thoughts in this article. I still feel that people around the world do not have a clear picture on the exact situation in Sri Lanka, especially in the Northern and Eastern provinces. It is true that those provinces have been opened to everyone only recently, after the war, in 2009. Today, people and places have begun to get their colours back. They are enjoying their own natural attractions and traditions. Many temples over there still remind of the strong influence of religions, especially Hinduism such as the famous Nallur temple in Jaffna, the colourful Koneshwar temple in Trincomalee and the Kokkadicholai temple in Batticaloa.

Furthermore many temples are located in beautiful landscapes: a few weeks ago, I have traveled by bicycle from Batticaloa town to a small village called Pandariyaveli. On the way I cycled through paddy fields and crossed a river on a kind of small boat. From there it took about 15 minutes to reach the Naga temple (great snake temple). It was a beautiful feeling when I saw the small temple surrounded by the lake full of lotus.  I really enjoyed it!

When it comes to beaches, relaxation and water sports, Nilaveli beach in Trincomalee and the white sanded Passikudah beach are the best. Different activities such as diving, snorkeling, whale watching can be done depending on the season. Last time I went to Nilaveli beach it was a year ago. The white sanded beach was so smooth and beautiful. I just seated and admired the sea while having my tropical mocktail of pineapple and coconut cream.  

As you may know, tourism has been growing in the West, South, Central part of Sri Lanka. Now the time has come to also take a look in the other regions of Sri Lanka and discover every part of this colorful Island. I have started hearing about sustainable tourism projects in the North and East which means that activities will be developed taking into account the needs of the locals and the environment. This is one more reason to come to visit these beautiful areas. So… from my own experience I can just suggest you to make yourself ready to discover “the other face of Sri Lanka”, you’ll enjoy it!

Nanthini – Travel Advisor- www.travel-in-lanka.com

The circle of life

Yala national park is the second largest national park in Sri Lanka. Actually it consists of five blocks, two of which are now open to the public. Recently I had the opportunity to go there with the rest of the Shanti Travel operations team.

Yala National Park inhabits in a remote and wild corner of South East Coast. It had originally been designated as a wildlife sanctuary in 1900, and, along with Wilpattu it was one of the first two national parks in Sri Lanka, having been designated in 1938. The park is best known for its variety of its wild animals including leopards, wild elephants, samba, deer, crocodile and a wide range of birds.

We had the opportunity to spot many of these animals during our visit to the park including a leopard! However the highlight for us was seeing the 1 day old baby elephant we were even able to see the place the mother elephant gave birth to the baby.  The heard was roaming close by with the tiny baby watched and protected closely by its elders.

Our naturalist was able to show us exactly where the birth had taken place with clear indications with traces of blood on the ground. An female elephant goes through a gestation period of 18 to 22 months and will give birth to one calf and twins in an occasional case. At birth a baby elephant weights approximately about 100 Kg.

Aaliya- Travel Executive- Shanti Travel.com

Looking for Singing Fish in Batticaloa

That name Batticaloa always fascinated me it’s because the Eastern town of Sri Lanka has the most bizarre name that doesn’t mean anything in Sinhalese, Tamil and English. When I got an opportunity to embark on a road trip with my close friends to the East coast I was really excited to visit ‘Mada Kalapuwa’!

Mada Kalapuwa  means the muddy lagoon in Sinhalese and it’s the local name for Batticaloa in both Sinahalese and Tamil. Apparently it’s the Portugese who started to call the eastern port Batticaloa! (go figure!) Historically this town is important to Sri Lanka for 2 things;

First it’s the port where the Dutch arrived to the island and made a deal with the Sinhalese king and chased away the Portuguese in the 17^th century.

Second is when the British wanted to Survey and  make a map of the island back in the day (because google maps were not available) they used trigonometry and built “The Baseline Road” today known as Elvitigala Mawatha in Colombo. Then at the end of their  survey they built an identical baseline road in Batticaloa to complete the grid. ( True story! how do I know? My father is a surveyor)

The route to Batticaloa from Colombo takes about  8 hours of driving nonstop by car via Habarana. We started our journey at 2 am from Colombo and arrived at the town at 8 am. How can I put it  -Batticaloa is an interesting town with a bustling city center and lots of shops and statues of Mermaids.  Unfortunately I was not able to find out why the towns mascot is a mermaid though.  Among other interesting  things to see in Batti is a 17^th century Dutch Fort which now houses the District Secretariat and a Light house.

The closest beach to Batticaloa is Kallady which is a beautiful place and seemed to be very popular  with the locals. I was there right on time when the fishermen were pulling the nets with their daily catch. That was an excellent photo opportunity to all my friends.

Our time was way too short in Batticaloa as we wanted to explore the rest of the eastern beaches such at Passekudha Bay. I had to abandon my quest of taking a boat trip with the local fisherman to see the ‘ so called’ singing fish of Batticaloa (how disappointing). Anyhow to make up for my disappointment for not being able to do the  boat ride, my friends decided to take me to a restaurant called ‘The Singing Fish Restaurant’  near the Batticaloa Dutch fort.  I can recommend it as the best restaurant in the town for a good local meal and a drink.

It was a great trip with lots of funny anecdotes I can’t write here.  At the end I didn’t find the Singing Fish but I tasted my first Mango  Arrack .

Vindya – Marketing & Communication – Shanti Travel.com

Hot Air Ballooning Over Kandalama- Cultural Triangle Sri Lanka

The history of hot air ballooning dates back to 18^th century France where the Montgolfier brothers do the first ever recorded flight in Annony in France and it’s truly a wonderful way to see a place in a different perspective. I was lucky enough to take a hot air ballooning ride over Kandalama recently.

We had to leave Habarana at 4:30 in the morning in order to be picked up by the Ballooning Crew at 5 am the reason for this was to take the flight before sunrise.  By 5:45 the balloon has be inflated and we were ready for lift off. There were 8 of us taking the ride and the basket that was holding on to the balloon had 4 enclosed spaces at each corner to fit 2 people and I found that really interesting.

The pilot informed us “Welcome aboard please note you can’t get out of the basket till I say you can!” and 4 spurs of gas on fire and next thing we know we were floating above the ground.  The ground was covered in morning mist and the hot air escaping from the burner provided a very cozy atmosphere around us.

The pilot announced that we were 2 thousand feet above ground and the sun started appearing from the background and wow! The view was amazing with the silhouette of Sigiriya Rock Fortress on one side and the big Golden Buddha of Dambulla on the other side. We floated above tree tops and paddy fields making photos and talking to each other and at times drifting away in our own thoughts.

It’s was around 7:30 in the morning when we began the decent and came back to reality.. Upon landing we were greeted by friendly villages and school children in white uniforms making their way to school. Keeping up with the tradition of hot air ballooning we commemorated the flight with a campaigne celebration!

If you also like to go on a hot air ballooning ride like described contact Shanti Travel for more details and booking.

Vindya- Marketing & Communications – Shanti Travel.com

Exploring The prehistoric caves of Waulpane, Rakwana- Sri Lanka

The fascinating activity of cave exploring is relatively new to sri lanka, but with an impressive range of caves located throughout the country it’s an experience not to be missed! It’s known to the experts as ‘speleology’, caving involves the exploration, surveying, mapping and photographing of caves.

Sri Lanka has some amazing cavesdating back approximately 500 million years, so this is an adventure into the prehistoric!

Waulpane Cave is also known as the cave of bats. It is located at the eastern slopes of Rakwana Mountain Range, about 1.5 hours from Pallebedda. The cave is known for beautiful stalactites and stalagmites, and the wildlife which includes bats, cockroaches, amphibians, and fish.

Upon entering the cave, a 300m underground descent reveals a pre-historic world with ancient fossils in the cavern walls.  A stream running through the cave feeds the stunning waterfall located towards the centre.  The dark, moist depths of the cavern are inhabited by numerous bats, water monitors, amphibians and fish. The cave is a river cave and entered through the sink. After following the underground river for 300m, the cave is left through a second entrance.

This cave is on the list of eco adventures offered by Sri Lanka Adventures and Shanti Travel will be happy to make arrangements for those who wants to explore the caves. The caves are located in a very remote area of the island and well off the beaten track, and it’s important that you do this trek with an experienced guide. You will require climbing equipment, boots   s, helmet, headlamp, and a mask ( for the bat smell!) . Also an old rain coat is recommended for the bat droppings.

Manjula – Travel Executive – Shanti Travel.com

Beautiful Batiks of Matale, Sri Lanka

The history is bit unclear how the Javanese art of Batik arrived in Sri Lanka. The locals believe  traders who visited Sri Lanka hundreds of years ago traveling along the Silk route introduced Batik to Sri Lanka. Today the Batik is a thriving industry in Sri Lanka especially in the Matale / Kandy region.

Something very special about the Batik industry in Sri Lanka the artist and the craftsmen makes there prints based on traditional motifs that date backs to the time of the Kandyan kingdom days.  Some of the most iconic Batik images from Sri Lanka is infact the image of the Kandy Esala Perehara.

During one of my visits to Dambulla and Kandy I had the chance of stopping by Baba Batiks in Matale to get a firsthand knowledge of the Batik industry.  Baba batik has been a showcase to the Sri Lankan Batik industry for the past 30 years and more.  They have opened their doors to visitors from around the world, One of their oldest staff members and designer  Ms. Shanti Fernando is fluent in English/ German/ French/ Italian and Spanish! Just by meeting and exchanging with maybe thousands of tourist who walked in and out of the Baba Batik Showroom in Matale.

The team at Baba Batik was very happy to offer me a guided tour about how Batiks are made. They showed me all the tedious steps involved from creating a pattern to the end result.  Believe me when I say! it surely is a lot of hard work each of the colours that appears on your beautiful Batik Sarong goes through a cycle of waxing.. dying.. ironing.. and drying.

If I may explain the process more in detail;

1-     the designer will drawn by hand on the material

2-    decide what color dye you first want to use and then wax off all the parts that you do not want to be that color.

3-    Then the fabric in the dye bath for approximately 30 minutes. Allow the fabric to dry.

4-    Allow to dry and iron off the parts of wax for the next colour and repeat step 2 and 3 till you finish your batik.

When I left Matale I was a Batik connoisseur!

Emil Fernando – Senior Tour Executive- Shanti Travel.com

Wonderful waterfalls of Ella

Did you know that the word “Ella” means waterfall in Sinhalese “Diya Ella” to be exact. Many travelers use Ella as their stopover night in a tour of Sri Lanka before descending to the beautiful southern beaches or surfing trip to Arugambay.  This small hill station can be your perfect base camp if you are into rock climbing and trekking. You can visit the most beautiful waterfalls of Sri Lanka just a few kilometers from Ella.

Rawana falls: located on the Ella Wellawaya route 6 kms from the town of Ella is the waterfall is 25 meters high and can be easily viewed from the roadside. Yes it has become a very popular tourist site with both locals and foreigners stopping by to enjoy the view and take dip in the water.

Diyaluma Falls: Situated 32 Kms from Ella on the Koslanda road that connects Balangoda and Monaragala via Beragala pass. The Diyaluma fall (171m)  is considered as the most beautiful waterfall in Sri Lanka and there are many songs and poetry written about the beauty of the waterfall. Often it’s compared to a “bride’s wale”

An interesting fact to note is there’s a hiking trail in Diyaluma where you can climb up to the source of the waterfall, where there’s a great picnic spot and it’s safer to swim in the river.

Dunhina Falls: It’s 28kms from Ella off Badulla on Mahiyanganaya Road, unlike the above waterfalls Dunhinda ( 64 m)  can’t be viewed from the main road. You need to walk about 1 km into the forest on a sort of a half man made hiking/walking trail.  All along the walking path there are small shops offering tea and sweets to visitors. In my opinion the walk up to the waterfalls exchanging with the locals and looking at the forest is the most interesting part of the journey while visiting Dunhinda.

If your travels in Sri Lanka takes you to Ella make sure you spend a couple of days to visit these beautiful waterfalls.

Vindya–  Our Asst: Manager marketing and Communications – travel-in-lanka.com – Sri Lanka

A Visit To The North – Jaffna

It’s been more than 2 years since the end of the war and the northern most town of Sri Lanka Jaffna was opened for visitors. However it’s since of recently the government allowed foreigners to visit the city without the special permit. Hence my partner in crime and close friend “a Phd student from Australia” suggested to head up to Jaffna for the weekend.

There was not much information available online about Jaffna in terms accommodation options or things to do. Our basic plan was take the overnight bus on Friday after work and return by plane on Monday morning to Colombo.

Initial impressions of Jaffna town was it looked like a normal town in Sri Lanka maybe 15 years ago with iron shutters and hand painted sign boards on top of rows of small shops. It gets incredibly hot during the day time so be prepared for that!

After finding ourselves a decent accommodation at the old Colonial Mansion names Sara’s Guest house we headed to the main town of Jaffna to look around and visit the main sites. The centre of the town where you find the main bus terminal life goes on as normal as can be with people selling their ware and commuters arriving and leaving the town. We hired a tuktuk and drove around the town looking and making pictures like typical tourist would do and the main highlights for us were the Jaffna Public Library and the Dutch Fort.

The next day was much more adventurous as we took a boat from the KKD jetty to the Nagadipa island to visit the Buddhist temple where the legend believes lord Buddha visited to solve a quarrel between 2 rivalries. The highlight of the trip was the vegetarian lunch offered by the Hindu temple to all pilgrims! We sat on the floor with our legs crossed and ate with our hands from a banana leaf. It was delicious. Also the worth mentioning is the gorgeous landscape you see en route to Nagadipa it’s an absolute contrast to the lush green you see in the rest of the island. The shades of blue stretching miles into the horizon with pale sandy strips of land.

It was already the time for us to leave Jaffna Monday morning, on the Air force plane from Palali I have to admit that was a quite an experience Itself taking a military plane. Well all about that in another update on the blog.

Vindya–  Our Asst: marketing and Communications Manager – travel-in-lanka.com – Sri Lanka