Part 2: Sri Lanka

Day 4: Colombo - Nallathannyia (home of Adams' Peak)

We started our journey to Adams Peak or Sri Padya as it is known to locals in the town of Nallathanniya. It was going to be quite a drive but Christy took us on a scenic route through the hills and mountains of this region to get there. He also gave us more of a flavour for Sri Lanka along the way, with a man picking wild Jasmine flowers by a monument we were looking at, giving us some to smell (which will now always be the smell which reminds me of Sri Lanka). And also stopping at the roadside stalls trying fruits. A strong favourite are the Rambutan which is very similar to a lychee in the UK.

We stopped for lunch by the river in an area which does white water rafting and lake activities called Kitulgala.

We couldn’t get over how green and vivid the landscape was as we looped around the steep hill roads. And it was great to see row upon row of the tea plantations and tea pluckers going about their working day. With a few stops and lunch along the way it took us 6 hours to make our journey.

The place we stayed in, Queensark, was a nice little place with a lovely view over the river and to the countryside. A bit weird when you arrive as there is not an actual building you can see, it is all downstairs and built out over the river!!
The owner is building more rooms when he can afford it and getting things up and running haven't been easy. It was lovely to hear his story and his vision for the future.
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​Nimal who owned it could not have been more helpful and welcoming either. He arranged for a guide to take us up Adams Peak at 2.30am the next morning as well as providing tea, coffee and sandwiches for when we reached the top. The chef here cooked us an incredible curry for dinner and with all the sides too! Sri Lanka knows how to do a good curry that is for sure!!

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