I try not to arrive somewhere with expectations. Which, of course, is very difficult and sometimes it’s only when they’re thwarted that I realise I have them. Like all new places, Sri Lanka has challenged, entertained and surprised me. Here are some overall observations:
Apart from our unfortunate encounter with Pinthu, there were generally fewer attempts to scam me than I experienced in SE Asia. My hypothesis is that a country’s scam levels are directly proportional to how touristy it is.
Trains are my favourite mode of transport, but this was especially true in Sri Lanka: they’re cheap and efficient, albeit not fast, and mostly reliable (which is less important when you’re on holiday rather than commuting so doesn’t get a high weighting in my assessment)
Buses are usually the fastest way to travel and give you a great view of a place, but I’m very surprised I haven’t seen more accidents (in fact, we did see the leftovers of a horrific crash where the bus appeared to have gone directly into the rock instead of following the road’s curve; it turned out that the brakes had failed and the driver deliberately crashed to reduce potential fatalities. He died on impact)
I’d been looking forward to sampling the food. But I was mostly disappointed: there was little variety and the meat was always overcooked. There were a few notable exceptions: chocolate and banana roti was out-of-this-world; vegetable curry (MacDonalds’ style – wrapped and ready to go) was a great take on “fast food” and Sri Lanka does fantastic fresh juices (just remember to ask them to hold the sugar) [Update: after I left, Rudy continued to the very north where, with more Indian influence, he reported the food to be far superior and more varied than we’d experienced]
But the main reason to go to Sri Lanka has to be the wildlife: elephants en masse, wild cats, crocodiles, chameleons whilst you’re waiting for the bus and more birdlife that you’ve time to watch. But then wildlife is always spectacular, even in our back gardens, if only we’d take the time to look.
I felt like I’d “done” Sri Lanka… until Rudy travelled further north before doubling back to visit Yala National Park. Where he saw a leopard. Not jealous. Much.
And that’s the thing – there’s always more see, do and experience. But I’m grateful for the time I had, the incredible experiences and the wonderful people who’ve made this trip so memorable.