Mum and I just returned from a first-time visit to Sri Lanka and we both enjoyed ourselves tremendously. I had reservations going on my first guided tour ever, but my excellent tour leader Sonny of Travel Buzz, assisted by our local tour leader Lucky and his able Jetwing crew, made the trip a luxurious, educational and insightful one.
Moreover, Sri Lanka is a land blessed with much natural beauty and inhabited by friendly and cheerful people. And the cuisine is deliciously spicy - my absolute favourite meal was egg hoppers with pol sambol and fish curry, yummydoubleyum.
We began in Negombo and worked our way eastward to Pinnawala, Nuwara Eliya, Kandy, Dambulla and Polonnaruwa, before doubling back to Colombo. I even managed an unexpected (for no one else wanted to go) climb up Sigiriya with my wonky knees and was rewarded by amazing views of its surroundings.
While I deplored the tedium of long stretches of time spent on the road (the stunning vistas hugging the Heritance Tea Factory cannot tempt my mother to make a repeat visit as she declared never again quite emphatically), I welcomed the surprises that unfolded on the journey such as the multiple wedding convoys we witnessed.
Our first morning there we saw five to six bridal parties (it was an auspicious date) and subsequently we saw practically one bride a day.
The joy visible on the faces of the many couples affirmed that love is truly what makes the world go round and nothing celebrates love as much as nuptial vows that are both sanctifying and elevating.
Amongst the newlyweds, the group celebrated a golden wedding anniversary of fellow travellers Christine and Henry. It was touching to see that their love for each other is still evident even after 50 years of marriage.
As we travelled uphill in predominantly Buddhist Kandy to our hotel, I was wondering how I was going to attend mass when lo and behold, someone spotted this Marian Shrine on the roadside opposite our hotel and a church spire in the near distance.
So I set off to explore the possibility of sunset mass and I soon found out that I could celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Our Lady of Fatima. It could not get better than that until I spotted a rainbow as I rushed back to change for mass. I truly felt that the rainbow was specially for me, a sign of God's own promise, honouring my fidelity to Him. Super special.
From Kandy we made our way to Dambulla and on our way to the gorgeous Geoffrey Bawa designed Heritance Kandalama Hotel, there were chance sightings of wild elephants, timid deer hiding in the scrub and brilliantly coloured butterflies. While among the ruins of Polonnaruwa we found monitor lizards and monkeys with Mo-like haircuts.
The weather could not have been more perfect for we encountered blue skies and cooling breezes, even in bustling Colombo.
It is, perhaps, fitting that I received so many surprising gifts in the land of Serendip (one of Sri Lanka's earlier names) for my vacation was serendipitously delightful.
Moreover, Sri Lanka is a land blessed with much natural beauty and inhabited by friendly and cheerful people. And the cuisine is deliciously spicy - my absolute favourite meal was egg hoppers with pol sambol and fish curry, yummydoubleyum.
We began in Negombo and worked our way eastward to Pinnawala, Nuwara Eliya, Kandy, Dambulla and Polonnaruwa, before doubling back to Colombo. I even managed an unexpected (for no one else wanted to go) climb up Sigiriya with my wonky knees and was rewarded by amazing views of its surroundings.
While I deplored the tedium of long stretches of time spent on the road (the stunning vistas hugging the Heritance Tea Factory cannot tempt my mother to make a repeat visit as she declared never again quite emphatically), I welcomed the surprises that unfolded on the journey such as the multiple wedding convoys we witnessed.
Our first morning there we saw five to six bridal parties (it was an auspicious date) and subsequently we saw practically one bride a day. The joy visible on the faces of the many couples affirmed that love is truly what makes the world go round and nothing celebrates love as much as nuptial vows that are both sanctifying and elevating.
Amongst the newlyweds, the group celebrated a golden wedding anniversary of fellow travellers Christine and Henry. It was touching to see that their love for each other is still evident even after 50 years of marriage.
As we travelled uphill in predominantly Buddhist Kandy to our hotel, I was wondering how I was going to attend mass when lo and behold, someone spotted this Marian Shrine on the roadside opposite our hotel and a church spire in the near distance. So I set off to explore the possibility of sunset mass and I soon found out that I could celebrate the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Our Lady of Fatima. It could not get better than that until I spotted a rainbow as I rushed back to change for mass. I truly felt that the rainbow was specially for me, a sign of God's own promise, honouring my fidelity to Him. Super special.
From Kandy we made our way to Dambulla and on our way to the gorgeous Geoffrey Bawa designed Heritance Kandalama Hotel, there were chance sightings of wild elephants, timid deer hiding in the scrub and brilliantly coloured butterflies. While among the ruins of Polonnaruwa we found monitor lizards and monkeys with Mo-like haircuts.
The weather could not have been more perfect for we encountered blue skies and cooling breezes, even in bustling Colombo.
It is, perhaps, fitting that I received so many surprising gifts in the land of Serendip (one of Sri Lanka's earlier names) for my vacation was serendipitously delightful.
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