Betsy Goes Global: Sri Lanka

On the evening of Thursday, November 13, I flew from Jaipur to Mumbai. After a layover in Mumbai, my plane departed for Sri Lanka around 2 am on November 14. I arrived in Colombo (the largest city, but no longer the capitol) around 5:30 in the morning, completely exhausted. Fortunately, Shanti from Amber Tours arranged for a driver to pick me up from the airport so I did not have to think about anything. I had been sick the last few days in Jaipur and was still feeling weak (although the doctor had cleared me to travel), so I fell asleep for awhile in the car. The driver was friendly and pointed out some nice sights along the three-hour drive (when I was awake) to my destination: Tangelle.

The first thing I noticed about Sri Lanka is how completely different it is from India. I don't know what I expected having very little prior knowledge of this tiny country, but I guess I thought it would be like India shrunken into an island. I could not have been more wrong! Everyone who follows this blog knows that I am completely in love with India, the people, the culture, the sights, etc., and I rarely write about problems in the country because I am so overwhelmed by its beauty. But, for the record, there is one HUGE problem with India: it is dirty. By dirty, I mean heavy pollution in the air and water, trash piled on streets and sidewalks, and sickly animals running the streets and leaving feces behind. This is just a fact of life in India, and the Indian people want the government to clean up the country (and there is hope that PM Modi will make some improvements, particularly with water sanitation and sewage systems). Just to be clear, while the cities are shockingly dirty to Westerners, the Indian people are not dirty. In fact, the people are so clean that they eat with their hands. (I know I personally don't wash my hands as frequently as they do). I've heard Westerners make offensive comments about Indians smelling bad, which is just plain ignorant. Indians fill their homes with fresh flowers and jasmine incense. They use the sweetest smelling natural perfumes and oils on their skin. One of the things I missed most last time I came home from India was the smell. Yes, the trash stinks, but that's universal - who's s&*t smells like roses? (Cue Outkast...)

So, major difference in Sri Lanka: It is clean! The streets are cleared of litter and people can actually go running on the sidewalks without falling over a heap of trash. This was a refreshing sight, for sure. There is less traffic, since the population of the entire country is only 19 million (equal to the population of Delhi, India's third largest city), and less obvious pollution. The skies are clear.

My driver said that the urban landscape has improved significantly since the Tsunami in 2004. Over 40,000 Sri Lankans lost their lives in the Tsunami (50,000 by some estimates); they had to rebuild basically half the country.

After a nice drive from Colombo to the Southern Province, we arrived at my resort: Palm Paradise Cabanas in Tangalle (aka "Tangalla"). I had originally booked an open air cabana on stilts with mosquito netting around the bed but no A/C (about $25 USD per night) because I'm broke and a seasoned traveler - who needs A/C anyway?

Me, as it turns out. After sweating it out for about 20 minutes, I walked to reception and asked about the Villas on the hill. For $60 USD more per night, you get A/C, glass windows and free wi-fi in your villa. Suddenly, I didn't feel so broke...

The cabanas are actually really neat, but not for someone recovering from being sick and exhausted from weeks of traveling.

So I moved from here...

Cabana Video

to here...

Villa Video

...and then I was happy.

Here's a video of the walkway to the beach.

Tangelle is not on the above map of Sri Lanka, but it is located near Hambantota is on the southeast tip. It is definitely the most naturally beautiful place I have ever seen. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...