3 Days in Sri Lanka
We had a day off for Vesak Day, so we looked into cheap flights out of our area for a quick 4 day weekend trip. Completely coincidentally (Sri Lanka was the cheapest flight) we realized immediately upon arrival that Vesak (the celebration of Buddha's Enlightenment) is a HUGE DEAL in Sri Lanka--so a lot of this itinerary is colored by the festivals and getting swept up into religious pilgrimages during our time there! It's a whirlwind regardless--3 cities in 3 days--but if you have any chance at all to visit this beautiful country, I'd recommend going for it!
Day 1: Kandy
The major airport is in Colombo, so you'll probably fly in there. Arriving late at night, we stayed at the Colombo Beach Hostel (solid for the price and very helpful!) and got up wicked early to catch a three hour train to Kandy. (See below for my gushing about Sri Lanka's eclectic transportation options). Once in Kandy, we went straight for the free food (yes please), grabbed some ceylon (milk) tea and soaked up some crazy city sounds (bollywood!) on our way to Kandy Lake.
The lake was beautiful (AND HEY LOOK A MONITOR LIZARD), and due to its proximity to the Temple of the Tooth, kind of the geographical center of festivities. We never really left this area for the rest of the day. The parades (pictured above) were a blur of dancing, music and elephants! The main event of our day was our venture into Kandy's main temple to see the tooth relic.
Brought flower offerings in! While we showed up as (clueless) tourists, visiting this temple (and Sigirya) is apparently a big part of Vesak day for some Sri Lankan Buddhists, so the crowd was intense.
We didn't actually see the tooth and I imagine your experience would be different on an average day--you might see more of the actual temple, but I wouldn't trade the energy! Regardless its definitely worth the 10USD entrance fee.
Everything was closed for the holiday after nightfall so I can't speak to the Kandy nightlife, but the festival lights at night were some of the prettiest things I've ever seen.
Where to Stay: Heart of the City Hostel (real budget/ a 16 person room!)
Day 2: Sigirya
Getting up real early again, we caught a 1.5 hour bus to Sigiriya--a massive ancient fortress/palace/turned monastary perched on a huge rock formation. It's called the "8th World Wonder" (like many other things?) for a reason. The bus takes you to the town nearby, but you can tuk tuk from there to your hostel and to the rock itself.
It's not cheap to get in, clocking in at about 30USD but it's ridiculous and worth it. It usually takes probably an hour to get up the steps, steel bridges, spiral staircases and mountainous incline, but since everyone was there it was a crazy several hour shuffle! Again, I wouldn't trade the energy and excitement but you could probably do this site in a half day versus the full day we spent there.
A giant lion statue was once at the foot of the main palace at the summit-- Sigiriya means "Lion Rock." You also get to see beautiful ancient frescoes in a cave on the way up to the summit!
Even if "ancient palace ruins" doesn't do it for you, the views will get you for sure.
We got caught in a massive thundering monsoon as we were heading down (remember those metal staircases and bridges?) but it was an insane experience being in the huge (incredibly calm) crowd with the lightning whipping overhead and water rushing down the mountain. Not sure I've ever been so soaked (check out my post on Santorini?) but it was an awesome day!
The next morning, we (again got up early) and went on a sunrise hike up Pidurangala Rock, a smaller formation across from Sigiriya. It was gorgeous! and a great way to see Sigiriya from afar. We booked through our hostel, so it was only around 5USD. There was a temple on the way up, and lots of friendly pups to hang with while watching the sun rise from the summit. Definitely recommend!
Where to Stay: Jungle Vista in Sigiriya. Shared or private tents inside a open structure: hippie, fantastic and the dinner is awesome!
Day 3: Colombo
Colombo was bustling! Heading back on packed 4 hour bus, we were able to spend most of the day exploring before flying home. The Vesak decorations like the one above were larger than life, and making our way through the city on foot gave us great views of the city skyline and riverfront.
The Colombo National Museum was great! Its about 4USD for entrance, and we spent over an hour there. Again, as clueless tourists who never research enough, it was great to retroactively learn about the country we had been loving for two days! Its exhibits spanned ancient, religious, colonial and art history, and we left having a more contextualized idea of what we had seen in Sri Lanka.
With only a couple hours left in our time in Sri Lanka, we hurried to the beach. Eating as the sun set over the coast was beautiful, and activity on the beach only increased as dusk fell. Again, I wish we had had so much more time in Sri Lanka! You could definitely spend 3 days at any of these cities, and I know there is even more I would love to see. But with the time we had, I think this itinerary was insane but perfect for us and our travel style!
Getting Around
For us, transportation was one of the cooler parts of the experience as a whole! You can tuk tuk (small cart-like vehicles that can GO) just about anywhere relatively inexpensively when you have a big group. It's how we got to bus stations, hostels etc. WILD.
I didn't have the forethought to take a sweet insta pic on the train so here's me almost falling out--but seriously, if you're going through Sri Lanka YOU MUST TRAIN. It's cheap (4USD for first class, gotten at the station an hour before the train left?!), nice, GORGEOUS and the views through the countryside are to die for. Maybe be more chill about hanging out the side and you won't worry about actually dying--but do it. The train was one of our favorite parts of the trip.
Buses are also insanely cheap (70 cents for a hour ride) but can get packed--again, we thought it was a blast but you might want to look into more train or tour options if it's not your cup of tea. The music really makes the trip!
Like the infamous tuk tuk, the open air jeep is also affordable for large groups, and just as wild!
What to Eat
Is it a cop out if I just say everything?! Pictured here is "hopper," delicious rice noodles you dip in curry sauces that arrive BY THE BUCKET.
Kothu is another awesome option! Delicious roti (bread) cut in strips and stir fried with eggs, spices and onions with tandoori chicken heaven. Don't miss the naan bread as well!
Or if all else fails, curry chicken for life.
We did a ton in 3 days! So happy to have teacher/travel friends that are willing to make the most of our time off--and that we have the chance to visit so many cool places. My family will be here in just 2 weeks, so keep a look out for a post on Indonesia and Malaysia (and their visit to my school!) in just a bit.