Tea Hills, Trains and Sacred Temples!

After leaving Udawalawe, the drive took us through several small villages with fairly straight roads, but before long the scenery started changing. Mountains began appearing in the distance and soon enough we found ourselves driving along winding roads as we slowly climbed higher into Sri Lanka’s hill country.

Not long before reaching Ella we stopped at Ravana Falls, one of the widest waterfalls in the country. The waterfall cascades down a rocky cliff face beside the main road and is believed in local legend to be connected to the ancient story of King Ravana from the Ramayana epic. There were plenty of monkeys around the area, thankfully they all seemed fairly relaxed and didn’t attempt to steal food or get too close (I’m looking at you Gibraltar).

Shortly afterwards we arrived in Ella town, where we first stopped at the railway station to confirm our train tickets for our travel in two days time. After that we grabbed a quick lunch at a restaurant called Chill Cafe and after lunch we drove towards our accommodation, 9 Arch View Rest Inn.

The hotel sits just outside town and as we approached, the roads became smaller and steep and they were simply too narrow for our driver’s van to continue. With our driver’s help, we called the owner who soon arrived in his tuk-tuk and loaded both us and our luggage in for the final 500 metres. I did offer to walk, but he insisted on driving us.

When we arrived and stepped onto the balcony, the view immediately made the effort worthwhile. Right in front of us was Nine Arch Bridge, one of Sri Lanka’s most famous landmarks.

Right after checking in, Xander, Eloise and I decided to walk down to the bridge itself. We wandered across the railway tracks and stood on the bridge just as a train slowly rolled across, which was a pretty cool experience.

That evening we asked the owner if he could drive us back into town for dinner. On the way there the sky suddenly opened up and rain started pouring down so heavily that it became difficult to even see the road. We ended up standing under an awning in town trying to stay dry before eventually deciding to just run across the street back to Chills, since we already knew the food was good.

During dinner the rain stopped again and once we finished we simply messaged the hotel owner on WhatsApp who within minutes arrived to collect us and drove us back to the hotel, best service ever!

The next morning we enjoyed breakfast on the balcony overlooking the Nine Arch Bridge, which was a pretty incredible way to start the day. After breakfast we decided to hike Little Adam’s Peak. Suz wasn’t feeling the best so she stayed behind while the kids and I set off.

On the way there we passed Flying Ravana Adventure Park, where Xander and Eloise decided to try the zipline which they loved. After that the kids convinced me to take the Little Adam’s Peak Skywalk, which is a metal walkway and staircase route that climbs the final section of the hill. While the views were fantastic, it was definitely a tougher climb than simply walking up regular steps and I definitely regretted my choice a few times along the way.

We finally reached the end of the walkway and there was only a short hike from there to the summit where we could enjoy some amazing views across the surrounding hills and tea plantations.

Later we met Suz for lunch and that afternoon, the hotel owner drove us in his tuk-tuk to Halpewatte Tea Factory where we joined the plantation tour. We learnt that Sri Lanka’s tea industry dates back to the 1860s when James Taylor introduced commercial tea cultivation to the island. Before that, Sri Lanka was mainly known for coffee production until a plant disease destroyed the coffee crops. We also learned what tea comes from what leaves and then also got to dress with a traditional tea pickers basket to try hand-picking tea leaves ourselves (which we only did for a short time before we got tired).

Afterwards we returned inside the factory for a tea tasting where we sampled several different varieties, with this being the first time Xander and Eloise had ever sampled tea.

The next morning it was time for us to catch one of the most famous train journeys in the world. We got ready to board the train from Ella, as our driver Sumeera took our luggage with him in the car and drove ahead to meet us.

Normally this train runs all the way to Kandy, however due to severe flooding and storm damage from last years typhoon, parts of the railway line are damaged with nil trains running that part of the route. So, we opted to ride the train for around two hours to Ambewela.

The train ride through Sri Lanka’s hill country is often ranked among the most scenic rail journeys in the world as it provides some incredible views across the tea plantations and mountains. This train is normally packed however we felt the train was far quieter than normal and after a couple of stops we basically only had to share the entire 2nd class reserved carriage with another family.

Once in Ambewela, we met up with Sumeera again and continued our drive towards Kandy. We drove past vasts tea plantations near Nuwara Eliya and drove along some very windy roads as we descended from the mountains. On the way, we had a quick stop near Ramboda Falls for lunch and later also a quick stop in the small town of Pussellawa to buy some snacks. Walking along the street here we were definitely the only foreigners here and even Eloise noticed it as she said: “we definitely stand out here.”

Eventually we arrived at our hotel, Kandy City View Hotel where after checking in, we headed out to visit Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic, also known as Sri Dalada Maligawa. This temple houses what Buddhists believe to be a tooth relic of the Buddha and is one of the most important religious sites in Sri Lanka.

Before entering we were stopped and told that our legs needed to be covered. Suz, Eloise and Xander quickly bought sarong-style coverings for about 500 rupees each (I just had to ensure my shorts we pulled down enough to cover my knees) and we were allowed to enter.

Inside the temple, we walked through a series of halls where people come to pray and offer flowers. The sacred relic itself is hidden away and only taken out during special ceremonies.

After exploring the temple we returned to the hotel where there was a rooftop restaurant with a stone-baked pizza oven, which after such a long travel day, pizza sounded perfect.

We enjoyed dinner on the rooftop before finally heading to bed, ready for another day  in Sri Lanka with Sigiriya being next on our itinerary.