After about five days of jam packed meetings and being constantly on the go, Ben is very ready for a weekend change of pace and scenery. If you know us, you know we work hard, but we play hard too. It is very much about staying in balance. Especially when traveling.
We start considering our options for a short break from both the city and from work. We are both ready to be immersed in nature, and we opt for finding a beach where we can chill, swim and eat sea food.
It is actually quite a difficult choice deciding where to go for a few days in Sri Lanka, as there are so very many good options…
Sri Lanka is a small island (Nicaragua itself a small country, is 2 times bigger than Sri Lanka, which is roughly the size of the state of West Virginia in the U.S.) and YET, it is extremely rich and diverse in both nature, wildlife and culture.
We check the map of Sri Lanka to see our route last time we were here (in 2014) when we headed South from Colombo…. primarily then motivated by visiting elephant and bird nature reserves, we only briefly visited the beaches at Humbantota and Unawatuna.
For this weekend we decide to head to the beach town of Matara, 160 km from Colombo. Matara is at the very bottom most point of the island of Sri Lanka and is known for its sandy beaches and Portuguese/Dutch fort and ramparts.
The ethnic majority of Matara, is Sinhalese. (The South of Sri Lanka is predominantly Sinhalese, whereas the North of Sri Lanka is predominantly Tamal.) These are two distinct ethnic groups in Sri Lanka, with different languages, different cultures and a complex history. (More on this later when we blog about the North of Sri Lanka.)
The Sinhalese people constitute 75% of the population, are predominantly Theravada Buddhist and they speak Sinhala.
One of the fun aspects of returning to countries we love and resonate with, is that we get the opportunity to create additional layers ~ of places, experiences and memories, to pre-exisiting ones. Filling in the gaps and going to places we missed the first time around. We long ago gave up trying to “do and see everything”… On the contrary, we usually select a few priority destinations in a country and then expand spontaneously as we go.
To save time and energy, we splurge on a driver to get us to the South coast as soon as Ben can leave. We plan to take a bus or train on the way back, but for now we enjoy the relative ease of sitting back in a car and having someone else navigate the way there. Ben is still furiously typing emails and juggling business so that he can rest his brain for a couple of days.
Before we leave Colombo, we use booking.com to pre select a place to stay so that when we arrive we won’t be looking in the dark for accommodation…
Sign along the highway…. Sri Lanka is WILD peacock land. Seeing and hearing peacocks in the wild is quite a treat! The writing on the sign is in both Sinhalese and Tamil (2 lines of each language.)
However, when we arrive, neither of us are pleased with the selection, its not at all what we had in mind, nor what it looked like in the picture. So we decline and take our backpacks and walk towards the beach front in search of something else. We enjoy the last of the sunset and the soft sand, warm water and take a stroll to see what “comes our way….”
We walk over to a nice looking wooden deck with a small hotel behind that looks appealing but is apparently full up. One of the guests having a drink suggests we stay at his hotel down the road, which has just been built and is relatively empty as no one knows about it yet. He offers us a great deal too. We hop in a tuk tuk with directions in hand and off we go…..
This is one of those fun serendipitous moments when previously made plans are discarded and adventure of the unknown beckons.
The hotel is right on the ocean, it is beautifully designed and the rooms are uber comfy with a bath tub and have direct views right over the ocean. Inclusive of breakfast offered on the rooftop patio! Score!
Enjoying the luxuriousness of it all.
Probably our favorite Sri Lankan specialty: waterbuffalo curd with palm treacle. Curd is somewhere inbetween yogurt and a very soft cheese and treacle is somewhat akin to maple syrup. This is a common breakfast dish, although it makes a terrific desert as well.
Ahhh the view from our bedroom patio. Below there is an ocean water pool created by a stone enclosure.
Bedroom view to ocean pool below.
The (Indian) ocean has a perfect temperature for swimming. The clear teal blue water is lined by dark green trees.
This is the view from our little wooden table at a beachfront seafood spot. Feet in the sand, fish on the grill…. Life is good.
Lunch: grilled barracuda and crunchy salad. Nothing better than dining al fresco!
Most of the beach coves have brightly painted, very narrow (as is the style here) fishermen boats tucked under the trees..
After a few days of beach bliss, we need to make our way back to Colombo for Monday morning meetings. We tuk tuk to the central area of Matara, making our way slowly to the bus terminal. But first we stroll around the area to see what the vendors are offering up.
The chickpea vendor measures out a serving for us from her small stand. We always look for healthy tasty snacks for bus journeys and this is a perfect find ~ hot chickpeas with sliced pieces of coconut.
Peanuts being sold in triangular newspaper packages, ready to go…
Woman selling purple flowers for offerings at the nearby temple.
We find ourselves right next to “Parey Dewa” ~ A modern Buddhist temple built on a rocky island known as Pigeon Island.
A walk over a modern bridge gets us to the Buddhist temple on rock island. The original bridge was completely destroyed by the 2004 tsunami which hit this area hard.
Time to navigate the bus terminal to find out where and when a bus leaves to Colombo….. No signs in English and no one we speak to that speaks English either.
Strategy for finding the right bus ~ ask the bus drivers… Eventually we narrow it down to departure location and head over to the parking lot. Colombo being the capital city there are bound to be numerous buses leaving frequently.
We make it just in time to nab the last two free seats to Colombo, departure time in 2 minutes. We are seated behind a novice monk on one side, a family on the other. (We are the only “non-locals” on the bus). Music blares from the TV in front, bags are stowed, and we are off.
A few more days back in Colombo and then we are eager to continue our exploration of Sri Lanka to the North and to the East.
Stay tuned……. We have a lot more to share with you!
The weekend sounds marvelous. The beach looks beautiful. I’ve not been to Sri Lanka, but a friend has and she loved it. The curd and treacle sounds more like dessert than breakfast to me. I could relate to your bus experience. We took local buses between towns when we were in rural Panama and were often the only non-locals on the bus.
The beach was glorious and made for a perfect weekend escape.
We ate the curd for breakfast, and we ate it for dessert. We ate it as often as possible!
Traveling by bus with the locals is almost always such a fun way to travel. In 2014 on our first trip to Sri Lanka we made use of the extensive train system and enjoyed that too – only downside is the logistics of getting to the train station and being on time, but well worth the effort and great way for authentic interaction with people… Thanks for your comments.
Very lucky to find such a lovely hotel at the last minute. Traveling by bus is great although I love train journeys and I have heard that there are some great ones in Sri Lanka.
We do think of ourselves as very lucky indeed!
Yes! The train in Sri Lanka is great fun… One can travel at different levels of expense and comfort but all are a great experience. In 2014 we traveled by train from Colombo to the South and also from Ella in the mountains to Kandy in Central Sri Lanka.
Thanks for your comments Gilda!
I want me some of that curd!
The presentation when you buy the curd on the road side is in an earthenware unglazed ceramic container. Usually only used once as the buffalo curd absorbs some of the mineral content from the clay.
Looks like yogurt but has a more distinct flavor … A bit like how venison compares to beef. A bit more pungent.
You write so well and it is all such fun and so detailed…..I wish you even more fun and lots more adventures…
Thanks Eric!
It’s definitely a balancing act when selecting what to include in a blog post and what to leave out. Thanks for the compliment on the writing!
B:
Fantastic. I love reading these posts. You guys are so damn cool.
T:
My heart is so alive reading about your adventures. You both have it right ! I hope to someday have an opportunity to travel again..
Your blog gave me a touch of wanderlust.
Are the fishermen as narrow as the boats or do they straddle them or stand up?
Sharon, that’s funny…
The fishermen place planks of wood across the narrow width of the boat and they straddle those ~ using the space inside the boat to store their catches.
During a particular time of year in Matara, some of the fishermen sit on special wooden poles in the shallow waters, fishing from there and are thus known as the “stick fishermen”.
Your beach holiday looks marvellous! It looks like a wonderful place, especially after you lucked out with the new hotel. I long for the beach – good thing we’re going there in about 3 weeks.
Alison
Thanks Alison.
The beach is always a great place to rest and relax and re energize.
Enjoy.
Definitely sent a “go to Sri Lanka” message our way… Did Ben wear a hat to the ocean water pool or is that just me?
Oh yes “Go to Sri Lanka!!!” …and you ain’t seen nothing yet!! Stay tuned.
You can also check out our posts on Sri Lanka from 2014 if you interested in reading more.
(Bicycles would probably be fine in rural areas, but hell in the cities)
Ben is wearing a bandana in the pool. His cap was lost, so the bandana provided at least some sun protection.
I am reading your post and looking at your beautiful photos with longing. Your beach getaway looks awesome. I love the photo of the lady selling the purple flowers.
Thanks Caroline for the compliment on the photos. We loved how huge and purple the flowers were that were being sold. One type, one color. We were tempted to keep them, but offered them up to the temple like everyone else.
Hi, what is the name of the hotel you ended up staying in?
The name of this place is KIKILI BEACH property. It is more of a one roomed bungalow than a hotel though.
Peta