Sri Lanka: 29.08.18

I am now at my next stop, Apa Villa Illuketia. I arrived here yesterday lunchtime, having taken a Tuk Tuk from Hikkaduwa. I used the lovely Ali again, this time we had his Mother, Wife and children waving us goodbye!

The journey from Hikkaduwa to Illuketia  took approx 50 mins, so not that long but it is enough time to see, hear and smell some interesting things! You will be pootaling along and you suddenly smell wonderful spices, cooking and your mouth starts to water, This is the good bit as you can just as easily be overcome with an extremely pungent rubbish aroma which makes you want to hold your breath for a very long time!  We travelled along the coast until we reached Galle, a large city, which is where it gets a lot more interesting/scary 😳 the traffic is crazy, mopeds, Tuk Tuks, buses, cars, lorry’s, cattle (yes, cattle) people, bicycles all rushing around, there seems to be no concept of junctions, or right of way, more a case of who dares wins! Ali and I were heading down a duel carriageway and had gone about 100 meters past a Petrol Station, when He decided he needed petrol, so he pulled over on the hard shoulder then did a u turn and headed  back on the same side of the road into oncoming traffic, it was a close your eyes, clench your butt cheeks and pray moment! 😱 We arrived at Apa Villa shortly after this thank god.

The Villa is absolutely stunning, it’s an old Plantation House which sits on 10 acres of  gardens, paddy fields, Tea and Rubber plantations. It is lush and green with an abundance of wildlife. I was greeted by a beautiful Sri Lankan girl who took me through to the veranda where I had a gorgeous ginger and lime cold drink and admired the beautiful view. My room is in the main part of the house, but has it’s own private terrace, the room opens on to a courtyard with a lovely fish pond. I walked around the gardens and found the wonderful pool tucked away amongst the trees. While I was swimming I could see the monkeys playing in the trees and stunning butterflies going past,  it is idyllic.

In the late afternoon I walked up the road to a large Buddhist Temple, which apparently holds the largest Wooden Buddha in Sri Lanka. On the way back I saw lots of chickens, ducks and a beautiful Kingfisher. I had a lovely Curry for dinner and headed of to bed for an early night, and also to escape the mossies, the only downside of being somewhere this lush and green is that the mossies like it as well!

This morning I was up early and had a wander through the gardens then sat on the veranda eating a tasty Sri Lankan breakfast of Egg Hoppers whilst watching the monkeys playing in the trees. Later this afternoon I am heading into Galle to visit Galle Fort. The Fort dates back to remarkably different historical eras where successive conquerors and rulers have left their mark, including the Dutch, Portuguese, British and the post independence Sri Lankan’s. It looks fascinating and I’m told that the sunset from here is great, so hopefully I’ll see that.

Peace and Love.

Author: hereandthereclaire

Hi, my name is Claire and I am 60 years young, welcome to my blog. I am new to the whole travel and blog writing world, so no judging! I recently made some big life changes, leaving my job in education and moving myself and my younger children to Newquay in Cornwall, I then started a business with some fantastic friends #coffeeonthecornernewquay. And now I am about to embark on my first big travel adventure...I would love to share this with you. Since starting this blog in 2018 I have made more changes, and now in 2024 I will be traveling full time for the next year! Please join me in sharing my Big Adventure! ❤️ View all posts by hereandthereclaire