Sri Lanka: conclusions and tips

• 14 days;

• 30 crazy hours of bus;

• 7 hours of train;

• 1 safari;

• my freakiest flight ever (Colombo – Jeddah);

• 2 visa cards stolen;

• 1 pair of sunglasses stolen (If you thief ever read this, I hope you got a conjunctivitis with my sunglasses!);

• 1 pair of Sri Lanka Ray Ban sunglasses broken.

What I liked MOST

• The diversity of sights, landscapes and heritage in such a small country;

• Very easy to get around with public transportation;

• Life (accommodation, food, transportation) is cheap;

• Fruit juices and local staples;

• Ceylan tea, of course 😉

What I liked LEAST

• Over supply of tourism industry (too many guest houses, too many tuk tuks, too many restaurants);

• Safaris are “money oriented” instead of “nature oriented”.  They are destroying their natural resources!

• Bus drivers drive like mads (every time I took a bus I had the feeling of risking my life);

• Tickets for the main archaeological sites in Cultural Triangle are very expensive (25-30$ each for tourists!);

• Heat and humidity (+80%) in the north in April.

Useful Information :

• Two kind of buses : red buses (CTB) are the public buses which are less expensive but more crowded and with more stops; white buses are private buses with a little bit more of comfort and less stops. Tickets are purchased on board;

• Three kind of classes on trains : the only difference between first and second is that first class has A/C and second class has fans but windows are always open and it is fresh outside. Third class is more crowded. All classes have numbered seats. If you are not taking a night train, third class is enough;

• During shoulder season (from March to May) there is no need to book accommodation in advance and there is so much supply that  sometimes you can negotiate your price. A room has two prices : with A/C or fan.

My Sri Lanka Pictures :

2014 04 SRI LANKA