This is the third of three posts about Sri Lanka. See the first two here:
We took a minibus from Ella down to Tangalle on the south coast with a Dutch couple we'd met the previous day. The journey took a few hours and we dropped our travelling companions off near the Yala National Park before continuing to our base.
We were after a few days of R&R and thought the Lagoon Paradise Beach Resort would tick all the boxes. It was perfect.
Because it was a few miles away from Tangalle's main beaches, the beach was quiet and empty.
The hotel was also calm; just a few tourists, mainly couples, milling around.
The hotel was also calm; just a few tourists, mainly couples, milling around.
We spent our three days there doing very little. Long walks down the beach, reading books by the pool, drinking Arrack and eating good seafood.
The most energy I expended was killing a couple of cockroaches in our room. A room that joined onto the world's biggest bathroom:
With our batteries fully recharged, we took a taxi down the coast to our next destination: Galle.
On the way we asked our driver to stop off briefly so we could take a picture of the famous stilt-fishermen.
They no longer fish commercially, and are purely posing for the benefit of tourists like us. It was slightly depressing, seeing these guys out in the ocean waiting for people to stop and take a photo. But there you go. We paid, we snapped, we left.
We also stopped at Marissa, one of the more well-known beaches on the south coast.
It was a potential place for us to stay before I decided on Tangalle, and after spending an hour there and seeing the built-up tourism and lack of character, I'm really glad we made the decision we did.
We finally reached our destination after a few wrong turns by the taxi driver. To give him his due, we had chosen a place well off the beaten track.
Niyagama House was about 10 miles inland from Galle and was undoubtedly the highlight of our holiday.
We pulled up the driveway and found a place that was like something out of Conde Naste Traveller magazine.
The house was incredible. A central courtyard that was open to the elements, with about eight rooms over two floors. It was the creation of a friendly German woman called Elke and her Sri Lankan husband (who was away when we visited).
It was a yoga retreat, which we tried during our visit, and the relaxed vibe was the perfect way to end our holiday.
We ate some really good food, including some we made ourself on a cookery course...
...and spent time chilling and swimming in the picture-perfect pool.
We had a massage one day, did rooftop meditation on another, and even took a silent meditative walk through the surrounding villages with Elke.
London felt like a long way away.
While we were there we took a day trip to nearby Galle fort. It's one of Sri Lanka's most iconic locations, and we had an enjoyable time ambling around its narrow streets.
In the afternoon we took a walk along the fort ramparts as the sun was setting. Very atmospheric, even more so when we came across that typical Sri Lankan scene of boys playing cricket on a strip of sun-weathered grass.
We fancied a nightcap so took a tuk-tuk a couple of miles down the coast to the Jetwing Lighthouse hotel. I had wanted to visit a building designed by Geoffrey Bawa and this was our opportunity.
After a drink out by the rocks we took in the Bawa staircase, featuring some scary characters, before heading home.
The colonial-era buildings in Galle fort were preserved in great detail, none more so than what is now the Amangalla Hotel.
On our next visit to the fort, following a visit to a nearby temple, we had a great evening meal there.
On our next visit to the fort, following a visit to a nearby temple, we had a great evening meal there.
Yep, rice and curries again.
Something that wasn't particularly on my radar before the holiday was Sri Lanka's whale watching potential.
While at Niyagama House we heard it was a good time for sightings, so booked ourselves on a trip for the following day.
We got up at the crack of dawn and got a tuk-tuk to Marissa where we jumped on a boat, along with 15-20 others.
After about half an hour of motoring out to sea (as a flotilla with about 10 other boats) we soon started seeing whales. Blue whales.
The biggest animals on earth. Wow.
The biggest animals on earth. Wow.
Unfortunately Lottie's morning was spoiled somewhat by her feeling seasick. While she sat downstairs and tried to not throw up, I was upstairs scanning the ocean for the elusive glimpse of a whale.
The guys driving the boats were very excitable, and told us that there were an unusually large amount of whales in the area that week.
In total we probably saw whales on about 10 occasions, including an amazing moment when one of them fully surfaced its whole back before drawing its huge tail out of the water and splashing it down.
Incredible stuff.
Nothing could top that, and I was buzzing on the drive back to Niyagama House along the coastal road.
We had a final evening, and a final tasty meal, at what is probably the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in. The following morning we had to somehow extricate ourselves from the bubble of Niyagama and get back to the real world.
Our journey back to Colombo was a bonus. I hadn't realised there was a train route that went from the south coast back to the capital, but there was. I didn't need to hesitate when choosing train as our return mode of transport.
We travelled back during the afternoon, which meant several hours hugging the coast and several hours of great views out of our window in the Rajadhani Express.
The sunset was a particular highlight.
Our final night, a pokey guesthouse run by rude staff near Colombo airport, was forgotten about by the time we boarded the plane back to London.
Sri Lanka was unquestionably right up there with the best trips I've taken. Lovely people, great food, testing mountains, superb train journeys, secluded beaches and more.
Go now before it becomes the next Thailand!