Kandy, Sri Lanka

The day began with an hour delay out of Sharjah.  The 4.5 hour redeye seemed a lot longer because I was surrounded by little people - three in front, and one across the aisle.  The three in front were wonderful - 4 year old twin boys and their two year old brother.  Sweet as pie.  Their Mom and Dad made sure they were settled, each with an iPad, and at two and four years old, they put me to shame the way they were racing from app to app, having a grand time.

The toddler across the way was the little booger.

He screamed from the time we took off, for three hours . . . straight.

Yes.

You read that right.

Three freaking hours.

And . . .

His Mom and Dad did absolutely nothing to calm him down.  By the three hour mark, several folks stopped by their seats, but it was only when the flight attendant asked them to go to the galley, did any of us get any peace.

Now, we've probably all experienced traveling with a cranky kid, but I'm sure each of us did everything we could to settle our little people down.

It was really frustrating and rude for these parents to do nothing . . . nada . . . to shut this kid up.  You know, maybe walk with him, sing to him, feed him, bounce him up and down.

Anything.

Anything at all,  but they just sat there and let the kid wail.

Thank God, once we landed, things went very smooth and Sri Lanka was a sight to behold.

Luscious greenery at every turn.  There are mountains all around, covered with trees that are a deep shade of green.  It looks like one huge garden that is in full bloom, with no fruit or vegetables yet.  Once the fruit and vegetable appear and are ripe, the green stems turn to brown, and the garden isn't as colorful anymore.

Anyway, that description doesn't begin to describe how beautiful this place is.

The city of Kandy has not been exploited by rapid growth.  In fact, being here, you kind of step back in time. The roads were two-lane throughout our three hour travel from Colombo to Kandy.  No fancy places.  No big, new buildings.  Everything looked like it has been here a while.

It reminded me a lot of India, but it is so very clean.  Everywhere.  You can tell, these are a proud people.

It is so much more inviting than India because of this.

Side note - I really have to read the fine print on my travel plans through GroupOn (which I love, by the way).  I assumed, or rather hoped, that we would be at our destination within the hour after landing.  It was a three hour trip.  After a couple of hours on the road, all of us were starting to nod off, when we made a quick stop to grab something to eat.  From there, an hour or so later, we came to the Elephant Refuge, that has more than 60 elephants, from the very young to the old timers, enjoying the day in a shallow river.  There are hotels and restaurants built into the side of the river, and the elephants are close enough to touch, but we were advised not to.

Then it was lunch time for them, and they march up the path we had just walked down to see them.  It was an incredible sight to see the elephants marching through town, looking like they were ready to shop, but by the time I got my camera out and ready, they had turned the corner and were out of sight.

Oh well.

Next, we went a little further down the main drag, and those of us who wanted to, could ride an elephant.  Since I rode one when I was in Thailand, it wasn't a priority for me, but there was another single girl, so I rode with her.  In Bangkok, the elephant I rode was fitted with a basket with two seats, so it was just like sitting in a chair.  This time, there was just a blanket on the elephant, so you could really feel him moving beneath you.

After leaving here, our sleepless night was catching up with us, as we'd had a full day with little or no sleep, so we're all ready to head to the hotel.

There was another stop though, to an herb and spice garden, where we were introduced to all kinds of things used as natural remedies for all kinds of ailments.  It was way more informative and exciting than I would have ever imagined.

Then, the guy doing the demo, mentioned some concoction as great for reviving tired, achy bodies.  Almost as if on cue, about 10 guys appeared out of no where, and offered massages.

For those of you who know me, you know I'm not a fan of them, but my God, this guy's hands were magical.  What a rubbing good time I had!

Of course, we were given the opportunity to buy the potions, and that took a while.  My group/bus had 26 folks.

Once we were all accounted for, we spent another half hour or so on the road, then we arrived for our home for the night.  We were scheduled to be here two days, but that changed, so it's just for one night.

If you've made it to the end of this post, God bless you!

The one downside of traveling alone is having to wait until I write, to share my experiences.  It was such a great day, after a not so great start, that I didn't want to leave any part out.

I'm off to bed now.

Good night to me (we're 12.5 hours head of Pacific time; 1.5 hours head of Abu Dhabi)

Good morning to you.

PS.:  I have lots of pictures.  I'll upload them when I get home.