Stop! I want to get off!

This morning started off with visiting a wood carving factory. Next was time for some shopping in Kandy. At a clothing shop, I tried on a sari – I can’t imagine trying to dress yourself in one!
Just outside Kandy is the Peradeniya Royal Botanical Gardens. The English turned a former king’s garden into a botanical garden in 1821. Walking around the gardens was a nice change of pace. Especially since it clouded over and the weather was much more tolerable.

As we left Kandy, the weather took a turn for the worse as it started raining. As we headed for our next destination – a tea factory near Nuwara Eliya – I actually got cold! We were also gaining elevation so that likely contributed to the cooler temperature. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant in the heart of hill country with a view of a gorgeous waterfall. The scenery in this mountainous area where the tea plantations are is stunning. The tea pluckers were stopping work because of the weather and we passed a group of them walking on the road wearing garbage bags of all colours to try to keep dry.

After I learned all about how tea is made and enjoyed my free cuppa, we carried on into Nuwara Eliya. As it was still drizzling, I kept hopping in and out of the car to take photos of this very English-looking town. Nowhere in Sri Lanka is the evidence of British colonization more present than in and around Nurawa Eliya. The tea plantations and the architecture (which mimics that of an English country town) are just some of the evidence that the British were in power here for over 130 years.

After the scariest bit of driving yet – in the rain and the dark on a very narrow mountain road – we arrived at Ella, our stop for the night. The trip was a bit like a roller coaster ride that wouldn’t stop. Thankfully there was no upside down part to this ride!