There was not a single point at which I basically gawked at the places we stayed. The first place was quite fabulous with only about 20 rooms. But the room itself had a loft two beds and a huge swanky bathroom. It also had a balcony off the back which looked onto the reservoir for irrigation.
Now I must make a quick note before I forget; These irrigation lakes are huge! Most are as big a Fern Ridge* easily and I was told there was one that was so big that you couldn't see the other side of it! One day for lunch we stopped for lunch at a place that was just off the lake and it was in the mid afternoon. There was the most magnificent breeze going over the lake beautifully capping and consistent wind. It's most certainly a thermal much like we know at home, but even at the beach (basically all over the country) I saw consistent caps. Sailors; I'm telling you Sri Lanka is a totally unknown sailing oasis that is completely untapped.
That being said we got up and drove again to make it to our first destination.... which was lunch. The food on this whole trip was also spectacular. Sri lankan food is very interesting. As the vast majority of the population seem to be Buddhist there are a lot of vegetarian options** and most of the starch is made of rice or bean (which for me meant options! well minus the spicy factor) Either way it's excellent food, though if you travel there make sure to get a guide to tell you where is ok for you to eat.
After lunch we continued with our driving and arrived at Ruwanveliseya Dagoba*** This place of meditation for Buddhist is awinspiring for sure. The pure stature of the structure alone is incredible rising to 300 feet with a circuference of 950 ft. Each Dagoba has a crystal on the top and to match the size of this structure you can imagine that the crystal must be huge as well. We were not there on a particularly special day, but there are certainly special times. During the months of April–May there is a special time that is considered a very auspicious time for the religion as many important events occurred on. The rest of the area was also quite interesting because it was covered with ruins of the rest of the ancient complex.
That night I took a nice swim in the pool and enjoyed chatting with the waiters, who all looked to be about 16. Though they were extremely professional.
*Fern Ridge is a reservoir On the outside of Eugene Oregon where I do the majority of my sailing.
**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_vegetarianism
***A Dagoba or stupa (from Sanskrit: m., स्तूप, stūpa, Sinhalese: ස්ථූපය, Pāli: थुप "thūpa", literally meaning "heap") is a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the ashes of deceased, used by Buddhists as a place of meditation.
Now I must make a quick note before I forget; These irrigation lakes are huge! Most are as big a Fern Ridge* easily and I was told there was one that was so big that you couldn't see the other side of it! One day for lunch we stopped for lunch at a place that was just off the lake and it was in the mid afternoon. There was the most magnificent breeze going over the lake beautifully capping and consistent wind. It's most certainly a thermal much like we know at home, but even at the beach (basically all over the country) I saw consistent caps. Sailors; I'm telling you Sri Lanka is a totally unknown sailing oasis that is completely untapped.
That being said we got up and drove again to make it to our first destination.... which was lunch. The food on this whole trip was also spectacular. Sri lankan food is very interesting. As the vast majority of the population seem to be Buddhist there are a lot of vegetarian options** and most of the starch is made of rice or bean (which for me meant options! well minus the spicy factor) Either way it's excellent food, though if you travel there make sure to get a guide to tell you where is ok for you to eat.
After lunch we continued with our driving and arrived at Ruwanveliseya Dagoba*** This place of meditation for Buddhist is awinspiring for sure. The pure stature of the structure alone is incredible rising to 300 feet with a circuference of 950 ft. Each Dagoba has a crystal on the top and to match the size of this structure you can imagine that the crystal must be huge as well. We were not there on a particularly special day, but there are certainly special times. During the months of April–May there is a special time that is considered a very auspicious time for the religion as many important events occurred on. The rest of the area was also quite interesting because it was covered with ruins of the rest of the ancient complex.
That night I took a nice swim in the pool and enjoyed chatting with the waiters, who all looked to be about 16. Though they were extremely professional.
*Fern Ridge is a reservoir On the outside of Eugene Oregon where I do the majority of my sailing.
**http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_vegetarianism
***A Dagoba or stupa (from Sanskrit: m., स्तूप, stūpa, Sinhalese: ස්ථූපය, Pāli: थुप "thūpa", literally meaning "heap") is a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the ashes of deceased, used by Buddhists as a place of meditation.