Sri Lanka: Mirissa/Weligama Spring Festival 2019

An indication of how busy Mirissa is. 

Galle to Mirissa was a whopping hour long drive. I was heading to the bus station in a small tuktuk when the driver offered to carry on to the next town for only an extra £3. I decided that this was a very good idea and got as comfy as is possibly in a bouncy tuktuk. We drove the coast road and stopped occasionally for sight seeing and a coconut before arriving in Mirissa.

Mirissa Beach

If it was ever a small quaint town, it has gone! Now all that stands in Mirissa is a huge collection of nasty and sometimes tacky bars/restaurants. They all seemed to sell Fish and Chips and Roast Beef Sandwiches. Driving through I already wasn't taken with the place. My hostel turned out to be my first 'miss' from booking.com. The pictures looked great and the reviews were all very complimentary, I suspect foul play. It was basically two rooms on the side of a hill, which to get to I had to climb a muddy and impossible to find in the dark track. Add in the demon guard chickens who attacked anyone who came close and I was not impressed, especially when I slipped up and skinned both my knees. Sadly there was no-one else there, no common area and no staff so I was completely alone.

One hugely disappointing walk later, I decided to up and shift to a place further down the coast. Weligama. I had actually stopped there on my drive up from Galle and liked the small town vibe. I booked into a small guest house and left the chickens the next morning.

Coincidentally Sri Lankan Independence day was moving day so a big beach party was just an added bonus. Weligama ended up being one of the highlights of my trip. A fantastic beach with entertainment in the form of the surfing school, and a huge seafood market complete with people cooking it as you buy it. A complete surprise!


Weligama was to be my last beach place for a while as I was heading inland. I was completely blown away by the coasts. I had no idea the beaches were as beautiful as they are. Absolutely stunning!! I was sorry to leave.

Sri Lanka: Galle, the first of many beaches Spring Festival 2019

Galle is only an hour and a half from Colombo so I arrived pretty early. I was staying about 8km out of town in a small place right on the beach. The town is quite large and centered around a huge Dutch colonial fort and walled town. The old town looked a lot like other old towns I've been to, HoiAn in Vietnam in particular. It was still beautiful and a decent few hours of walking about but as is always the case, it was swarming in huge tour groups. I managed to get away from them by heading to the less picturesque side of the town.

When not investigating the colonial and historic part of town I was perfectly content sitting in the small decked area of my hostel. The guys who were running the place were all always stoned or sleeping so we were pretty much just left to out own devices. If you wanted a beer, help yourself and add it to your bill. Hungry, go and see what you can find in the kitchen. Anything else and you were out of luck. When the kitchen was open they served absolutely amazing seafood. I wish I could have stayed longer! In my two days in the beach hostel I think I saw three people on the beach, so we basically had the place to ourselves. Jumping in the water every time I got to hot followed by another beer and chilling with my book. Bliss! Especially as this was still in the first few days of my holiday.

Sri Lanka: Colombo Spring Festival 2019

Spring Festival rolled around and according to tradition, it's time to get out of China. This year the honour of hosting me holiday fell to Sri Lanka.












I had been given travel advice from a few different people and all agreed Colombo was nothing special and I should get out as soon as possible. I took their advice and only planned on two days in the capital, a decision I would later regret. True, there is not much to do in the city but there is more than enough to  see.

I spent my two days wandering in random directions and following the crowd. Colombo has multiple areas, each completely different and all are very close together so walking between was fairly easy.

Getting about by tuktuk was stressful and difficult as a result of the sheer number of people, buses, other tuktuks and motorbikes. So much easier to walk!

I was hacked off when this guy walking into my picture, but I actually quite like it. 

Colombo's western side hugs the coast, on which there is a small strip of grassed area that is very popular with locals for chilling and watching the sunset. I ended up spending both of my evenings in the city sat here watching the world go by. on one of the the local cricket team turned up and the navy were practicing something with inflatable boats.







I spent two days wandering, getting used to the heat, (it was pretty cold when i left Kunming) and people watching. I also had the tastiest curry of my trip here, although I'm not completely sure I was allowed in the canteen. I was shuffled off into a back room on my own and then smuggled out through the kitchen when it can time to leave. Weird, unusual, cheap and amazingly cheap.

the most challenging part of my time in Colombo was in the train station trying to collect my tickets. I like trains and like to try at least one in the country. Sri Lanka has the reputation of having some of the most scenic journeys anywhere. I would have to agree!

My first train was from Colombo to Galle which is pretty much on the southern most point of the island. The train station was cramped and a little intimidating so it was a relief to finally be on the train. The coastal track did not disappoint! i find living inland i really miss the sea so a few hours sitting with nothing to look at but the coast was very pleasant.