Sri Lanka: Tea and more…

Rows of tea bushes

Ever since topping the ‘must visit country’ list of several travel publications last year, Sri Lanka is the current darling of the travel cognoscenti and nothing confirms that better than the fact that hotels here are fully booked for months in advance.

Sri Lanka seems to have all it takes to lure travellers: pristine beaches, verdant rolling hills, a neat collection of World Heritage sites and some of the friendliest people you’ll ever meet.

THE WELL-TRODDEN CIRCUIT
For many, the well-trodden Sri Lankan circuit goes like this: Colombo (Negombo) – Sigiriya – Dambulla – Kandy – Nuwara Eliya – Colombo. All this translates to: beach, Sri Lanka’s version of Ayer’s Rock, painted hermit caves, Buddha’s Tooth and tea plantations.

See the red bananas?

It’s a lot to fit into a week (and plenty people do), so take a few extra days and get your own wheels to really get to explore the country. Stop by a roadside fruit stall and enjoy a fresh pineapple with chilli flakes, or one of a dozen varieties of bananas (including a curiously red-coloured version). It’s also a great way to meet the locals and try the local food: plenty of restaurants have buffet tables lined with tureens of curry (almost everything is curry here).

While there are plenty of things to see and do here, the one thing that does stand out is…tea. It’s produced and drunk here in huge quantities, so what better location to start the trip than in the tea region?

PART 1: THE TEA TRAIL

On the tea trail

Mention Sri Lanka, and you’ll immediately think Ceylon Tea. Almost half the island is dedicated to the production of these golden tips, which is ironic considering it used to be a major production area for coffee until a coffee blight struck, and was replaced by the booming tea industry by the mid 1800s.

Today, the Nuwara Eliya region, with its verdant rolling hills, is synonymous with tea country. You can have a go at tackling some of the tea trails that wind through the tea bushes – if you think it’s tiring, imagine hauling a full basket of tea leaves the way the locals do!

Coincidentally, Nuwara Eliya is also the country’s most ‘British’ region, where old British plantation houses and tea factories still remain. And because of its British heritage, you can count on the existence of trains. One of the most rewarding excursions is riding on an old locomotive as you chug your way past the rolling tea fields and tin-roofed factories as you watch the locals go about filling their baskets with freshly-picked leaves.

Riding the Old Train

CHUGGA CHUGGA
Most tourists take the ‘first class’ observation carriage (where the chairs are upholstered and indented with 100 years’ worth of seated butts), which is basically the last carriage of the train that is equipped with a rather Victorian version of ‘panoramic’ windows. You can sit back and enjoy the train’s rocking motion and the breeze that comes from small rotating ceiling fans and open windows.

Getting tickets at the counter

In addition to the charming locomotives that probably haven’t been refitted since they first went into action, the train stations themselves are also atmospherically ancient. Grab a train from Gampola station to Nanu Oya and enjoy 3 to 4 hours of chugging through more old-school stations as friendly locals smile and wave you by.

If you’re staying in the tea region, consider spending the night in one of the many British plantation houses. They range from rather basic lodgings to opulent digs, and are usually located within tea plantations, so you can sip your freshly-picked morning cuppa as you soak in the scenery.

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Of course, there’s much more to Sri Lanka than tea. Read up on Sri Lanka: Between a Rock and a Tooth.

Praslin: Pleasure Island

A view from Praslin

One of the 115 islands of the Seychelles, Praslin is definitely what you’d call a ‘pleasure island’, thanks to its profusion of resorts, villas and hotels. Ranging from self-catering digs for budget travellers to 5-star celebrity-endorsed posh resorts, Praslin has it all. Unlike big brother Mahé, it doesn’t have a large town or commercial centre, so the entire island is dedicated to R&R and some romance.

A typical sunset

To get to Praslin, you have 2 options: to take a really short 15-minute flight, or a 1-hour long catamaran ride from the main island of Mahé. This is an easy decision if it’s during the winter season when the waves are wild: you don’t want to be chucking last night’s dinner along with the rest of the passengers.

If arriving by air, you’ll be able to see how isolated the Seychelles islands are – apart from a cluster of large islands like Praslin, Curieuse and La Digue, there are countless tiny specks in the ocean, some of which are designated as ‘private islands’ (read: expensive). Then the ocean stretches for miles, without a single landmark or ocean tanker in sight.

BEACHES

A view of Anse Lazio

If you’re here for beaches, all you have to look out for is the keyword Anse (beach). There’s plenty around – Grand, Takamaka, Banane, Patate, Lazio; every local has their favourite patch of Anse and there’s no shortage of Anse to have all to yourselves.

Beaches line the northern and southern parts of the island, and you have to know how to pick your beaches based on the season. In winter, the southern beaches get dumped with a mass of seaweed that line the entire shoreline with a foot of plant matter. Walking over it feels like you’re walking on sponge – and there’s enough of the stuff that if roped together, would form a decent-sized private island. Come summer, the reverse happens, and the northern beaches get the seaweed.

Beach at Praslin

You’ll know where there is a good beach – it’s the area lined with resorts and hotels; you’ll even find hotels perched on the hill facing it. Luckily, they’ve left their most famous beach – Anse Lazio – untouched by resorts. Protected in a bay with powder-soft sand and pretty granite rocks, you can just wade straight into the ocean with no sharp rocks or coral to impede your way.

Actually, it’s pretty much the same for almost all the beaches here, but who’s to argue?

RESORTS
Located on opposite beaches, L’Archipel and Constance Lemuria Resort are just off the main drive, both with great beaches and a totally different feel from each other.

L'Archipel's pool and beach

L’Archipel is accessed via a dirt track, which brings you into a secluded bay that’s protected from wind and waves no matter what the season. This small resort has a European feel, with 4-poster-bedded rooms spread out over a hilly tract of land. You’ll need to love stairs, since most rooms are up on a hill, but they have amazing views of the bay (with its long beach) and nearby Curieuse Island. It’s a classic ‘romantic’ kind of place, where you can dine by the beach by candlelight, swim in a secluded bay and pretty much feel private.

Lemuria's beachside dining

Constance Lemuria, on the other hand, is a more glitzy affair. Once you enter the enormous compound (which has the only golf course on the island), you get around it with a chauffeur-driven golf cart to the rooms or other facilities. Luxury and celebrity guests are the norm here, where most come to bling it up on the beaches or the pool. The rooms are Wi-fi linked, with bathtubs overlooking the (tree-lined) beaches. There are 2 beaches within the property, with a third one accessible via your chauffeured golf cart.

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WANT MORE STORIES ON THE SEYCHELLES? READ OUR “SEYCHELLES: RUDE PLANTS AT VALLEE DE MAI” STORY HERE.

Bozen or Bolzano?

View of the Dolomites

Spaghetti or Schnitzel? Vespa or Volkswagon? Piazza or Platz? Italian or German?

Bozen (in German), or Bolzano (in Italian), has more than just bilingual signages. This capital of Italy’s Süd Tirol region has an equally strong blend of Italian and German influences, so the locals are not quite sure if they prefer to speak Italian or German, or even if they want to be passionate or efficient at their jobs. As a result, Bozen is a happy, if slightly schizophrenic, city that can make the Germans feel at home in Italy, and make the Italians feel proud to be so efficiently Germanic.

Cow in scenic pasture

The city of Bozen/Bolzano is situated close to the mighty Dolomites mountain range, the birthplace of Via Ferrata or Klettersteig (or the ‘Iron Way’). Originally ‘invented’ during WWI, it was used by both Austrians and Italians to bring soldiers and supplies around the harsh mountainscape. Today, these Via Ferrata routes are a magnet for climbing enthusiasts from around the world. For the not-so-active, the Dolomites is perhaps one of the most unique and picturesque mountain ranges in the world.

Mountains play a big part in Bozen/Bolzano: it is surrounded by them, and its claim to fame are its two mountain men: the frozen “Ötzi” and the frostbitten, climbing god Rheinhold Messner. Ötzi (named for the Ötztal Mountains in Austria where he was found) was discovered by German tourists in 1991 and was assumed to be just another casualty, until the autopsy revealed that he was actually over 5,000 years old. Rheinhold Messner, on the other hand, was born in 1944 and is a mountaineering legend who’s climbed all the world’s 8 peaks over 8,000 metres.

Castle amidst mountains

Visitors can see both legends in Bozen’s respective museums: Ötzi permanently resides (intact with leather boots, tattoos, flint knife and all) in the city’s South Tirol Archeological Museum as Europe’s oldest mummy, while Messner’s body of work can be explored in the handful of Messner Mountain Museums – themselves architectural masterpieces – dotted around the Dolomites. While both Ötzi and Messner may be technically Germanic, they’re both now definitely Italians.

The Germans are well-known to be into outdoor sports and healthy living, while the Italians are famous for living la dolce vita. Here in Bozen/Bolzano, it’s the best of both worlds. The mountains are a mecca for the outdoor enthusiasts, home to 20,000km of hiking routes and 1,200km of ski trails (it’s Europe’s biggest ski area), while the hedonistic crowd will have no problem diving into the rich local cuisine and wine culture.

It doesn’t stop there – the shops here are a mix of Italian high street and outdoor gear shops; something you don’t see everywhere. It’s the kind of place where you can get an authentic bierstein from one store, and a custom-made Italian pair of boots next door. Or having your weissbier served ice-cold with your wurst, and still have a gelato and a great cup of Italian coffee afterwards. Like 2 sides to a coin, Bozen/Bolzano is Italy without the noisy piazzas and traffic, and it’s Germany with a touch of flair.

If you can’t decide between Austria, Germany or Italy, Bozen/Bolzano hits both marks. This is where the Germans come to loosen up without losing a bit of home, and where the Italians come to take a holiday from the rest of Italy.

Bolzano's backyard - the Dolomites

Kerala: Land of Happy People

All tuktuk drivers seem to have marigold charms

The signature hammer-and-sickle red flags are posted almost everywhere you look. Building walls are adorned with colourful graffiti and posters with ‘CCCP’-style icons emblazoned on them. If you’ve just been plunked here, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d landed in some surreal, Stallinist beach resort, but fear not. This is a holiday, and there’s no food rationing or hard labour here. This is Kerala after all, home of the happiest communists on earth.

Communism is probably not something everyone associates with ‘God’s Own Country’, tucked in the lush southeast corner of India. But you won’t find USSR-style parades or North Korea’s favourite mass performances here. If it’s a large congregation you want, you can experience one of Kerala’s famous boat-racing festivals where hordes of people congregate to the beat of one drum. If you prefer cultural performances, try watching a Kalaripayat martial arts match or the dramatic Kathakali dance – while they’re performed for tourists, you can be sure Big Brother’s not forcing them into it.

Kerala's tea plantations in Munnar

Far from the classically communist bleak you’d expect, this ‘prolitariate utopia’ is India’s most socially forward-thinking state, where 5-star resorts and rice farming coexist in a happy equilibrium. Sandwiched between the Western Ghats mountains and the Indian Ocean, there’s equal beauty in its sandy shores, verdant tea plantations and rolling mountains where elephants have been known to surprise a few hikers at the peak.

Since electing the world’s first democratic politoburo in the 1950s, Kerala has been an egalitarian destination. Communism has made this state India’s statistically best-educated and healthiest state.

Cruising the backwaters

A high percentage of Keralans are actually university degree holders, and are keen to exercise their knowledge with visitors (you’ll just have to ask them to speak slowly – a Malayali accent is not something to be understood at a machine-gun pace). Take a slow cruise along Kerala’s famous backwaters, and villagers would wave or stop for a chat. For some strange reason, everyone just seems happy – if there’s anything wrong with this picture, they’re certainly not letting it on.

If you’re a collector of all things Communist – from Che tees to Mao’s red books – Kerala is probably the easiest place for you to obtain a hammer-and-sickle red flag of your very own. Heck, the happy folk will even throw in a colourful party-election poster in deliciously squiggly Malayali text that accompanies a photo of someone with an impressive mustache.

Men in dhotis in the rolling hills of Vagamon