Goodbye Sri Lanka

Then it continued by bus from Colombo to Trinco in the northeast. 7 hours journey, a bathroom break. That's exactly what Piesch-Ella is right for me. And then it was the most disgusting toilet of the whole trip. These stand-up toilets, pitch dark, I didn't want to use my phone's flashlight in there, disgustingly dirty, mice running around... The public toilets in Sri Lanka are the worst, but I think I've already mentioned that.

The bus drivers are just crazy here, but really good drivers. They drive so fast. Barely on the highway, the gas pedal is completely pressed down and then they speed off and honk. But you feel safe in the bus. I felt more unsafe in the car, especially because of the crazy buses. The bus ticket only costs 2.60€. A driver would have cost 70€ and the car ride takes about 4.5 hours. There is only one night train from Colombo to Trinco. But it is said to be too dangerous. Even the locals advise against it. So the bus was the best alternative.
Trinco was also nice or rather I stayed on the beach in Uppveli. Trinco is just a small ugly city. The beach in Uppveli was okay. Very big and long. There's not much going on there, but I'm also here in the off-season. There's not much to see here. More for beach vacation. Nilaveli beach is about 25 min by tuktuk from Uppveli, but it wasn't nicer. Uppveli is the best. And there are really nice hotels there. I just relaxed there for a few days. There are many small restaurants nearby with really good food:)
Fortunately, there is a train from Trinco at around 7 am. You have to change trains once, but that's okay. You also travel for about 7 hours, but you have to expect delays with trains and 7 hours quickly become 11:) But I met some nice backpackers and that made the time pass quickly.
The last few days I was in Colombo. Michael, the Australian I met in Malaysia, came to Colombo for the last 5 days, so I wasn't alone on my birthday whoop whoop. We first stayed at the historic Mount Lavinia Hotel in the south of Colombo or in Mount Lavinia:) That was the nicest hotel with a private beach. Wow so great. Many people come just for the buffets. The food was really amazing. There are freshly squeezed juices and coconut water. A bread station, a curry station, a waffle and crepe station, the yogurt station, etc. Sooo good. We had a room with a sea view. And then we ended up at the Galle Face Hotel. It is the most famous hotel in Colombo. A 5-star hotel. So I treated myself at the end:p
The hotel is also nice, but Mount Lavinia Hotel is better, even though it only has 4 stars. But it has much more charm and the pool and everything is sooo pretty. And it's even cheaper with a sea view than the other one. So if you're ever in Colombo... and it's not a nice city in itself, then here are my tips.. they make the stay nice after all:) and I got them from Louella. She worked and lived in the city for a month.
The Barefoot Cafe with a cute courtyard and a shop, the Gallery Cafe for dinner with amazing food and a nice courtyard and a small shop. I stocked up on tea and scented candles here:)
Then there is the Seema Malaka and Gangaramaya temples which are okay and you can also visit the Dutch Hospital with its good restaurants and shops.
I woke up with the sound of the sea in Mount Lavinia on my birthday, then had an amazing breakfast and went for a walk on the beach. Then we checked in at the Galle Face and went to the Luxus Ceylon Spa. 1.5 hours massage. It was amazing. It smelled so good there and everything around it was just beautiful. In the evening, we had the dinner buffet at the hotel. I was happy about all the birthday wishes and had a wonderful day.
On June 21st was my last day in Sri Lanka. We took a day trip by train for 1.5 hours to Bentota. Also a nice beach, but there's nothing else there. And the most beautiful beach is still in Mirissa ♡ Sri Lanka is a great country. I liked it very much.

My highlights were the train ride to Ella and the whole day afterwards with the waterfall and little Adam's Peak, the trip to Lipton's seat, Mirissa and Galle in the south, and of course the Mount Lavinia Hotel. Now my suitcase is full of tea. I bought an extra hand luggage suitcase for 10€. It doesn't make sense to send it so close to returning and this way it's much cheaper and it will definitely arrive:p

My flight back is on June 25th.... what? I'm not ready yet!
But first, I'm going to the Maldives for 3 more days 🤗 That's really the last stop.