It was quite comforting, albeit a little sad, to exit the open air jeep for the last time and climb into a nice, cool, air conditioned van. We were full of grit and dirt, but happy about everything we had seen. I caught a glimpse of myself in the rear view mirror and grinned at my hair that looked like I had been standing in a wind tunnel for the past few days. Soon, we would be back in relative civilization and were on our way down the road. Quickly the vegetation turned from drought stricken to tropical jungle again and a few hours later we were winding our way up a steep, tea plant laden hillside to the Niyagama House, our final Sri Lanka stop.
We only had about 30 hours before it was back to Colombo to fly home, but we intended to make the most of them. First things first, clean up a bit and then hit the pool! The small, boutique hotel had an incredible infinity pool overlooking the tea plantation and the surrounding jungle hillsides. The effect was even more dramatic given the brown scenery we had been staring at the past few days. Once we were sufficiently refreshed, we enjoyed another pot of tea with a side of bananas foster. We may have been glamping before, but we had somehow unintentionally found ourselves in the true lap of luxury. An early curry sampler dinner was followed by an early bed time. Our new comfy bed had an even bigger safety net around it than at the campsite, and after sleeping on cots the past few nights, we were asleep before our heads hit the pillows. Good thing too, busy day ahead of us tomorrow.
After a filling Sri Lankan breakfast we began the day with a leisurely stroll around the tea plantation, learning that the workers could pick 20-25kg of tea leaves each day. They had to have had mountain goat ancestors at some point with how steep the hillsides were. Next, we decided to work up a sweat, going on a guided, white knuckle bicycle ride around the area. It had rained in the morning, so the rocky dirt path was even more slippery than usual. Our bicycles, although comfortable, looked more like something out of the Wizard of Oz vs. the mountain bikes that would have been put to better use. After traversing up and down hillsides, seeing local houses and cruising through rice paddies we were dripping with perspiration. Of course our guide, wearing pants and a button up shirt looked like he was just out for a Sunday stroll. 2 years we've been here and apparently still not fully acclimated.
The following to do on the agenda was a tuk-tuk ride around the area, how could a trip to Sri Lanka be complete without one? First up was a centuries old Buddhist temple carved into a towering rock formation. The local monk practically looked as old as the temple itself. We gave a donation, which must have been enough as he smiled and waved at us as we walked out, hopefully spreading happy thoughts our way. The second stop on the tour was the Virgin White Tea plantation. This place was famous for its namesake tea in which they only picked the top leaf of the plant while using white gloves. Apparently the oil from your fingers can impact the flavor. Since its pretty labor intensive and the tea leaves are tiny it costs $1500 per kg. Needless to say, we were hoping for a free sample, but that was about it. After a quick stroll through the grounds and a few cups of tea we got to see the 150 year old tea processing equipment and then the game was on for tea tasting. Over 30 different types of teas, all laid out in 2 rows. The virgin tea was good, others were better, but after about 10 they kind of blended together. All in all, a highly caffeinated, enjoyable experience.
No comments:
Post a Comment