A Decade of Love: Our Amazing Sri Lankan Honeymoon (Part 2b): Induruwa, Galle, Colombo

Day 5

After Lunuganga, we headed for Galle Fort, which was about an hour away. But first, we had to have lunch because we were FAMISHED.

On our way to Galle Fort we passed through a street lined with schoolchildren welcoming officials for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2013. They gamely posed for us!

For some reason we got really excited at the prospect of having pizza when we saw a Pizza Hut outlet. I don’t remember if it was because we were hungry and Pizza Hut was the first restaurant we saw, or if it was because we were subconsciously craving simple food, after having had gourmet meals for the past week.

We were tickled when we saw they had a localised item on the menu called “Birizza” — which is essentially a fusion of biryani and pizza. It sounded quite interesting, so we ordered one to try.

“Birizza” turned out to be a piece of pizza crust (which we found quite redundant and didn’t eat in the end) atop of a bowl of biryani. I got excited thinking it was baked cheese at first, but fortunately the biryani itself was quite good.

And so with our tanks refuelled, we explored Galle Fort. Here’s a bit of its history:

Sri Lanka is an island that has changed hands several times in history. They were once ruled by the Portuguese, then the Dutch, and then the British, before achieving independence in 1948. Everyone wanted a piece of the tear-shaped island because of its strategic location for trade. It had the business of Persians, Arabs, Greeks, Romans, Malays, Indians and Chinese in its seaports back in the day.

Galle Fort was originally built by the Portuguese 426 years ago, and the Dutch and British subsequently added their own fortifications. These centuries-old fortifications later stood the test of nature, when the devastating 2004 tsunami hit Sri Lanka. There was little damage within the fort walls, but tragically the tsunami claimed many lives outside of those walls and in other coastal perimeters.

The Tsunami Honganji Vihara in Hikkaduwa — a giant statue of Buddha gifted by Japan as a memorial for the 40,000 who lost their lives to the tsunami.

Today, within the well-preserved Dutch architecture of Galle Fort, you’ll find residences, a functioning High Court and Magistrate Court, religious sites like a mosque, Buddhist temple and churches, cool cafes, hip boutiques, jewellery shops, book stores, hotels and other businesses. Galle Fort very much reminded me of our Haji Lane/Arab Street in Singapore.

The sea-facing Galle Fort.

The Indian Ocean looked stunning but at the same time the vastness of the ocean and its fierce waves were quite intimidating — I felt so small.

A group of Sri Lankan school boys thought I was a celebrity and wanted my autograph. (JUST KIDDING. They were seeking donations for their school. A group of charming boys they were — we said we were on our honeymoon and they complimented us by saying we look good together. Good on you boys — charm gets you very far in life!)

It was sweltering hot and you probably can’t see it but we were actually sweating like pigs in this photo.

Meera Mosque, built in 1909.

Weaving through the lanes of Galle Fort. This was on Church Street. The building on the left of the photo is an Arabic College established in 1892. I wish we would’ve had more time to wander further!

What I got out of our visit to Galle Fort — a pair of pearl earrings and matching ring! I had completely forgotten to bring any earrings on our trip, so my ever so sweet husband offered to buy me a pair. There couldn’t be a better memento of our Sri Lankan honeymoon. :)

Colombo

Day 6

We had our last breakfast in Temple Tree Resort & Spa before heading for our last stop in Sri Lanka — Colombo.

Breakfast was meh.

All in all a good-ish stay in Temple Tree. Service definitely has room for improvement, but nothing to kick up a fuss about. We really enjoyed our room — the decor, and the view and sounds of the Indian Ocean were spectacular.

The hotel only has 9 rooms — coupled with the fact that some of the rooms were undergoing maintenance, we literally felt like were the only guests there. Once we did see another Caucasian lady, but that was it. I suppose the lack of people around could make the hotel seem a little lifeless, but we personally had no problems with it because we were a honeymooning couple — we needed exclusivity and privacy!

In Colombo we spent our last night at a business-cum-leisure hotel called Renuka Hotel.

Renuka was nothing fancy compared to the other hotels we stayed at, but it was what you would expect out of a hotel that touts itself as a business-cum-leisure hotel.

The view from the room.

Not too shabby — the hotel has a gym and pool on the roof. We didn’t have time to take a dip, but boy did the pool look damn inviting!

We didn’t see the need to get a fancy hotel in Colombo because the main agenda here was to shop for souvenirs and get a taste of the Colombo city while we were at it. Pressed for time, after settling ourselves in we had lunch and went straight to it — we didn’t even stop to take pictures of the city (which I kinda regret now).

Lunch was Indian food at a nearby restaurant. There is definitely some difference in terms of taste between Sri Lankan and Indian cuisine, though I can’t put my finger on what it is. Anyhow, I don’t remember the Indian cuisine in Singapore to have so many accompanying dishes. Needless to say, we couldn’t finish everything!

We shopped at Laksala, a government-run enterprise selling Sri Lankan souvenirs like tea, handicrafts and textiles.

Most of our shopping was done at this departmental store called Odel. That’s me caught in the act, absolutely focused on accessory-buying. I didn’t need any more accessories, but heck — they were cheap!

Managed to exercise some self-restraint and only bought these few accessories. I can’t remember how much the necklaces were, but the earrings were like SGD4.50 each?

Our loot. We didn’t actually spend that much on shopping because we found that the stuff in Sri Lanka weren’t that much cheaper than in Singapore  — well, except for the food, tea, gems, and perhaps locally-manufactured clothing.

Day 7

The next morning we had a couple of hours before our flight back to Singapore in the afternoon, so after having the hotel’s South Indian breakfast, we snuck in yet another trip to Odel, and then to Paradise Road:

After having read about Paradise Road prior, I knew I had to come here. Paradise Road is a designer (designed by Shanth Fernando, the same Sri Lankan designer who refurbished The Villa Bentota, to be exact) homeware and furnishing boutique. I foresee myself buying things for my house here!

….aaaand it’s back to Singapore. Till we meet again, Sri Lanka!

Sri Lanka sounded great from research, and it definitely lived up to my expectations! In fact, I’m thinking of taking a trip back next year to do all the things we didn’t get to do while we were on our honeymoon.

On our next trip, we will:

• Conquer Adam’s Peak. Adam’s Peak is a 2,243-metre tall mountain, which is a shared religious site for Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians alike. There is a footprint at the peak, which is believed by the Buddhists to be Buddha’s footprint, by the Hindus to be Lord Shiva’s, and by the Muslims and Christians to be Adam’s when he was exiled from Eden. Adam’s Peak has been on my bucket list ever since I saw the most magnificent sunrise from the peak on the Sri Lanka episode of “Departures”.
• Go dolphin- and whale-watching in Mirissa. Boats will take you out to sea from the Mirissa Harbour. If you’re lucky, you’ll get to see out in the wild a school of dolphins upclose or witness a grand display of whale tail flips!
• Go on a safari in one of Sri Lanka’s many national parks.
•  Visit the ancient cityof Sigiriya in Dambulla, another UNESCO world heritage site which contains a 180m-tall rock fortress, and a palace complex. You get another panoramic view of the surroundings from the top.
• Visit the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage to get upclose and personal with elephants.

Oh what an adventure it’ll be! But before that, we’ll be going for a second honeymoon to Turkey this May! Mega excited!

A Decade of Love: Our Amazing Sri Lankan Honeymoon (Part 2a): Induruwa, Galle, Colombo)

Up to this day I wonder what difference it would’ve made if we had made Ceylon Tea Trails in Hatton our last stop because the views, the service, the food — everything — was pretty darned hard to top.

The reason we decided to go there at the beginning of our trip was because:

1. After a hectic week leading up to the wedding, we needed a damn good retreat
2. After reading the reviews, I didn’t think we could’ve waited for it to be at the end of the trip
3. We didn’t want to lug souvenirs we’d be buying from Colombo all over Sri Lanka if we went to Colombo first

Whatever it is, our trip still turned out amazing so it’s all good!

Induruwa

Day 4

In the second leg of our honeymoon we travelled to Induruwa, a quieter coastal area just a few minutes south of Bentota, its more popular and bustling neighbour. The initial plan was to stay in Bentota, but I didn’t find any hotels there on Tripadvisor that I fancied. But Induruwa turned out to be a pretty good decision because it felt more private.

For two nights we stayed in the Temple Tree Resort & Spa, a beachfront hotel that offered uninterrupted views of the Indian Ocean and had a humongous tub in every room which would take ages to fill — but was definitely worth the wait. More than enough space to splash around!

The hotel compounds. The entrance was pretty easy to miss if you didn’t pay enough attention.

The hotel lobby.

Our room!

…and my favourite part of the room — the humongous tub, which looks out onto the lawn and the Indian Ocean!

Our view for two nights. MasyaAllah.

The first night we were there we did a rejuvenating ayurvedic body massage to prep us for the next two days of sightseeing. By the time it ended we were famished and Pali, our driver, recommended us a good seafood place called Amal Villas. It was amusing to see they had “Singapore Chilli Crab” on the menu, and for fun we ordered it just to see if it would taste the same. It tasted NOTHING like our Singapore chilli crab! It was more like a sweet and sour dish — but still fortunately quite tasty.

Our huge crab before it ended up on the dinner table.

Faz, together with Pali. Faz and I were literally still covered in oil from head to toe because we couldn’t shower right after our ayurvedic treatment, but was too hungry to wait.

We ended up eating quite a bit because we’d invited Pali to have dinner with us, but he was too shy and only ate a bit before leaving us to ourselves. But it was nice to get to chat with him for a while and find out more about Sri Lanka through a local’s eyes.

Day 5

Our second day in Induruwa saw us visiting Lunuganga, the country home of the late Geoffrey Bawa, a renowned Sri Lankan architect.

As he (Bawa) went on to become Sri Lanka’s and one of Asia’s most prolific and influential architects, the garden at the Lunuganga estate remained his first muse and experimental laboratory for new ideas. He continued to change and experiment with its spaces and structures throughout his life until his final illness in 1998. Left to the Lunuganga Trust on his demise in 2003, the gardens are now open to the public and the buildings on the estate are run as a country house hotel.

Source: www.geoffreybawa.com

In my search for accommodation during the honeymoon, I remember stumbling across a hotel called The Villa Bentota and being wowed because it had such a distinct and unique style. I later discovered it was designed by an architect named Geoffrey Bawa, who had designed a whole repertoire of hotels both in Sri Lanka and internationally. In Sri Lanka, these hotels were the Heritance Kandalama in Dambulla, the Jetwing Lighthouse in Galle, and the Tintagel and Number 11 Colombo Residence in Colombo, just to name a few.

After having designed so many hotels, Lunuganga was interesting to see because Bawa built it for himself, so in a sense it was a true reflection of his personal tastes. He spent his lifetime experimenting with the space — I don’t know about you but I was very curious to see how a place that took 40 years to build up looked like.

Getting there saw us getting lost, stopping several times to ask the locals for directions. We later learnt that every single detail about the 23-hectare Lunuganga was deliberate. It was inaccessible because Bawa had intended it — he treasured his privacy very much.

We finally arrived at this huge iron gate with nothing but an old bronze bell as form of communication which seemed to lead into a forest, no buildings in sight. Did we arrive at the right place? Surely this couldn’t be the main entrance? We rang the bell and waited. Five minutes passed. I thought maybe the place was closed and had begun to feel a little disappointed, but lo and behold suddenly a young man came running from the inside to let us in. Trip not wasted afterall!

Waiting for any signs of life to appear after ringing the bell….

Going into the premises we realised why it took the man five minutes — it was a bit of a walk in but I didn’t mind. I was already enjoying Lunuganga and its many visual stimulants: giant trees hundreds of years old, flora of different species — and when we finally got to the houses, they were old and rustic on the outside but bursting with character on the inside.

We weren’t allowed inside these houses, which now serve as hotel rooms, but they had windows for us to peer through. In terms of accommodation, Lunuganga is probably not the place for you if you cannot live without all the mod cons. There are no swimming pools, no TVs, and probably no wi-fi. What you do get, but which is priceless these days, is a sense of immense serenity and still-standing time.

The Entrance Court, the start point of our Lunuganga tour.

The place is rustic but the details are amazing!

Waiting for our guide to take us around.

Geoffrey Bawa’s gorgeous study. He was obsessed with checks, and I love that it lends such a bold yet refreshing contrast against the traditional-looking furniture in the room!

More checks! This was one of the hotel rooms, which we shot through the window.

We were told this Water Garden was Bawa’s favourite view in the evening.

One of the many pretty water lilies in the pond.

You’ll find Lunuganga littered with frangipani trees — frangipani was Bawa’s favourite flower.

Pong pong — the forbidden poisonous fruit we all learnt about in primary school. I think this was the first time I’ve ever seen it in person!

Guess what, even more checks! That’s the Dedduwa lake in the background.

Cinnamon trees were also planted in the compound. Did you know the entire tree smells of cinnamon –the bark, the leaves and all?

I love how ethereal the branches look! The whole time I felt like I was Alice in Wonderland or something.

An interesting plant the blue fern is. It only looks blue when the sunlight hits it.

What did I say about feeling like Alice in Wonderland? I felt like I’d just come out of some secret passage in the forest!

Have I told you I have a fondness for old, weathered doors? I feel like they have so much character. And how unexpectedly bold is the choice of colours in such a rustic setting? Love it!

Bawa’s favourite frangipani tree, which was also the largest one in Lunuganga. This one was weighted to achieve that low, spreaded-out effect. You could come here to the Western Terrace to have a meal and enjoy the majestic view.

As a layperson I’d say Lunuganga is an amalgamation of traditional and modern, eclectically peppered with all of Bawa’s favourite things, making a style that is uniquely his.

Lunuganga was beautiful and I enjoyed it tremendously. I wasn’t sure at first if Faz would appreciate this sort of attraction — I still probably enjoyed it more than him — but thank god he turned out to be quite an easygoing travelling companion!

Coming up in my next post — our visit to Galle Fort, a 426-year-old historical monument and UNESCO world heritage site that was originally built by the Portugese but was subsequently taken over by the Dutch and then the British, and then to Colombo for a taste of Sri Lankan city life!