During our one week trip to Sri Lanka, we stayed in the southwestern part of the island, near Bentota. It was the perfect getaway into a tropical paradise. Coming from the desert, we were struck by how green and dense the jungle was once you left the main road. We even encountered rain and mosquitoes, two things we had not seen for months!
As part of our reunion with former colleagues, we rented an amazing house called Suhada Villa. The house came with a full staff including a guide, drivers, waiters, and an incredible chef! The staff made the trip that much better by being so helpful and nice. In fact, it is the people of Sri Lanka that are the most memorable part of this vacation.
As we traveled around, it seemed everyone wanted to talk and hang out. In tourist areas, this often started with a sales pitch but once the sale was obviously going nowhere, merchants and passersby alike would settle into an island-style hangout and chat. The people were genuinely warm, funny and interesting.
In our neighborhood near the villa, we would go for runs and walks up the small narrow streets lined with houses and jungle. And at every house, children would run out to greet us. They would often talk with us in English and introduce themselves. On walks with our kids, Rosie and Bella were greeted with flowers, hellos and groups of children huddling around to exchange names and limited conversation in English. We have many photos of the neighborhood and the people.
The Buddhist temples were also very interesting. We especially enjoyed the small one around the corner from our villa. As seen below, it had a tree growing out from behind the Buddha right through the roof!
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