Шри-Ланка - кусочек РАЯ на ЗЕМЛЕ! Sri Lanka - a piece of heaven on earth!

Good afternoon. We rested from 09.08. 10 to 19.09. 10. As soon as you set foot on the land of Sri Lanka, you understand how humid the climate is, T-shirts, shorts immediately become half-damp. We were met at the airport by the guide GRISHAN (the other type, I will describe below). We were brought to the hotel, settled in a room on the second floor with a side view of the ocean, the room was so-so for a modest 4, the shower room did not please us at all, but we are not picky about the rooms, because we only take a shower and sleep there. The furniture is more or less fresh, but it is clear that from such a climate the varnish on the furniture goes in spiders. Be sure to read the guest book at the reception, you will find a lot of useful information from tourists. The bed really seems damp, but they quickly realized that if you do not open the balcony and turn on the air conditioner, then this problem is almost completely solved. Things, of course, are very difficult to dry, the swimsuit practically does not dry. The hotel is fully consistent with its star rating, 4 stars do not portend anything special either in the kitchen or in the service. We had only breakfast and we never regretted that we did not take all inclusive. Breakfasts were held at an incomprehensible time, then from 8 to 10, then from 8-30 to 10-30. Once we came at ten minutes to ten, and there was nothing on the tables, we had to swear. I swore personally in half English and Russian, in the end they brought us rolls, butter, cheese, tea and coffee. We usually ate dinner in cafes located nearby. We can advise you to go to Sasika (when you go to the beach, go to the right for about 5 minutes), the food is really tasty and inexpensive, the only thing is to check the bill, they can cheat. A portion of shrimp immediately comes with a side dish, a portion of spaghetti is quite large and can be taken for two. We also went to the Blue Lagoon a couple of times (Blue Lagune, a cafe on the river in the thickets) (when leaving the hotel, turn right for 2-3 minutes on the left side of the road), also large portions. If you are not too lazy to ride, then take a tuk-tuk and ask to be taken to Bentota. Costs $2 round trip. You can also negotiate with a taxi, which is available on site for the same money. But knock-knock is a drive. I really liked the soup of sea creatures in the AIDA cafe in Bentota, they didn’t find anything else like it. We had a very tasty dinner at the Sea Grill cafe, the service is at a high level, the "ladies" go there in evening dresses, but we were Russian in shorts and T-shirts. Insanely delicious dessert Pinneapple Suprise, highly recommend. (a photo). On average, our dinners came out at 30 bucks a couple. No one had any problems with digestion. The ocean is warm, but the waves are very strong, a local guy told us that in August we need to go to the northeast of the island, there is a smooth surface on the ocean. The ocean is dirty, but it is not clear what this is connected with, either with the river flowing nearby, or the waves wash all the dirt on the shore. We never lay on the beach, because it is not equipped there. We lay in the hotel on sunbeds, and went to swim in the ocean, it took 2 minutes to walk, but things were guarded. The hotel is more for overnight stays between excursions, there is animation with which we sometimes did aqua aerobics. In the evenings, the animators arrange performances with folk dances and skits. Rest is calm, young people are bored in this hotel. There are no places of entertainment nearby. There are discos and casinos only in Colombo, and it is 50 km to go there. On the beach, be sure to use cream, or better sunbathe under the palm trees. We have been on a lot of excursions. First we went with our guide Grishan, who turned out to be a breeder in the end. To begin with, we decided to go on an excursion "Elephant Orphanage-Spice Garden-Jewellery Factory-Royal Botanical Garden-Kandy-Buddha Temple-Tea Factory-Waterfalls". We agreed to go without spending the night from early morning until late at night. They took 250 bucks from us for the tour, later it turned out that it was possible, safely, to go with the beach boy Ami on the same tour, only for 150. Grishan bred on everything, on morning tea, on water, on fruits, on buying tickets . It’s cool in the elephant nursery, you can wash the elephant, then you will ride on it. Also be sure to feed him. We took the smallest excursion in the nursery, it was quite enough for us, there was nothing to do there longer. The "Garden of Spice" is generally complete bullshit and you don't need to go there. Spices are expensive, buy much cheaper in the store. At the jewelry factory "Amith Gems" (Kandi. Peradeniya road. 644) we got stuck for a long time, watched the video, production, then chose stones for a long time and bargained. Traded for about an hour. As a result, they took sapphires for good money. Upon arrival, they showed the familiar jewelers, everyone was rated 2-3 times more expensive. I can say one thing, that if the price tag says 600, then you should give no more than 350, and preferably 250 - it will be a gift of fate. Bargain confidently and insist on your own, bargain personally, as soon as someone from your environment says "take it, good price" these monkeys will not move another rupee. Do not forget to take certificates for stones and wood products. Then we were in the huge Royal Botanic Gardens. Awesome tour, amazingly beautiful. The next stop was the city of Kandy, however, our "friend" Grishan showed him from the car, we did not even walk around the city. Then we headed to the "Temple of the Buddha", an insanely interesting and beautiful temple. Impressed. After the Temple, we went high into the mountains to a tea plantation. We were not on the plantation itself, we were only taken to the factory. The stench is terrible, almost threw up. It stinks of strong chifir. Most of all, I was struck by how they all rake with shovels from the floor they walk on with bare feet, plus tourists who walk in shoes. After that, I did not want to buy Ceylon tea. . After the tea factory, we went to the waterfalls, again mountain serpentine, almost to the top of the mountain. The waterfall turned out to be frail and with a very inconvenient approach, we were afraid to go along this "goat path". In general, the waterfall was not worth it to go there. I can say for myself that I was very swayed on this excursion, so if you have a bad vestibular apparatus, take pills or bracelets with you. The impressions of this excursion were blocked by fatigue and deceit. The next day we decided to try to take a tour of the beach boy Ami (always hanging out at the exit to the beach, black with long curly hair, mob. place. +94777047843). We approached, chatted, asked questions and agreed to ride on the Bentota River in a boat. Agreed for 30 bucks 4. Let's go and enjoy the tour, communication, lots of fresh fruit that we decided to travel only with him. On the river we saw many monitor lizards, eagles, a kiwi bird, a green lizard, a tame eagle, a monkey, a small crocodile, mangroves. Ami does not go shopping with you, but if you ask, she will come in and very often tells you what and how much it really should cost. Only Ami bought us water, because for tourists water is much more expensive. Moreover, he did not even take a penny from us for water. Also with Ami we went on a jeep safari to Yala National Park. On the way, Ami took us to the village and fed us with cottage cheese and buffalo milk. Very tasty cottage cheese with palm honey. We transferred from the minibus to a jeep and drove across the savannah. We saw many different animals, wild boars, elephants, buffaloes, marabou, crocodiles, jackals, kiwis, eagles, leopards. All with jokes and jokes. Very funny and friendly guy. We drove home with impressions, a slight relaxation and a sense of accomplishment. Excursions are all interesting, but it is very far to go, so it turns out to be expensive. Almost everything is for 2 days, but we did not want to pay for other hotels, so we went one day. With meals in roadside cafes, be vigilant, because on the train with Grishan for us, tea cost 5 bucks, and with Ami 2 basques for four. Ami brought water for free. We also became so good friends with Ami that he persuaded us on the penultimate evening to go to the turtle farm. It's fun to see little turtles. True, it started to rain, and we asked him to take us just to a restaurant, and not to take us to the farm. He pretended not to understand us. But then he surprised us and brought us to his house, where his wife cooked dinner for us. We sat pleasantly, ate, talked with his wife, played with his son and we were taken home. Souvenirs are quite difficult to find, on excursions the prices are crazy, bargain hard, put money in and take the goods. On our last evening on the island, we decided to go out for souvenirs. We were met by an uncle right at the hotel and offered a taxi service. We said to the gift shop, he took us to Bentota. The store is really big. Bargain at prices right away, otherwise they will throw off very little at the checkout. On average, the discount should be about 30 percent. In conclusion, I can say that do not be afraid of beach-fights, look at their attitude. Our Ami honestly earned money and never cheated on the price. Always honestly told what and how much it costs. GRISHAN is a complete schmuck, if you come across him, immediately send him in three funny letters. And yet, you can go to the airport 3 hours before departure, it makes no sense to arrive there earlier. It takes 50-60 minutes maximum to get to the airport from the hotel at night, plus an hour is enough to go through all the formalities. Grishan picked us up from the hotel at 22-00, and the flight was at 04-40, it was just kick-ass. We were ready to sleep on these benches at the airport. Sri Lanka is a wonderful island! We will definitely come back to see the rest of the sights. SIGIRIA did not wait for us this time.