Sri Lanka
Book reviews
Books
Best books about countries
When it comes to travelogues, I really enjoy books about entire countries because you get to know a lot about a country and its many places and its history, culture, and politics. Most of these books focus on travel, but they also feature history, politics, cultural commentary and personal and family narratives. Elephant Complex– John […]
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Book reviews
Books
Book review- Elephant Complex-Travels in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka is a fascinating little gem of a country blessed with a seemingly perfect combination of ancient and colonial historical sites, diverse culture, wildlife, beautiful mountain scenery, and beaches. But the country also has its demons, having endured a savage 30-year civil war that ended in a mass massacre in 2011. John Gimlette […]
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Sri Lanka travel
Travel
Sri Lanka’s hill town of Nuwara Eliya
The mountainous interior of Sri Lanka, Hill Country, is full of mountains, picturesque towns, and hillside plantations where the country’s famous tea is grown. Among the towns in the Hill Country is Nuwara Eliya, considered the centre of the country’s tea industry. As a former British colonial hill station, Nuwara Eliya was a favorite holiday […]
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Sri Lanka travel
Travel
Visiting Sri Lanka’s Dambulla Buddhist caves and Peradeniya Botanical Gardens
While Kandy by itself is not that remarkable other than its lively cultural shows and the temple of the Buddhist Tooth, there are several fascinating sites outside of the city. This includes the Dambulla Buddhist cave, an elephant sanctuary with dozens of elephants, and Peradeniya Botanical Gardens. Dambulla is about two hours’ drive from Kandy, […]
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Cities
Sri Lanka travel
Travel
Visiting Sri Lanka’s cultural center of Kandy
The city of Kandy lies in the center of Sri Lanka and can literally and figuratively be considered the country’s heart. As a cultural hub, it is where the island’s most famous festival of Esala Perahera is held, and where the Temple of the Buddha’s Tooth is located. Surrounded by hills, Kandy also has a feisty […]
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Sri Lanka travel
Travel
Visiting Sri Lanka’s hilltop fortress Sigiriya
One of Sri Lanka’s most distinctive and fascinating landmarks is the ancient fortress of Sigiriya. Located atop a massive 200m-high column of rock that dominates a vast plain, Sigiriya was built between 477-495 CE (AD) by a king as a refuge during a war. Eventually the place became a Buddhist monastery before being abandoned in […]
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Photo roundups
Travel
Asia wildlife photo roundup
It’s always nice to come across wildlife while traveling. In Asia, I’ve seen a lot of wildlife such as monitor lizards, birds, snakes, and of course, monkeys, out and about. While I saw most of them in rural areas, temples, or while hiking, sometimes I saw them inside the city such as in parks. Lumpini […]
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