Ella, Sri Lanka

There were two ways to get to Ella, cheap being the bus, but after seeing how they drove, we opted for the more expensive way and booked through Sri Lanka cabs. We paid $65.50 for a two and a half hour drive, which Jim was able to arrange and pay for online...with a pick up time and a stop to see the waterfalls.

As we climbed higher up in elevation, the two lane roads were filled with small waterfalls, monkeys and crazy drivers. Buses were passing on curvy mountain roads, which made me thankful for taking a somewhat safer option. We stopped briefly at the Ravana waterfall, before we pulled into Ella.

My first thought was I didn't expect it to be so hilly and filled with so many tourists. There were monkeys everywhere waiting to grab unsuspecting tourists' belongings. Some looked harmless, but the old adult ones deserved a little more respect and distance.

Our driver dropped us at the top of a hill that he chose not to try to go down in his car because he didn't think it would make it back up, it was that steep. We started walking down the hill when I noticed an older looking somewhat unfinished white building and then heard Jim say there it is. I immediately said I am not staying there. He laughed and said all the reviews say that it's nice inside and has a beautiful view. And I am happy to say it did.

We dropped off our bags and went to purchase our train tickets, since we were unable to do it online. We walked the tracks to the station and got kicked out of the station for it, better than the fine we should have had to pay which we saw on a sign earlier but ignored. At about 15:30 the tickets for the next day were all sold out. And for the following day they only had third class seats leaving at 06:30. We paid $7.50 for third class. Leaving this early, on an uncomfortable seven hour train ride.....I sure hope it's worth it or else it could end up being a long grouchy day.

Ella was packed with tourists, prices were higher, food wasn't that great and it was chilly. We found ourselves missing the beach, so the next day we decided to see some things and our host arranged for a Tuk Tuk to take us to Nine Arches Bridge to see the train go by and then to the base of Little Adams Peak.

I was under the impression the $15 we paid for the Tuk Tuk would take us right to the bridge. But instead it barely made the climb up to what seemed like the highest point overlooking the valley; then in which we had to hike down to see the bridge.

This was quite challenging considering we were in flip flops and for the past three weeks had done little but sit on a beach. We quickly worked up a sweat, slipping and sliding, at times crawling to finally find a small packed area that overlooked the bridge. It was even more of a hike to go below or on the bridge. We finally made it, now we sat in the hot sun, surrounded by a ton of people and waited for 15 minutes to watch a train? That's our reward? Jim says you want to head back up and watch the train from the small restaurant and have a beer? We had 14 minutes to make it back up before missing the whole reason we came down here. We made it and let's just say it was very anticlimactic, CHOO-CHOO…

Next stop was to the base of Little Adams peak, not sure what for because I made it very clear to our driver we were not hiking today, but as Sri Lankan's do, they smile and nod, I don't think he understood. He dropped us off at a packed pool bar, Ravana Pool Club, that overlooked a tiny hill, Little Adams Peak. Not our scene, we headed back to the Tuk Tuk and made our way back to our place, where we had the best view of big Adams Peak, monkeys playing and oh the same damn train going by. We should have just sat there for two days.

If you like being around a lot of people, cooler weather and hiking through the jungle to find waterfalls then you would love Ella. There are trails and guides galore. Try the Mad Hatter at The White Rabbit, extra spicy, wow!