Although I had traveled a lot over the last few years, there was still something I had been dying to do, a hot air balloon ride. And picking a country as beautiful as Sri Lanka to do it was genius on my part. It would be one of the most expensive parts of my trip but Sanju made it clear when we were planning that it would be worth it. And worth it, it was. I had to wake up before humans were entering the rem part of their sleep cycle. I found that my excitement assisted in getting up on time and being ready. I panicked a little because the light in my hotel room wouldn’t turn on. I called Sanju who wasn’t actually up yet and he came to my room after investigating in the pitch dark to let me know the entire town had lost electricity but not to worry because the hotel would be turning on their generator soon. I panicked even more thinking this was a sign. I probably shouldn’t go up in a makeshift basket and balloon today. I got ready in a hurry because the entire ordeal made me lose 15 minutes. Thankfully that New York morning hustle I’m so use to kicked in and I was ready in time for my pickup by the Hot Air Balloon Company’s crew. They were actually a little late which then allowed me time to triple check if I brought all the things I would need for the morning.

We got there just in time to watch as the crew prepared the balloon for lift off from scratch. The fire they used to inflate the balloon was intimating but I was so fascinated by the entire process. We were up and away as the sun rose in the East. The ride was breathtaking. Sri Lanka from up above is captivating. The balloon pilot also pointed out a few landmarks along the way as well. We flew over towns and villages, over farm animals and wild animals. We flew amongst birds and above a Buddha before landing in a remote village. All the local children ran to the balloon. Some couldn’t speak English but that didn’t matter. What captivated you were their smiles. They were so happy to see you as if you were a long lost friend. I marveled as they climbed into the basket once we all climbed out. They looked so happy. It was contagious; you couldn’t help but smile yourself. To celebrate our flight, we enjoyed champagne with our pilot and the crew. And I must say it was worth all the money indeed.


Next on the itinerary was Dambulla Cave Temple. Since my hotel was already situated in Dambulla, the drive to the temple wasn’t too bad. I’m sure I still napped on the way there. Sanju actually preferred to visit the Temple at night but we ran out of time the day before and had to squeeze it into the following day’s itinerary. It was manageable because my hot air balloon excursion started our day pretty early. Visiting the caves I got to view a few dozen more Buddha’s. Oh I haven’t mentioned just how many Buddha’s I had already seen on the very first day. Well, a lot. And their Buddha’s were different from the chubby bald guy westerners are use too. Their Buddha’s actually resembled the Hindu Gods I learned about in Bali but they were reverenced even more strictly than the Vatican City. Sanju took this time to go over what each pose the Buddha was crafted into actually meant. Apparently there is significant meaning in each pose. What I can remember and probably the least famous of the poses is reclining Buddha. Reclining Buddha is a depiction of Buddha after having reached enlightenment resting right before he died. You can tell by the position of his feet whether they were depicting him sleeping or whether he was already dead. Buddha is a big deal in Asia. And reverence in their temples is also a huge deal. I noticed on several occasions Sanju tell other tourist to take of their hat while in the Temple grounds. He also reminded me to cover my shoulders and knew exactly at what point we were supposed to remove our shoes. I couldn’t always tell. These temples weren’t always buildings. In Dambulla we literally were visiting caves that Monks made their home and then later they added a bunch of Buddha statues and art depictions. Flip flops were super helpful on those days. And these sights weren’t always overtly special like Roman Catholic Churches with their golden statues and large depictions of Christ. Sometimes it was just a single statue of the Buddha.


We followed up visiting the caves by traveling to Kandy where our first stop was the Bahiravokanda Vihara Buddha Statue. This particular site had the common decency to explain the meaning of each of Buddha’s poses and what the artist was trying to depict with each one. One thing you will notice in Sri Lanka is how important it is to hire a guide so that you’re not just wandering around aimlessly and missing out. I could see other visitors just looking at various sites without a guide and looking bewildered. However, when you stumble upon any site that attempts to guide their visitors you’re appreciative. Bahiravokanda Vihara Buddha Statue is pretty large. I may be understating how impressive it was. The climb to the very top of the building allowed for one to marvel at beautiful views of Kandy. Kandy truly is a special city. It was bustling like a major city but provided a unique small town vibe as well. Sanju then suggested we put the next item on my Kandy itinerary until much later as the Temple we planned on going to would be opening the Tooth Relic on display for everyone’s viewing pleasure. I didn’t actually follow what he was trying to say or the fact that the Temple of Tooth contained an actual tooth. Since we had time to kill he took me to enjoy an even more beautiful view of Kandy. Kandy still had influences of British rule that annoyed me in part but also left me very impressed. Sri Lanka is pretty well developed. I enjoyed that most about the island. How I could be amongst the trees, dirt roads and random elephants and then find myself cruising down a highway out a major city in the next minute. It was truly a rare experience to have the best of both worlds at your fingertips. Sanju then took me to see a traditional Kandy dance show. This wasn’t on my itinerary as I had already seen two shows while in Bali the year before and assumed it would be much of the same thing. I decided to give it a chance because we had time to kill before visiting the Temple of Tooth. I’m actually glad I didn’t put up a fight about the addition to the itinerary. The show was spectacular. It reminded me of what I assumed circa de sole was like in the States. There was a few acrobatics incorporated into their dance routines. What I especially loved was the equal participation between the men and woman performers. In Bali, the women dancers shined while the men just played instruments. There was a nice balance between both female and male performers during the Kandy show. After the spectacular performances on stage, the fun didn’t stop as they then proceeded to give us a fire show. Performers walked across hot steamy coals and breathed fire out their mouthed. I left thoroughly entertained and I learned a valuable lesson, locals actually do know best. With all my research, I purposely excluded certain activities from my itinerary but those very activities were some of the things I enjoyed the most during my trip.



At the Temple of Tooth we ran in to a large crowd. Apparently this tooth was a bigger deal than I originally assumed. To be honest, no matter where I had visited, the crowds weren’t too bad. There was little to no wait time. I guess my birthday was just a good time to go, or maybe I complexity lucked out. Sanju tried to get me through the crowd of locals to see the infamous tooth relic. I had to know what the big deal was and this time I made sure to pay attention to Sanju’s explanation of what was going on. The tooth relic is actually hidden from the public 98% of the time. It’s usually only revealed when there’s something as dire as a drought going on. In the past this ceremony worked. The local monks put the relic on display to the public and then the island would experience rain. This was usually done especially when Sri Lanka was going through their dry season. I automatically thought what drought? Isn’t this business as usual? I know this had to be another one of their tall tales right? So I thought until it rained the very next day! As I always say, it’s only crazy until it works. Back to this sacred tooth and the crazy crowd of people. Sanju tried really hard to get me as close as humanly possible to view the tooth relic. And it was beautiful but hidden in an elaborate case. All the locals squeezed and fought to get a chance to offer a lotus flower as an offering. I couldn’t wait to get out of there but like the amazing guide he was, Sanju wanted to show me there was more to the craziness I was witnessing and he showed me the museum within the Temple that gave a brief insight into the Buddhist monks history in Kandy.


The hotel I stayed in while in Kandy was the best one thus far. My room was spacious and offered a cute view of their pool. I also had the strongest Wi-Fi single since I touched down in Colombo. I took advantage of it by catching up on social media and what not. I even posted everything I was doing so far and everyone couldn’t believe just how far I was willing to go to see just a little bit more of the world. So far I was loving it. I had dinner within the hotel in Kandy with a couple from the Czech Republic. We discussed Trump; they were fans but had the most liberal ideals. I guess it was one of those you don’t have to live through it so you can’t actually relate kind of things. Their love of Trump didn’t damper our night at all. If anything the great music mix our waiter was playing and their constant demand for more and more beer, kept us all in the highest of spirits. They practically convinced me I needed to visit their home. (I did. I’m continuing to write and edit this blog on my way back from Prague. It was beautiful. 😜) Surprisingly Sri Lankan beer isn’t that potent as I woke up the next morning more refreshed than ever and ready for our next stop.

My super long one and only travel story continues in just a few more days!!