10 beautiful places in Sri Lanka

by with No Comment Sri Lanka

In 2017 we travelled to Sri Lanka. I was very excited as I always wanted to go to India and I felt this would be a little bit like ‘Little India’. In some way this was right and it reminded me of the image I had of India, but Sri Lanka is an independent country with lots of unique places to offer itself. In this blog I will share my favourite places in Sri Lanka, but of course, the country has many more great places!

1. Kandy

Let me start with probably my favourite place in Sri Lanka: Kandy. This cultural capital is located in the middle of the country and is home to one of the most interesting festivals I have ever been to: Esala Perharera. During the time of the festival, Kandy is transformed into a bustling city with big crowds of people. This is why we did not go to the famous Relic of the tooth of Buddha in the Tooth temple. But, if you are in Kandy in the low season (away from the big festival) then you should stop here as it is part of their cultural beliefs. What I like about Kandy is its relaxed atmosphere, with small coffee bars in the streets and the characteristic street views of normal daily life in Kandy.

If you are planning your trip close to the dates of the Esala Perahera, I would definitely suggest to plan your way through Sri Lanka around this festival. It is very worth it to stop in Kandy during this festival. However, you do need to take into account that to have a spot in the streets to see the festival, you need to ‘buy’ a chair. As more and more tourists want to experience this festival, organisations sell these chairs for crazy high prices so you got to make sure to make a good deal. We were able to last minute buy four chairs at a corner spot which gave us an amazing view on the dancers, musicians and elephants (you can question the use of elephants for a festival like this…)

2. Ella

And mostly the way to Ella is why this place deserves a spot in this list. The train ride to Ella is named as one of the most beautiful train rides in the world and I can understand why. Trains in Sri Lanka are full when they are really FULL. We often saw people hanging out of the trains, or jumping in when the train was already leaving. The train ride to Ella is a popular one, so make sure to be on time or sit like us on the ground near the doors. To be honest, this gave us a real local experience, instead of traveling the more expensive and comfortable first class. During this ride, you will encounter beautiful mountains, nature and people on other trains.

Ella itself is a nice and relaxed backpackers town with a lot of nice restaurant options and also a few day trekking’s. I still regret not going to the 9 arches bridge, but we did do the ‘Little Adams Peak’ trekking. As the real Adams Peak is very wet during our summer months, we decided to skip this hike and do the little one in Ella instead.

3. Trincomalee

Because of the civil war between the military of Sri Lanka and the separatist Liberation Tiger of Tamil Eelam, the north of the country was a no go area for a long period of time. Now, Trincomalee is one of the places in the north that are less discovered than the other places in the country. Think of beautiful beaches and Hindu temples where there are mostly local people and the hospitality of the local people who are happy there are finally tourists coming again!

A must-see in Trincomalee is the Koneswaram Temple where you can see Hindu architecture and its worshippers. Of course my sister and I (both tall and blonde) were asked for pictures, and we decided to make use of this opportunity to get a picture with the locals ourselves. It turned out to be a beautiful and colourful picture! (See photo at the top of this blog).

Another activity, besides going to the beach, that is popular in Trincomalee is to go dolphin / whale watching. Unfortunately, we were unlucky as we did not see a blue whale (the people after us saw one..) but we still enjoyed all the dolphins playing with the waves! Taking a boat is also a nice way of experiencing the country from a different angle.

4. Sigirya or “the Lions Rock”

One of the famous places of Sri Lanka is the Lions Rock, or its real name: Sigirya. Sad thing is that this is probably the most touristy spot of the country. Think of climbing the rock in a queue.. However, think about the beauty of this rock and the landscape in which it is located then you will understand why it is so famous by the masses. You can climb the rock all the way to the top where there used to be a fortress, now it only functions as a viewpoint.

If you want to have a more quiet experience, you can choose to climb the Pidurangala Rock which will have a view on the Lions Rock. Or if you have plenty of time, you can choose to climb both and then decide which one you liked best. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to do both but it is definitely on my list!

5. Anuradhapura

Anuradhapura once was the capital of Sri Lanka. This is why the Buddhists build a lot of temples, stupas, elephant statues, etc. in this city. Some of which are nicely restored and show the culture of Buddhism. Do not forget to bring socks as you will have to take off your shoes and the ground is crazy hot because of the sun! For history lovers, Anuradhapura is the place to be and learn about Buddhism.

6. Mihintale

I would recommend to combine Anuradhapura with a visit to Mihintale, which is seen as the birthplace of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. Here you can climb to the top of a holy rock and see some more Buddha statues and stupas. But be aware of the monkeys! They can get a bit too interested in your food and try to steal it..

7. Galle

This little sea side town is known for its VOC influences. Sri Lanka once was a colony of the Netherlands, which is why you can still find old VOC signs and other old buildings. As it is UNESCO heritage, it gets preserved in its original state. I loved the relaxed and nice atmosphere in this little town, that is surrounded by water! Discover all the monuments and take a walk on the city walls.

8. Tangalle

Looking for a destination where you will have the beach to yourself? Tangalle is your place to be! Tangalle is a very, very small town in the south of the country and is the perfect place to unwind from all the impressions of the cities.

9. Dambulla

This place is famous for its caves. Inside these caves you can see a lot of beautiful Buddha statues and paintings. The whole atmosphere feels very spiritual and special and is perfect to combine with one of the national parks like Minneriya and the Sigirya rock.

10. National Parks

Sri Lanka is also home to many different national parks. It has a great variety of animals like elephants, deers, crocodiles, leopards etc. As there are lots of different parks spread over the country, it can be difficult to choose. We decided to go elephant watching at the lesser known Giritale national park and look for leopards at Yala national park. Unfortunately, no leopards for us, but still a lot of other beautiful animals!

If you have some questions or other remarks, please leave a comment or contact me!

valetta

Malta: places to go using public transport

by with No Comment Malta
valetta

Malta, known for its crystal clear waters was a real surprise to me. As we chose to stay in one hotel the entire stay, we used the public transport to get around the island. Malta island is the biggest of the three (Gozo and Comino) but a lot of parts are well accessible by public transport like busses. In this blog I will share my favourite places on Malta island that are accessible by using only public transport!

1. Marsaxlokk & St. Peter’s Pool

All the way to the Southeast of the island you can find a small fishers village called Marsaxlokk. This cute place is mostly famous for its colourful boats and the sand coloured buildings in the back. For the fish lovers, this is the place to be to enjoy a fresh fish dish. I just liked to wander around and take in all the colours (and smells) of this town.

When you are done wandering around, you can hop in a little boat and head to a popular swimming spot called ‘St. Peter’s Pool’. A big cove creates a beautiful natural swimming pool and for the dare devils there are multiple spots for ‘cliff’ jumping. Bring a towel and relax on the rocks after your dip in the ocean. There is a small path leading upwards and all the way to the top you can find a small facility where you can buy some drinks / food. Do not expect anything fancy!

2. Valletta

Even though I was a bit disappointed by this capital city, I still think it is a must-see during your time in Malta. Because we stayed in Sliema, we took the ferry from here to the other side of the water. This was already one of the highlights as this will give you the well known view on Valletta, with its skyline.

Valletta itself has some nice terraces where you can enjoy lunch and cute streets (some very steep!) where you can wander around. I really liked the view over the big harbour at the Upper Barrakka Gardens. In my opinion, this place is good for a daytrip to walk around and sense the feeling of the capital of Malta, but there are more nice places on Malta.

3. Mdina

This old city in the middle of the island once was the capital of Malta. Most of its buildings date back to the Medieval times and it is fully surrounded by city walls. Seeing horse carriages riding through the narrow streets take you back in time. As it lays on a hill, there are some nice places to eat and have a great view over the island. Go early so you can spend some time in this city before you head to your stop for watching the sunset: Dingli Cliffs.

4. Dingli Cliffs

At the South coast of Malta there are cliffs called ‘Dingli Cliffs’. These cliffs are 220 meters high and are 12 kilometres long. From here you have a spectacular view over the Mediterranean sea. This is the perfect spot to watch a beautiful sunset where you will see the sun disappear in the sea.

5. Kalkara

Before we went to our hotel in Sliema, we decided to stay the first night in a small village called Kalkara. We were lucky as this night were the celebrations of Saint Joseph and there were festivities and fireworks everywhere. We could not have wished for a better start of our holiday here. Kalkara has a small bay with colourful fishing boats floating in the water. There is not much else to see, but it is nice to spend some time.

Do you have a question or other remarks, please leave a comment or contact me!

marrakech

How to travel Morocco in a responsible way

by with No Comment MoroccoResponsible Travel
marrakech

I love to travel, I try to spent every Euro I earn on flight tickets and trips. Unfortunately, whilst traveling you leave a footprint on the environment and the local community. In this blog I will share my tips for traveling responsibly in Morocco.

Use public transport

Of course, a holiday at home would be the best for the environment. However, I understand that people want to travel (so do I!!) so sometimes taking a plane to a country is inevitable. If I take a plane somewhere, I try to always take ground public transport at the destination itself.

Morocco has a nice public transport system containing trains and busses. The railways (by ONCF) are operating between the bigger imperial cities like Marrakech and Fes, but also reach to Tangier and Oujda. The trains are comfortable and in a good condition and very affordable: Marrakech – Fes costs 215 dirhams one way for a 6 and a half hour train ride!

Where there are no trains, busses take over the transportation. There are two mayor bus companies operating in Morocco: Supratours and CTM. Supratours is often located near the train station as it is part of ONCF. Both companies have comfortable busses and also offer Comfort plus options on some popular routes like Marrakech – Agadir. There is no need to buy the tickets for busses and trains in advance, I always make sure to arrive half an hour in advance to buy the ticket at the station. However, on the popular route from Fes to Chefchaouen, tickets might get sold out so here I would advise to buy your ticket at least a day in advance.

Of course, the public transport does not reach every corner of the country, so if you are planning on visiting the real remote places of Morocco, you either have to take a shared taxi or drive yourself. Often there are possibilities to take a bus and then a grand shared taxi. These taxis wait until they are full, which means you sometimes have to wait before you can leave.

In the cities there is also good public transportation with mostly busses. However, do not expect them to arrive on time. It is wise to keep your schedule a bit relaxed as you never really know at what time you will arrive.. I once waited an hour and a half for the bus to Taghazout from Agadir..

Besides these little discomforts, I think traveling by public transport brings a lot of good experiences. You can sit down, relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery and get closer to the local community. And in Morocco it is very affordable! 

Do not stimulate animal abuse

Who doesn’t like to see animals on their holiday? Morocco is a country rich of various species of animals like camels, barbary macaques and tree climbing goats. Unfortunately, the interest of tourists in the local animals results in abuse. Animals are often used to generate money from tourists for pictures and have no freedom at all.

Djemaa el Fna square

If you want to travel responsibly, please make sure to always check if your excursion or activity includes animals and how they are treated. One example of mistreated animals in Morocco is at one of the country’s most important tourism spots: Djemaa el Fna. Here you can see monkeys wearing clothes and being chained around their neck. If you take a moment to look at them, you will see them fighting with their owners and trying to pull the chain from their necks. 

The monkeys that are not used at that moment at the square are put in too small boxes and have to sit in there all day. Every tourist at that square is a witness of hard animal abuse and the least we can do for them is to not give the sellers what they want: money for pictures. At one point they should realise that tourists are not interested in staged pictures with animals that are captivated in the worst possible way, right? If you really want to see the monkeys and take pictures with them: go up north where you can see loads of them in the wild.

Unfortunately, I am not finished talking about animal abuse at the Djemaa el Fna square. Even though I am not a fan of snakes, the way they treat them at this square is simply WRONG. I am not saying that all snake charmers do this, but a lot of them make sure the snake cannot attack them anymore. They do this by either pulling out the fangs or by sewing the mouth of the snake shut. In both ways the snake will starve and die a very painful death. When this happens, the snake charmers just catch a new victim to work for them and generate money from tourists.

So please! When you go to Djemaa el Fna, enjoy the beautiful juice stands with fruits stacked on top of each other and listen to the music made by musicians and look at the other performers. Animals belong in the wild, a picture is not worth an animals life, right?

Souk el Had

Goats in Trees

Morocco is home to a very unique phenomenon of goats climbing in trees. They like the fruits of an argan tree and once they finish the ones hanging at the bottom, they start climbing the tree to find some more. These cute goats are very popular by tourists and shepherds noticed that they can charge tourists money for taking pictures. Now there are tours offered to tourists to see these goats, and the poor animals are tied up in the trees. They often have to stand in the sun for hours and cannot move at all. Besides the fact that this is abuse of the animals, the trees are also harmed by these practices.

I can imagine that you still want to see these cute animals balancing on the thin branches of the trees. However there are ethically better ways of doing this than booking a tour. The only right way is to drive around yourself and look for a shepherd who is genuinely letting his herd roam freely. I always keep my eyes open when I take a bus to another city and hope to spot them. You should think about it like whale watching, you are either lucky or unlucky as it is never sure if you will see them.

Want to interact with animals in a responsible way? Volunteer for Morocco Animal Aid during you stay in the Agadir region!  Check out their website and see how you can make a difference!

Minimise your plastic waste

Morocco is a country coping with a huge waste problem. Everywhere you look, you will find garbage in the street and nature. As a tourist you have to be careful with drinking water from the tab so buying bottles of water is the safest option. Try to always buy bigger size bottles to minimise the amount of plastic you use. Also, if you really want to take it next level, you can bring a reusable metal straw which you use instead of all the plastic straws they give you. As juices are super cheap and veeeery tasty, a lot of plastic straws are used..

Support the local community

By choosing your accommodation wisely, you can help the local community benefit from your stay in Morocco. So always book your stay at a local place like a riad or even try to stay at someones home! By choosing a big hotel chain you stimulate the concept of ‘leakage’ where the money ‘leaks’ away from the local community into to pockets of the wealthy (foreign) people. Not staying at these big hotel chians will give you the opportunity to get in contact with locals and learn more about the culture / way of living.

riad morocco

Respect local culture

Another tip for traveling responsibly in Morocco is about respect. It is important to always respect the culture of the destination where you are going. You are the guest in their land and you should adapt to the culture. In Morocco this mostly means to take the way you dress into account. Both men and women should always cover their shoulders, knees and chest.

Not only will you show respect to the people, it will also help to get maybe less harassed.

Do not give money to beggars

Unfortunately during your trip in Morocco, you will get asked a lot for money by beggars. I want to advice you to not give them money. Often (not always) they are fully capable of working and they decide to beg for money as it is an easy way of earning it. Also, a lot of parents use their children to beg for money, which keeps them away from school. The only way of making the kids go back to school is to not cooperate with it and say no when they ask you for money.

I know it is a lot, but the people, environment and animals of Morocco will thank you!

If you have some questions or other remarks, please leave a comment or contact me!