Day 2: Tea Country (part 1)
We woke up early as I need to clear my transpo bill from reception and also to collect our breakfast hamper (syalan ng “baon” nakalagay sa Hilton box). Excited pa mandin kami sa hamper coz we thought it would be full of pork staples, ham, bacon, etc! But inside the box, there were only 1 apple, 1 orange, 2 slices of bread, a packet of nuts, and tetra pak juice!
The train station at Nanu Oya is about 20 kms away from town so we took a van to our hotel, The Hill Club. The driver was very nice, he charged me only 150 rupees for the ride so we gave 200 rupees instead! Di ba, you always feel generous if the driver doesn't overcharge you?
The place is aptly named as it really looks like a picturesque village somewhere in Europe. It is unbelievably quaint and postcard-perfect!
Nuwara Eliya is about 6 hours by train from Colombo and is 180kms away from the city capital. It is 2000m above sea level hence the brrrr climate. It has an average temperature of 17 Celsius although since its December it is ranging around 10 - 15 Celsius when we got there (definitely colder than Baguio City!). Everything is just a short ride or walk away!
When our hotel came on view, it just felt great! Its a good start to our holiday in the Highlands!
I was already in my “its going to be cold” costume of sweater and jogging pants. And what a fashionista nightmare --- mismatching colors talaga! kiver as long as i'm not going to be cold....brrr
We took a train to Nuwara Eliya coz I wanted Langga & Ganda to experience what it is like to ride in a normal train in South Asia! I really specified "observation car" seats for us so it wouldn't be that much of a shock to them as the seats are comfortable and geared for tourists or middle class Srilankans. Train travel is a way of life in this part of the world, and way way different (or shall we say, hard?) from First World rail travel. They seem to be okay with it though coz Langga just slept right through it and woke up when we were nearing the Nanu Oya station, the nearest rail link to Nuwara Eliya.
Nuwara Eliya - the Little England of Sri Lanka
The train station at Nanu Oya is about 20 kms away from town so we took a van to our hotel, The Hill Club. The driver was very nice, he charged me only 150 rupees for the ride so we gave 200 rupees instead! Di ba, you always feel generous if the driver doesn't overcharge you?
Mountain ranges dotted with tea plantations engulfed in a mist of fog is our first glimpse of the "Little England" in Sri Lanka.Its not my first time to visit NE but the scenery we passed by in our onward journey is a first for me as I took a bus from Kandy during my first visit here which was in December 2004 (eww! ang tagal na ano? hehehe). 
The place is aptly named as it really looks like a picturesque village somewhere in Europe. It is unbelievably quaint and postcard-perfect!
Nuwara Eliya is about 6 hours by train from Colombo and is 180kms away from the city capital. It is 2000m above sea level hence the brrrr climate. It has an average temperature of 17 Celsius although since its December it is ranging around 10 - 15 Celsius when we got there (definitely colder than Baguio City!). Everything is just a short ride or walk away!
Comments
The road trip was fine but was really tiring mujer...cant complain though kahit kapagod was worth it naman....
I want to do another long backpacking trip siguro on my 31st... as in minimum 2 months para sagad-sagad!
But yeah, this place is really typical British Hill station same as the ones in India.