Onwards to Ella

Saturday 05/03/16

Today we had a lazy day at the house. After a late breakfast we read and caught up with emails and blog posts. Dinner was yet again a feast of 6 curries and rice with dessert of rhubarb and custard!

Sunday & Monday 06/03/16 & 07/03/16

Today we are leaving NE for the town of Ella and which is billed a very pretty place to spend a few days. We will be taking the train as this is the recommended mode of transport and is supposed to be very scenic.

Before heading to the train station we checked out the local Sunday market and marvelled at all the different produce. It was very colourful  and our photos don't really do it justice.

Our train unfortunately, was delayed by an hour so we didn't get under way until gone 5pm. Still, we managed to see the prettiest part of the journey before the sun set. 

On arrival in Ella we were met by our host for the night and took a three wheeler up into the hills for our one night stay at his Homestay. We had previously requested dinner which his wife cooked and, yet again, we were treated to some delicious Sri Lankan food. We shared the evening with a young English couple who were also staying for the night and who it turned out had both studied at Bristol Uni!

After dinner we collapsed into bed and slept well until the train went by at 6.30am! Luckily, we had been warned! We had arrived in the dark so when we pulled the curtains we were gobsmacked by the panoramic view of the surrounding countryside, Ella rock and Ella Gap.

After a generous breakfast we packed and then had a little walk along the rail lines(!) to our accommodation for the next three nights at another B & B/Homestay. We had heard great things and we were not disappointed. We had the Verandah room with outstanding views of the waterfalls. 

After unpacking we thought we would head into town and get our bearings. First off we sought out Zion View which we had heard had an amazing view of Ella Gap and sure enough it was breath taking. 

We enjoyed the local tipple of Arrack here before taking an afternoon walk which took us up high into the surrounding tea plantations and then we dropped down to the 9 arch bridge where we managed to capture a train crossing the bridge just after we arrived! By the time we made it back to town we were feeling a tad peckish so we stopped at a popular cafe (Chill), where we ordered a veggie burger and fries, washed down with a cool glass of lime and soda.