Around Sri Lanka in 2 Weeks - Part I

I had Sri Lanka on my travel radar for the past 2 years, and I was more encouraged to do that trip after seeing many of my traveling friends beat me to it! Sri Lanka has recently become "The Asian destination of choice", especially for Saudis... And now I understand why... In 2 weeks in Sri Lanka, I have seen and done more than I have in all my life so far!

Starting my journey from Negombo, down the east coast, south coast, up to the west coast, then center, before making it back to Negombo for departure, I was taken by how distinctive each town I stopped at is, while enjoying breathtaking scenery along the way. The video below recaps the highlights of my journey, which is detailed further below so read on ;)

Negombo

Negombo is a small town, that's 20 minutes from Colombo airport, and is usually a one night stop for travelers who don't want to go on another 2 hours ride to Colombo city. Personally, I chose to stay in Negombo because I'd rather experience the local community outside of *modern* cities... I went to Sri Lanka to escape city life, so I was certainly not going to make that my first stop. 

Negombo may not have much to offer, but it makes a good start for a journey into Sri Lanka... It is most known for its beach, Negombo Beach Park, which I wouldn't really recommend as it is not quite clean, and lots of locals swarm around tourists trying to sell some silly things or pretend to be teachers for the deaf-mute to ask for charity money... My French language came in handy here to pretend that I don't speak English in order to avoid them haha

Apart from the beach, you can check out the Dutch canal, which connects to the beautiful Negombo lagoon, the largest lagoon in Sri Lanka. All in all, a tour around Negombo in tuktuk wouldn't take you more than a few hours, photos of which you can see in my Facebook album, so you really wouldn't need to stay more than a day.

Good accommodation in Negombo is not easy to find; hotels by the beach are either below average or overpriced, and at times both! So you might have a better luck staying somewhere that is not directly at the beach, but would be at a walking distance... As for food, I highly recommend Dolce Vita, delicious food with an extensive menu and quite a nice location by the beach!

Galle

Next day of my trip, I made my way to Colombo, which quite resembled any ordinary Lebanese town, and took the train from Colombo Fort Station to Galle, as it is known as one of Sri Lanka's scenic train routes. You can find out the train schedules, according to stations, from Sri Lanka Railways website: http://railway.gov.lk/

The most famous attraction of Galle is the Dutch Fort, where the cutest hostels and hotels are located in the heart of what looks like a typical Dutch/European town. The town is quite serene, scenic and beautiful, and should be on your itinerary when visiting Sri Lanka, to see one of the unusual aspects of the island.

I spent a night and half a day there, where it rained for 5 minutes refreshingly, and then enjoyed just walking around the fort (which is quite close to the station), and once inside the fort, you don't really need any transportation. You can enjoy more photos of Galle in my Facebook album here.

I stayed at the Pedlar's Inn hostel, a very clean and nice place for a reasonable price, so I highly recommend it, but make sure you take the room with the balcony, as the other one would have no privacy. For food, we had a lovely dinner at The Indian Hut, good halal food for good value.

Mirissa

After spending a night in Galle, I took my first bus ride to Mirissa, a town in the south known for its beautiful beach and whale watching cruises, but unfortunately, it wasn't the season. Still, enjoying the ambiance and beach scene was a pleasure on its own, and was good enough for my one night stay over. The town is close to Weligama, which is being developed to be an urban tourist destination, and my first stop was to see the sunset on Weligama bay from top of mountain resort.

I spent the next morning strolling by the beach, which is by far the most beautiful among the Sri Lankan beaches I visited. It is not as big as the rest of them, but it is much cleaner, and less crowded, with a number of fresh sea food restaurants right in the sand, playing Reggae music... I was surprised with how Sri Lankan beach boys resembled Jamaicans! To see the Jamaican looking beach boys, and more of Mirissa beach, check out my Facebook album here.

There are a number of popular beach resorts on the beach, depending on your budget, but I stayed at a hotel that's a 5 minutes walk from the beach, with an affordable rate (and a good breakfast! First time I tried the Sri Lankan pancakes with coconut cream!), called Banana Garden, which is family owned, and managed by an adorable guy called Jihane... I couldn't really believe he was Sri Lankan because of how cute he is haha

For food, you MUST stop by Dimali Inn, a restaurant that looks more like a house driveway where you would not consider to be a restaurant, but you'd be surprised by how awesome the food is! It is run by a woman chef, with barely a menu, but you can trust she'd make you the best food you'd have in Sri Lanka.  

On the 4th day, I made my way to Kataragame, a long 3 hours tuktuk ride, where I went on Yala National Park wild safari... Which you'll know more about in my next post! So comment, like, share, subscribe and even stalk me :P whatever you need to do, you do not want to miss the rest of my Sri Lankan adventures: Part II and Part III.

5 Travel Sites You Need for Your Trip Planning

Planning a trip can be as exciting as traveling, or at least, it’s what kicks off the excitement! Long before you even pack your bag or set foot in the airport, your mind is tickled with the thoughts of where to travel, where to stay, what to do, who to meet, etc. Although spontaneity is appreciated during travels, as it adds to the sense of adventure, but for some travelers, especially solo female travelers like me, planning ahead is essential to avoid uncomfortable and unsafe situations… Also, it is a mandate for overthinking meticulous perfectionists like me haha

I’ve recently been planning my upcoming trip to Sri Lanka, and spent over 2 weeks just on the planning alone, and enjoyed every minute of it! If you’ve ever planned your own itinerary for a trip, you’re probably familiar with some of the travel sites out there that can be of great help… Here are my favorites:

1. Skyscanner:

I’ve only recently gotten to know about this site, and now I can’t imagine not using it! It saves lots of time on checking the different airlines, timings, prices, etc. Just enter your departure airport, and leave the rest to it, to find the best airfare! You can even leave the arrival airport blank, and you’ll get a list of possible destinations from lowest airfares to highest, and pick your destination accordingly! If you already have decided where you’re going, then you get to compare airfares, by travel dates and airlines, and length of flight. Just check out their website, or download their mobile app, and play with it a little to get a better idea!

2. TripAdvisor:

Everyone probably knows about TripAdvisor, so no need to explain what it is. Basically, I use it to check attractions of the country/city I am traveling to, and make a list of the places I find interesting. It also gives you a list of accommodations, with rates from hotel booking sites, and reviews. What I find most useful though are the forums! Most questions that would come to your mind regarding your destination have probably already been asked by others, like questions about possible routes between cities, local hangouts, choosing between different itineraries, etc. Whenever you search google for such travel tips, you’ll probably get a TripAdvisor result first.

3. Booking.Com:

Most of the travelers I know are familiar with this site, and its major competitor Agoda.com. I personally prefer Booking, although its rates are sometimes higher with lesser options from Agoda, because I can book using my prepaid credit card. If you don’t have that issue, then either sites should work fine for you, but I find Booking’s interface easier to use and more appealing. The site also allows you to save the booking confirmation details to your device's gallery for ease of access, which I find very useful, especially when you have lots of bookings included in your trip.

4. Couchsurfing:

Now this is a site that not many people are familiar with, and it’s one of my all-time favorite travel sites! What is the worst thing about traveling alone? Definitely it’s the fact that you get bored and lonely most of the time, and that’s what Couchsurfing solves. Through this community, you can search for locals and travelers at your travel destination, meet up with them, get information from them, exchange stories with them, travel with them, and even “surf” at their homes. It is the best way to get to know amazing people from different cultures and backgrounds, and develop friendships around the world! Of course, some people (especially guys, seriously, stop turning every site into a dating site!) abuse the system, so be careful while you make your pick at who to trust!

5. Rome2Rio:

I have only discovered this site while planning for my Sri Lanka trip, as I wanted to be familiar with possible routes between cities, since I plan to travel from city to city almost every day. This site does just that, giving you route options including bus, taxi, flights, etc. and fares, complete with a map for the route!

Apart from travel sites, I also use and recommend the following:

Currency Converter: As simple as it is, using a currency converter saves a lot of hassle with the money exchange and assessing the value of what you’re paying for. I find it useful to familiarize myself with the currency of the travel destination ahead of time, so I don’t have to use the app every time I need to make a simple transaction.

Travel Guide: It certainly helps to have a travel guide for your travel destination that contains all the information you would require during your trip. I found it even better to make my own travel guide, or simply a Word/PDF document, with all the information I have collected so far: cities, attractions, routes with transportation options, accommodation details, maps, etc. It doesn’t have to be a fancy guide, but it would sure be a great way to organize your trip! I’ll soon upload a sample of my own guide to Sri Lanka, once I am done with the trip… Don’t want to publish it now and have people stalking me haha

Dictionary: It is common sense to have an offline dictionary for the language of your travel destination, especially if English (or any other language you speak) isn’t widely used… Even if it is, it wouldn’t hurt to learn a few courtesy phrases and show some travel etiquette!

So these are some of the sites and apps that I use for my travel planning… Do you use any of them? Or have any other ones that you recommend? Let me know in the comments below!

And if you found this post helpful, be sure to share it :D

Out and About in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Faisal's finger camping site, riyadh, saudi arabia.

Saudi Arabia is probably not the destination that would come to one's mind when thinking of tourism or adventure, but it is one of the most globally mysterious countries that is under-explored. Each of its major cities has its own subculture and character, that so far, I've only barely began to discover and experience, even though I lived in Dammam most of my life, in Jeddah for over a year, and in Riyadh for a few months.

I was lucky to have the chance to explore Riyadh, thanks to some awesome people (you know who you are!), and have come up with this list of things you can do when in the area (and it's not too hot!):

Trekking in Edge of the World

A day trip to the Edge of the World is definitely better than spending your day at the mall... Leave the confinements of the city, and escape to this open space for a breathtaking scenery. Have a quick look in the video below:

A quick google search on Edge of the World will give you abundant information and images of the place and how to get to it, and this article by Blue Abaya is a good start: Guide to The Edge of The World.

Desert Camping

Basically, going out to the desert is most of what you can do as an adventure around Riyadh, so if you feel like *upping* the game, why not camp out! Sleeping under the stars, in that serene environment, is sure to lift your spirits. Check out my Facebook Albums here and here for more photos!

There are various camping locations that you can go for; some are commercially established camps that you can rent for the weekend, or you can choose to get your own equipment and set your own camp somewhere secluded.

Aerial Tour Across Thumama Desert

I bet you didn't know that, while women are not allowed to drive in Saudi, they can get a flying licence! One of the places you can do that is in Land & Space Aviation School (www.lnsas.com).

While you may not be keen on getting a licence, you can still go check out the awesome plane collection they have, and take an aerial tour over the Thumama desert, or go for paramoure, trike, etc. You can find details and more photos of the school in my Facebook album here.

City Trips

If you do want to enjoy your time without having to leave the city, there are some attractions worth visiting, if you just want to look at interesting things or know more about the history of Riyadh, such as The National Museum of Saudi Arabia:

Check out more history about Riyadh in a visit to AlMasmak:

Or go for a drive around Wadi Hanifa:

Regardless of what you choose to do around Riyadh and where to go, one thing is certain, your experience depends on the people you surround yourself with... So get yourself with a couple of interesting people, and every day can be an adventure!

Have you been to any of those places in Riyadh or have other interesting suggestions?! Let me know in the comments so I can put it in my plan!