Wednesday 7th Feb 2024

Left the hotel at 7.45, took a tuktuk to Fort Station, found out tickets and sat in the first class carriage (not like our first class I hasten to add) but comfortable and AC at least, a bargain of £6 for a two and a half hour journey through some magnificent countryside. As you leave the lowlands behind you definitely start the climb up the mountains. Arrived into Kandy at around 11.45, a short tuktuk to our hotel to dump the bags. Hotel is ok (Kings Ridge, Kandy) but we were definitely spoilt by staying at the very lovely Granbell. We were able to check in early, room is large and ok, staff seem friendly. Unloaded bags and headed out to explore. Walked around the perimeter of the central lake in Kandy which was lovely, tonnes of wildlife; pelicans, egrets, monitor lizards, terrapins and plenty of stray dogs (fortunately they don’t look too bad). Stopped off to check out the very colonial looking Queens Hotel, I’m sure it was lovely once but now looks a bit faded. Took a tuktuk back to our hotel just in time for the ‘monkey madness’ show. Our hotel is opposite the jungle / forestry and a whole procession of monkeys landed on our roof, mum’s with babies latched on plus big males and then all sorts of juveniles and then they continue to head down and across all sorts of rooftops, telephone wires and scaling down buildings and clambering across balconies,and then forming a massive line on top of a chain link fence. You could look down (as we’re high up on the hillside) and see the locals on their balconies seeing them off with brooms, hilarious. I somehow think we’ll get the same show every night around 5.30pm so watch this space. I definitely won’t be hanging any washing out here….

Caught a tuktuk back into town and went and ate at Soul Food a lovely vegan cafe. I’m definitely off being an omnivore at the moment,especially having watched a monitor lizard demolish a fish in the lake earlier 😩