Diary Entry
We had a fantastic time in the mountains of Ella and now it’s time to move on. It’s very busy at Ella train station. But this time we’ve reserved seats. We don’t want to endure another exhausting journey like the one from Colombo to Mirissa.
With all our luggage it is still a struggle to get to our seats, but in the end we have good seats and a nice view of the beautiful route.
The “luxury” of 1st class is worth it
The journey from Ella to Kandy takes six hours and is famous for its picturesque landscape through the mountains and tea plantations.
In fact, it looks like something out of a Lipton commercial.
The light green bushes stretch over the hills and continue to the horizon. In between there are palm trees and the tea pickers move slowly through the rows of tea.
Check out how to use trains in Sri Lanka
The landscape looks like a Lipton commercial
As soon as the train leaves the station, all the tourists jump up and run to every available door. Everyone has to take the “obligatory” photo: hanging out of the door, looking relaxed, while the train makes a curve over a bridge in the mountains in the jungle.
Again, I wonder who started this trend on Instagram and how it triggers a real boom in some places, while other shots get no attention and are copied.
The train route between Ella and Kandy is famous
We drive through the jungle and see the monkeys jumping over the branches. The train struggles up the mountain and it gets surprisingly cool. We are at an altitude of 1,500 meters, I see on my smartphone.
We pass through villages where children wave goodbye to the train. In some villages the train stops longer because it has to wait for an oncoming train. This is how we build up a delay.
As the train comes back down from the mountains, we have the impression that we have arrived in the middle of the world of tea. The tea plantations on the hills shine in lush green.
There are isolated trees in between. The plantations look like large mazes in English parks.
Sri Lanka – The World of Tea
We are glad we are no longer travelling second class
Yes, we eventually also did it…
Sri Lanka’s Instagram spots:
(1) Coconut Hill (Mirissa) ✅
(2) Nine Arch Bridge (Ella) ✅
(3) Hanging out of the train ✅
(4) Lion Rock (Sigirya)
We arrive in Kandy an hour late. This train station has also retained its colonial beauty.
We take a taxi to our next accommodation. From there we will explore Kandy.
