Soul of India: The Colorful South (2012)

Fly overnight to Delhi.

You’ll arrive in Delhi on Day 2 and have a layover in the airport before your evening departure to Colombo, Sri Lanka. Please note that due to visa restrictions, we cannot leave the airport during this time. We’ll board one more short flight to Sri Lanka early this evening. Later this evening, at the airport in Colombo, you’ll be met by your Trip Leader and transfer to our hotel in Negombo.

Colombo is Sri Lanka’s bustling commercial capital—with diverse neighborhoods from the Fort district in the north, with its unusual combination of modern financial intuitions (like the World Trade Center) and colonial buildings, to the fashionable and evocatively named Cinnamon Gardens neighborhood in the south.

After breakfast, we’ll take a city tour of Colombo. During this morning-long tour you’ll visit some of the bustling city’s most vibrant attractions, including Gangaramaya Temple, before stopping for lunch at a local restaurant. This evening, enjoy a Welcome Dinner with your fellow travelers.

After breakfast this morning, we’ll stop en route to Dambulla at the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage. This sanctuary, operated by the Sri Lankan government, cares for orphaned and injured elephants in their natural surroundings. We’ll observe these fascinating creatures at work and play, and have the chance to speak with the mahouts (elephant-minders) who care for them before continuing on our way.

Enjoy lunch together in a local restaurant before continuing on our way to Dambulla, a journey of around four hours. We’ll arrive in late afternoon and have some time to rest and relax at leisure before dinner together at our hotel this evening.

Today we visit the immense Sigiriya Rock Fortress. Rising high above the jungle that surrounds it, this monolith is visible from miles away. Dubbed “The Lion Rock” because bricks and stucco were originally added to form the shape of a giant lion, we’ll see all that remains of this façade as we enter: two enormous clawed, feline feet flanking the 1,001 steps to the top. We’ll have time to explore the terraced gardens of the fortress, as well as the lush Water Garden and the ancient Boulder Garden. And we’ll climb the spiral staircase to see the Mirror Wall and the colorful frescoes of the sensual Cloud Maidens, whose beauty inspired visitors from long ago to scribble graffiti on the polished lime wall.

En route to our hotel we’ll stop for lunch at a local restaurant. The remainder of the day is yours. You may choose to stroll the mango orchards surrounding the property, take a walk by the river, or treat yourself to a therapeutic spa treatment.

Truly an ancient city, with inhabitants as early as the third century BC, Dambulla is best known for the most extensive array of cave temples in Sri Lanka. This morning, we explore the Dambulla Cave Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are 80 caves in the area, but the temple complex features five main caves found beneath a vast stone outcropping. Elaborate murals adorn the walls, some honoring Buddha’s life, others featuring the Hindu pantheon—all gazing down upon a phalanx of marvelous statues: 153 Buddhist, three of Sri Lankan kings, and four of non-Buddhist deities.

Afterwards, we travel overland to Kandy, a journey of four to five hours including stops en route to visit a spice plantation and for lunch. We’ll cross a lush hill country for our sojourn in Kandy, encircled by mountains and the Mahaweli River. This city was the last capital of the Sri Lankan kings, now designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. During the imperialist scramble of the 17th and 18th centuries, several European countries tried to scoop up beautiful Kandy to add to their burgeoning empires. But neither Portuguese, nor Dutch, nor British navy could break through Kandy’s natural mountain fortress; after the Portuguese succeeded in their coastal conquests, Kandy became the last independent kingdom on the island.

This evening we’ll enjoy a special traditional dance performance before dinner together at our hotel.

After breakfast at our hotel this morning, we visit the Temple of the Tooth, which lies deep within the royal palace complex. Here lies a sacred tooth of the Buddha, which has been revered throughout the ages as a good luck charm of sorts—it’s believed that whoever holds the tooth holds the country in his hands as well, and ancient kings fought over it as they did over their land.

Later we explore the Royal Botanic Gardens at Peradeniya. The locale that comprises the gardens has been a royal site since 1371, when King Wickramabahu III held court here. Now, 4,000 species—including more than 300 varieties of orchids—thrive on the lush 147-acre grounds, which also boast a suspension bridge, a lake, spice beds, and a pavilion-sized fig tree. We’ll have lunch together here, then free time at leisure.

Later this afternoon, we’ll meet with a local monk to discuss his way of life in Sri Lanka. Enjoy dinner this evening at the hotel.

This morning after breakfast we depart for Nuwara Eliya, a town situated in the central highlands that is the most important place for tea production in all of Sri Lanka. In this picturesque location nestled in the mountains, we’ll visit a tea factory to witness first hand how this vital crop is processed, as well as a tea estate where the plant is carefully tended. Included in our tour of Nuwara Eliya is the region’s lush Victoria Park. The sprawling grounds of this manicured sanctuary offer visitors the opportunity to see a variety of birdlife, including the Indian Blue Robin, Pied Thrush, and Kashmir Flycatcher. After taking lunch at a local restaurant, we stop at a local market. Dinner tonight is at the hotel.

After breakfast and some time at leisure this morning, we’ll depart for Colombo, stopping en route for lunch. Tonight we share stories of all we have seen over a Farewell Dinner with our fellow travelers.

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast and some free time this morning. Later in the morning, we’ll transfer to the airport for our flight to Chennai, where we’ll meet our Indian Trip Leader and join the main trip.