I appreciate the quality of my life every single day. Every day I step right into my car. Every time I go to my gym and swim in their pool. Even more when I visit my parents in their wooden house in the forest where I can enjoy their very own sauna, occasional stag or deer visit and a cozy fireplace. Every time I make myself a cup of Italian coffee. Every time I open a bottle from a wine shop or enjoy meal at a restaurant. I never take anything for granted. I know my life is good. I know I was born in the right place and my hard work had only a little bit to do with the fact that my life good, great in fact.
This feeling obviously intensifies when traveling. I was in school in Tanzania and played with the kids. I cried so many times in Latin America for kids that were my little brother’s age and tried to sell me chewing gum or tissues.
Never have I ever been so grateful for the quality of my life than when traveling around Sri Lanka. It is the 30th country on my list of visited countries and also the ugliest one. The majority of Sri Lanka is buddhist and they believe in reincarnation and that being human is the best possible form. At the risk of sounding like a total spoiled brat (oh no wait, I already managed that in the first paragraph), I would rather be a cat in a British family than being born in Sri Lanka. Yes I am spoiled and after seeing the beaches in Zanzibar there maybe are very few beaches that will take my breath away. But there’s nothing in Sri Lanka. Or maybe I am just getting older.
I am the kind of person who has a great appreciation for nature with that in mind, that’s what I expected on this small island. Instead I got average touristy beaches, village after village and dirty city after dirty city. Unbelievable pollution, terrible traffic and tourists. Crowds of tourists. Chinese tourists and their unsustainable mode of travel. Not to mention the terrible food. If you imagine that you can eat fish and veggies in Sri Lanka all the time you really have to look and pay. After finishing the whole30 diet, the rice diet caused some serious distress to my stomach. It’s also not the cheapest country. It really did take away my asian wanderlust. I will stick to Europe for the foreseeable future, thank you very much.
Ok so now that we have covered why not to go to Sri Lanka. Here’s the good part.
I learned how to surf… well how to surf to the shore. And my surf instructor was an Italian with a hot body and perfect Spanish. It was nice chatting with him every morning at sunrise on the beach when I went for my morning run and yoga. We have met some really fun guys at the surf camp and traveled with them for a bit. I have seen my first tea plantation. It was mildly interesting. I have made a friend for life with my freckled friend because once you travel with someone, once you share a food poisoning, that’s it! Friends for life.
I also absolutely loved our five star hotel that we have decided to spend the remainder of our days in after we really had enough of traveling. I have enjoyed the quiet pool, the immaculate room, the yoga in the mornings, the luxurious breakfast, the manicure and pedicure and massage. And cakes. During the last two days we have discovered a cake shop with the best cakes I have ever had in my life. That’s were I replenished my calories after not eating for few days due to the stomach bug. You might think I sound so high maintenance. It’s not true, I will still take a tent and even rain over a five star hotel any day. As long as it’s without tourist and far away from cities. And I am genuinely excited for my spring and summer in Scotland, lots of hiking and running.
That is if I stay the whole summer. Because…. it looks like… I will be moving to Rome. That’s it, it’s out! Now it has to happen. Fingers crossed, knock on wood I really want this to happen for me. I have been toying with learning Italian for over three years now, but I think it’s time to finally learn it. Plus I just turned 25 and I wanted to be fluent at five languages by the age of 30. So far I only have three, time is running out!! Not to mention love. And food. And Dominika will move to Paris and there’s a cheap flight between Paris and Rome, can you imagine the weekends? Please let this happen for me and I promise I will do anything I can to make it happen.
Anyway, here’s some photos, mostly of me because like I said Sri Lanka not so mucho. Also these photos remind me that what you see online are mostly skilled photographers, right moments, photoshop and a whole lot of information that is being left out. So don’t ever be jealous of photos you see online. It’s not always the full reality.
Temple in Colombo
Fun train ride with open doors.
Cave temple
The surfing babe, looks professional but like I said, I could only ride to the shore.
Train station.
Tea plantation.
Slovakian boys that we have spent most of our time with <3
Temple where I got attacked by monkey, screamed like a total queen and threw my ice cream away.
The most touristic temple ever, full of monks and iphones.
Kirsty
My birthday card that made me so happy in the morning after we climbed this rock.
Our beautiful room where we came to lick our traveling wounds
My wonderful ass that I owe to whole30, food poisoning, surfing and everyday yoga and an actual yoga podium that you could enter right from our room as well as a surrounding terrace.
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