Overlooking Lipton's Seat

Lipton's Seat. No I didn't pose.

What do you say about the perfect hike? Turns out, not so much.

For the first time, I managed to go on a hike, not get into any major mishaps and complete it with all my limbs and metabolism intact (cue Idalgashinna memories). 

I do have a small amendment though. We didn't hike to Belihuloya and Adara Kanda. We were researching the hike online - as everyone should - when we realized that Adara Kanda was like Horton Plains without the crowds: just as huge, just as remote. It was no place for two people to hike in alone, so we put that back on the bucket list and searched for other places that were close by.

We hit upon Lipton's Seat.

Lipton's Seat is a viewpoint located high on a hill in what is now the Dambetenna Estate. Miles and miles of verdant tea bushes, as far as the eye can see. It was where Sir Lipton used to gaze out at his empire. Clearly, colonists and tea barons had taste.

Vehicles go all the way to the top so technically, it's not much of a hike. But we'll get to that later.

We bought tickets to catch the infamous 8.00 PM night train from Colombo Fort to Badulla, to get down in Haputale. Third class reserved  seats cost LKR 400 each. You can also get the superliner luxury bus; tickets are LKR 900 per head to Badulla.

via Google Maps

We got down from Haputale around 6.10 AM. I have just 2 photos of the sunrise btw because I value my sleep over a good photo. I can hear Instagram growling at me. My boyfriend was up and taking pics from 5. Why???

පාන් බාගේ බස් එක 

Lipton's Seat is about 15-20 km from Haputale and you can take a tuk, bus or hired vehicle. The tuk will take you all the way up to the Seat and charge you LKR 800, which is fair. We did not have 800 to spare so we decided to bus it.

There are 2 buses going up there: one stops at the Dambetenna estate town. It's more like a junction than a town but you get the gist. There's about 5 km from there to Lipton's Seat. The other bus goes further up and carries a board saying 'Litpion's [sic] Seat'. That will drop you at a fork in the road and you only have to walk 2 km. 

If you're tempted to choose the first one, don't. Despite having a tarred road, the climb up is grueling and you'll be too exhausted to enjoy the view by the time you reach the top. We took option #2 and paid LKR 75 each for the ticket.

(FYI we brought out dinner and breakfast with us to save money and time coz shops in Haputale don't open till well past 8 and we wanted to be on our way before then)

The ride is bone-rattling and packed. The buses are tiny, to accommodate the crazy bends in the road but the drivers have lost their fear glands somewhere in the past. They drive insanely fast until they spy an oncoming vehicle. Then they jerk to a stop and slowly rev the engine again. I was suddenly super-religious and praying to every known pantheon to keep us safe. I do not wanna die. Not like that.

Once we were dropped off, we started the climb. In a few places, we skipped the long bends in the road and clambered up steps in the middle of the tea estates. Oh yeah, did I mention? From the time we passed Haputale, were were inside tea plantations. 

The walk was hard but refreshing. There was so much to see and the green has never seemed so green to me. The air is so crisp up there it hurts your lungs to breathe but you don't wanna stop coz it feels super clean, the way air never is in Colombo or Kandy. 

We finally made it up around 10 but unfortunately, we were in for a bit of a shock.

Which I'll tell you about, next week :)

A Kotmale Adventure

I promise this is the last Kotmale post you guys will have to endure, because I will soon be #budgetingto Belihuloya! Yes! I've heard so much about this place and I'm super excited to be hiking there soon.

Now, the weather hasn't been ideal for hiking lately, so we'll be very careful about preparations for the hike. It's been raining for a few days here in Kandy and the news assures me that it's raining further upcountry too, so frankly, idk what to expect.

As you can probably tell by now, this is just a filler post till I blog about my trip next week. But hope you guys enjoy the video I made on my trip to Kotmale.

See you all soon!

Kotmale Dam - A Magnificent Feat

Kothamale Dam. Photo credits: Hiru Piumwardena

What's the best kind of trip for someone on a budget?

A free one!

Feel free to judge my money-mindedness, but as the tagline says, I'm dollar-less. So I will take any chance possible to go tripping around Sri Lanka with a generous benefactor :D The generous benefactor I'm referring to is - of course - my family. 

Kotmale Mahaweli Maha Seya

Out of the blue, my mother announced that she would like to see the Kotmale Mahaweli Maha Seya. It's a stupa only second in height to Ruwanweliseya in A'pura. It began construction in the 1980's, but like many things Sri Lankan, it was late. Very late.

Fast forward a decade or two and the project is still not complete. That's when the former regime restarted and the current regime finished building it. If it weren't for the barren plateau on which the stupa stands (they cut all the trees) it would actually be a peaceful spot. As it is, it is a monstrous white stupa, a stunning feat of acoustic engineering.

Let me backtrack a bit to the "trip" part of this.

Kandy-Kotmale via Google Maps

It took us about 2 hours from Kandy to reach the dam and if you are coming from Colombo I'd suggest you come to Kandy by train (train schedule and prices here. Prices are subject to change) and then hire a vehicle to go to Kotmale. You could take the bus up there, but they are few and far between so just hire a vehicle - it's worth it.

The drive alone would be worth the trip. It is GORGEOUS. Check my Instagram. There is so much greenery that you forget for a minute the politicians ruining our planet. We went through the University of Peradeniya and then higher and higher through the hill country where there is less man, more nature.

You need a ticket (LKR 30) to get onto the bund/crest of the dam and the ticket counter is about 500m further on from the dam so it's easier to see the stupa which is further ahead (no tickets required - yet), come down and buy the ticket to check out the dam from a higher vantage point and then walk the dam crest. Saves time that way. 

The Kotmale Seya is very interesting. The outer shell actually encases a smaller stupa inside. You can walk right inside the seya. This is very unusual; the inside of a stupa is usually sealed with some treasure and never hollow but here, that's part of the draw. The acoustics are such that someone speaking at the entrance to the outer stupa sounds like they are standing right behind your ear and it is creepy AF.

Very reminiscent of  Ruwanweliseya

We wandered around, marveled at the engineering and then hurried down to the viewing platform for the dam. For 30 rupees you get an unfettered view of the Kotmale Dam in all its gloriousness. 

Credits: Hiru Piumwardena

Need I say more?

There are ice cream vendors around so we had a taste of that and then drove down to the actual dam. 

Now, I usually play it cool when it comes to these things but I couldn't keep my head when I walked onto Kotmale. They diverted the Kotmala river (which later joins Mahaweli river) into a tunnel that run right through the Atabage mountains into a hydroelectric power plant much further down. Apparently the walls of said tunnel are over 1m thick. Imagine that!

We must have lingered on that crest for about an hour because neither of us wanted to leave. It's one thing to learn about the great heritage of irrigation technology in ancient Sri Lanka but it's another to see it come to life before your very eyes. Moana, I know how you feel.

We had lunch around 4.00 (???) at the Kothmale Holiday Resort. For LKR 2500 we got more fried rice and noodles than 4 of us could manage.
 

Kothmale Holiday Resort and its resident doggie

This isn't a budget trip by any means. After all, I only footed the LKR 120 for our viewing tickets. But it's a nice day outing for those of you in Kandy wondering where to go without planning too much. This is where. 

(Approx.) Time Taken: 1 day
(Approx.) Total Cost  : LKR 1000 per person (with ice cream and petrol costs) 
Satisfaction                 : 5/5

*All pictures are subject to Copyright © Asuka Randeniye 2017 

Fever-Ridden Idalgashinna Part 2

Idalgashinna Station around 5.30AM

Any guesses what Universe sign #4 was?

I whipped around to see a curtain of rain come pelting towards us.

"RUN!!!" my boyfriend yelled, and started pulling me towards the tiny ATM cubicle. We made it in the nick of time - my bag caught a bit of the spatter but I was mostly dry.

Oh and we didn't bring umbrellas or raincoats with us. Smart huh?

The train was due to leave in 10 minutes and we were stuck there unable to move, no money on our hands and with the entire universe telling us not to go. What do we smart-alecs do?

We run. In fact, we ran through the rain into the station and didn't stop till we got to the train. Remember, this is Sri Lanka and the Fort Railway station has a leaky roof, so we weren't completely safe till we were inside the train.

The train rumbled and clanked its way out of the station at 8.00PM precisely (surprise, coz SL time is a legit thing) and frankly, I don't remember much of the night except dinner - I am never having that particular flavour of instant noodles again.

*

Taken within 15 minutes of each other @ Idalgashinna

Idalgashinna Hill

Dawn was breaking. It was still too dark to see around when we got off Idalgashinna station around 5.30 AM. It was also like Jack Frost and Elsa were on a date. The guard took pity on us and opened up a small side room with a wooden bench reminiscent of prison so that we could get some shut eye. Idk how those blood-sucking little things survive up there in the cold but we didn't get a wink of sleep; mosquitoes saw to that.

My boyfriend and I alternated taking pictures of the sunrise and the surroundings until the first nearby shop opened. Blessed, blessed tea! Oh how thy steam rises to greet the crisp morning... and I could go on. Ode to Tea aside, we also made a new friend ----> 

The tea cost us LKR50 total. Gotta love the තේ කඩේ.

She got half of our breakfast (of course) and then decided to follow us towards the Idalgashinna trail behind the station. Once we started climbing, she took the lead. She was upfront most of the time and often found us paths that could be climbed (by humans) without breaking a leg. 

Summit through the tea bushes

The view. Was. Gorgeous. Perhaps it was the fact that we weren't rushing to summit, or the fact that we weren't in a hurry, or simply that it wasn't too tall and intimidating, but that hike was the most enjoyable for me so far. We started off on a small, badly tarred road that ran through small, brightly coloured houses where estate workers were heading off for their morning shift. Then the road ended and we moved through the actual tea plantation, sometimes creating new paths with the aid of our canine guide. 

Via theamazingamazonia.wordpress.com

We finally topped the bit with the tea bushes and gazed at the summit of Idalgashinna hill. At some distant point in history, someone had planted pine trees on it and there was no other growth anywhere near it. Pine trees were rashly planted as part of a poorly-planned reforestation scheme all over upcountry hills. They look pretty, but the pine needles (leaves) don't degrade for years and therefore covers the ground like a blanket; no sun or rain gets to the ground and this prevents undergrowth and interferes with the canopic-structure of the ideal tropical rain forest. Plus, pine trees are highly flammable and most forest fires start around pine tree groves when the weather has been too dry.

I'd been having trouble breathing (again) but I took things easy and had managed to climb up so far by taking frequent breaks. The trail led to a long-dry water way strewn with rocks which was easier to grip and we started climbing again. Everything was fine until I hit the pine patch.

The ground turned as slippery and as deadly as quicksand. We were miles above solid ground and one false step meant a broken arm or leg - at best. But even my brand new hiking shoes were slipping and I suddenly started feeling dizzy, short of breath and broke out in a cold sweat.

Welcome to my panic attack.

My teeth were chattering and I started having vivid death scenarios. It took all my willpower to suppress it and tell my boyfriend that I couldn't climb further. I could see the summit a few feet ahead of my head, but I couldn't get my feet to move.

View from the top; there was a cloud forest!

#bosslady

Again, I cannot emphasize the importance of hiking with someone you trust. My panic attack virtually crippled me. I managed to keep it in check till we climbed down from the pine grove and back onto firm rock, but then I started shivering, my face started burning and sweating (despite the cold) and I constantly felt nauseated. My boyfriend helped me down inch by inch and the only thing that kept me going then was the thought of sleeping in the train on the way to lunch in Ella.

I didn't know it at the time, but I was burning up with fever. If you followed my Instagram then you know what happened next: as soon as we came to the station, I collapsed on a bench, so we scrapped the plans to go to Ella and hopped on the next train home. It was a loooong ride. 

We also had to forget the ticket we'd already booked on the sleeper compartment and get a new one back on the next available train. It cost us approx. LKR 300 to come to Kandy, where I went home to mummy.

Took me a week to recover from that bug and it put me off hikes for a while. But I'm up and raring to go now! So look out for more posts. Follow me on Insta, Twitter or Facebook to find out when and where #budgetingto next and feel free to come along for the ride :)

(Approx.) Time Taken: 1 and a half days
(Approx.) Total Cost  : LKR 2000 per person
Satisfaction                 : 4/5

*All pictures are subject to copyright © Asuka Randeniye 2017 

Fever-Ridden Idalgashinna

Idalgashinna station when we got off the train at 5.30AM

FYI if the universe gives you a sign and tells you, 'Don't do that!' then don't do that.

I had all the signs I wanted in the world and my stupid ass decided to say F- you to the universe.

I don't think the universe liked that, because it hit me with a whopping fever. Yes, a FEVER. I went on a hike and I came down with a fever caused by a bacterial infection.

I feel like the universe is trying to tell me something... hmm.

So sit back peeps, and enjoy the tale of me #budgetingto Idalgashinna.

***

I was really excited about finally going on a hike this year. Due to funerals and a lot of extra expenses, trips had been relegated to the backseat for a while. I was actually embarrassed that it took me 6 months to finally plan one.

We decided to make it a quick one - Idalgashinna is a small hill just behind its namesake railway station. It is located along the Fort-Badulla railway line, between Ohiya and Ella. The hike would be easy, taking only about an hour to summit. The climb wasn't too steep and most of it would be through a tea estate. Since our last hike had been in 2016, neither of us were in peak condition and we wanted an easy climb.

Idalgashinna station via Google Maps

It was easy enough to plan. We bought tickets on the Colombo Fort-Badulla night mail express train, LKR 400 each in the 3rd class sleeper compartment. The train would leave at 8.00PM on Friday and reach Idalgashinna station around 5.20AM on Saturday. We also bought return tickets on the night mail coming back Saturday night from Badulla-Colombo Fort. The 2nd class sleeper tickets are LKR 600 each.

Word to the wise: tickets disappear like උණු කැවුම් so you need to book at least 2 weeks prior to your planned date. Tickets can be booked at the Fort railway station at the intercity tickets counter, or over the phone if you have a Mobitel number. Call 365 and be prepared to lose 15% to commission as well as 8/- per minute (they will drag out the minutes). On popular lines like Badulla, tickets sell out really early.

It's ORANGE!

Remember what I said about signs? Sign #1 was when I went shoe shopping for hiking shoes coz I didn't have a pair. We checked in shop after shop. First, they didn't have my size. My feet are small, but seriously??? The only ones that did were pink because they were"ladies." What is this, the 90s???

The last shop finally had an outrageous pair that had orange neon shoelaces on dark blue shoes. Bleeugh, but what to do? I shelled out a ridiculous LKR 8000+ for the pair. Our entire hike didn't cost that much.

Friday came, work was done and I flew home. The plan was to take dinner, breakfast and a snack for Saturday. After the hike, we would catch another train to Ella, only a few stations after Idalgashinna and have lunch there. So I made instant noodles (don't judge - you've done it too) for dinner, packed that and waited.

The tuk arrived and we jumped aboard to get to the station. That took us about LKR 500. I opened my bag to take out my purse to pay the tuk... and there was sign #2. No purse. I'd left if behind.

Shit.

We discussed the money situ; should we take the chance and really budget it or withdraw some cash from the ATM? We decided to withdraw and then, guess what? The universe hit us with #3: the ATM ate my boyfriend's card.

Idalgashinna at break of dawn

It was 7.30PM and we didn't have time to go anywhere or complain to anyone. We tried the cardless withdrawal and that didn't work either. We stood outside wondering what to do; we only had about LKR700 between us (well, him really, coz I didn't have my purse).

"Should we not go?" he actually said this. My face was stubborn. I mean, I was invested in this trip, y'know? I'd been dreaming of a hike for months. I'd got new and expensive shoes. So why was he suddenly looking over my shoulder so horrified?

Welcome to Universe sign #4.

(To be continued...)

Anniversary Surprise!

Nope the anniversary has nothing to do with my love life. :p

Exactly a year ago today (20th May 2016) I and my fellow batch mates submitted our 4th year theses to the University of Colombo. As part of my thesis on the f***ing amazing YouTube series, Lizzie Bennet Diaries, I maintained a blog called A Cross Media Thesis. 

Due to concerns from my lecturers, I had to make it private. Now, a year later, I'm making it public again so that people will read it and hopefully fall in love with LBD all over again. It has been 5 years since it first revolutionized transmedia narratives on YouTube and I want people to remember just how great a series it was.

So, happy reading and happy viewing everyone!

Read my blog here

Watch The Lizzie Bennet Diaries here

No, I'm Not Back

Says Dorothy, "There's no place like home"

When I saw the last 'posted' date, I was shocked. 27th February??? Why on earth haven't I written anything on this blog since then?

The truth is that I haven't traveled anywhere new this year. 2017 has been... different. Every month when I try to plan a trip, something happens and I have to cancel. It has also been a very difficult year. I lost two people very close to me, one of whom was family and someone I miss every single day. What with the funerals and the subsequent dhaanes (alms givings), I have not had time to go on a pleasure trip.

It has also been a difficult year professionally. While I love what I do for a living, I have had to realize that love for a job alone is not enough - you also need emotional maturity. You have to be able to walk into a class, face the toughest, least interested children in the world (or so it feels) and still have 100% enthusiasm and energy for the next class. That takes patience. And guts. And tons of tea.

I know this sounds like a bunch of excuses and yes, you're right. They are. This blog post is to let you know that my life has been a little too busy to be #budgetingto anywhere and it will probably be that way for a while to come. I will definitely blog about my next trip - it will be severely BUDGET - so keep your eye on those feeds! Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or subscribe to this blog down below.

Have a wonderful rest-of-the-year you guys, and watch out for some exciting news soon about... well, you'll see ;)

-Asuka