Sri Lanka - SL - Day 1

October 21, 2014

Arrived at an efficiently runner airport got luggage and was greeted by our guy from our hotel. Our hotel was 6 hours away located in the tea plantation area called Nuwara Eliya. Hotel - Recommend it... Araliya Green Hills Hotel  The guy asked if we wanted to visit an elephant or orphanage  on the way so we said yes. We arrived in Pinnawala about 2pm just in time to watch a herd of elephants about 30 walk directly past us and on to the river for a bath!  After looking at some other elephants still in the orphanage and having an opportunity to touch a baby elephant for a small tip we then went and followed the elephants down to the river and what a glorious site that was! 30 elephants roaming freely in a large river. Some were being bathed, some were walking to the other side of the river to eat the grass and blow dirt on their wet bodies. 

Jenny bathing a baby elephant!

And dear Jenny - easily targeted for an older blonde woman was leered into to go closer and closer to the elephants being bathed. And why not ...as I watch her roll up her pants and wade into the river (note no one else is in the river except for the national zoo men who some are sitting on top of elephants forcing the them to stay in the water.) and there she goes into the water and starts splashing water onto a baby elephant lying in the water!  This completely made her day! And I was glad I was there to capture it on camera. 

We then continued on on our journey to the hotel and after a few stops to take pictures of rolling green hills and waterfalls we finally arrive at Araliya Green Hills Hotel this massive white hotel with large wooden elephants. And there are all these people to greet us at the hotel entrance 2 women holding 2 bouquets of flowers, a guy to give us hot face clothes and a guy taking our photo. We are thinking who do you think we are!!!! We sit down, feeling a little underdressed, and are served Ceylone tea of course and some yummy cookies and then go up to our room. I had to ask the lady, is everyone get greeted with bouquets of flowers and she said no.  Honestly I can't figure it out. 

We freshen up and go to the a la carte restaurant where we are the only ones there and the two other girls we are going to travel with join us (after Jenny obviously let's the. Know where we are).  So they join us for dinner and we share our stories.