Traveling around Sri Lanka by train is an activity as much as a way to get around. We choose to travel from Ella to Kandy by train because it is ranked as one of the best scenic train journeys not only in Sri Lanka but in the entire world. Although they offer affordable first and second class air conditioned cars we choose to sit in 3rd class reserved. 3rd class cars have no AC and they leave the doors open. That’s why I choose this option. The open doors allow you to hang out the side of the train and watch the scenery go past. The ride was 6.5 hours long and I probably spent 3 hours hanging out the door watching tea plantations and local villages pass by. A lot of the people on the train were only going half way then getting off and returning to Ella. They simply wanted to experience the train ride for the views. It definetley lived up to all expectations. The entire experience was amazing. The people on the train were a mix of locals and tourists all socializing and having a great time. Outside the train, the people would wave at me and smile as we passed through town after town. And the views didn’t end for 6 hours straight. Usually I fall asleep on trains after only 10 minutes of rocking but this train was so much fun inside and out that I didn’t even come close to sleeping. At one point I spent an hour straight hanging out the door with my headphones in listening to music and enjoying the views. Every hour or so vendors would pass through the train selling cooked foods so there was yet another reason I loved this journey. I had at least 5 treats and couldn’t get enough. If train journeys are for you then you won’t want to miss this one. If they are not, well I still recommend this one not only for the great views but for the social atmosphere inside the train. We both had so much fun and that’s not something we say about travel days too often.
Once we arrived in Kandy we checked in to our historic hotel, received a quick history lesson from the manager then went for a walk around Kandy Lake before it started to rain. To hide from the rain we slipped into a mall for dinner before calling it a night. The next day began with a visit to the Buddha Tooth Relic temple. This temple houses one of Buddha’s teeth. This week is a holiday week in Sri Lanka so the temple was crazy crowded and getting to view the tooth was madness. When we arrived we met an old gentleman who gave us a tour of the temple and helped us navigate the crowds while telling us stories and explaining what we were seeing. We got a quick glimpse of the tooth before leaving the grounds. After that chaos we took a walk around Kandy Lake in the rain then headed back to our hotel for some rest before our big Tuk-tuk adventure. Kandy was not our favorite city. We just didn’t really enjoy the vibe there. Maybe because it was a holiday and extra chaotic or maybe it just didn’t live of to expectations.
