Smiling faces are what greeted us in Sri Lanka from the moment we arrived until we left. The people were so warm and curious, and there inquisitiveness made for some interesting interactions as you can see by the photos of the kids at the central bus station in Colombo.

We met with Lucy and Lipton and spent hours wandering and talking photography which was great. The diversity of people, places, views and the whole country is a photographer's paradise. We, of course, being there for the first time, took a driver and did the basic tourist run because of a lack of time. Definitely the next time I travel, it will be like the locals, on the trains (buses).

 

Colombo and Kandy

Colombo, the BIG CITY, is interesting and can be done comfortably in 3 days. From Colombo we set off for Kandy in the central mountains. On the way we visited the Elephant Orphanage. It was great to get up close to the elephants. The elephants were taken through a small shopping/tourist street to the river for a bath. Around 30 elephants made this a excellent photo opportunity as they splashed and enjoyed themselves. Kandy is a small town nestled in the mountains, with a lake in the centre of town and a fantastic botanical garden from the times of British colonization. There is also the Sacred Temple of the Tooth Relic, Sri Lanka's most important Buddhist relic, and a number of other temples in the area.

Food is plentiful and the local food is very tasty and spicy but not toooooo hot. We ate it a lot and really enjoyed it without any side effects. The locals eat with their fingers and don’t use a knife and fork. In the beginning it was a little strange, but after a day, well, as the saying goes "if you can't beat them join them" which I did.

Ella and Mirissa

After 2 nights in Kandy we drove down to Ella on our way to the coast. Ella is a small village in the hills with some incredible views and a lot of places to hike. In Ella, we let the locals give us a good massage – herbal sauna and steam bath. AHH that wonderful feeling afterwards. Early morning found us hiking up to a place called "Little Adam's Peak". The walk about 2.5 kilometers through the tea plantations and the 316 stairs up to the top before breakfast was worth every drop of perspiration.

On the way down to the coastal area of Mirissa the scenery changed drastically to flat low lying fields with plenty of water. The roads are not very wide and the speed limit is 30-35 mph. If you get to that speed you are lucky. To drive the 70 miles can take 3 hours or longer. All along the way you can find stalls with goodies from A-Z from prices you can't believe are SO SO cheap.

The fruit in Sri Lanka is incredibly tasty. It has that clean, sweet, natural taste of an environment without chemicals in the soil or the air.

The Coast

The coastal area is full of hotels and restaurants. Among all this there are open areas where the colorful fishing boats are pulled up onto the sand and their nets are folded and ready for the next evening/morning fishing. The boats are a sort of catamaran. They have about 6 fishermen per boat and the boats are not that big. Weligama is where we found the famous stilt fishermen sitting on their stilt's in the ocean catching mainly sardines. Unfortunately, they have become very money hungry and let you barely take one photo before they climb down to ask for money. There are normally about 5 or 6 fishing at time.

The fishermen and their colorful boats are a lot more interesting to me, and a lot less touristy. What I did learn there is that a polarizing filter is a permanent fixture on the lens, otherwise you pick up a blue cast in everything.

As I wrote in the beginning, the smiling faces of the people, it inspired me and gave me a new insight to my way of looking at things.

A place I highly recommend to visit.

Thank you again to Lucy & Lipton. -Avi & Pazit Hirschfield

About the Author

Avi Hirschfield was born in South Africa and now resides in Israel with his wife and 5 children. His love affair with the camera and photography began at the age of 16. For Avi photography is not only his profession, it is also "his hobby". He works in all genres – Nature, People, Travel and Photojournalism – and serves a broad local and international clientele. Avi also hosts workshops in Israel and teaches photography to begginers. His work has won numerous awards and has appeared in many exhibitions world wide. See more of Avi Hirschfield's work Hirschfield Photo.

Editor's Note: See more spectacular images from Avi and Pazit's visit to Sri Lanka. Also see the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority website for more attractions.