We had a great breakfast at the OZO Colombo and particulrly enjoyed the super ripe papaya and all sorts of fabulous dishes. It was an early departure, 7.30 am or so and we knew the breakfast would hold us in good stead as we started on our tour-proper of Sri Lanks. First stop, the Dambulla Royal Cave Temples. This is an ancient complex of caves dating back to the 1st century BC tucked beneath a vast overhanging rock. The rock towers 160 metres over the surrounding plains and there are 80 known caves in the vicinity. There are five main caves and they contain an astounding 153 statues of Buddha, including an impressive 14 m carved statue. We actually thought there might have been even more than that - the Buddha’s were absolutely everywhere - paintings, rock carvings, statues - simply everywhere.. The paintings on the roof off each temple were so intrictate, it almost looked like woven fabric was spread over the ceiling above us. There is evidence from skeletal human remains going back over 2700 years that the Sri Lankans lived in the caves long before the arrival of Buddhism.

The Sri Lankans are, in their own way, just as devoted to their respective religions, but they have a far more a la carte approach than the Indians do to say Hinduism. For instance, the temples at Dambulla are definitely Buddhist, but there are also some alcoves and niches devoted to various Hindu gods. The odd juxtaposition is due to Buddha being seen as a guiding light in the big picture - however the Hindu gods come in handy for everyday issues - crops failing, ill health etc.

The only downside to visiting Dambulla is the 500 odd steps to be climbed in the blazing heat. Our guide in Sri Lanka has already proved himself to be 100% on the bus and directed our driver to take us to a sneaky side entrance, which cut out some of the steps - so a mere 364 (odd) or around 1 km and a significant climb Still felt like 500, but we made it and it was certainly worth the visit. Mind you, because we had to take our shoes off before even reaching the ticket office, we felt like we were firewalking on the phenomenally hot stones to get to the caves. And back again.

The mornings climb and temple visit meant we felt we definitely deserved a nice lunch and the spot we stopped at was the Acme Grand Hotel (it had pictures of elephants, but all we could think of was the Roadrunner and Wile E Coyote with all their Acme products). Funniy enough a sandwich was 600 odd rupees - or a full buffet with desert, tea and coffee was 1200 rupees.. a no brainer really. A lovely buffet and our first true sampling of Sri Lankan cuisine.

By the time we finished lunch we could easily have stopped for the day, but it was onwards, if not upwards to the ancient ruins of Polonnaruwa (pictured). This was once the capital of Sril Lanka (or Ceylon in those days). It’s now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Certainly interesting and sometimes referred to as the Angkor Wat of Sri Lanka. We wouldn’t go quite that far, but the day was dragging on a bit and we didn’t visit all the possible sites within, just the major hightlights.

We felt a bit bamboozled at the end of the day because at 6.30 pm we found ourselves driving through Dambulla - hang on - weren’t we just here this monring? We left Dambulla town, went down multiple back streets and further and further into the countryside until we reached our hotel for the night. Wow! We’d never heard about the Jetwing brand - they are however world famous in Sri Lanka with 25 luxury properties throughout the country. Jetwing Lake, Dambulla - what can we way - the nirvana of hotels. Upon our very late arrival at 6.30 pm we were met with hot and cold running staff with hot towels and cold drinks (green mango juice anyone?) which went down even more smoothly with a splash from our magic water bottle of Malibu...

The rooms were massive - larger than some apartments, in fact the bathroom with a small swimming pool masquerading as a bathtub was actually bigger than some apartments. In the end we had a couple of drinks, some snacks, a very long hot bath and an early night. Aside from the sheer luxury of the place we are happy to say they do everything possible to have zero impact on the environment - their own water treatment plant, no plastic bottles in the rooms, glass toiletry bottles which are refilled - just amazing. What a difference a couple of days has made - not planning on missing India any time soon, but loving Sri Lanka more by the day.

Tomorrow? Well, the general plan is to visit Sigiriya and the famous Lion Rock fortress. Still thinking about that...