This day took us to the heart of the mountains of southern Sri Lanka, to Ella, our first stop after Galle. Ella was only a short stop for us, just long enough to take the famous train to Kandy, renowned for being one of the most beautiful railway journeys in Sri Lanka. The next stop was Nuawara Eliya to see the tea plantations.
Normally, Ella can serve as a starting point for some important sites, but given the length of our stay, we had to skip the ascent of Adam's Peak, one of the must-sees in this region, along with Horton Plains National Park, which we also skipped...
Getting to Ella from Galle
After ordering a tuk tuk from our guesthouse, we arrived at the Galle Bus Terminal. All that remained was to find the right bus to go to Ella. This was quite easy since we were kindly given directions as to where to go, after some curious people quickly asked us what we were looking for.
And in our case, it was bus number 27 that we needed since it goes to Ella, well not quite! We thought it would be a direct line. However, you have to take a change in Wellawaya, we only found out when the driver invited us to get off... At the time, we thought we had already arrived, but we quickly realized that we were at a random bus stop somewhere... Fortunately, people are helpful and when the local bus to Ella arrived, we were immediately told where it was.
Beautiful mountain road
I hope you are not motion sick because the road here is long and winding especially when you approach Ella (basically from Wellawaya) The journey takes about 7 hours for only 200km! It cost us 510 Rupees for the first bus to Wellawaya and an additional 120 Rupees to complete the journey to Ella.
Arrival in Ella
Upon arrival we will not escape the traditional touts. Not really having any idea where to sleep we will follow one of the guys after he has shown us his brochure.
A choice that turned out to be quite honorable since for 2500 Rupees per night, we benefit from a brand new room, adjoining the house of the owner who seeks to have his share in this tourist windfall. Unfortunately, I did not note the name of the GH, it is located on the road leading to Balleketuwa only 250m from the crossroads where the bus drops you off.
But since I'm a nice guy, I found the name for you! It was the Eden View whose location is below:
You should know that Ella is very small. Basically, there is one main street where all the hotels and restaurants are, that's all... Located at a junction of 3 roads, Ella looks like a small village lost in the mountains... Without the big hotel under construction (which somewhat disfigures the landscape), you wouldn't really see that this place is supposed to be touristy.
Others may come, as Ella is an important stopping point for people moving between Kandy and/or Nuwara Eliya and the beaches of southern Sri Lanka (one way or the other), for now it remains just a simple village with a few restaurants and simple GH, enjoy before that changes…
For us, it was just an intermediate stage that allowed us to take the train to Nuwara Eliya, a journey that passes through the tea plantations along the mountains. Great program in perspective.
After eating right at the little restaurant at the foot of where the bus dropped us off, we set off for a short walk in the surrounding area, short because Jitima's recent operation prevents her from walking too far.
And anyway, there is not much to see within walking distance. We just followed a stretch of the 3 roads that intersect in Ella.
In the late afternoon, we will go to the station to find out about the timetables and, along the way, we will book our tickets, 800 Rupees for the journey to Nuwara Eliya.
In fact, it is marked Nanu Oya, named after the small village where the station is located. Nuwara Eliya does not have a station as such, as the town is on a mountain plateau, and the railway does not go up that far. The line continues on its way, joining in this case Kandy.
As the train was full in the lower classes, we had to move up to the upper class (first or equivalent) but if you book in advance you can do this journey for less.
The rest of the day will be spent sitting in a restaurant on the main street, while the rain started to appear. Just enough time to sip a local beer for me, a milkshake for my wife and finally to eat too because we were happy there.
