The temples across Sri Lanka were unique and I fell in love with the many stupas I was able to witness during my time here. Anuradhapura is renowned as being the ancient capital of Sri Lanka with a plethora of various temples across the city. My partner and I hired a tuk-tuk driver for the day and he was able to drive us around the most iconic temples as well as the less renowned ones. My favourite temples included Ruwanweli Maha Seya (its opaque white colour stood out for miles), Mahintale (for the gorgeous countryside views) and Lovamahapaya, a unique building. The best thing about temple hopping in Sri Lanka was how welcoming the locals were. We didn't notice many tourists during our time in these temples and despite religious differences, we were welcomed to pray and be blessed.

I would put this up there with one of my favourite experiences of all time. Dambulla is renowned for two hikes, Sigiriya Rock and Pidurangala Rock, two huge rocks located next to each other. Sigiriya Rock is a UNESCO world heritage site and is surrounded by the most gorgeous countryside landscape. However, we chose to climb the other rock for a few reasons: it was cheaper, we would have a view of Sigiriya and to avoid the mass of crowds. Pidurangala Rock cost around £2 entry fee and took us around 40 minutes to climb up to the top. It had a combination of steps and rocks to climb up to reach the top. 

The challenges and the hiking element added to the overall experience. When we reached the top, not only was I proud of my achievement, I couldn't believe the view. It felt as if I was on top of the world! We stayed on top of the rock to watch the sunset, which still wows me to the day, especially as we had a clear view of Sigiriya Rock.

Elephants are my favourite animal and when I visited Thailand, I had the pleasure to be up close and personal with them. In Sri Lanka, one of the top things I wanted to do was see the elephants and the best way is to watch them roam naturally in their habitat. There are a few national parks across the country and depending on the time of year determines where they roam. During our time, the elephants were in Hurulu Eco Park. Our homestay host got in touch with a safari driver he knew and he was our guide for the day, driving us around the park and watching elephants from afar. The best part was how our driver arrived at the park before any other tourists came, meaning we had a private experience for a good chunk of our time roaming around. And, our driver was incredibly careful and cautious about the elephants as he didn't want to disturb or alert them. 

I can't express how much I adored this experience! Seeing the elephants roam made my heart melt, especially when the babies walked alongside their mothers. The whole day was perfect and I would love to relive the moment of sitting in the jeep and capturing the first sight of an elephant.

Sri Lanka is renowned as a tea plantation heaven with plenty of available tea factories and plantation tours. I'm not the biggest tea fan, however, that didn't take away from how incredible it was to see tea plantations in real life. In Nuwara Eliya or also known as 'Little England', the endless green fields of tea were a gorgeous sight. I loved seeing them, roaming around the tea fields and visiting a tea factory. It was super interesting hearing and learning about the process of crafting tea and trialling some of them.

I've been dreaming about this train journey for the longest time and as soon as I arrived in Sri Lanka, I was even more excited to do it. Every influencer or Instagram content creator will say, it's the train journey from Kandy to Ella, however, that's 8 hours long. It's better to go and spend some time in Nuwara Eliya and take the train to Ella from there as you get the full experience. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't on our side for the train views, however, sticking my head out of the train was a unique, and powerful experience. I felt free and on top of the world!

I'm a huge fan of sunrise and sunset as you can't beat the gorgeous colours of the sky and the start and end of each day; it's a sign of hope. Little Adam's Peak is a tourist favourite for experiencing Ella's countryside and the mountains. It doesn't take long to walk up to the top at all, about 20 minutes in total. Although, the view is pretty special, especially if you head up from sunrise or just after the sun had risen like we did. We were also able to see Adam's Peak, which you can climb but only if you have proper hiking gear and experience.

Waterfalls are one of nature's highlights and in Sri Lanka, we were spoilt for choice, especially with Diyaluma Falls. Getting to the falls took a journey and some great navigational skills but once we made it, my mind was blown. The waterfall seemed to go on and on for miles with warm water to swim in and wonderful views. It also wasn't anywhere near busy, meaning it felt like we had the entire waterfall to ourselves. The weather that day was beautifully sunny, which made the experience ten times better. Other great waterfalls include Ramboda Falls and Ravana Falls.

I hope you enjoyed this post. What's your favourite holiday moment?

Thank you for reading <3