Embarked upon a beautiful journey of the Emerald Island of Sri Lanka and the gorgeous Maldives on 9th Nov 2019 from Mumbai Airport by Sri Lankan Airlines. The tour was managed by Veena World and we had company of 30+ other co-passengers from various cities joining in.... seemed like fun!
Actually, the trip from Pune to Mumbai airport was laced with some uncertainty and nervousness. The Supreme Court Judgment on Ayodhya was being announced on the same morning and there were security concerns all around. However, with some quick checks - we landed at the Mumbai airport ready to get going.
How about starting your trip with some funny faux pas?
The keys on the lock of our bags got jammed up and wouldn't open. After frequent tries we decided to approach the airline baggage desk. After a few tries we just decided to rip out the keys. so now we had two locked bags - one with a lock and jammed up key while the other had a lock with no key :)
After immigration and security checks, we boarded the Sri Lankan airlines flight around 2:30 AM and it took off around 3:10 AM. The journey begins ....
The plane landed at Bhandarnaike International Airport, Colombo in 2 hours 10 min. After the customary immigration checks and baggage claims we assembled in the lobby to start the Sri Lankan league of the trip. We were greeted by the local Sri Lankan tour guide and escorted to our bus waiting outside the airport.
And the bus started ....
We were on our way to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage (one of the only ones in the world) taking care of over a hundred Asian elephants. The ride was through picturesque Colombo outskirts and a beautiful sea shore on one side...
This part of Colombo reminded us of Kerala back in India. Similar geography and culture was visible. Tuktuks (auto rickshaws) was a great attraction of all the western tourists around.
After a quick breakfast at a nearby beach hotel, we reached Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in about an hour or so...
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Actually, the trip from Pune to Mumbai airport was laced with some uncertainty and nervousness. The Supreme Court Judgment on Ayodhya was being announced on the same morning and there were security concerns all around. However, with some quick checks - we landed at the Mumbai airport ready to get going.
How about starting your trip with some funny faux pas?
The keys on the lock of our bags got jammed up and wouldn't open. After frequent tries we decided to approach the airline baggage desk. After a few tries we just decided to rip out the keys. so now we had two locked bags - one with a lock and jammed up key while the other had a lock with no key :)
After immigration and security checks, we boarded the Sri Lankan airlines flight around 2:30 AM and it took off around 3:10 AM. The journey begins ....
The plane landed at Bhandarnaike International Airport, Colombo in 2 hours 10 min. After the customary immigration checks and baggage claims we assembled in the lobby to start the Sri Lankan league of the trip. We were greeted by the local Sri Lankan tour guide and escorted to our bus waiting outside the airport.
Travel Tips For Travelers (purely based on our experience and understanding):
1. There are multiple currency exchange operators at the airport exit. You can exchange your currency for Sri Lankan Rupees here (at your discretion) based on rates available. Else you can also try at local shops or hotels (as we found out later). Take guidance on where this should be done prior to embarking on the trip.
2. You can also pick up a local calling card here (data and voice packs combined) for your local travails. Mobitel and Hutch seem to be offering the best packs (from what we saw) OR if your local provider has international roaming offerings at great prices, you can activate that facility from your country itself.
We were on our way to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage (one of the only ones in the world) taking care of over a hundred Asian elephants. The ride was through picturesque Colombo outskirts and a beautiful sea shore on one side...
After a quick breakfast at a nearby beach hotel, we reached Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in about an hour or so...
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Yaadgar Raahein
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