Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
It is, though, a good place to buy well-priced quality teas and enjoy a cuppa with a slice of
(
www.bluefieldteagardens.com
)
tea estates offer a fairly similar deal, but with slightly fewer
visitors.
Approaching Nuwara Eliya, roadside stalls overflow with all sorts of vegies - a legacy
of Samuel Baker, who arrived in 1846 and made Nuwara Eliya his summer retreat. The
veggie-loving Baker introduced many different varieties, including quite a few you vowed
not to eat once you reached adulthood. Watch out on the steep roadside approach to
Nuwara Eliya for children selling flowers. If you're travelling with a loved one, you know
what to do.
Sleeping & Eating
Lavender House
BUNGALOW
( 052-225 9928;
www.thelavenderhouseceylon.com
;
Hellboda Estate, Katukitula;s/d incl half-board
from US$360/420; )
With grand old four-poster beds and portraits of Churchill hanging above the open log fire
there's no doubt that this old planter's bungalow has got the colonial thing down to a tee,
but it mixes this with fresh modern art, puffed-up pillows and an infinity pool with a view
you won't forget.
It's not far from the Kothmale Reservoir. Advance bookings are essential.
Nuwara Eliya
052 / Population 25,966 / Elevation 1889m
Nuwara Eliya is often referred to by the Sri Lankan tourist industry as 'Little England'.
While most British visitors struggle to recognise modern England in Nuwara Eliya, the
toy-town ambience does have a rose-tinted English country village feel to it, though it
comes with a disorienting surrealist edge. Three-wheelers whiz past red telephone boxes.
Water buffalo daubed in iridescent dye for the Tamil Thai Pongal festival mingle outside a
pink, brick Victorian post office. A well-tended golf course morphs seamlessly into a
rolling carpet of tea plantations. The dusty and bustling centre of town is a thoroughly Sri
