Thotagamuwa Rajamaha Viharaya | Hikkaduwa

I’m probably biased in my review of this ancient Buddhist temple because it was the first I went to in Sri Lanka. I’d never been inside a Buddhist temple before so I was mesmerized by the sheer beauty of this serene place. As you enter, you’ll be met with well-preserved murals lining the walls from floor to ceiling, crumbling, but still beautiful, Makara toranas and a huge reclining Buddha.

Several hundred years old, the Thotagamuwa Rajamaha Viharaya is located in the little village of Thelwatta and it is regularly visited by locals and tourists alike. If you go on Poya day (full moon of the month) you’ll find many locals dressed in white offering blessings of rice and flowers to the statues.

Outside the temple there is a sacred Bodhi tree that is said to have been planted from a branch of the very tree the Buddha sat under.

Beautiful and serene, this temple remains one of the few in Sri Lanka that hasn’t been made into a tourist attraction charging a ridiculous entrance fee. Go and see it if you can.

 

Best places to eat in Unawatuna

Where to When we first arrived in Unawatuna, the beach immediately drew us in when we were ready for a bite to eat. With dozens of bars and restaurants to choose from, the beach in the evening becomes a long strip of twinkly lights and expectation. What could be better than tucking into your dinner whilst the Indian Ocean gently laps in front of you, right?

Wrong.

In our experience, the places on the beach were expensive and of poor quality. One was so awful I couldn’t even eat it. Of all the meals we had when in Unawatuna, the worst two were from beach restaurants and so we decided to avoid it after the second bad meal.

Luckily, there is no shortage of other places to eat. Here is our top three:

1.       Mettha’s Home Cooked Meals

We enjoyed vegetable curry, fish curry, mango curry, potato curry and Dahl all in one delicious meal. Very friendly and quiet place that doesn’t serve anything but rice and curry. You will pay approximately LK 900 per person (£4.50), which is fairly expensive compared to other places, but it’s worth it for the best Sri Lankan rice and curry in Unawatuna!

2.       Sunil Garden Coffee and More

Catering for the European market, we quickly fell in love with this place. The shaded setting makes it the perfect escape from the sun and we soon found ourselves in there daily, even if just for a cup of tea. The menu is limited as it is more of a coffeehouse than a restaurant, but everything we tried was delicious. It also has the best chocolate brownie I’ve ever tasted!

3.       Pink Elephant

A great selection of travellers staples such as wraps, burgers, sandwiches, grilled fish etc. All served with salad and fries. This place was packed every night due to the cheap food and cocktails, pumping music, and party atmosphere. Impossible to be unhappy in such a place.

 

The dogs of Sri Lanka

When we first arrived in Colombo we were exhausted after 28 hours of travelling, including three long, uncomfortable flights. After lunch on the Isle of Man, dinner in Manchester, and breakfast in Dubai, we were overjoyed to have finally reached Sri Lanka. As we didn’t confidently know how to get to our guesthouse,  and we were too tired to be battling with trains / buses / tuk tuks, we treated ourselves to a taxi.

The cost to Unuwatuna from the airport was approximately £30 which was great value for the three hour ride. You do have to pay extra for the toll road, but this was only £1.50. Our driver was lovely and we felt completely safe with him. Looking through the window on our way through Colombo, I was fascinated by the number of stray dog wandering the busy roads. Some were curled up sleeping as the traffic had to swerve round them. The dogs didn’t even budge.

 

Over our five day stay in Unawatuna, we witnessed the dogs sunbathing on the crowded beach throughout the day, curling up under the sun loungers to keep cool. They were still there in the evenings, amongst the restaurants and bars.

I was expecting to feel terribly sorry for them, but they appeared well looked after and their coats seemed in good condition. The locals were more than happy for them to roam wherever they desired and so the dogs were content. I never saw one dog beg for food or bother the tourists, they were happy to keep themselves to themselves.

Though there was one dog who took a shining to me and Matt, who we nicknamed ‘Sweetie.’

 

Sweetie wore a diamante collar so I’m fairly certain she belonged to someone, though she too roamed the streets with the strays. She first appeared on our doorstep on New Year’s Eve and then every evening she would sit and wait for us to come home.

Whenever she saw us she’d wag her tail excitedly and follow us to our patio where we’d spend the late evening winding down before bed. I’ll admit, I grew very fond of Sweetie and as both Matt and I come from ‘doggie’ families, it felt familiar to be sat with a doggie companion at our feet.

When we left Unuwatuna and came to Hikkaduwa, there are more dogs roaming the street, though a lot less than Unawatuna and they tend to avoid the beach. The Hikkaduwa dogs are more feral and it is clear they are flea bitten and uncared for. It is a sad sight and so I try to avoid looking too closely as they pass me in the evenings, where it is cool enough for them to scavenge for food.

 

We are now living with two dogs that belong to the guesthouse owners, ‘Blackie’ a little terror with a passion of howling at 1am to assert his dominance over the other dogs in the village, and a gorgeous little puppy who just wants to sit on your feet and lick your toes.

There to greet you in the morning and at night, these two dogs are the only ones in Hikkaduwa I’d feel confident interacting with – very different from Unawatuna!

I’m interested to see who else we’ll meet on our travels!

Things to do in Unawatuna | Sri Lanka

Unawatuna is a popular tourist spot in the south of Sri Lanka, and the prices certainly reflect this! Although much cheaper than back home (Isle of Man), Unawatuna is expensive compared to Hikkaduwa (a mere 25km away).

 The main attraction is the beach, which is beautiful but crowded. Bars and restaurants line the golden sands and are open from 9am til midnight, so there is plenty of choice if you’re looking for somewhere to eat or drink with an incredible view of the Indian Ocean. Though we found the food was a lot nicer and cheaper off the beach.

The nightlife is non-existent so if you’re looking for beach raves, this is not the place for you! The bars on the beach are lifeless and dead in the evenings, but check out ‘The Pink Elephant’ for cheap cocktails and a lively, fun atmosphere.

Cooking classes are a popular activity and you’ll find signs promoting this along the main strip. Classes tend to cost around LK 3,000 per person, but we were lucky to find the lovely lady of La Villa guesthouse (where we were staying) who taught us how to make traditional Sri Lankan food for LK 2,000 per person. They don’t advertise this, but go and enquire as they are extremely friendly and would be thrilled to teach people, regardless of whether you are staying at their guesthouse or not.

We had great fun making rice, fish curry, Dahl curry, coconut sambol and poppadums’ the traditional way. We were taught the Sri Lankan customs, such as blessing the rice,  how to look out for when the curry is ‘dancing’ and the techniques of how to eat the whole meal with your hands. (A strange experience that is worth trying at least once, even if you do walk away thankful forks were invented!)

 

There are yoga classes available, again widely advertised, and were tempted to give it a go, but were still on UK time and never up early enough! Classes cost in the region of LK 2,000 per person for an hour.

 

As for things to see, there is a temple at the top of the hill on the far end of the beach. A short climb will see you come face to face with a giant Buddha. We took an evening stroll up there and the view of the beach at night was gorgeous, though the Buddha was fairly modern (possibly erected after the devastation of the tsunami ten years ago.)

Other than that, Unawatuna is a quiet place better suited to families with younger children who will be safe in the sea as its protected by a coral reef. After 3-4 days we were bored and ready to move on. The people are very friendly, but be wary of the tuk tuk drivers who will try to charge ridiculous amounts for the shortest of journeys. Ask for the price up front and never accept the first offer. Barter as much as you can or you’ll quickly spend a small fortune.

For singles, couples, and groups of friends, Hikkaduwa is a much nicer alternative with a better beach, several clubs, lots to see, and generally a lot cheaper.

100 day countdown

My morning began with sitting next to the weirdo on the bus. I'd love to say that was the only encounter with a weird man that I had today, but when I nipped out to get some lunch next door to where I work, I ended up getting chased (yes, seriously) by a, clearly jobless, man in a tracksuit calling out "hey sexy" and proceeding to follow me all the way back to my office. 

I then had the joys of my dentist in my lunch hour, who I'll admit is slightly strange, but on the whole, very lovely. However, I needed two fillings so it wasn't a very pleasant encounter. Two injections later and the whole left hand side of my face was completely numb so I spent the rest of the afternoon sat in work looking like a complete idiot. And to top it all off, my new fringe just won't sit right, and seems to jut out at all sorts of odd angles. 

There's a whole other bunch of stuff that happened today, but that's much too long to go into... but it was, in a nutshell, "one of those days". 

Desperate to snap myself out of the grumpy mood I could feel myself digressing in to, I tried to think of something positive to focus on. It was then that I realised it was exactly 100 days until I began my brand new adventure! Suddenly things didn't seem so bad at all and I could feel a smile playing on my lips the more I marveled over it. 

By the time the boys picked me up, I was practically giddy with excitement and desperate to start planning for the day that we will be leaving the Island and embarking on our travels. 

In just 100 days we will be jetting off to Sri Lanka to begin what I hope will be the best year of our life. Who knows where things will lead? I feel amazed that it's only 100 days to go as we've been counting it down for so long, but finally its starting to feel real. 

When life gets a bit tough, or a bit boring, it's so nice to have something exciting to look forward to. Today has made me appreciate just how much I need to get away from this Island and create a life for myself where I'm able to live out my wildest fantasies. 

Life is too short to live a mediocre life. It's time to start living it to the full! 

Happy again :)

Plus I've just demolished this. Yum. 

An Underwater World | Baldwin Reservoir

When it comes to the weekends, I love to go out exploring parts of the Island that I've not yet visited before. One of the places that I'd been wanting to see for a while was Baldwin Reservoir, so Matt and I turned into a pair of tourists, got out the map, and started to drive toward Injebrcek where the reservoir was located. 

The reason I was so curious to see this reservoir was because it was located the empty site of a old village, and due to the low level of rainfall we'd been experiencing, the remains of the village should be able to be seen. We began the hunt for the old bridge that I'd been informed was now fully exposed and it was bizarre to imagine this had been underwater once the reservoir was originally flooded. 

Although we didn't stop any further remains of the old village, the atmosphere of the reservoir was so serene and peaceful that it was enjoyable just to walk around and take it the surroundings. It's places like this that make me feel lucky to live on such a beautiful Island where I can truly be one with nature. 

Sometimes I feel like I need to reconnect with nature and appreciate life for what it is instead of stressing about all the little things. I will try to be positive from now on. Life is such a beautiful thing. 

Love My Figure, Love My Fashion | New online clothes business

One of the things that I love the most about the Isle of Man is how supportive people are of locals trying to overcome the restrictions of living on a small island when it comes to making it big. I personally love it when a local person becomes successful in a field they enjoy because I understand how difficult it can be in such small community, and this makes me feel encouraged that I too could follow my dreams if I so wish. 

So, when I heard that a local girl was starting up her own online retail business, I was excited for her and wanted to be involved. The brains behind Love My Figure, Love My Fashion, Laura Faulds began her journey after she made the realisation that she was not alone when it came to being unsure of how to best dress your particular body shape. Her dream was to create an online clothes site that helped everyday women to select the perfect dress no matter if they were a rectangle shape, apple or hourglass. Giving women the confidence that they can make the most of their body shape, no matter what size it may be, Love My Figure, Loves My Fashion caters for real women. 

I heard Laura was looking for models and bloggers for her new business venture and I immediately contacted her to register my interest. As soon as I met with her, I knew she had it in her to be successful. She is a strong, confident, down to earth woman who is clearly passionate about her business and has a strong set of core values which I can see she honestly believe in. She is determined and genuinely a lovely person so I hope she does become successful. 

One of the things I know I struggle with is trying to figure out what style and colours I should be wearing to flatter my rectangle figure and it seems that the majority of women are equally confused! Laura has made this easy for us by telling you which of five body shapes you have and then linking you to dresses that would suit your figure = amazing!


For my first shoot with LMF LMF, I was given three gorgeous dresses to wear and each one hid my flaws but showcased my best body parts. I was amazed by how spot on she got it!

The first dress I was given was a sexy sequin shoulder v-from midi dress that nipped me in at the waist and gave me more shape on the top half of my body. You can find this beautiful Ax Paris dress here. 

The second dress I was given was an equally flattering and was in fact my favourite one of the three. The beauty of this particular polka-dot print dress is that it has a classic fit that works well for both work and play. Its pretty pleated neckline and deep side pockets make it an attractive and stylish piece that you can get a lot of wear out of. You can buy this cute Closet dress here. 

The third and final dress I was asked to model was a fabulous Isabella vertical stripe cut out back dress from Dehlia. This nautical style dress is made from structured cotton which gives you a well defined waist and its open back provides an unusual and flirty twist to your pretty day dress. You can treat yourself to this beauty here. 

I had an amazing day modelling for Love My Figure, Love My Fashion and I would encourage any woman who struggles to find the perfect dress to do the online body shape calculator and see for themselves what type of body shape you have.