Welcome to the backpacking diaries, where I’ll be updating you weekly on where I’ve been, what I’ve been getting up to, and most importantly, how I’m really feeling about this insane decision I’ve made.
As you probably know, I’m currently backpacking through Asia after quitting my job and leaving London for good.
I want to remember every moment of this experience, and document as much of it as I can, just like I’ve documented everything else in my life post-18 on this website.
You can keep up to date with my travels on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube but for now, enjoy week two of the travel diaries!
If you missed week one, you can catch up here.
Day 8: Monday 25th March 2024
Location: Colombo & Negombo, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
We woke up in Colombo early this morning so we could head to another brunch spot before having to check out of the hotel. We found a cafe called Seed which was giving Bali vibes (just without the WiFi and good coffee) and the food was incredible, almost too pretty to eat.
Then it was a tuktuk back to the hotel to grab our things before getting a taxi to Negombo, about a thirty minute drive north of Colombo and up to the beach area.
We arrived to our villa a little early and checked in to what will be our home for the next four nights. With a huge bedroom (and amazing air-conditioning), a living and kitchen area (probably won’t be used), a huge dining table to work from, a large bathroom and most importantly, great WiFi!!!
We’re here to catch up on content, relax, edit vlogs, write blog posts and finally just chill out since we’ve started our backpacking trip and before we fully get into travelling around Sri Lanka.
We have a pool right outside our front door, so these next few days are going to be blissful.
Day 9: Tuesday 26th March 2024
Location: Negombo, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
Woke up feeling fresh this morning and ready to try a new brunch spot. We took a tuktuk (£0.52) to Cafe Zen which was a very zen place indeed with a few sleeping cats on seats and perches that I found very relaxing.
It’s my last day of being 26 today but it doesn’t really feel like it. I also don’t feel like I was 26 either. Ever since the pandemic, the years have kinda muddled together and I still feel like that 22-year-old in New York right before the world changed. Am I stuck in time? Probably, so I’ll keep saying I’m 22.
Today was a very normal-ish day – well, as normal as it can be when I’m in Sri Lanka. But we got back from brunch, jumped on our laptops for a few hours, then jumped into the pool before heading down to Negombo Beach to catch the sunset.
This was our first Sri Lankan sunset and it didn’t disappoint. I don’t think I’ve ever actually seen the sun disappear before, so that was a first. It was quite cool seeing it go down into the water so quickly.
Another Sri Lankan dinner by the beach and then back to the villa for an early night and to catch up on Married At First Sight Australia.
Day 10: Wednesday 27th March 2024
Location: Negombo, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
Today is my birthday! I’m 27 today. I’ve written a few blog posts already about turning 27 on the 27th and how I have an inkling that this year’s going to be a special/important one.
I woke up this morning around 8am and sat outside the front of the villa with my kindle, having my perfect morning watching the sun come up and reading. Himself gave me some birthday cards that he’d been hiding in his backpack for the past week.
We walked to brunch and I had a great mocha and smoothie bowl from Boho Cafe, on the main street by our villa. Something tells me we’ll be back here again.
Then we came back to the villa and worked for the afternoon, editing content, working on YouTube vlogs and having what I class as my ‘perfect day’ before jumping in the pool in the afternoon.
We walked to the beach for sunset and then for dinner, we went to a new place called Jhony’s for some kotthu and our meal with drinks cost a total of £X. The cheapest birthday dinner I think I’ve ever, and probably will ever have – but so tasty!
Celebrating my birthday in Sri Lanka was a memorable one, and spending it the way I’d love to spend all of my days was the icing on top. Who knows where I’ll be spending my 28th, but turning 27 in Sri Lanka was quite something.
Day 11: Thursday 28th March 2024
Location: Negombo, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
It’s another day in paradise, and I’m another year older. But enough about me being 27. We woke up early this morning to head down into Negombo itself and to see the famous fish market. It stank. Naturally.
With the heat, obviously the fish can’t be kept cold and fresh so they’re all laid out to dry/bake in the heat for a few days before being sold. It was cool to see, but good God the smell.
We walked along the Dutch Canal afterwards which reminded us of Little Venice in London, only twenty degrees hotter.
We called it a day and headed back to Boho Cafe for breakfast (told you we’d be back) and I was feeling the pancakes today after seeing someone else have them yesterday. A great choice, and another great mocha.
Then it was another routine day in Negombo. We came back to the villa to do some laundry and hop on the laptops for a few hours, took a dip in the pool and then headed out to dinner.
Wishing we didn’t have to leave. Did I mention the villa only costs £20 per night?!
Day 12: Friday 29th March 2024
Location: Negombo & Sigiriya, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
Today’s the day we finally left the paradise that is Negombo (sad face emoji). We went to Boho Cafe for breakfast again and I tried their eggs avocado this time. When you find a good mocha, there’s no point trying to find another one anywhere else.
Today was the day we finally started our real backpacker experience of buses in Sri Lanka. And what an experience they are.
We got a tuktuk from our villa to the bus terminal, had about ten men asking us where we were going and telling us to get on a minivan to our first stop. Definitely got overcharged for our bus fare (they made us pay for an extra ticket for our luggage lol) and then got on a public bus towards our next destination of Sigiriya.
One thing to know about the buses in Sri Lanka is that the drivers are wild. They overtake, swerve, break hard and drive faster than I would in a formula one race. You wouldn’t have any luck trying to sleep either as they blast their horn every five seconds to let someone know they’re overtaking.
We finally arrived in Sigiriya which is one of the most famous places in Sri Lanka, known for Lion Rock, a large rock that you can hike. We checked into our hotel/hostel which was a shock after staying at our lovely villa for the last five days.
We walked to the local restaurants (of which there were three) and on the way spotted our first monkeys and elephant. We definitely weren’t at the beach anymore.
Reading up on Sigiriya, we knew that it was better not to climb Lion Rock, but instead climb Pidurangala as it only costs $3 (instead of the $30 it costs to climb Lion Rock) and when you get to the top of Pidurangala, you have a great view of Lion Rock.
Climbing Lion Rock is kind of like going to the viewing deck of the Empire State Building. You don’t get a great photo of the New York skyline since you’re on top of the most iconic building of the New York skyline.
We booked a tuktuk to collect us at 5am tomorrow morning for a sunrise hike. The only time I like to see sunrise is if I’m still out partying from the night before, or if I happen to be on a plane during sunrise time.
Day 13: Saturday 30th March 2024
Location: Sigiriya, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
I struggled to sleep last night since we had geckos in the room, which didn’t help when our alarm went off at 4.30am. Half asleep, we clambered into our tuktuk and made our way to Pidurangala Rock in the dead of night.
We knew we wouldn’t be the only ones here for a sunrise hike, and it was busy enough on our way up. It was tough. I’m not a hiker in the slightest, but I wouldn’t say I’m massively unfit as we’ve been getting into running for the past six months or so, but good God.
The climb was steep, it was hot, I was sweating out of every pore I had and had to take a few breaks on the way up so my heart could slow down. Once at the top, there was a queue of people waiting to climb the last part which was challenging and wouldn’t be for the everyday person (i.e. me) but I managed to do it.
Seeing the sunrise was quite a cool experience, I won’t lie. Was it worth waking up at 4.30am to see it? Probably not, but I did feel very accomplished sitting on top of the rock with the other mad people who like to see sunrises.
We headed straight for a coffee afterwards but it was only 6.45am so we had the full day to go and weren’t used to being up at this time. We did a jigsaw puzzle in the coffee shop like the backpackers we are to pass some time before we could find somewhere for breakfast.
We grabbed our laptops back at the hostel to take to the coffee shop and set up camp in there all day as it was the only place in Sigiriya with a working WiFi signal. We saw more elephants and monkeys during the day, and watched the world of Sigiriya go by from the coffee shop window.
That night we must have had chipmunks or monkeys on the roof of our room, but it sounded like they were in the room with us and going through our bags. We didn’t get a good night’s sleep at all and honestly, I was so glad to move on to our next accommodation and leave Sigiriya behind.
Day 14: Sunday 31st March 2024
Location: Sigiriya & Pinnawala, Sri Lanka
Dear travel diary,
It was another travel day. Up early and had breakfast at the hostel, quite glad to be leaving it, I won’t lie. More buses to get to Pinnawala, where we’re staying tonight and then moving on again tomorrow.
Our hotel (not sure if we can call it that) or room, was hard to find and we even came across a snake just outside of where we were staying so that was rather terrifying and also exciting – my first time seeing a wild snake.
We were staying in a container of sorts, with a balcony looking out into the jungle. But these were part of the main hotel next door, and we were able to be transported between the two at any time and use all of the hotel facilities, but paying a cheaper price to stay next door in one of the containers.
Our room wasn’t ready when we arrived, so the hotel let us use the pool and chill out there for the afternoon, which we made the most of as the hotel looks down onto a water stream where elephants from the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage come to cool off and be washed/fed by the tourists.
We didn’t really know what to make of it and if the elephants are treated well, or put on display for the tourists that come to stay in the hotels along the water. It was incredible to see so many elephants up close, going about their day in the water and roaming freely, but there were some elephants with chains on their ankles and being prodded at by the workers.
We relaxed in the hotel for the day, getting in and out of the water and headed for dinner nearby to avoid the hotel’s expensive prices (backpacker budget). The snake thing had kind of freaked me out a little so I was glad we were only staying for the one night.
More Sri Lankan adventures to come in week three!
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