So it’s Saturday 22nd June and I am now in the middle of my third day in Sri Lanka. As I have not been here long I will quickly talk about my first impressions of Sri Lanka.

The first thing that came to my attention was the humidity! It hit me straight away when I walked out of the airport in Colombo. Even though I was expecting it, it still came as a shock to my system. I am hoping however that it is something I will get used to and as long as I have a fan to cool me down at night I should be fine.

Even on the minibus ride to where we were staying in Colombo, I got a taste of just how different Sri Lanka was going to be compared to back home in England. Coming from a country which in recent years has become obsessed with health & safety, I was amazed at the difference in attitude in Sri Lanka – health & safety is almost none exist! I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw a couple riding on a scooter with the mother just casually holding her child in her arm! It just showed me how laid back people here are. It also was evident on my train journey to Matara. People just casually walking across the train tracks.

This brings me onto what has been the highlight of my trip so far – the train journey! When I got on the train there were no seats available so I had to sit in between the carriages with my luggage. As it turned out I much preferred this and even when seats became available I was happy where I was. This was because I was sat right by the train door, or lack of a train door should I say as all there was stopping me from falling out the train was my own common sense. It was a fantastic feeling being able to hang out the train being completely windswept. The view was also amazing as I was able to see the Indian Ocean, people’s houses, many cows, trees and people getting on with their everyday lives. It was a amazing experience and one that I won’t forget. I just wish train journeys back in the UK were just as interesting!

Finally the food has been so good so far. It is a good job I like rice otherwise I wouldn’t be able to survive here! Usually I am not a fan of vegetarian meals as l do love my meat, but the spices and sauces that the food I have eaten has been in has been delicious. Cheap too – a takeaway being 58p and a bottle of coke being 25p is definitely something I could get used to!