Nuwara Eliyas secret guesthouse

I planned to visit Horton Plains, but prices are a little high, and Nuwara Eliya had lots to offer.
I started the day exploring a huge forest close to the guesthouse. First challenge was to find a path into the forest.
After some search I found a track and the end of the road near Green Forest Hotel.

I followed a waterpipe into the forest. Lots of butterflies, frogs and birds. And no entrance fee! :)  Sri Lanka has entrance fees for most places.
I ended up following a creek, but it got a little difficult and muddy, so I turned around and walked back to the road.
Found a tuk tuk, and headed in to Nuwara Eliya for some lunch.
I was back at the guesthouse Sri Helyes inn in the afternoon. (http://goo.gl/maps/cZKcY)
I had a good chat with the woman running the place. She is really nice, and cook some great meals.
I promised to tell my friends about her guesthouse, but explained a tripadvisor and booking.com account is very important to have. Most tourists find their accommodation through these websites.
Hopefully some tourists will Google, and find this blog entry. :)
I can definitely recommend the place. The city is only 150 rupees away, probably 100, but the 15 minute walk is also nice.

In the evening I visited the childrens village again, and had a chat with a worker from the management. He told me a lot about the place, and I explained about the social worker education in Denmark, and how some students do work experience in other countries. He was very interested, so I'll try to make a contact.

Back home at the guesthouse I was served another great meal. So much food!

Tomorrow, I'm moving on. Ella is next, I think.

Photos from the hike, the guesthouse and childrens village.

Nuwara Eliya

Lucky we climbed Adam's Peak Thursday. The tourists from Green House who climbed today, Saturday, didn't reach the top cause of too many pilgrims on the path. Simply too crowded.

I took the bus back to Hatton. Cause of all the pilgrims there was lots of busses.

When existing the bus in Hatton, I made my mind. Nuwara Eliya, the highest region in Sri Lanka, was next.
This meant a trainride to Nanuoya. The trainrides in this region is absolutely amazing. Photo opportunities all the time, and with open doors it's easy to fill your memory card.

In Nanuoya I was really lucky. The tuk tuk drivers asked for 1500 rupees to go to Nuwara Eliya. I ran into a van owner who had just delivered tourists to the station, and had an empty car to fill. He asked for 200 rupees. The distance is only 9km, but the road is terrible.
I asked if he knew a good budget guesthouse. He took me straight to his sisters place. A well hidden guesthouse.
Sri Helyes inn. (http://goo.gl/maps/cZKcY)
They have no homepage or tripadvisor references, so again I'm the only one in a guesthouse.
It's a really nice place. It feels like a home, with family/friends often passing by.
The dinner was great!

This place is nearly 2000meters above sea level, so a very different climate from the rest of Sri Lanka. Pleasant during the day, and chilly at night time.

In the afternoon I went for a walk.
Some local kids followed me, and asked me tons of questions.
They asked me if I wanted to visit "children's village". I agreed, not knowing what to expect.
It turned out to be an SOS children's village (SOS børneby). I asked the kids to find the manager or a worker. They found some adults, but none of them really answered my question. After a while a busy man appeared. He was substitute manager, but very busy. He was a little concerned about me being inside the facilities, but after a while he heard my interest, and we have organized a official visit tomorrow.
They have no students, so I was right away thinking a great place for social worker students from Denmark.
There's 122 kids in the village.
One thing that surprised me a lot was the fact that they have a house for Tamil children, and houses for Sinhalese children. They don't mix them. I asked why, but didn't get any answers.

I asked if I could teach the kids a Danish dance/song.
It's very simple and funny. Learned on a red cross summercamp in Denmark.
After some peptalk, the kids were ready, and participatet, and laughed. Great!
On my way back to the guesthouse I could hear them sing 'my' song.

Looking very much forward to tomorrows visit.

Photos:
- train/bus view
- Sri Helyes inn guesthouse
- Gold pillows! :)

The SOS children's village: http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/sponsor-a-child/asia/sri-lanka/nuwara-eliya