High in the hills of Ella

We drove 6 hours yesterday from the beaches of Tangalle to the hills of Ella. On our way out of Tangalle, we stopped at the build site where Deb and I will be building houses. It was pretty wonderful to see and I think mom was pretty happy she got to see what we will be doing here. They have 5 houses completed already and they are quite nice. Now that I have seen it, I am anxious to get back there and help.

THANKS again to all my wonderful friends who donated money to this...I will post photos when I can.

Just finished another wonderful meal high in the hills. One thing is certain, the food here is great. Deb, mom and I are both going to come back 50 lbs heavier...with all the spicy food and then the cold beer that is required to wash it all down :)

We went for a gorgeous hike through the tea plantations and up the hills to small Adams peak. The view from the top was just gorgeous. Every direction you looked in was stunning. Rice paddies, water falls, people working in the tea plantations. My camera didn't know which way to point first.

You can tell it is off season right now here in Sri Lanka. Everywhere we go it is so quiet. WE are not complaining because it means everywhere we go we are usually the only ones, so no fighting crowds, but it also means we are getting wonderful service.

Our next stop in Nuwara Eliya where we are going to do the pilgrimage up to Adams Peak. It entails leaving at 2:30 in the morning and climbing over 5200 steps to the tops. It should take us about 4 hours to get to the top, but the views are supposed to be worth it. I am sure the next day all of our legs will be like jello and we won't do a whole lot of anything.

I was hoping to see some elephants yesterday, but they eluded us....

chris