At the summit on this mountain peak there is a rock with a huge "footprint" in it. The legend goes that it belongs to Adam when he was kick out of heaven. Other believe it belongs to Buddha or Shiva, but in any case it's major sacred site that many, old as young, visit at least once in their life. It's a 7 km (normally about 3-4 hours) ascent on stairs with many fellow pilgrims. Many choose to do it at night, so they can experience the famous sunrise from the summit. Though the sunrise is nice (mostly because it so damn cold up there), the shadow the mountain casts in the early morning light is even more spectacular and so is the view. It's a magnificent experience especially on poya (holy) days, where the number of pilgrims can exceed 20.000 and extend the journey many hours.

Once a year the war god Kataragama, son of Shiva, is celebrated in the streets of Colombo. Hindu devotees honour him and prey for his healing and blessing through a rough day of sacrifices. Some worshippers are pierced through their mouth and tongue and hang by huge hooks pierced through the skin of their back, while other also tongue pierced roll all the way to the temple. Everyone can participate as the audience are getting blessed by the self-sacrificed disciples. A hand on the head and some holy dust in the hair and Kataragama's strong power might be transferred. It's a holy madness that only Hindus can make sense of and a not-to-be-missed experience.

This cool little hill town on the southern edge of Sri Lanka's hill country have some of the most magnificent views. On a cloud-and-mist-free day the coastal plain will open up a 1000 meters below with the Indian Ocean in the distance. Beside cloud forest, waterfalls, and small peaks with splendid panoramas, the hills are covered in neatly picked tea plantations looking like a thick green carpet. Here you have a great opportunity to get close to the "oh so"-famous Ceylon tea and the pickers, who usually are very friendly.

Not only does Yala National Park has the world highest concentrations of leopards, but the landscape is extreme diverse ranging from dense jungle over open scrubland to sandy beaches sloping into the Indian Ocean. The park is packed with all kind of wildlife like Asian elephants, crocodile, Grey langurs, Sloth bears (like Baloo from the Jungle Book) and more than 150 kind of birds, including White-bellied Sea Eagles and Painted- and Black-necked storks. This is what makes the park so special; there are literally animals everywhere and you get fairly close to them in the small jeeps.

The south and south-western coast of Sri Lanka is pretty much one long palmy beach. These white stretches of sand are nesting grounds for a range of sea turtles, mostly Green turtle, Olive Ridley, and Hawksbill, but also Loggerhead and the rare Leatherback. During peak nesting season (December to March) you have pretty good chance to bump into the turtles that are patrolling the shore. Though they are super cute, please give these amazing creatures some space and discourage any trade with their shells (or any other part) - yes, locals still sell them and moron tourists still buy them.

Besides being a huge rock on a flat plateau, it's also the place for the ruins of the spectacular Lion Fortress build on the summit by King Kasyapa in the end of fifth century. After the fall of the kingdom the rock fortress turned into a Buddhist monastery and later totally forgotten until rediscovered in the mid nineteenth century. Halfway up, there are some 1500 years old rare rock paintings showing a couple of fairly sexy ladies. Maybe it was more a penthouse than a fortress for king Kasyapa.

You don't have to look hard to find a beach for yourself in Sri Lanka. Most of the shore is one long solitary stretch of sand with the occasional fisherman. On the other hand it can be quite difficult to find a laidback beach with funky bars, juicy tuna steaks and bottomless cold shakes. Unawatuna is Sri Lanka's answer to this. A little protected bay that has become a name on the beach scene and where the hotel owners compete at building closest to the water.

Sri Lanka has pretty much everything; beaches, temples, colourful culture, friendly people, misty tea plantations, colonial towns, civil war, wild life, and jungle. Sinharaja belongs to the last category and is a hilly virgin rainforest hosting an impressive range of endemic species, including most of Sri Lanka's bird species, butterflies, insects, and reptiles. Though a paradise for tree huggers and birdwatchers, the bigger wildlife is close to impossible to encounter, for the jungle is simply too dense. There are mountains ridges that rise above the tree tops and give magnificent views over the whole jungle. Be prepared for muddy trails and leeches.