Trip | Blue Lapis Road

ROAD TO ANURADHAPURA, Sri Lanka, 2019.12.06

Day 2 (2 of 5).

We always enjoy scenery outside the car window while traveling on the road. It offers us an aperture to frame momentary street scenes away from tourist attractions. From billboards to posters, gas stations to bus stops, convenient stores to market stalls, private dwellings to communal housing, observing the locals from the car gave us a collage of insights on their daily businesses from a discreet distance. Unlike driving on a North American highway where human activities remain unseen from the road, the enthralling human activities in South Asia may happen anytime next to the curb, even along a busy highway.

The 4 hour car journey from Negombo to Anuradhapura passed through numerous villages and towns, school complexes, wet markets, Buddhist temples, Christian shrines, palm forests, rice paddy fields, etc. Roads were surprisingly clean and well maintained, and traffic was certainly not as hectic and insane as we have seen in other countries like India, Egypt or Peru. Indeed, Sri Lanka is one of the fastest growing economy in South Asia. According to the World Bank, Sri Lanka has the lowest rate of extreme poverty in South Asia. As we have seen during the trip, the gap between the rich and poor in Sri Lanka is certainly not as apparent as many other countries we have visited. While lives of most Sri Lankan remain simple, rapid urbanization, wide-spreading of the Internet and mobile network, and high literacy rate would certainly transform this sleepy island nation in the near future.

Water puddles reminded us that the monsoon rain was getting more unpredictable and lengthy in recent years according to the driver.

Fishmonger like to set up their stalls right by the road, usually under a big tree.

Peacock is the national bird of India. These magnificent birds are also very common in Sri Lanka. Their vivid colours become an undisputed symbol of beauty for the country.

Many rely on the state-run Sri Lanka Transport Board buses to move around the rural areas and go about their daily business.

Convenient stores selling snacks, sweets, fruits and drinks were the most common shops we saw on the road.

Like much of South Asia, the sugar-coated problem of diabetes also poses a rising threat to Sri Lanka. In 2017, the prevalence of diabetes in Sri Lanka was about 10%. This number climbed to 27% in the city of Colombo. Around 10% of pregnant mothers had diabetes and 35% of women were overweight.

Occasionally, we would pass by large neglected estate or plantation compound.

Christian shrines dot around the roads near Negombo.

The Christian shrines gradually make way for their Buddhist counterparts further away from Negombo.

Dialog and Mobitel are two of the most popular mobile service providers in Sri Lanka. Foreign tourists usually choose between these two providers for sim cards.

Bicycles are the most popular means of transportation for local villagers in rural areas.

For town dwellers, motorbikes are definitely their desirable choice.

However, for moving a group of people or traveling with goods, most locals would opt for hiring a tuk tuk (auto-rickshaw).

For local women, fashion and styling are heavily influenced by Bollywood from its powerful neighbhour.

Fashion in Sri Lanka is relatively conservative, especially in the north or near religious sites.

A Buddhist monastery features a smaller version of the famous elephant wall at Ruwanwelisaya Stupa in Anuradhapura.

Approaching Anuradhapura, we passed by a series of water bodies. Since the 3rd century BC, reservoirs were constructed around the ancient capital to sustain the earliest kingdom of Sri Lanka.

The arrival at the artificial reservoirs of Tissa Wewa and Basawkkulama signified our 4-hour-drive had come to an end. We had officially arrived at the heart of Sri Lanka’s most ancient capital, Anuradhapura.

March 8, 2020 | Categories: Anuradhapura & Polonnaruwa, Colombo & Negombo, Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka 2019 | Tags: Anuradhapura, car, drive, journey, Negombo, road, Sri Lanka, Trip | Leave a comment

HOKKAIDO ROAD TRIP, Hokkaido (北海道), Japan, June 15-25, 2019

Tsuyu (梅雨), the rain season, begins to hit Okinawa in May and gradually makes its way north to the rest of Japan until the end of June. During the wet season, rainy and cloudy weather affects the entire country except Hokkaido, Japan’s second largest island north of the main Honshu Island. The seismic active island is 3.6% smaller than Ireland, with a climate significantly cooler than the rest of Japan. Seeking for a pleasant getaway from Hong Kong’s humid and hot summer, we picked Hokkaido as the destination for our 11-day vacation from 15th to 25th of June. Traveling in the remote national parks and rural countryside of Hokkaido, hiring a car was a necessity. The Hokkaido journey was our first road trip in Japan.

Known as Japan’s last true wilderness, Shiretoko National Park (知床国立公園) is the natural haven where Brown Bears and Blakiston Fish Owls ruled the primeval forests and Orcas, Minke and Sperm Whales roamed the waters of Nemuro Strait. With fantastic natural scenery, wildlife and seafood to offer, this easternmost part of Hokkaido topped our priority list in the travel itinerary. Next in the journey took us to the spectacular volcanoes of Akan Mashu National Park (阿寒摩周国立公園), where we came close to Japan’s clearest water at caldera Lake Mashu (摩周湖) and the fantastic onsen and fly fishing hot spot of Lake Akan (阿寒湖). While the lavender fields of Furano (富良野) and Biei (美瑛) had yet reached the peak bloom moment, the ultra fertile soil below the Tokachi Volcanic Group (十勝火山群) treated us with some of the best bread, corn, potatoes, asparagus, melons and milk that we ever had in our lives. Despite far away from Tokyo and Osaka, the architectural magic of Tadao Ando (安藤忠雄) in Hokkaido satisfied our thirst of contemporary design and aesthetics. Back in Obihiro (帯広), Otaru (小樽) and Sapporo (札幌), historic traces of early pioneers and contemporary dessert shops and local eateries brought us back to delightful charm of urban Japan. What’s more? Day after day of mouthwatering seafood, fresh produces, good coffee, and lovely patisseries reminded us how wonderful our world could be, when the water is clean, soil is rich, forests are healthy and people are friendly. Thank you Hokkaido. You have truly touched our hearts.

Located north of Honshu Island, Hokkaido is the second largest island in Japan.

Flying in from Tokyo Haneda, our Hokkaido journey began from Memanbetsu (女満別空港) near the Shiretoko Peninsula. After more than 1,181km of driving, we arrived at Otaru and Sapporo at the western side of the island.

This black hatchback hybrid Toyota Prius c (Toyota Aqua in Japan) provided us the means of transport from east to west across Hokkaido.

After 2 days of rain and wind, we finally had a glimpse of the active volcano of Mount Rausu (羅臼岳), the tallest peak in Shiretoko Peninsula.

The greatest experience we took away from Shiretoko was the close encounter with a pod of orcas in the Nemuro Strait.

The Mashu Lake (摩周湖) offered us a peaceful sunrise at 3:30am.

Under the shadow of Mount Oakan (雄阿寒岳), dozens of fly fishermen stepped into the crystal water of Lake Akan (阿寒湖) to test their luck.

Farms and greenhouses were washed with heavy rain as we entered into Furano (富良野).

Still at least half a month to go before the peak season of lavender blossom, visitors were enjoying themselves at a relatively less crowded Farm Tomita in Nakafurano.

Compared with rainbow flower fields, we loved the wheat fields at Biei the most.

Tadao Ando’s Chapel on the Water has been famous in the designer’s world since the 1980s.

The Hill of Buddha is the latest addition in Hokkaido by Tadao Ando.

At Yoichi Distillery (余市蒸溜所), whiskey has been produced since 1934.

Saturdays Chocolate in Sapporo is one of the many excellent local eateries and cafes that we visited in the journey.

Last but not least, Hokkaido offered us the best seafood and dessert that we ever had as far as we could remember. Let’s begin to tell the story of our journey!