It was a Saturday morning as I remembered, a friend of mine arrived from overseas on Friday and wanted to travel a bit before he caught up with work. Basically, I had a day to plan the whole thing out, since my friend never been to Sigiriya we decided to visit there. So the trip included me and two of my friends (Rick & Morty, names are fake btw: D). 

The plan was to leave Colombo around 4.00 AM, so we will be able to be at Sigiriya at least around 8.00 AM or sooner. In order to survive with these people, I bought a Dunhill pack and some green.  So I was perfectly ready, sadly I didn't know Morty had done the same. Combined, we had 2 Dunhill packs and a hell of a lot more green. I should have mentioned earlier Rick (Overseas dude) is a weirdo who doesn't drink or smoke: D.

Since we are Sri Lankans you should know “WE NEVER WORK ON TIME “it was 5.00 AM when we woke up, the plan to visit Sigiriya at 8.00 AM was long gone by then. Anyway, we hit the road with an empty stomach with the aim of being in Sigiriya at least before 10.00 AM. 

Even though it was 5.30 AM it was still dark outside. I started driving with a cigarette in my mouth while Morty was in the passenger seat smoking and Rick yelling in the back asking us to quit smoking. I know, I know, Rick is a good friend.  Since it was still early the roads were less crowded, hopes of being in Sigiriya at 8.00 AM came right back to us.

 

Colombo to Sigiriya

According to Google, Sigiriya is 173KM away from Colombo, at least 4hrs and 30 minutes (with smoking breaks and other breaks) will be wasted on the road. So once again our hopes of being in Sigiriya at 8.00 AM are gone, and this time we were almost certain.

 

Breakfast 

 

After 2 hours of driving, we were at Kurunegala town, to be honest, we were exhausted. Because Kurunegala town is a busy town and it was crowded just like Colombo. We wanted to make a stop to have some breakfast and to rest for a little bit. Even though the town is filled with restaurants, we all wanted to eat from a place called "Kos kale". "Kos kale" is filled with street vendors who sell local foods such as Rottie, milk rice, pittu, etc. The place is surrounded by a forest and the main road to Kurunegala goes inside this forest. I highly suggest you make a stop in this wonderful place and enjoy a little bit of everything.

 

"A picture is worth a thousand words"

 

 

After a few cigarettes and a lot of rottie eating we hit the road again, According to google now we had 1 1/2 hrs of a drive to Sigiriya.

The time was around 9.15 AM as I remember, it was sunny AF and I was sweating like crazy. We parked our vehicle in a car park near Sigiriya and paid something around Rs.100.

 

Climb to the top

For me and Morty, the climb was a bit more difficult than Rick, since we smoked some green which was strong af!!, before climbing to the top. I regret the moment I said let's smoke some... Anyway, according to my friend Rick, myself and Morty were laughing all the way to the top and drinking a lot of water. I suggest you not to make the same mistake as Morty and I did. 

I remember me and Morty spend around 15 minutes staring at a wall which was known as the "Mirror Wall”. The wall was well polished that you can see yourself. According to history books, it was built so when the King can see himself while he walks alongside it.

Sigiriya is filled with things to see but unfortunately, I don't remember much. I only remember the view. It was magnificent as its 600ft above the surrounding plain, you will be able to see 360-degree views of the entire location once you are on the top. 

I'm not sure whether you are allowed to bring a drone, but if you are allowed that would be golden.

Accommodation

Basically, we spent around 2 to 3 hrs in the Sigiriya Rock. And when we got down it was around 12.00PM. To be brutally honest the sun was frying us like French fries. So we rushed into the vehicle and went to the hotel. The Hotel is called Sigiri Village by Colombo fort hotels. As we got into the hotel I thought we entered another forest. It was covered with trees and you can hear birds singing. The people were very friendly and treated us really well. As soon as I went to the reception I saw the bar close to it. Imagine yourself-tired and dried out, then you see an ice cold beer. What will you do? We got some beers even before we went to the villa and had a wonderful session right there while enjoying the view of Sigiriya rock.

The villa is located far away from the reception, we had to walk around 200 or 300 meters in order to get to the villa, but it was totally worth it. The whole place had an amazing vibe coming out from it.

 

Food 

Since the hotel focuses on tourists, you won't be able to see many Sri Lankan food selections in the buffet except for breakfast. Other than that everything looks fresh and tasty, I almost forgot about the omelet station. Make sure you get yourself a cheese omelet <3. Maybe it was the green acting up, the omelet was tasty af.

At around 8.00 PM we went to the pool. Literally, no one was there at that time so it's okay to have some beers nearby the pool. Everything was perfect, it was quiet and beautiful. While smoking a cigarette and having a beer I was able to have an amazing time there. 

Due to time constraints, we had to leave the villa early in the coming day so we all went to sleep after having dinner. If you are a person who plans to stay 1 or 2 days in Dambulla, make sure you visit Pidurangala Rock as well, it's close to Sigiriya Rock.

We planned on climbing the rock on the day we arrived after climbing the Sigiriya Rock but the hotel staff advised us not to climb without a local guide. And ask us to climb it early in the morning so we will be able to see the sunrise.

Caution: according to many locals in Dambulla, the climb to Pidurangala Rock is a bit dangerous, so make sure you are well prepared.