Ella Rock

With just one day to discover Ella, it was disappointing last night to find the weather forecast saying it was going to rain all day. Apparently, yesterday's bits of rain were the first all year in Sri Lanka. The locals are saying that the climate here is changing, like everywhere else. 

We went out for a hike this morning to Little Adams Peak, along with hundreds of others, enjoying some unexpected sunshine before the cloud rolled in to obscure the views. Early afternoon, while I went for a run up to Ella Rock, E went for a massage, managing to completely avoid the thunderstorm that broke while I was on the main climb. I reached the top in thick cloud, the rain easing off, slightly amused to find that I had to pay 1000 rupees to pass through a gate to do the last 10 metres to the rock and see the view. I asked for a discount as the view was actually missing but didn't get very far with that - not that I tried very hard! The moment I got to the edge of the outcrop, the rain stopped and the cloud momentarily cleared. This was the view. I got my money's worth.

Later on, to complete all the most popular little hiking trails here, we went to have a look at the famous nine arches railway bridge. The rain held off once again, as did the train that was supposed to come by. It didn't matter. I prefer to be on trains rather than watching them pass!