We haven’t seen much of Singapore yet, but I can confirm that the airport kicks ass. You see that instantly upon arriving at immigration, which took 20 whole seconds. Baggage claim ain’t too shabby either. And of course, the Jewel waterfall is pretty damn cool. There’s so much more too! -S🇸🇬
We’ve been hunkered down in Singapore since Monday, after we both started to feel sick the night before our flight to the Maldives. We pulled an audible, deciding that it was better to skip our Maldives visit entirely and head directly to Singapore, where we’d have an entire week to get better. -S🇸🇬
Cheers to 100!!
Cheers to country number 100 for Jen!!!! Sri Lanka was the lucky country and we ended up having the best leopard experience there.
It has definitely been a journey to get here, and it hasn’t always been the easiest ride. But that is what travel is all about and I’m lucky enough to have a husband who loves it all just as much as I do ❤️
To honor the occasion, Scott and I found a bottle of Prosecco—which my dear friend Helen always loved. Helen was the person who started me on this quest when I met her back in 2013. While she isn’t with us today to celebrate, I know she would have been ecstatic for me and would have raised a glass too. Cheers, my dear friend. I will never forget you ☂️🍷♾️ -J 🇱🇰
It’s always interesting seeing what American fast food companies sell overseas. -S 🇱🇰
The highlight of Yala Natl Park—perhaps the top wildlife experience of our whole trip—was seeing a Sri Lankan leopard! We followed it for a long time, tracking it thru four areas of dense vegetation.
But this last portion was the best: we watched it (unsuccessfully) go after a spotted deer! -S🇱🇰
The Gangaramaya Temple in Colombo
One of the first places we saw in Colombo, Sri Lanka, was the Gangaramaya Temple, one of the most important Buddhist temples in Colombo (completed in the late 19th Century).
It had some interesting “guards” out front.
It had many Buddhist figures and other interesting artifacts displayed through out the museum.
But it also had a bunch of “stuff” (the best I can describe is stuff from your weird grandparents’ estate sale). Notice the Atlanta Braves bobble head in the third picture. (Apparently these are “offerings” to the temple)
Last but not least, Scott took a short video of a very interesting room.
Monkeys just never follow the rules. -S 🇱🇰
Today was all about Sri Lankan history and culture. Over the course of a 16-hour private day tour, we visited 3 UNESCO World Heritage sites: the ruins of the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, the Dambulla Cave Temple, and Sigiriya (the Lion Rock Fortress). More photos of each coming this weekend -S 🇱🇰
Speaking of elephants, we saw several along the road as we drove thru Minneriya National Park—our first in Asia. -S 🇱🇰
Don’t be a douchenozzle and pay to ride an elephant. Just don’t. -S 🇱🇰
I’ve noticed some of these “foreigners only” toilet facilities here in Sri Lanka.
They seem to be around touristy areas, where foreigners pay a higher fee. The (controversial) idea is that Western visitors might have higher expectations of hygiene than what is often found in public toilets. -S 🇱🇰
There was a live band at our hotel bar last night, which is always fun to enjoy while overseas. There are usually plenty of American songs being played, but the lyrics sometimes come out as sounds rather than actual words. I find it so endearing. This group did much better than most. -S 🇱🇰
Final Zoom Call of Our Adventure
Singapore will mark the end of our Indian Ocean part of this 100-day Adventure, so we have decided to host the last Zoom call of our adventure there on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025 at 6:00 pm Phoenix time (8:00 pm EST) (it will be 9 am on 2/1 for us!).
So bring your favorite weekend happy hour-ish beverages and jump on and say hi. We are missing everyone and would love to see your faces and hear your voices 😁
Tell us how you’re surviving these days!
Zoom call info
Here’s the link: https://zoom.us/j/93145557981
Our post-zoom itinerary
We will still have 3 weeks in Australia and a week in French Polynesia after that.
I think we’re both excited to have our own vehicle—a campervan—for the last fortnight-ish in Australia. We haven’t driven since November!
After we’re home
We encourage you to connect with us—perhaps over a beverage, perhaps at our favorite brewery, Wren Südhalle—when we return to hear about our adventures, including those in Australia and Tahiti/Bora Bora!
Or schedule a private Zoom with us if you’re not in the Phoenix area. We’d love some one-on-one time!
Sri Lankan art? 🤷♀️ -J 🇱🇰
The view from our hotel window in Colombo, Sri Lanka, is of the Lotus Tower—South Asia’s tallest self-supported structure (1,168 feet). During the day the Lotus flower is purple. But at night, it changes color! -J 🇱🇰
We arrived in Sri Lanka today in the early morning hours following an overnight flight. After a refreshing nap, we headed to an Irish Pub (per our quest to visit one in 32 different countries) for our requisite Guinness and also to grab lunch. This is an Irish Pub in our 18th country! -J 🇱🇰
The rest of our time in the Seychelles
After a day of lounging at the (nice) hotel, we were ready to explore Mahe island. We booked a private day tour, which brought us around to a number of island attractions. Because we had recently visited tea plantations, spice farms, rum distilleries, and local craft & food markets, we cut out a number of “standard” stops.
Nonetheless, we enjoyed the day, which we spent visiting a number of classic boulder-strewn beaches, scenic driving the island, touring Victoria (perhaps the world’s smallest capital city?), hiking to a waterfall, and—most of all—learning about the island, its people, and its history.
One of the unexpectedly fun stops was at a local perfumery that utilizes the famed coco de mer nut. Famed because it’s only found on Seychelles, grows on an endangered tree, is the largest nut in the world, and the only nut that lacks both oil and sugar. Also, it looks like a booty 🍑
We got a chance to hike a short trail to a waterfall, which was a great little break during our day tour. I was surprised how mountainous the island was (see below for some aerial shots on the flight in), as well as how lush and rainforesty it felt.
The trail to the waterfall
Love the dense jungle here
Sauzier Falls
Here are some of those shots as we flew in, that shows some of the mountainous terrain:
Lunch was right on the water, though we happened to arrive at low tide.
And here’s a shot of one of the (dredged) island development, from a high viewpoint
We spent much of the third day back in the pool, waiting for our evening flight. Our resort had a shower for late departees, which we made good use of before heading to the airport.
All in all, it was a successful and enjoyable visit. We generally saw what we wanted to, and feel good about marking off the country. But it’s probably not a place that would draw us back for a second visit, even as beautiful as it can clearly be. There’s just so much else out there to see, and beyond the honeymoon-focused resorts, it feels very similar to a number of tropical islands we’ve visited. -S 🇸🇨
X marks the spot.
We spent much of yesterday relaxing in the pool, and despite several sunscreen applications throughout the day, we still managed to get burned. It’s been an especially rough day for Jen. -S 🇸🇨
We spent yesterday enjoying the pool and view from our hotel in the Seychelles. -J 🇸🇨
The apparent centerpiece of our room here in the Seychelles is the shower. As in, it’s literally in the middle of the room. 🤷♂️ (don’t ask about the weird window installed in the toilet room so you can make immediate direct eye contact with anyone who hears a plop). -S 🇸🇨
