Why your next big adventure (with or without kids) should be to Sri Lanka
Plus, an amazing, exclusive 20% discount on 10-day Teardrop Hotels’ Sri Lankan family friendly adventure
Note: This post contains a lot of pictures which means it may appear as clipped or truncated in an email. To see the entire thing just press VIEW ENTIRE MESSAGE at the end of the email and you’ll see it in one. Or head to the online version.
Hello everyone, and welcome back to this very special edition of A Lot On Her Plate, in which I’m going to be sharing more from our amazing trip to Sri Lanka earlier in the summer - and when I say more, I mean MORE - in the sense that this is not just a usual write up. When I first set up this space on the internet, I was intent on keeping it free from ads, and that’s something I am, thankfully, able to maintain, thanks to my wonderfully supportive paid community, but one thing I was very open to exploring was how I might connect trusted brands, independent businesses and even small-scale makers that I really rate, who are doing really good things, with you my readers, because - honestly - I feel like if I love them, then you just might do too. And I think, I hope, that this sort of curation is useful, and that you know I would never recommend anything I didn’t believe to be properly good and worth you parting with your hard earned.
Where possible, I want to do this in an interactive way that can directly benefit (as well as inspire) those of you who kindly support the writing of this newsletter with a monthly or yearly subscription, in the sense of arranging exclusive giveaways, collaborations and discounts, and so far we’ve done some fabulous collabs with everyone from independent artists like NED, to Bold Bean Co, Field and Flower, Sous Chef, Mayfair London and Dukeshill, and I’m committed to continuing to share the love whenever I can make it happen (and trust me, there is some more really good stuff in the pipeline).
Today, I’m hugely proud and rather over-excited to be sharing with you here an incredibly generous discount from a travel operator that I’m truly passionate about: Teardrop Hotels, the stunning, food-focused boutique hotel group that I had the privilege of being hosted by with my family in Sri Lanka back in low season in June, whose commitment to sustainability and community goes hand-in-hand with its exceptional customer experience, uniquely situated, design-led properties and outstanding food offering.
As well as plenty of photos from our travels that give you a sense of why Sri Lanka is such a must-visit, I’m sharing the exact details of our wonderfully varied, but also somehow profoundly relaxing itinerary, along with an amazing discount on a package that allows you to almost entirely recreate our family-friendly adventure down to every last detail. Oh, and for what it’s worth, I’m also giving my tips on flying long haul with a little one for the first time, because I was so stressed about this.
It’s been a few months since we returned from Sri Lanka, and I’ve been waiting to share this newsletter while we sorted out the whopping 20% and 10% discount (please note these discounted rates vary and are bound by specific travel dates, so if you’re thinking of coming back to this email, it’s worth a look now) - exclusively available to the ALOHP paid community, below. I’m pleased to report that it’s all in place now, and on top of a hefty discount, Teardrop is also very generously offering a host of special complimentary experiences that we also enjoyed as part of the offer.
So if you’re planning and saving for a special trip - perhaps you had planned a big trip that you had to cancel due to covid, or maybe you’ve got a special birthday, honeymoon or anniversary coming up that you want to mark; possibly you’ve always fancied Sri Lanka but didn’t know where to start - I’d love to make the case for booking a trip to an island that is, by a country mile, one of the most beautiful, diverse and fascinating places I’ve ever visited, and somewhere that is really in need of tourism right now in the wake of its economic downturn. If you know anyone who’s thinking about planning a trip to Sri Lanka, please do share the love, and this email, in case it’s helpful in any way.
So, why Sri Lanka?
Do you want to wake up with your family to the sound of naughty monkeys clattering across your roof, eat the best curry you’ve ever tasted for breakfast and drink your afternoon tea to a symphony of rambunctious birds? Or sip iced, local gin and tonics with curry leaf crisps as bats the size of geese fly over head and fireflies twinkle in the twilight? Do you want your kids to marvel at wild peacocks strolling across the lawn, or giant squirrels (the size of large cats) scrambling up trees to eat the ripe avocados hanging from the branches? I know I do.
Aside from its breathtaking beauty, abundant nature, diverse landscape and outstanding cuisine, we experienced incredible warmth and generosity from everyone we met, and loved how unstuffy, family-friendly and accommodating to children it felt. It just seems like there’s something for everyone in Sri Lanka. If you’re a wildlife nut who’s excited by the prospect of stumbling upon an elephant and water buffalo taking a dirt bath together at the side of the road - this genuinely happened to us - then the island is spoiled in terms of biodiversity, wildlife and lush, unique flora.
If you’re interested in exploring its complex, layered colonial history - and you should be: I found our guided walking tour of Galle Fort with local archaeologist/scholar of colonial architecture Tharanga Liyanarachchi gave so much context and helpful, if confronting historical background to Europe’s colonial exploits in the country: there is just so much to learn. Or maybe you’re inspired by architecture and design, or a fan of the ‘eco hotel’, and want to experience first hand a masterpiece designed by Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka’s most famous architect? It’s all here for you.
*Btw the aforementioned walking tour is a part of the itinerary, below, but wild elephants can’t be guaranteed!
If like me, you travel to eat…
Of course, if you’re reading this newsletter, then food will play a huge part in where you choose to travel, and I think it’s as simple as saying that if you like delicious things, you’ll definitely enjoy a trip here. But specifically, if you’re excited by inventive, often vegetable-forward, skilfully spiced, beautifully balanced curries made with fresh, seasonal produce (which I’ve touched on before), it really doesn’t get much better than Sri Lanka.
While the cuisine obviously varies greatly regionally, and our itinerary this time was based in the south and South Eastern Highlands, we enjoyed an epic spectrum of captivating cuisine: think daily breakfasts of lacy-edged egg hoppers (irresistible fermented rice flour pancakes cooked in the shape of a bowl with an egg in the bottom) with assorted curries: from ambal thiyal - a Southern speciality of puckeringly-sour curry made from tamarind and tuna; to creamy dal and vegetable-heavy curries featuring everything from devilled potatoes slick with fried curry leaves, to sweet young jackfruit (it was the season) braised in coconut cream, or juicy, milky cashew nuts with plump garden peas.
There was black pork curry, deeply fragrant with darkly roasted curry powder, and brothy, fiery, chilli-laden king crab curry, as well as an addictive and ever-changing parade of sambols made with freshly crushed coconut and chillies, or slow-cooked sweet onions, used to customise every mouthful with heat, depth, texture and intrigue. I love how the connection between the landscape and the food on your plate is always evident, thanks to the nutty red rice that grows in the paddy fields you drive past, piled high on your plate and the lashings of coconut oil, milk and cream from swaying palms forming the backbone to almost everything you eat.
If you’d like to watch the trip unfold in photo and video form, then I’d also like to direct you to the Highlights on my Instagram profile where you can watch the stories as I shared them. Start with the ‘Sri Lanka 23’ highlight and then hit ‘SL Pt. 2’ and ‘Pt 3’ - annoyingly these appear first on my profile so please pay attention to the correct order here - to see more on why this was an unforgettable trip.
Before we get into the nitty gritty of our itinerary and the activities on offer along with the discount, allow me first to transport you to the golden sands of Balapitiya on the South West coast of Sri Lanka, some 80km south of Colombo, to 30° heat and searingly high humidity. I’m wearing a strappy linen sun dress, crocs and an apron, and my hair is scraped back, my notepad at the ready, and the sweat is rolling down my face before I’ve even lit the gas burner.
I’ve never cooked in a set up quite like this before. In front of me is a perfectly rippling, turquoise-coloured swimming pool, over which bendy coconut palms cast their feathery shadows, their slender trunks swaying in the wind: towering feats of nature’s engineering. Beyond that, the cobalt sea crashes and froths onto the sand, itself strewn with fallen coconuts and tiny pink shells my daughter is obsessed with collecting. At my elbow, a table is spread with an elephant print cloth, proffering clay pots of chopped ingredients and a rainbow of spices. Chef Indika De Silva guides me as I ladle melted coconut oil - the freshness of which I’ve never before handled - into a smoking hot pot, followed by tossing in a handful of sliced shallots, some chopped garlic, and then: boom! The sizzle of fresh curry leaves hitting the oil, turning from dull to translucent, shimmering green as their earthy, spicy scent finds my my nostrils and immediately sets me off salivating.
We’re making mustard fish curry (the recipe for which I’m going to share soon, thanks to chef De Silva), and this has got to be one of the most memorable cookery classes I’ve ever taken. It results in an outrageous feast of rice and curry which me and Jamie devour, overlooking the ocean as chef De Silva cradles our giggling daughter in his arms, reminiscing about when his kids were at the same stage. We’re staying at Kumu Beach, a beautifully-designed, modern beach house style property, and it’s a pinch-myself-I’m-in-actual paradise moment. But we almost didn’t make it here at all…