I'm beyond excited for Sri Lanka at this point. I fly out of Milwaukee on Saturday morning (like less than two days away). As I tell people that I'm leaving for a month for Sri Lanka I often get...

"Oh, sweet. Sri Lanka?"

or

"Tree Bonka? Where's that? Oh, near Africa!"

or

"Why in the world are you going there?"

So, my dear friends I'll explain.

Patrick did a study abroad with his college for a semester in Sri Lanka. We were throwing ideas for our next vacation out on the table and he brought it up. I guess he thought I would say "no" but I didn't. So, now we are heading for Sri Lanka - without knowing a soul - and without booking all of our hotels.

Once we get there things will be beautiful and pretty cheap.

Did you know?

Sri Lanka is roughly the same size as Ireland. The population is about 20.2 million. Most Sri Lankans are Buddhist. Sinhala and Tamil are the official languages with about 73% speaking Sinhala and 18% Tamil. Most college educated folks and governmental folks also speak English. They spend Sri Lankan Rupees there and $1 USD is worth about 100 Rupees.

The weather should average around 75- 90 degrees F.

So, the beaches of Bentota, Hikkaduwa, Negombo, and Galle better watch out!

I'm most looking forward to the food and the relaxation. Checking out ancient Buddhist temples and caves is also going to be amazing. If I'm lucky I'll also see some leopards and ride an elephant.

Keep checking back throughout February to see pics from my trip and to track my adventure across the island.