I quit my job and booked a flight to Sri Lanka for 3 weeks.

So I didnt quite know that quitting my job and going to Sri Lanka for 3 weeks was on the cards for 2025, but here we are! A friend of mine commented ” You’re using your savings for traveling again, you’ll never be able to buy a house”. I don’t even know if I want to buy a house, it feels kinda scary being tied down to pay a mortgage forever… I know you’re essentially tied to paying rent forever if you don’t want to be homeless, but having worked in Healthcare and seeing the way things work if you get sick and need support.. it really is eye opening. I did also reply to my friend, that working with younge people who’ve suffered brain injuries, and seeing how your life can just change unexpectedly, you really do have to embrace and appreciate every opportunity life gives you.

I was looking forward to 3 weeks between changing jobs, of not getting up at 6.50am and procrastinating painting my bedroom ..(two separate tasks. This is not my daily schedule) so going to Sri Lanka as suggested by my dear friend Amy who has been and said it was one of the best countries she’s visited was a no brainer. And as Amy likes to say “Work, travel, work, travel” is the new “Live. Laugh, love”.

So as I write this I’m currently en route to Heathrow, curtesy of my fantastic step dad Terry. I’ve withdrawn £2000 from my campervan savings (let’s face it I was never saving for a house.. a house on wheels is more like it) spent £730 on a flight and got 7 nights of accommodation booked:

19th – Negumbo; staying in a guest house that Amy recommended. To get an authentic Sri Lankan experience.

20th-21st Mahamevnawa Anagarika; staying in a Monastery participanting in a scheulde of worship and meditation!

22nd Kandy; my first hostel stay of the trip! Kandy backpackers Hostel

23rd -26th: Ella; staying in a guest house with mountain views! (At the time of writing this was the case, but having stayed in one guest house, I feel the need to be around others to be social, so I booked a hostel and added an extra day).

And from there I have no plans, as I want to be able to go with the flow and not feel rushed to leave. I am much more of a settled slow traveller..which isn’t ideal for a short time of 3 weeks. But if I find a nice beach town and wanna live there for a week, then so I shall!

The check in at Heathrow was miraculously easy. Its felt kind of unernerving knowing I’m fully responsible for everything, like there’s no one to guide or advise me .. although my mum did suggest that I check in on the Sri Lankan airlines website as I hadn’t received an email to do so. This worked and I was very grateful, yet also concerned I hadn’t used my own initiative to do this! The lightest bag ever checked in at 8kg …. allowance is 40kg… I plan to collect lots of lovely things as I go.

I walked around in search of Wetherspoons… I passed many expensive designer shops and thought how bouje heathrow was. I asked two young girls in high viz where the Wetherspoons was, and they broke the news… “we don’t have one, only terminal 5 has one”. I said ” oh no that’s terrible” .. to which one of them replied “yes this place is terrible”. I understand the workplace hate, but I’d had a positive Heathrow experience until now. So off I went to a cocktails and breakfast bar and got myself a cider. Thank goodness I’d had 2 hashbrowns at McDonald’s. (I mean yes I could have ordered breakfast but I’m not rich).

The gate opened early so I sat and waited, and this really had been hassle free. I’d also bought myself an adapter so that was one less thing to worry about. As I left the airport to board the transfer bus I was filled with fuzzy warm feelings of true happiness and delight that I had chosen to complete this trip.

I didn’t feel sad to be alone, I felt empowered. I’ve been reading (for about 6 months cos of life distractions) ‘The Unexpected Joy of Being Single’, and it’s been really enlightening. One particular reference to the book would be moments when you could easily look around and see couples, and feel sorry for yourself. Instead, the author chose to look for happy singles. People are in charge of their own day, where they will eat, where they will stay, no compromised to be made with anyone, just yourself, and what you want. Another point I’d like to highlight from the book was how we always feel like we need to rush out of being single. To find someone. But these times shouldn’t be rushed. It should be relished to go home at the end of the night when you want, to have the whole bed to yourself and to watch whatever you want on the TV. I guess that’s why it is handy when you do meet someone to have shared TV interests, a guy who enjoys a romcom and doesn’t mind some trash TV is something I have been blessed with previously, but I know is hard to come by.

Anyway enough about all that. Onboard the plane I was sat in the middle row with 3 other people, Sri Lankan nationals it seemed. I said hello to the lady next to me, and she asked how she could charge her phone. I offered her my power bank. And the chap next to me offered her his charger and proceeded to plug her phone in. I thought this seemed very friendly and felt like this wouldn’t happen on a flight to Benidorm with English folk. Or maybe it would. Who knows.

It felt like a long flight and I felt sorry for those around me as I an such a fidget. The food was lovely, a curry with potatoes and jelly (seperate dishes. Other wise that would be weird) and then 5 hours later I got some noodles with veg and fruit. My hack to anyone would be to order vegetarian on a plane, as you get served first. I had finished my meal well before everyone else got there’s. The over thinker in me always feels awkward about this, and I even wonder if it’s polite to wait until they get their food! Sometimes my brain does too much.

It felt like we were preparing to land for agessssss and I was even feeling a bit sick. Which could be the 2 glasses of red wine and the 2 very strong gin and tonics. Hey it’s free. Well included in the £700 ticket price.. you gotta make full use of the cruet as my Poppa would say!

Finally we landed at 4.25am! I stood and waited for an eternity to be reunited with my rucksack. It appeared unharmed so that was a relief, and off I went to exchange my money and get a sim card. All very seamless transactions so I was very grateful because this is not what I want to be doing at 5 30am.

It was very busy outside the airport and I tried to order a TUK Tuk on the ‘Pick Me’ app everyone talks about. Turns out they can’t come into the airport so I tried to leave and failed. And a man in a car asked where I was going. I was dubious about getting into a random car, so went back to the airport to get into a seemingly less random car. A friendly face pulled over and that was enough to gain my trust (don’t worry parents if you’re reading this, I am sensible).

I helped the guy satnav to the guest house in Negumbo. ‘House of Esanya’ which Amy had recommended. The taxi was 3500 SL rupees and naturally the guy ‘didn’t have any change’ so he earned a nice lil tip from my 5000 note (£13.87 so not too bad for a 20 minute car ride). It was now about 7am and Steph the host came out to greet me and showed me to my room.

It was a basic room with a bathroom. But importantly it was a private room. Im dubious about hostel sharing these days in my old age. I took a cold shower and felt like I was dithering when I should be sleeping. The double bed had a soft Louis Vouton sheet, very posh, and a thicker blanket. I placed this over the window as I had stupidly left my eye mask (and hair bonnet, booo) at my mums. I then laid out the mosquito net around me and quickly got out of my silk bag as it was way too hot. It did somehow get cold in the night and I had to put a big tshirt on and use the big blanket. I don’t know why I feel this information if relevant to you the reader, but would it be a Rosi blog if I didn’t write every single detail? I played a podcast and went off to sleep at 8am local time. I thought it would be difficult but I guess I’m just used to getting in late (or early) from a night out and hitting the hay. Maybe that’s why I never feel jetlagged. Because that’s how I spend my waking days following a busy weekend.. anyways goodnight from me xxx