The taste of Sri Lanka
What better way to taste Sri Lanka than sipping a cup of tea. Fresh tea, because the process from leaf to fragrant drink takes only a day. Staring at the leaves floating in your cup, it is almost impossible to imagine that they were still hanging from the tea plant yesterday.
To really understand the metamorphosis from leaf to drink, you need to go into the interior. A rolling green carpet extends over the hills here. In Haputale, hiking trails have been set up. In Nuwara Eliya,the center of the tea industry, you can explore the endless tea fields by bike. But above all, step down for a chat with the pickers. And then follow the route of the tea leaves to the factory. Tours take you through the history of tea, which began with British colonization. Nuwara Eliya is nicknamed 'Little England'. Anyone who sees the red phone box understands why. In Haputale, the Dambatenne Tea Factory, built in 1890 by The Briton Thomas Lipton, is still in use. As in many other factories, the 100-year-old machines still serve here.
