Trip to the First Tea Plantation in Sri Lanka (Ceylon)

  

Loolecondera Tea Estate

 

 

Sri Lanka is World famous for its high quality Tea (Ceylon Tea), and if you haven’t heard the name “Sri Lanka” there is a fair chance that you might have heard the name “Ceylon Tea”.

The story of tea in Sri Lanka began in 1852, when a Scotsman, James Taylor planted the first tea plantation  in what is now known as the No.7 field of “Loolecondera” Estate  close to Kandy. He lived in Sri Lanka more than half of his lifetime (57 years) until his death. He worked with Thomas Lipton, a millionaire in United Kingdom who visited Sri Lanka (Ceylon) in 1890's, and together they were largely responsible for the rapid growth of the Sri Lankan tea industry which became the best Tea in the world.

The “Loolecondera” Estate is one of the most beautiful tea estates in the world. The View from the top of the estate is simply breathtaking. Other than the beauty of the estate, the location is of historic importance as it is the first tea plantation in Sri Lanka. Even today the ruins of what is left of James Taylor’s Cabin, His Well, as well as a Seat made out of Rock at the top of the estate mountain can be seen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sacred City of Kandy

The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a Buddhist temple in the city of Kandy. It was built within the royal palace complex which houses the only surviving relic of Buddha, a tooth, which is venerated by Buddhists all over the world. Since ancient times, the relic has played an important role in local politics because it is believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. Kandy was the Capital of the Last Kingdom of Sri Lanka from 1592 to 1815, fortified by the terrain of the mountains and the difficult approach. The city is a world heritage site declared by UNESCO, in part due to the temple.

Image Courtesy of - Wikipedia Commons