Ceylon: Part 1

For the last two and a half weeks the hubby and I were off traveling around Sri Lanka!  (CLP had it right!)  It just happens to be where the hubs family is from and where we had our second wedding.  Actually, it was more of a reception as there was very little "ceremony" part to it.

I wont go on and on about it in words, as photos are much prettier to look at and speak for themselves.

We arrived at the Galleface Hotel and it was even prettier in person.  It was built in 1864 by the British and it's one of the oldest hotels in Sri Lanka.  Since we already had an American wedding we chose this hotel for its one of a kind charm and because it was classic "Sri Lanka"

See that gray tower in the middle of the photo?  Well it was just on the other side of the hotel wall and on top of it were 2 men armed with large machine guns. Scary! The war in Sri Lanka may be over, but the heavy army presence is still felt.  

The big day (x's 2).  Three wheelers are a major mode of transportation in Sri Lanka and of course a wedding photo shoot would not have been complete without a few shots in one.

Always a lady, right?  After the record 2 hour photo shoot (WTF is right) I let off some steam by riding one of the wooden elephants in the hotel.

Quick story, I had two wedding dresses for my US wedding.  I bought one, decided I hated it (in typical bridezilla fashion), and then bought the dress you see above.  Long story short, I ended up changing my mind about the original dress and wore that one back in March.  Which left me with the above dress altered and unworn.  So I packed it up and wore it for the reception in Sri Lanka.  Everything worked out perfectly in the end.

Following the wedding my parents, brother, in-laws, sister-in-law, the hubs

best friend, the hubs and myself piled into a van for a week long trip touring Sri Lanka.  Drugs anyone?

We saw so many amazing things!

bath time at the elephant orphanage

So many elephants, they were beyond cute!

fresh king coconut is just about the best drink ever

a policeman on guard

In one of the hotels we stayed at monkeys are regular visitors.  This little guy was on our hotel porch one morning and was so cute I wanted to take him home. But I'm pretty sure bringing monkeys into the US from foreign countries is frowned upon,  so the monkey stayed.  Sad face.

I'm still working through all of my photos, so be sure to come back tomorrow for part 2!