The next morning I said goodbye to my Ella friends and got into the van that would take me to Kandy. We kept the windows open, letting the cool morning air of the mountains inside the vehicle. Tea field plantations dominated the area, interspersed with steep grassy hills and government-protected forests. Waterfalls and streams gushed everywhere, seemingly out of nowhere. They were particularly plentiful in the tea fields. Finally we spotted our first tea pickers, who were just coming to work. After tying their lunch bundles onto bushes closer to the path’s entry, the women took their pole and picking bag and marched further into the field.
After passing through a few towns, the paved road ended and construction began. Due to the dustiness, we rolled up the windows and turned on the AC. Construction workers donned hard hats and flip flops. Some had plastic-looking face masks to help filter out the dust. Although more equipment was used than in some construction in India, a lot of work still was done by hand.
Along side of the road people had produce stands, each selling about the same items within a stone’s throw of each other. In addition to the usual fruits and vegetables, they also had for sale the smelly durian and jackfruit.
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