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Bernard Cribbins loves Sri Lanka for its superb weather, great food and welcoming people.
'I also loved the Sri Lankan food - all that fragrant curry, none of which was too hot'
My wife and I had a marvellous holiday in Sri Lanka. A friend had raved about it; we went – and had the time of our lives.
 Our pal suggested we base ourselves at a guesthouse near Mount Levinia, near Colombo, which was very comfortable, but if you have deep pockets, the somewhat swankier Mount Lavinia Hotel ( 0094 11 271 1711;
www.mountlaviniahotel.com ) – home to the colonial-style Governor's restaurant – might be to your liking.
One of the first things we did was to visit Polonnaruwa, where you'll find the Gal Vihara, which has a shrine to the four images of the Buddha, carved into the face of a granite rock.
We also travelled to Yala National Park, at the southern end of the island, which was quite an experience. We saw a leopard walk across the road in front of our jeep and then we turned a corner to see the large backside of an elephant walking away from us 20 yards ahead.
My wife and I were holding our breath as the driver followed him slowly at a short distance. And then suddenly this bloody great thing whipped around as quick as a cat and charged, coming to a stop 10 feet in front of us. It frightened the life out of us and the animal's eyes
seemed to say: "You don't follow me – you go the other way!" Then he turned around and went off.
 Afterwards our driver said to us with a smile: "If you want, I can get him to do it again."
My wife replied gently but firmly: "Thanks, but no thanks."
The country's wildlife is extraordinary, and we also saw peacocks and other jungle birds with the most extraordinary colouring.
I also loved the Sri Lankan food – all that fragrant curry, none of which was too hot. I'd recommend the curried seer fish. The fruit was amazing, too.
We spent a month on the island and it's probably the best holiday I've ever had: the weather was superb, the food great and the people so welcoming. A word of warning, though. One night there was a great electrical storm – which I watched from outdoors. When I got back inside, I
discovered I'd been unlucky enough to be bitten 83 times (I counted), so take some mosquito repellent!
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