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true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

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Antigrav
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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby Antigrav » Fri Apr 13, 2018 8:09 am

athen wrote:
Thu Feb 01, 2018 4:43 pm
Thanks Mago,
this is exactly what I have heard from many ppl.
Awful place, gusty wind, dirty everywhere (however if I look at all photos in internet I cannot find a decent one, all colors of the sea, the lagoon and the land are like shit, awful awful)

I have in mind the reason why many people go there and say that's a great kite place, but to avoid unpleasant polemics here, I prefer to keep my thoughts private (you know what I mean)
Seems like you already made your mind up before you started this topic you just wanted to hear it from the internet....But anyway let's dispel some of the half truths and myths about Sri Lanka and in particular Kalpitiya

Let's start with this: as others have said there's no border between India and Sri Lanka, it's an island... ie no land borders with anyone. On a related note Indians are NOT Sri Lankans....sure there are similarities but they're different countries, it's like saying Germany and France are the same... Sri Lankans are super kind, friendly people and very good with kids. There's definitely issues especially with foreign girls and it's by no means perfect, but the vast majority of people there are great.

Infections are part of the game, it's the tropics, any injury has a chance of getting infected because of the heat, humidity and dirt. Suck it up, clean your wounds well and if the doctor gives you drugs take them!

Sri Lanka can be dirty since it's a poor country, but have you actually been to Brazil? I found Brazil was just as dirty as Sri Lanka. Also if you stay in one of the big resorts (see www.kitesurfinglanka.com ) they're kept to a high standard and are used to catering to a European market, read the reviews on tripadvisor I think they speak for themselves.

As for the wind, yes the Kalpitiya lagoon is gusty in the summer, that's why all the bigger camps offer trips to Puttalam lagoon, Kappalady lagoon, Donkey point and Vella island. There isn't just one spot, and too many people come kite in the main lagoon a few days and then write the whole country off. Vella island is a world class flat water spot, anyone who's been there can attest to that, and considering how consistent the wind is in the whole year you'd be stupid to write off Sri Lanka. As Moret said above, Mannar is insane, just wow really, mind blowingly good flat water conditions and pumping wind!

One other nice thing about Sri Lanka compared to Brazil is if you want to go travel and see a bunch of different spots you can do that easily, it's not like in Brazil where everything is a plane ride or a 27 hour coach away! Go see the elephants, the temples, the mountains, go surf, go kite, it's all doable in a week or two

So to summarise, no I don't think it's a new Brazil, but there are amazing spots, the food is awesome and the people are lovely, so why not check it out and see for yourself. Sure it's a little rough around the edges but it's a bit of an adventure

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby Adventure Logs » Fri Apr 13, 2018 1:25 pm

Couple years ago I spent a month driving around Sri Lanka in a Tuk tuk. Cost us less than 10 USD a day and we were free to go anywhere. There is so much to see on the island. Also still a lot of spots undiscovered to kite. Also Sri Lanka is MUCH safer and cheaper than Brazil. Yes there is some culture shock and yes the bigger cities (Colombo, Kandy) are dirty in some areas. I’ve been to both countries and I’d pick Sri Lanka any day for not only kiting but just overall experience.

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby Cristiano_Leandro » Fri Apr 13, 2018 1:45 pm

Adventure Logs wrote:
Fri Apr 13, 2018 1:25 pm
Couple years ago I spent a month driving around Sri Lanka in a Tuk tuk. Cost us less than 10 USD a day and we were free to go anywhere. There is so much to see on the island. Also still a lot of spots undiscovered to kite. Also Sri Lanka is MUCH safer and cheaper than Brazil. Yes there is some culture shock and yes the bigger cities (Colombo, Kandy) are dirty in some areas. I’ve been to both countries and I’d pick Sri Lanka any day for not only kiting but just overall experience.
First of all, thank you to everyone for the detailed insight about the place. Sometimes when preparing trips, you just go with the safest option regarding wind and warm water (brazil).
I’m interested in Mannar, in the video is looks like everything that one would want in a kite spot, but there’s only one accommodation for what I could gather. The bungalows look ok but they don’t seem that cheap according to the countries standard.
Whats the normal kite route people take in the country? They just stay in mannar or is it easy to travel around kiting considering the gear?
And if foreign girls are a problem I don’t know what im gonna do with my exotic girlfriend :hotchic: :heartface: , I don’t want to be keeping an eye on her the whole time.

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby Havre » Fri Apr 13, 2018 2:13 pm

Anyone got any wind statistics for Mannar? I see it is supposedly good during summer, but how about winter?

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby downunder » Fri Apr 13, 2018 3:14 pm

I have been to Bali many times. It is probably similar or even better (cheap for us in AU), than Lanka. Been to many places including EU.
But nothing beats exclusivity of Cocos Keeling island with max 30 turists at any time. Half of them kiters :)
The exclusivity sometimes is a bless. Actually, my wife wants to live there. It is a true Paradise. Wind? Bring 7m , 10 and 13 :)

To get there now is easy, London-Perth-cocos.

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby moret » Sat Apr 14, 2018 3:34 pm

We can't really compare bali with Sri Lanka. There is not much wind or really light wind in Bali. Canggu have some good condition in the wave mostly with a 12 meter and Sanur have wind for 12 to 18 meter kite.
Sri Lanka have strong wind 9 months a year.
Please look at the wind archive for kalpitiya : https://www.windguru.cz/archive-stats.p ... id_model=3
It's nearly windy everyday and there is many days over 20 knots.
Season is from May-October and from December- March

I spend one full season in Mannar and summer time the wind is definitely stronger in Mannar than Kalpitiya.
For winter we are not sure yet, we know there is wind but don't have statistic yet. Next winter I will spend the season there and we will put in place a weather station to collect data. So soon we will have the statistic for Mannar in the winter.

One video of Kalpitiya : https://vimeo.com/186969375
One video of Mannar : https://vimeo.com/241344254

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby downunder » Sat Apr 14, 2018 3:46 pm

Yes we can compare Bali with Ceylon. Both can be a cultural shock for non seasoned traveler.

The wind is the same everywhere. Its just wind ;)

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby The Ruuk » Tue Apr 24, 2018 12:24 pm

No Sri lanka is not Brazil, and I honestly pray that we dont become a Brazil :-)
Last edited by The Ruuk on Wed May 09, 2018 10:04 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby BrianMaiden » Wed Apr 25, 2018 9:26 am

downunder wrote:
Sat Apr 14, 2018 3:46 pm
Ceylon.
:lol: You're the culture shock

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Re: true advice on Sri Lanka, a new Brazil?

Postby Ruben99 » Tue May 08, 2018 10:52 pm

I have been living in Kalpitiya for 5 years and I can say that the spot is not really gusty compared with other kite spots. It is true than in Kalpitiya lagoon, where I teach kitesurfing, the wind is not clear in summer time but in winter time the wind is perfect. Also, in summer time, there are many spots in Kalpitiya where the wind is 100% perfect. I go very often to Puttalam lagoon, (just at the other side of the main road) and Donkey Point. The only reason I teach in Kalpitiya lagoon is because of the wind direction, otherwise I would always teach in Puttalam lagoon. I also go very often to the Dream spot and Vella Island.
People who says that Kalpitiya is gusty is only because they have only been in Kalpitiya lagoon and they haven´t discovered other kite spots. You don´t have to go very far from Kalpitiya if you want to find good wind, BELIEVE ME

*kappaladi
*Putalam lagoon
*Dream spot
*Vella Island
*Donkey point

www.margarita-village.com
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