Heather Westwood has been a frequent visitor to Sri Lanka since developing a life-long love of the country and its people after being drawn to it when a friend gave her a colourful Sri Lankan tablecloth.
After the devastating Boxing Day tsunami in 2004, Sunshine Coast-based Heather returned to Sri Lanka to work with local craftspeople whose livelihoods were crushed by the loss of tourism in the wake of the tsunami. “I wanted to create both a source of income for some of the craftspeople and to introduce Sri Lankan style to the Australian public,” she said. “I created Dream Tree Designs to wholesale Sri Lankan products in Australia. Visiting Sri Lanka over many years and working with her people has reinforced my belief in the oneness of humanity and the need for us to care about each other, learn from each other no matter where we come from,” she says. ?“I now host small tours for people who want to discover Sri Lanka beyond the tourist trails and into the heart of the country; to truly experience its people, culture and beauty”.
Sri Lanka is home to many rare birds, marine and land mammals and the tour takes in the famous Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage where you can view the elephants at close range in a natural setting bathing in the Maha Oya River. “We’ll also travel to Yala National Park for an afternoon safari,” says Heather. “Our Sri Lankan experience also includes the Norwood Bogawantalawa Tea Plantation Tour which enables us to pluck leaves, tour the tea factory and of course sample the best tea in the world. Few tourists get to meet the locals of Bogawantalawa, also known as the Golden Valley. The tea plantation can be traced back to 1869 during the British colonial period. It was during this time that pioneering Scottish planters came across a valley encircled by lush mountains and forests, quite unlike anything else on the island, perfect for growing tea. Heather’s next 16 day guided tour to Sri Lanka will visit Singapore and leaves Brisbane on June 3 2020.
Readers also enjoyed our story on Stephanie Poetri
