Sri Lanka 2015 – Tea At Helga’s Folly

Helga’s Folly is on a hill top in Kandy, overlooking the lake. On Christmas morning I drove the 110 km of the A1 from Colombo to this beautiful hill town and went to Helga’s Folly for tea.

“Helga’s Folly could easily have been dreamt up as a joint project between Gaudí and Dalí. This 35-room hotel/art gallery/surrealist dream has to be the most over-the-top and truly extraordinary hotel in Sri Lanka. The rock band Sterophonics famously wrote a song about the owner and her creation has surely led to a thousand twisted nightmares for her guests. It’s run and designed by the outlandish Helga da Silva, who grew up in a world of 1950s Hollywood celebrities, artists, writers, politicians and general intrigue, and she has to be one of the only hotel owners we’ve ever met who prefers her property not to be full!” – Lonely Planet

I drove up the narrow track to the top of the hill and entered a brightly coloured surrealist wonderland!

A charming young lady in a red saree met us at the entrance and showed us the many extraordinary rooms with striking murals. Then a man in a red sarong and shirt served us ginger biscuits and tea.