Snack on scones & strawberry jam as you take a good rest in the hills
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Situated in the heart of Nuwara Eliya, behind St Xavier’s church are the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary(FMM), founded in 1972 by Sr. Marcel. The story began when an elderly lady who came selling oranges, called at the convent and Sr. Marcel took pity on her and bought all her fruit, and thus commenced the orange marmalade jam, for which the FMM are famous for today. Now they produce around 26 varieties of chutneys, cordials, sauces, jelly and jams.
The ‘animator’ at the convent is the dynamic and resourceful Sr. Placida Lihinkadu, who has been here since the beginning of the year. She is full of ideas and her latest artistic handiwork using fabric paint will also soon be on sale at FMM.
Sr.Bavani is in charge of the ‘jam’ operations. It is the Strawberry season at the moment and the jam is flying off the shelves! They cultivate strawberries and vegetables, however Sr. Placida hopes to concentrate on expanding the strawberry cultivation, as everyone does vegetables in Nuwara Eliya and the retail market is liable to fluctuations.
The refurbished ‘Good Rest’ and delicious scones, jam and cream for tea
If you are planning to stay in Nuwara Eliya over the April season they also operate a lovely Guest House, ‘Good Rest’ that has enjoyed a gentle facelift! It commenced operations in 2003 and Sr. Jacintha, who coordinates bookings can be contacted on 0766605631. They have eight rooms, some double , some triple and some family rooms. A total of 27 persons can be accommodated. The rates are Rs 1300 pp (during the April Season) Rs 1000 pp at other times and Rs 1500 pp for tourists, room only. They are now busy creating the menu for breakfast and evening meals.
New for the season, the FMM will also be baking their own scones and offering Cream Tea, using their own lush home made strawberry jam and clotted cream served with a lovely cup of tea. As an alternative fresh strawberries and cream will be available (the cream supplied by Tamarind Gardens).
They will also have their products for sale in town, so keep an eye for the FMM stall. Tamarind Gardens is very excited to be working with FMM over the season.
The work done by FMM is voluntary throughout Sri Lanka and one of the main objectives of Sr. Placida is to provide the FMM who work in rural areas, an allowance to cover their expenses enabling them to continue their amazing work with the underprivileged.