This is a bit the tale of the good, the bad and the ugly. Lets start with the ugly. We had the great challenge of having to book a taxi to get to the train station at 5.15 am. We puzzled endlessly about how to manage this best. We failed to get through using viber, Skype and FaceTime…not sure why but then we decided to download an App to order a Sri Lankan Uber-type taxi and that worked but we were very anxious about whether it REALLY worked so I for one spent an entirely sleepless night wondering whether we’d get to the train station in time for our train. Of course we did with oodles of time to spare.
The 4 hr trip was a treat. We were in an observation car with a large rear window which I went and sat in front of. Then for 4 hours it was a passing parade of tropical jungle with banana and coconut trees, pineapple (how do you describe them?)…bushes, flame trees, storks, egrets and parrots. Followed by rice paddies and more rice paddies. The train bounced us endlessly and violently to the extent that my fitbit recorded 15,000 steps as I bounced up and down and side to side…hows that for a good use of time!
We arrived in Anduradhapura around 11 am and got a Tuk Tuk to our hotel. Lievi’s Tourist Accommodation…rather rustic but comfortable enough. We have a room each so we’re happy. I have the usual blister problem and have ripped some skin off my foot much to Roses dismay bringing back memories of Japan. Nonetheless we walked all over the place, up hill and down dale searching for a place for lunch that we were determined we would find. We eventually did find it but not before I’d turned into a bright red blob of sweat…so much so I was calling myself Barnaby.
We came back after lunch but had to go out walking again on a mission that Rose was on to buy ointment, cleaners and strapping for my feet and some wine while we were at it. Rose really is so determined to ensure I don’t get an infection like last year…I’m so glad to have her, dear girl really!!
So, that achieved we came back here. I had sent a fortune on a bottle of wine that was hard come by. But we needed information and a couple of young German tourists staying here had just come back from a tour of the heritage sites, we want to book a driver for this for tomorrow so I invited them to share a glass of wine so we could pick their brains. A glass, of course, led to a bottle and my precious booty vanished before my eyes with no-one to blame but myself. Buying wine (and beer for that matter) is like buying black market booty, first you have to find somewhere selling it and then it is behind a wire barrier with a little hole in it for the contraband to be passed through.
Rose and I then went out to find some dinner at a place called Hotel Shilini. It was a nice meal but very quiet and unexciting. Home to have my foot dressed by my OT and now its time for bed. Its been a long, long day and tomorrow is set to also keep us on the move!!