Month: June 2018

As I sit here and write on the verandah the monsoonal rains are pelting down and the power is totally cut off. This is afternoon rest time but without the fans whirring above you the incentive to stay in your room is minimal.

It’s been a busy day Tuk Tuking around the heritage sites of the ancient city of Anduradhapura. Now I really don’t want to be negative about this lovely, lush country that is full of delightful people. Having said that it was hard not to be under-whelmed by the much-anticipated exploration of an ancient civilisation. I’m not at all sure if this is a travel weary person with unrealistic expectations but I kept thinking of Cambodia and how glorious that was to see, how wide eyed we were at its splendour and certainly that has not been our reaction today.

So first we went to Isurumuniya Vihara, a rock temple with a climb up to the rock summit (with giant sized steps up!). There were some nice murals in one part of the temple and some carvings of elephants. Then we went on to Abhayagiri Dagoba a massive Buddhist Temple that used to be the focus of a large community of monks. LPG tells me it was one of the greatest structures in the ancient world. We walked around it (you can’t go inside these Dagobas/Stupas because they all hold relics of Buddha(a bone? a tooth?). This was guarded by carved elephant heads all around it.

We then went to the Royal Palace, Monastery, village area that once housed thousands of monks. There was a really beautiful Moonstone in a residential complex for monks. It really is a most beautiful stone carving of animals and flowers. In my opinion the most impressive thing we saw today. The steps leading up from it were also carved with little men and that were also beautiful.
The Guardstone outside the ‘Jewel Palace’ was also a most beautiful piece of work. Then there was the Samadhi Buddha, the Kuttam Pokuna (sorry if this is diabolically boring), Twin Pools, where the monks used to bathe (there were 5,000 of them so they had to build another pond and then the Eth Pokuna, the Elephant Pond, the largest man made pool in Sri Lanka. LPG tells me 6 Olympic Swimming Pools could fit inside it. Very nice!!

Onward to the Citadel with it’s Royal Palace (ruins of), Temple (Dalada Maligawa) and Refectory with a massive stone carved out into a trough which lay followers filled with rice for the monks.

Then to the Jetavanarama Dagoba. Like the first Dagoba, a massive buddhist stupa. Along the way we also saw beautifully carved toilets for the monks!!

We finished our exploration by going to this beautiful old Colonial Hotel ‘Sanctuary at Tissawewa’ to sit on the verandah (while our Tuk Tuk driver sat outside – as you do-) to have a drink…no alcohol served so it was a juice and a mocktail but it was a glorious little half hour of being transported back to another time of British colonialism.

Then our driver, Sanjana, brought us back. A little bit about Sanjana, arranged by Lievi’s for us. A charming man but totally absorbed in business opportunities and constantly on his mobile. At the end of the day we were somewhat confused about where we’d been so had to review it all and tick off the sites we’d seen. We are going with Sanjana again in the morning to see more sites so we had to be sure we knew what else we needed to see!!.

We came back home to the Monsoonal rain and a total power cut. The worst thing about that was that with the fans stopping the mozzies swooped in to get a bit of blood and they were successful in their efforts.

Now its time to go off again and scavenge for our tucker.

Later: We are back now and the food sourcing exercise was not without its complications. The Guesthouse here suggested a place to go where we could get a glass of wine. But we got there and it was completely deserted and very uncomfortable. So we decided to leave…embarrassing but we accomplished it. We went to another place, again didn’t like the look of it. So then we went to find a Tuk Tuk to take us to a place LPG recommended (Mango Mango). We haggled over the fare thinking they were taking us for a ride (not literally) and they basically told us to go jump. We eventually found a driver and when we realised how far away it was we paid him the same as the initial quotes…sometimes you waste time and energy for no gain.

We had Indian food and then came home. It was so bloody far away that fortunately the driver that brought us there said he’d come back for us which he very reliably did…that was a relief.

So now its off to bed in preparation for more Tuk Tuking of heritage sites tomorrow.

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!!

Today has been spent tuk tuk zigzag style trying to find the heart and soul of Colombo. I think its fair to say that we have failed to find a heart and have relied very much on food and alcohol to enjoy the city. We set off walking through Park Viharamahadevi with large bags of rubbish to be disposed of – consisting of negative evidence of our stay in the Airbnb i.e. broken glass, empty bottles etc. I sat down in front of Buddha on the other side of the park and was promptly told to stand as sitting in front of Buddha is disrespectful. Fortunately Rose was here to interpret this to me as I just had my mouth open not knowing why I was being told to stand up.

We wanted to go to a particular shopping area in an old building (Opel) only to find it didnt open til 10am and it was only 9am. So our next option was a recommended museum. About to hop in a Tuk Tuk to get there and realised it was closed on a Monday…doh!!

Next option….a Tuk Tuk to Galle Face Green which is where the Sri Lankans from Colombo enjoy the beach. We got there and walked along the beach front, once again very underwhelmed. I was hanging out for a coffee so we then made another attempt to go to Opel…back into a Tuk Tuk (these rides are only $2 – $3 so we feel we can use them quite liberally). Finally we got there and had a coffee and a juice (Rose was worried as she saw them put water in my juice, even though I’d stipulated no ice!!…so far so good!!).

We then decided to come back home and walked back through park to get back. I was slipping and sliding in my awful sandles so stopped to don the thongs, threw the sandels in the bin and continued on. We got home just in time to avoid a monsoonal downpour. Had a minor break and then (you guessed it) another Tuk Tuk and we went back to the Dutch Hospital (with its array of restaurants) for lunch. We had a most yummy lunch at a restaurant next to the Ministry of Crab but the name escapes us. The funny thing about that lunch is that Rose ordered a pitcher of beer thinking it was a pint. 1.5 litres arrived!!! I’d ordered a white wine(its hot!!) but felt some obligation to help her out in a minor way. That really was hilarious and what did we do after that…a Tuk Tuk back home!!

Soon we’re off again. I think we’ll go to the roof top cocktail bar again for a Singapore Sling and then we think to the Cricket Club Cafe/Pub that we went to on the first day. It sounds like a Pub but really it is so Sri Lankan. Full of cricket memorabilia, the flags of all the cricket nations, all the dishes named after a cricketer etc…its fun and its only over the road.

Blue sky today and very sweaty. A rather late start for a couple of unwinding travellers. Then out our front door and into a Tuk Tuk to go directly to the Fort Train Station to get our tickets for our ongoing journeys. That was easy enough as the man in the Tourist Information place just did it all for us. He then tried to sell us a driver for 3 days to get from Anuradhapura to Kandy and around. We said we’d think about it but for $287 we thought not.

Then we walked off around the Fort area looking at the lovely colonial buildings and ended up at the Dutch Hospital. This is as it says, an old Dutch Hospital but very now full of boutique, trendy shops and restaurants. One of the best restaurants in Sri Lanka, the Ministry of Crab is there so we booked in for a lunch, mainly because I wanted to. I munched on delicious, messy garlic, chilli crab while Rose had a chicken curry. It was an expensive treat for me, one that I thoroughly enjoyed. I was inspired by a woman at the table next to us who was travelling alone and sitting up there by herself with a whole bottle of wine, munching away on her crab. No idea where she was from but she was a role model.

Then we went off by tuk tuk to the floating market which wasn’t really a floating market and then to the Federation of self-employees Market, which was a real market but we had to walk around in circles to find it. We wanted to get a wine glass to replace said breakage and some beer to take home. Couldn’t find either so got in a Tuk Tuk and came home for our afternoon sit on the verandah with a glass of wine /beer and our books. Rose had to buy her beer at the House of Wine (aforementioned) which sells beer for $5 a stubby, that hurts.

The owner of the place we are staying in is an author and we bought his book at a Dutch Hospital trendy shop. We have an afternoon chat with them which is good because they give us some good ideas, and he signed the book.

One of the good ideas was to go to a nearby posh hotel called Red Cinnamon for a cocktail on their rooftop bar. We did and it was a lovely thing to do. Gorgeous views an infinity pool perched up above Colombo and a bar with divine cocktails. We restrained ourselves to one then walked off to a restaurant fairly nearby and had curries and hoppers but they didn’t have alcohol so we came back to our verandah fairly quickly walking the dark back lanes of Colombo (you do feel very safe here).

Another early night as we adjust to heat and walking +++. I’ve got the inevitable blisters again but keeping them well strapped up!!

A traditional send off last night with Ham and Az taking us out to the airport, dinner at P J O’Briens with the traditional paras. Lots to drink before embarking on Malaysia Airlines for the overnight flight to Kuala Lumper. Crap flight in a tired old plane with below average seating space, seat belts that left no room to move and grumpy flight attendants who were not impressed with the request for a second glass of wine. No sleep on the plane meant that the 5.30 am arrival in KL was akin to torture. Then 3.5 hrs of trying to stay awake and somehow trying to feel vaguely normal.

Sri Lankan Air leg to Colombo a vast improvement. Better seats, seat belts, food and service. 3 hours later we landed here and simultaneously the heavens opened. We had to get off the plane onto the tarmac and into a bus amidst a torrential downpour. Anyway all OK, got a Kangaroo Cab to our Airbnb at 17 Flower Road. Had to run the gauntlet of other cab drivers at the airport who made it hard but all good in the end.

Our airbnb is great.. A cottage at the back (but attached) to a beautiful colonial villa. We have our own large verandah, an upstairs bedroom for Rose and a downstairs bed for me. And…there’s more…a ‘House of Wine’ over the road…..how perfect is that!!

We settled ourselves in and then headed off by foot to find (with a modicum of difficulty) the National Museum which isn’t far from here. Got there with the weather holding out and as soon as we got inside the heavens opened again…thunder clapping around us but we were safe exploring the museum. Definitely not the most engaging museum ever but it had its points of interest. We weren’t so lucky when we left there and ended up pretty drenched on our walk home, via, of course, the aforementioned House of Wine. And now really relaxing for the first time on the verandah under the fans planning where to go for dinner tonight. Our host here, Mandy, just came and gave us a few tips so we’ll go out before too long for a real Sri Lankan meal.

Rose fell asleep so I decided we didn’t have to go out and id let her sleep. She then woke up and splattered a glass of red wine onto the floor and staining irreparably the soft stone floor. Oh shit, glass and stain everywhere!!

Then a Tuk Tuk to the Cinnamon Grande Hotel that has this fantastic outdoor Sri Lankan bistro under a massive Banyan Tree…the restaurant is called Nuga Garma (for future reference) and it was $24 for all you could eat. Delicious food in a perfect setting and the rain held off.

N.B. Problem we have found with the cost of eating is that although its cheap, every bill adds 10% service charge + 10% tax and then your expected to tip (we’ve shown a lack of enthusiasm in that department).

Tuk tuk home and straight to bed exhausted to sleep the sleep of the dead!!!