day one
.So we rushed to the airport and then found that we had plants of time to spare. From then on we realised we were missing something. Well a few things actually, the offspring who weren't with us to torment (well someone had to look after Ella!).
When we got on to the monster-massive plane, we saw it had a staircase inside which was the size of the staircases in the Morcombe and Wise shows. That probably the most exciting part of the flight, which pretty uneventful. When we arrived at Dubai, the coach that drove us from the plane to the terminal took us from the plane to the far end of the airport (a gazillion miles) then we had to get off and check in for the next flight where they drove us all the way back to the plane next door to the one we got off.
The plane from Dubai to Sri Lanka was empty, which rang alarm bells in our heads - is it a bad monsoon time? After getting off the plane with almost no sleep, the first challenge came - to get to the first bight's accommodation.
After lots of taxi touts among the crowds wanting to charge to take us to a place they didn't know, I felt it was best to phone the hotel which was five miles away, but could collect us. "Where are you?" he said. "Outside the airport" I said. "Put your hand up - ah, I see you wait there." It was like having our own genie appear from nowhere! The first night's accommodation was great, with the staff keen to help with any problem at all. But tiredness crept in, and there's an early start tomorrow.
DAY TWO
A spectacular breakfast with fresh papaya juice set us up for a day of travelling. The people at this villa run a great bed and breakfast, and are always there to help. They will be driving us to the train station which resolves that issue.
Our man from the bed and breakfast offered to drive us to the train station, which was forty minutes' drive. We got our tickets without any problems, and the train was only a few minutes late. It was a nice old carriage, probably built in the fifties, with portable fans stuck to the ceilings. With the windows and doors open and the fans, it was quite a pleasant journey. The ride was made more interesting with people selling all sorts of interesting food (and a man singing with bongos). I opted for monkey nuts. We were getting off after three and a half hours at a place called Thambuttagama. Despite whizzing along, we seemed to arrive an hour late so I don't see how they can ever run on time. Southern Rail, however, has no excuse.
Our stop eventually came and we got on to the platform. We couldn't find the exit, that's because there isn't one. You have to climb down and cross the tracks. We found a tuk-tuk driver (it wasn't hard, there were three tuk tuks, one shop selling water and dry biscuits, and not much else) who made a few calls to find our place then we set off to our "Ecolodge" in Wilpattu, on the edge of a safari park.
So far, we've been lucky with the weather. We've had a few downpours overnight and on the train, but nothing yet in Wilpattu. There's still time later in the trip, but it's dry season here..
The "Ecolodge" is interesting. There's no water. There's no bedding. The lights don't work. There's no water. I know I've already said this, but it's a serious issue after our travelling. We've changed rooms to a six person room because it's nicer and has windows with glass. We've been told that water is turned off to preserve it, and have to wait until it is turned on. Eventually, the water is on but water conservation is big here. I just hope the four French girls next door don't use it all up before us. When we arrived, the lady manager (called Chompa) showed us the treehouse/observation tower. It was interesting, but we could only see thick bushes!
Water's on, so a quick shower and then dinner. Chompa has cooked a superb curry, but there's enough for six people! I'll do my best to have the other portions. There's also beer which is very nice, it's like strawberry cider. The only trouble is, it's 8.8%abv!
We have organised a safari for tomorrow morning. They are picking us up for 6.00am, so we need to set the alarm for 5.30am. No more beer for us!
DAY THREE
We woke up early, at 5.15am. At 5.30am the happy sound of Chompa appeared along with a tray of tea (she never stops, she was up until midnight last night!) and the safari driver who wanted to take us straight away. Trouble is, the tea is really good in Sri Lanka, but then you would expect it to be, eh? Just to add to the pressure, we also have to change rooms so we have to pack our bags again! With what seemed to be a wave of a magic wand, we went from sleeping to whizzing in the open top part of a jeep instantly. Breakfast seemed to consist of flies every time we opened our mouths to talk!
We picked up our guide, paid our entrance fee then went along looking for wildlife. A jackal, crocs, deer and interesting birds were all on view. Our guide was deperate to find a leopard but we just enjoyed the whole morning's safari.
We got back to the Ecolodge and for the first time we were able to chill (after finding our new room which has no windows!). Chompa has spoiled us all afternoon with wonderful fruit, while we chill watching the animals at the pond on the verandah next to the kitchen. There's a family of birds (four chicks) living in the pond, with kingfishers and other bright coloured birds visiting. The tin roof clangs when the squirrels come down, and there's a mongoose who has visited a couple of times. Two baby mice fell from the ceiling of the verandah a couple of feet from us (lucky it wasn't into our dinner last night), so they were put to one side for their mum to rescue.
I think we've got curry again for tea - yay! I just asked the assistant cook (who speaks no English) if he can turn on the internet. He led me to the empty fridge and said "beers coming soon!". I made an impression last night, then.
We had dinner with some South Africans and Swiss. One Swiss guy spoke no English, so we fell into the trap of a half hour conversation about, erm, I'm not sure really. The lighting to our latest room is non existent for the fifty yard walk, but it's okay, the mongoose would eat any snakes so there won't be any. Or is the mongoose there because there are snakes?
DAY FOUR
We had a later start, with another great breakfast from Chompa. S/he organised a tuk-tuk for us, we said our goodbyes and set off to the place I mentioned earlier but I bet you can't remember it without scrolling back. Over a short period of time we got to like that place, mainly because of Chompa and her constant smile and chatting.
Tuk-tuk man took us to an ATM where I went close to taking out 400 rupees (£2) but I got it right in the end, then we got dropped off, climbed across the tracks onto the platform and waited for the train.
The train journey was pretty uneventful, the train left half an hour late but arrived at our stop only fifteen minutes late which was impressive. We got into a tuk-tuk driven by Evil Knievil's secret son, he drove like it anyway. Nevertheless, he delivered us quickly and safely at the Millenium Elephant Foundation.
We went through the gates and were shown our room. We are short term volunteers, here for just one day. There are four other volunteers from France, Canada, Denmark and Holland who have been here months or years, and I suspect it will be a long time before they leave.
Ryan, the Canadian, gave us a tour of the area and we were introduced to a few elephants. Each elephant has a mahout who issues orders, controls and runs his elephant (in the same way that a dog has an owner but the bond is much closer). We met Raji the elephant and his mahout and arranged to go on a morning walk with him, before a bit of work and breakfast. We also met a big elephant who was coming to the end of his "musth", which is the time when he is extra keen on the lady elephants. I'd better not wear any of my aftershave (see carryonupthenile.yolasite.com) or this blog may end dramatically and suddenly.
There are nine elephants here, typically rescued from an owner who would ordinarily want to get more money from sending the elephant to work when he/she is too old. So the Foundation pays the owner the equivalent and looks after the elephant in a happy environment. They need the volunteers to help with the work, and they need a lot of donations to pay for the upkeep of the elephants and to pay the owners, otherwise the elephants could be taken away. It's a sad situation but this place really cares for the elephants.
After a meal with the other volunteers, we finished early due to the early start tomorrow.
DAY FIVE
I think it was 5.00am when there was a call to prayer. We set off for our 6.30am meet with Raji, and then went for a stroll out of the Foundation, down the road for a couple of hundred yards then into someone's garden where he had a nice breakfast while ripping out all of the weeds for the house owner. After ripping out some weeds with his trunk, he would thrash them against his legs and carefully tread on the ends until there was a neat amount of two foot of weeds, then eat them and rip away any weeds that did not conform to the two foot rule. He was very thorough and precise, if only we could eat spaghetti so well! Unlike in the UK where we would be very angry to wake up and look out of our window to see an elephant destroying the garden, the owner appeared and was very happy and polite, the same applied to the neighbour.
On the stroll back to the Foundation, it looked like we needed poo bags. Well, bin liners would be more appropriate. But no one really cared, so a small hill now exists on the road to Rambukkana.
Back at the Foundation, we counted out the pills for the elephants. They need vitamin pills, folic acid and all sorts of other pills (approximately a dozen) to keep them in good shape. They each need different doses of different pills (up to fifteen) on different days. Kate and I counted out the pills then put them insde dough balls. Most elephants are okay with this but some need separate balls for the pills and one old lady was just plain awkward! I've never put my hand inside an elephant's mouth before, so there's another first for this trip! We also checked their feet for any thorns or other irregularities, clipped some toe nails and did some filing of the feet. All was fine. Did you know that elephants have very soft soles of their feet?
Then it was bath time. The big beasts would lie in the river motionless while we scrubbed them vigorously with a coconut husk. We did this for quite a while, they just lay motionless and loved it! Before and after the scrubbing, we saw six foot long monitor lizards cruising up and down the river, but it looked like they kept themselves to themselves. While we scrubbed our elephant, Ryan was clearing some scraps of rubbish from the far riverbank. One of the girls told him to watch out for the snakes on that side. Well, it occurred to me that he could just be disturbing them so they could be moving over to our side of the river. Then I felt something at my feet. It turned out to just be some fish, but it made me jump a bit!
Our next job was to make the beds. The elephants sleep in their designated spot, chained or tied so that they poo and wee in the correct place. We have to clear all the branches so that the bed consists of just their leaves, remove the poo (typically fifty lumps per elephant) from the concrete toilet slope, then scrub it and clean it so it's fresh for the next evening. Combine the work and the muggy heat, and we were ready for a quick shower by lunchtime. All meals are at the main house in a lovely courtyard, just waiting for us.
The afternoon started with a tour of the poo paper factory by someone who didn't speak very good English, but we got the idea. Scrap paper is mixed with poo (including the poo I delivered in the morning), boiled, mashed, squashed, etc to make a nice notebook or whatever you fancy.
After returning to the foundation, Kate and Ryan cleared an area to plant passion fruit while Chris (the French chap) and I built a bridge. It was just a small one for locals, next to an elephant path. I added a sign to make it clear who could use the bridge and who could use the path still, because the planks that we hammered together would probably not take 5000KGs of elephant.
we had another much needed shower, packed and said our goodbyes. This is another place that we don't like leaving, we had a great time here. We'd thoroughly recommend a bit of volunteering so that you can experience the elephants close up rather than just as a normal tourist.
The tuk-tuk to Rambukkana was good, and the ninety minute train journey to Colombo was quite punctual and civilised with no one selling anything, which was a shame.
This is where the plans got complicated and took a turn for the worst, rescued only by Nuwan!
Nuwan is a friend of a friend of a friend so there was no real reason for him to help us. But he had reserved our tickets for an overnight train from Colombo to Trincomalee. Initially, the plan was to travel in our own compartment with beds, but I was too late in booking these.
So we dropped a grade to sleeperettes, which were nice wide reclining seats that looked like first class seats on a plane, perfectly acceptable. The trouble is, you need to book the tickets in advance (through Mobitel, the main phone service provider) which is where Nuwan offered to help, and while I thought we could just pick up the tickets from a Mobitel booth, it was not this simple. So we met Nuwan (who we had not met before) outside a busy railway station. While we were the only Westerners around by this busy major train station, we were easy to spot because we had a green bag.
While we were waiting for Nuwan, we noticed a slightly higher police presence than normal and some cheering and general crowd noises. Nuwan broke the news to us that there is a strike this evening, and a lot of trains aren't running. It was too early to say whether our train was running, so Nuwan drove us to a nicer part of the city for a cup of tea. We then went back to the staion to receive confirmation that our train was cancelled.
So we dropped a grade to busses. We walked over to the bus terminal a mile or so away, and found a very nice new air conditioned bus leaving in fifty minutes. We didn't need to book, so we went back to collect the car, grab food, use the toilets then we would be on our way.
We parked close to the bus terminal, went to a hotel which directed us to the public toilets, so we tried for toilets at our restaurant (none there) while ordering food. We got to the public toilets which were closed, so instead of walking we jumped into a tuk-tuk where the driver drove fifty yards to the next toilet! This was open but not the most pleasant experience, as buckets of disinfectant-water were thrown across the floor where everyone was standing. We got back to the bus to see that it was full!
So we dropped a grade to an old bus. Did you see how a started three paragraphs with "so I dropped a grade"? I missed out train second class and train third class. So we dropped five grades! Nuwan was very keen to make sure we were okay on the bus and was going to wait until the bus left, but he agreed to leave earlier. Without him I am not sure what we would have done!
Now let me tell you about this bus. This looked some psychedelic whackiness from the 1960's (and I think it actually was). We climbed on it to be met by the strong smell of jos-sticks burning. There were quite a few, with a smoky haze at the front of the bus. We couldn't find any double seats so we positioned ourselves at the back of the coach where there were six seats. I call them seats, but they were half seats/half benches. big enough for a small child! The rest of the bus had three seats on one side and two on the other, which would not make the bus balance well. The roof of the bus had pretty flowers and butterflies, the windows had gold curtains with tassles and when you add in a bit of blue and green led lighting, it was all pretty groovy. But it really smelt of elephants - oh hang on, that was my shoes. The bus filled up pretty quickly. There were six of us on the back row, and our bums and shoulders were wedged in. If the seat was removed, we wouldn't fell down.
After an hour of waiting, the bus left at about 10.40pm and so, at last, we had a lovely breeze through the coach to cool us down. I wouldn't have wanted to be one of the two people sitting in the stairwell of the open exit doors or the poor passengers who stood all the way. These people are very impressive. The driver whizzed along, blasting his horn frequently through the night, while I dozed slightly and Kate didn't at all. I found out the next morning that I did sleep heavier than I realised, because she had to apologise to the lady on my other side when I flopped onto her. Personally, I think she's lucky I didn't dribble.
DAY SIX
We arrived at Trincomalee way earlier than expected, at 4.00am. We left the small group of tuk-tuk men and looked for possible refreshments, but there was only one small cafe rammed with locals so we gave it a miss. While we were sitting outside the cafe area in the middle of the town, a deer appeared right next to us. Were we hallucinating? Was this bit of our adventure a dream? I'll have to look at my photos later to check!
We went back to the tuk-tuks and were taken to our next accommodation ten miles away. It was like some computer game, where you have to avoid the animals in the headlights as you whizz along. Lots of dogs on the road, one cow and a tortoise - he missed them all somehow. At 5.00am he blasted his horn outside the hotel but we told him we would just sit outside and wait. A nice chap appeared and quickly prepared a room for us to catch up on a bit of sleeeeeep zzzzz.
I woke up first (well, I had a good night's sleep it seems!) and discovered that, in daylight, this place was wonderful! It is also pretty nice at night, too. We had a choice of the private bigger bungalow that we had booked, or stay in our room which was twenty five yards to the beach with the restaurant on the way.
There is nothing here. The hotel has about a dozen guests, and the beach has nothing other than a few fisherman boats. We think there's no other restaurants nearby, but a five minute walk will get us to a tiny supermarket selling crisps and fizzy drinks. It's perfect!
After Kate woke up we had a pot of tea and some time on the beach. It's cloudy, sun tan lotion is on but I still manage to turn lobster-coloured, because it's a British thing that we do to be identified abroad. The sea is calm, warm and clear but I managed to make friends with a jelly fish who stung my elbow.
We watched the rain rolling in along the coast, and some other guests suggested we get off the beach quickly - they were right, it rained hard from late morning until early evening. Along with the rain came a power cut! We still sat outside and chilled, which was good. When it stopped raining I went for a stroll to the supermarket and bought some exotic snacks and drinks. People seem to come out after the rain, they are almost without exception friendly with smiles and greetings for me. Even the herd of cows that I had to tackle in the street were friendly. This is possibly the friendliest, safest country I've ever been to. The security in this hotel is the best so far, the other places have had the equivalent of Wilko £2.99 locks on the doors which shows that crime doesn't seem to be an issue.
We did see a deer having a drink in a cafe in Trincomalee late last night. I checked my photos.
We had a stroll along the beach (where we met the cows again) and I helped some fishermen launch some boats. This was a mistake, because I managed to stub my toe so badly that it may be broken. It's a lovely shade of blue and a bit swollen.
Almost all guests are down for dinner at the same time, which is very pleasant. There's no licence here, so no alcohol although you can get a bottle of wine. One couple took this option, but had to drink it out of teacups after it was poured from the teapot.
DAY SEVEN
Another chillout day so not a lot to say (we did wash some clothes and hang them to dry on our sunbed area on the beach!), so I'll tell you about some prices here if you are ever tempted to explore Sri Lanka. On top of the flights, our accommodation tends to be about £15 per person per night and it's all perfectly reasonable. Alcoholic drinks seem to be a little bit lower than UK. Public transport is terribly good value. Our train from Rambukkana to Colombo was ninety minutes and cost 75 pence (second class, third class is cheaper. Ask yourself if we didn't travel first class so that I could save money, or if there is another reason). Our night train compartment with bed would have been £7 per person, but we saved a whopping £4.50 when we paid £2.50 by travelling on the overnight psychedelic sardine can bus. The journey must have been nearly 200 miles, so it was a bit more than 1p per mile.
Three Dutch people left this morning. They have a tandem and normal bike between them, and have booked nothing. There seem to be a few people who drift from place to place on long holidays of a couple of months. It's all very laid back and relaxed.
Let me tell you about our two mistakes with whales. Firstly, when we arrived at Trincomalee I planned for us to get a tuk-tuk to Swami Rock which is the world's best place to spot blue whales from the land (past experience says whale watching from boats tends to be combined with sick bag filling). It's about two miles East of Trincomalee, which puts it firmly in the sea so that's not going to happen! The other mistake is the couple of hours we spent watching a whale from our beach. It was fascinating, we could just see the back of it and a couple of boats nearby watching. It was way out to sea, but I have a good camera lens that just about makes it out.
After finding out that we were watching a rock, we went for another cuppa.
Tomorrow we have a driver for a few days. He's called Dash. Every time I say or hear his name, I want to add "Aa - aah, saviour of the universe" - in the same way as "You're rocking the boat" when I hear the footballer Zinedine Zidane's surname.
My toe really hurts. The verdict of the non-medical other guests is that it's broken. It's certainly a nice shade of blue.
DAY EIGHT
After watching the sunrise and chatting to some other guests, we had a leisurely breakfast in the restaurant among the dogs, cat, birds and dragonflies. We packed and Dash (Ah-aah, saviour of the universe) arrived fifteen minutes early. Good news, music lovers - Michael Jackson is alive and well and living in Sri Lanka! He is the spitting image, anyway.
We set off and Dash (ah-aah, saviour of the universe) pointed out monkeys on the side of the road, temples with explanations and various other things. He drove very slowly and sensibly, something we are impressed with and are not used to. He got stopped by the police three times today, they like doing their checks here.
Dash (ah-aah, etc) suggested that we stop for lunch, then we pulled in to the equivalent of a motorway service station with high speed buffet self service and hundreds of Chinese people taking photos of food, tables and other things that cause a drain on the world's megabyte supply when they download/upload. This was a real shock after sitting on the edge of the beach watching one of the hotel dogs digging a deep hole in the sand under a table. Clearly, we are in "back-hander territory" here but we expected it, drivers need to make money wth tips and back-handers as their salaries are low. But I think we have become tourists for a few days, rather than adventurers.
After lunch, the gentle driving sent me to sleep until I was vaguely aware and woken up by a question from Dash - "......blah blah Spice Garden?" "Yes", I said, pretending I knew what was going on. Two minutes later we were standing under umbrellas in the pouring rain, having a lecture on ginger, termuric and aloe vera which escalated to full medical examinations through our wrists and a list of all our ailments. The potions were offered to us to make us better with prices from £7.50 to £60. Through guilt we bought some spice tea (consisting only of stuff in our kitchen cupboard). We declined the love potion but tried to get him to call it rumpy-pumpy potion for the next customers! On to the next place...
Dash then broke the news to us that we did not allow enough time to arrive at our hotel and we should cancel it, and stay in Kandy (where he lives). Before we came to Sri Lanka, he did actually get me to change hotels so that we stay in Kitulgala tonight! We drove through Kandy, stopped for a meal at a run down cafe then continued to our accommodation for the night. Just before disappearing for the night, Dash told us he has to go to Columbo tomorrow (easy to get to from Kandy) so we may have a new driver. That explains a lot!
Kate has left me to book everything for this holiday, and has happily put up with everything so far. But tonight's place is exceptional. Off the road, down some stairs and a little walk gets you to the breakfast area at the side of a big tree covered hill. Then a walk along a very wobbly wooden footbridge (a bit like a wooden version of the "I'm a celebrity" footbridges, but without the Health and Safety checks) gets you to our treehouse for the night. It's completely wooden (other than the bathroom), has a tree trunk through the middle, water and working electricity and a balcony. Unfortunately we arrived at 9.00pm so we don't know the view or how high we are, but it is very high. There's a few bugs here and smelly bug repellants. It's also a bit colder. There was a gekko directly above me, but it's gone now - I'd better check the bed and my hair!
DAY NINE
I woke up at 5.00am, it was dark and quiet other then a river running way below us (it's the one in the film "Bridge On The River Kwai", but not the real River Kwai). At 5.15am, there was an almighty hurricane blowing through the area. Well, it was a little bit windy, but we are high up. It's like being on a ship as we rock and creak in the darkness!
When it got light, we could see where we are. The view is stunning, with low cloud covering the tops of the green hills. The rain comes and goes this morning (nothing though the night), it's a bit cooler but the treehouse is very impressive. After studying the area, I've worked out that we are three storeys high and the ground slopes away sharply. The gaps in the floorboards are a bit offputting, it wobbles a lot in the wind and when we move and there's a big drop below. It's a lot nicer than the last treehouse we stayed in thirty years ago (open sides, only a candle, matches and potty in Africa), hexagonal in shape and about twenty foot across, and watertight. We watched some monkeys playing in the tops of the trees near us then went across the wobbly footbridge for yet another amazing breakfast and chat with a chap who had problems with leeches yesterday when hiking up Adam's Peak.
Dash appeared, we went in to town, I sorted some more cash put then we waited for our new driver to come in by bus. He was due to arrive in fifteen minutes, but after ten minutes I thought I would have a stroll through the bus station to a supermarket. I walked along with friendly "hellos" to and from everyone on the side of the road, which is all very pleasant!
Dash set us up with music in the car - Of course, it was Michael Jackson. We met the new driver, said goodbye (as Dash moonwalked off to get his bus) and drove for several hours through the stunning tea country. The plan was originally to go white water rafting but it was raining, we didn't want to get wet. Not really, it was a bit rougher than we thought, so we gave it a miss. It didn't take long to discover that our new driver spoke very little English! He is very good though, he always stops at good photo points.
We've arrived in Ella, the accommodation is a few miles outside the town with nothing nearby. The view is stunnning, with the tea bushes in the hills all around and a temple in the distance. Our room costs approx £9 per person but they don't have a room for our driver (which they normally do in most hotels). Presumably this is a small room at the back of the hotels. We are to pay about £8 per night for our driver, but he will have to find somewhere in the town tonight. I asked if they had a single room, which they didn't but they did put him in the large family room for £10! This makes life easier.
We are quite excited because this is the first place where the shower has hot water. This hasn't been an issue (except in the Treehouse) because it's been so warm elsewhere. However, the plug and socket are next to the shower and heater, so (not for the first time) this blog could end suddenly!
We had a nice meal on the veranda overlooking the hills covered in tea plants, it was rice five different curry dishes, for the equivalent of £5 for two people. We then watched the glow-flies and bats before calling it a day.
DAY TEN
Have you seen the Harry Potter film with the triple decker bus that goes really thin to squeeze though gaps? Well, JK Rowling was not a writer of fiction because it happens here. It is not unusual to overtake a motorbike overtaking a car on the wrong side of a blind bend, but no one is concerned and the oncoming lorry never seems to crash. This is because the maximum speed seems to be 30mph, although the tuk-tuks feel a lot faster. Bigger more powerful motorbikes are not allowed. This means that accidents are avoided because no one goes too fast. The dogs add to the chaos. There are far too many strays, and the owned ones live outdoors and roam the streets anyway. They lie on the road to sleep or walk along the edge of the road, and somehow don't get hit. When we arrived we were screeching warnings to the poor driver but now we see how it all works, but our nerves are pretty frayed from this. We won't ever get used to it even though it's the way of life here.
After a very nice breakfast we set off to the nearby tea factory against the advice of our driver. As we were the only ones there (it was early), we had our own guided tour by a very nice chap. Before the tour I pinched some tealeaves from a bush to give to someone with a herb drying machine, so that we could try to make some tea back home. After the tour, I have found that it must be air dried, go through processes to get to exactly 65% dry, shaken, etc, only the top three leaves should be taken and these three leaves determine the three different grades of tea, we must allow for strength, quality, colour and taste. Maybe my idea of home-made tea is a bad one. Anyway, we bought some posh tea afterwards and Kate's got a new best friend in the tea guide.
We drove for a couple of hours and then stopped at our driver's preferred tea factory, where we declined a tour with the Chinese crowds and had a nice cup of tea and cake.
Continuing our journey, we stopped at Ramboda Falls where we watched some very naughty monkeys playing in the river, running across the road and climbing the local buildings.
A couple of hours later we arrived at Kandy which is a busy hilly town, but tolerable. Our accommodation is the second home of a nice family on six acres, with a cook and maid and one other guest. Our driver (we still don't know his name) went off to find his own place to stay. Despite the cook on the premises, we went on the ten minute walk into the busy chaos of town and found a place to eat in a shopping complex. We found a super supermarket where we bought a load of tea at half the price of the tea factories!
The tuk-tuk driver back to the house was keen to give us his phone number when we return to Kandy in a few days, even though every other car is a tuk-tuk and we won't leave the train/bus station.
DAY ELEVEN
No curry for breakfast! I think this is the first time in a while that's happened. Nevertheless, very nice. The lady waved us goodbye and our driver took us to the Temple of The Tooth in Kandy.
It's a pretty special tooth, obviously, but it's so special that you don't actually get to see it. The temple grounds are very nice, with other small temples nearby and various people meditating and chanting, with the whiff of jos-sticks in the air. A band started, consisting of someone on drums and someone playing a pipe. The two tunes and beats were completely out of sync which must be quite hard! We had to take our shoes off before entering, so our driver guarded the shoes while I hobbled (in case you don't know, I've broken my toe).
We then set off for Siguriya which was a three hour drive. Our driver parked, and told us that he would wait for us in the other car park (whatever that means!). We paid, walked through some nice gardens then started our ascent up Siguriya rock. It was a tough walk, there were lots of Chinese people in the way taking photos!
To get an idea of the place, type "Siguriya Rock" on google images, then you will know what we are talking about. After we had set off, there was a sign saying that if the bees are disturbed, they will close the rock beyond the lion's paws and you won't get your money back! Another sign said to be quiet because of the bees.
We made it up the stone steps and rickety metal staircases that clung to the edge of the cliff, to the final steps at the lion's paws. I wanted to get a photo of just the lion's paws but there were a few Chinese tourists there so I had little chance - until a two second window allowed me to get the snap!
On to the top, and the views were breathtaking. The place had ruins of a temple/palace, it was quite impressive. We stayed there for a while until I pointed out the big dark menacing cloud heading our way.
As soon as we set off down the first set of stone steps, a sudden wind came from nowhere and everyone stopped and sheltered - this looks like an interesting time coming.... As we descended one set of rickety metal stairs overhanging the cliffs, I stopped to take a photo. Some thoughtful Americans assumed I froze because of the drop and gave me words of encouragement while pushing past me!
As we got closer to the bottom, and started to follow the signs to "Foreigners Car Park" (something that may be a talking point if introduced in the UK!), it started to rain. Then pour. Buckets of water fell from the sky, so we ran for cover in a place cheerfully known as the hooded cobra cave, where an old chap tried to sell us some nice carvings (I doubt I'd get these cheaper in the supermarket). Within a few minutes, our driver appeared under an umbrella to rescue us - what a star! Being the decent gents that we are, we gave Kate all the bags and the umbrella while we ran to the car, taking shelter where we could along the way. It was all pointless, we were instantly soaked anyway. But we set off for our next place to stay, which was ten miles away.
This is not a good time to get a puncture. In fact, this is one of the worst times, but we did! Our driver jumped out and changed the bald tyre for another bald tyre while I held the umbrella for us both, which is probably the extent of my capabilities when changing tyres. The majority of cars, tuk-tuks and motorbikes that passed stopped to offer help.
With the tyre fixed, we set off to our home for a staggering two nights, said goodbye to our driver, and embarked on our next episode. We still don't know his name, but we know it's a long complicated name and we will miss him!
Tonight's place is someone's house in Habarona with three nice hotel rooms upstairs at the back. We are surrounded by trees. The owners are very friendly, and have given us a nice cup of tea! One other room has an Argentinian couple.
We asked if there was a restaurant nearby that we could go to for tea, and the owner said he would take us to one in his tuk-tuk. We agreed 5.30pm because we haven't eaten since breakfast, so at exactly 5.30pm we went downstairs and jumped into his tuk-tuk. This is a very smart tuk-tuk, it's "Pirates of the Carribean" themed with four exhausts.
Off we go, down the country lane, turn right then whizz along for a mile or two then down a country lane to a big posh hotel (we assumed he gets a back-hander). But he didn't stop, he carried along the path which had a big lake to the left. We pulled up then walked a couple of hundred yards until we got to the end. He showed us where the locals go swimming, we saw some people doing washing in the lake, some people were fishing and a German lady was wandering around because she lost her hotel and didn't know it's name.
We saw some peacocks in the trees, frogs in the path, but the most impressive thing was the bats. These aren't like the normal bats that whizz around at home, these were great big graceful bats with 2.5ft wingspans coming across the lake in search of fruit.
He then drove us on the same route back, but we didn't stop at any restaurants. We asked about food, but he just said that he is cooking for us, dinner ready in half an hour! I wonder if it'll be bat?
It wasn't bat, but it was a record eight dishes with rice. All very nice, along with a pleasant chat with the two other guests, a couple from Argentina.
DAY TWELVE
Before I tell you about today, I just want to thank you all for your messages of concern over my broken toe. Unfortunately you all seem to be using the wrong address, because they haven't arrived for me.
Yet another good breakfast with a hint of curry, and our plan for the morning is to take it easy with a stroll in to town to get some money from an ATM and explore, followed by an afternoon elephant safari. The guest house owner works for the Trincomalee bus company and he told us there are about two hundred deer roaming the streets of Trincomalee!
The walk in to town was a good twenty minutes, saying hello to everyone we passed and even high-fiving a chap on a bike. The first ATM that we came to was for People's Bank which didn't work because it didn't deal with foreign accounts. We found a few stalls on the edge of town which turned out to be a market which was even better than Redhill market on a Saturday. We had a good explore, bought some sarongs and spices, and very nearly an Adidas cap for £1.50 but the stitching wasn't up to the normal Adidas quality so we left it. I'm now going to tell you something personal, so brace yourself. I'm running low on underwear. I could wash some then hang it on the hotel room fan to spin dry, but I'm not that organised. So I bought a pair of pants in the market. The true reason for the purchase, though, was the name. You can keep your "Calvin Kleins", etc, my new make is called Poomax.
We tracked down the Commercial Bank ATM but this didn't work, which was potentially disastrous. We had enough money for the safari, but not our hotel bill. We jumped in a tuk-tuk back to the hotel, and then discovered that the safari man (who we will call Ian, because he looked like Mr Botham) was coming early because of the potential rains.
So our relaxing morning never happened, and we were quickly off to Kaudulla in the back of a boneshaker Mahindra jeep. Our driver was very good at spotting things, we started off with crocodile, chameleon, birds, monkeys to name a few. Then we saw the elephants. There was a big plain, with a herd of two hundred in total. We parked close to them and they came very close to us. The difference between here and the elephant foundation is that these ones are wild, and potentially more dangerous. Nevertheless, they were close enough for Kate to get a bit of a mud shower when one was draining a puddle with his trunk and soaking himself. I told Kate that it is elephant snot all over her. Add the mud from the tyres of the jeep, and she was looking quite speckled.
There were quite a few other jeeps there, at one point it looked a bit like a car boot sale car park. But putting that aside, it was pretty impressive. Ian fed us some delicious samosas with eggs - a recipe worth finding. We drove back and Ian stopped to buy a bag of mangoes from a couple of boys at the side of the road. They gave me one for free, which was very nice. Ian decided to take us on a detour up some rocky terrain to watch the sun set as it turned out that there wasn't any hint of rain for the day. He then took us through the town centre where we tried the ATMs again without success, but then someone told us about the Ceylon Bank ATM hidden at the end of the town. I tried it and bingo! We had some money to pay our hotel bill.
We are eating out tonight, there is a hotel and restaurant down the road which may be worth a visit. The guest house man insisted on taking us there in his tuk-tuk, which is always fun.
The lack of rain has meant that there are bugs everywhere, like black ladybirds. Even the front door is closed, to stop them. We have arrived at our restaurant, and it didn't take long to notice that there are five people serving us, all waiting in the background. I asked if they were busy, and they said "yes, the hotel is full." There wasn't another customer in sight until near the end of our meal when a jeep pulled up, deposited a potential guest who was shown a room, took it and settled down for a meal.
Our meal consisted of noodles for Kate, and I opted for the curry, despite the fact that it was pricey (£4). The curry was in fact a soup starter, seven dishes to go with rice, a selection of fruit and tea afterwards. Oh yes, and a few bugs. They were crawling on the floor, so I guess a few must have fallen into our food.
The waiter also asked me if I would like a beer, to which I agreed. The same thing happened last night. The first two places offered me beer aswell, but only one or two, but nowhere else has there been any sign of beer. Alcohol is not on the menu anywhere, I think you have to have a licence which is hard to get. The wine at Nilaveli was discreetly sold in tea pots (but again, no beer was available). Supermarkets do not sell beer or wine. There are some off-licences, but beer and wine is difficult to get hold of. It's quite a novel holiday with not too much wine or beer!
Having said all that, the waiter made us a fresh fruit juice cocktail, mine had arakk in it which is the local coconut liqueur - and rather nice it is! After some poorly taken selfies by the waiter (blotted himself out with his own thumb and didn't realise!), we walked the mile home in the dark on the side of the road which was probably the most dangerous part of the holiday so far.
DAY THIRTEEN
I'm so upset. My new Poomax pants are way too small. Maybe they'll make a nice present for the office secret santa. There's lots of travelling today, let's see how this goes.
The couple who run our hotel/guest house have organised a tuk-tuk to take us to the bus station in Habarana. The owners had to both go out, leaving just us in the guest house. The tuk-tuk man arrived slightly early, so off we went with all doors left open! The bus station was, in fact, a bus stop. Within five minutes our bus arrived, we loaded our bags and off we went. There was no air conditioning but a nice breeze when the window was open and the bus was moving. There was also a TV on the coach and some pretty good Bollywood music coming from powerful speakers at the back of the bus. We whizzed along, through a storm, then arrived three hours later as expected in Kandy bus station. At some stops, the food sellers came on the bus selling sweetcorn, water, etc. The tickets for this trip are 70 pence each, which isn't just good value but unsustainably good bearing in mind a full coach would only take fifty people (£35). We are quite early, but have been caught in the tail end of another storm. It's a short walk to the train station where we picked up our tickets (you can order them in the UK for £11 per person (inc £7 booking fee), the face value of tickets is £4.
We found a 1940's station cafe, had a samosa and cup of tea each, then headed for our train with an hour to spare. We are on the luxurious observation train with large windows for spectacular views. The train winds it's way through the rainforest through small tunnels as it drops to the coast from the middle of the island over 2.5 hours, leaving us with incredible views of the rainforest and tracks that we leave behind. Unfortunately for part of the journey we also have views of the back of a child's head (and his sticky-out ears) as he plays unrestrained, instead of being heavily sedated before the journey!
As soon as we stepped out of Colombo station we were swamped by taxi and tuk-tuk drivers, and were quickly adding to the Colombo rush hour jams. Cars and coaches were moving inches from my knee as I half hung to the edge of the tuk-tuk (Kate was in the middle and a case was secure on the other side).
Our hotel for the evening was relatively quiet, hidden a hundred yards from the busy suburbs. It's very posh with several big fish ponds and a small pool, it must be difficult to know where to swim, although the koi carp are a clue. There's even hot water! After a sadly non-Sri Lankan meal (nothing local on the menu), we went for a walk but there's nothing to see so we headed back to the hotel for an early night.
DAY FOURTEEN
One of the ponds doesn't have any fish in it. I think it's a jacuzzi.
After a formal breakfast in this formal hotel (it's a nice, normal hotel but the places we have stayed in so far have been very friendly and casual so this seems very posh and formal), we had a chat with a receptionist who said that they once had a Scot who couldn't understand why the pool wasn't very deep and there were fish in it.
We were told by the hotel that there weren't any busses going to our next stop (Induruwu), and the train times weren't good from the local stations. So we were looking at a tuk-tuk to Colombo, train (if we miss it there's a two hour wait) then tuk-tuk. It then occurred to us to get a taxi for the fifty mile journey. After battling through the Colombo suburbs, we got on to the super express road where we whizzed along (average speed 82kph according to the toll receipt), then ten minutes later we were at our next hotel.
This one is a nice big hotel - 24 rooms, all overlooking the sea with balconies and right next to the train station that we aren't now using. There's a nice pool, lovely lounge area and the whole thing is almost on the beach. Two other rooms were occupied when we arrived, but now it's quiet. The chap working here can't really do enough for us. We have tea bags, sugar, milk, cups and saucers in our room. He was delighted when I asked for a kettle.
Unlike our earlier beach experience, the sea here is very rough so we can't go swimming. We had a walk along the beach and paddled at the water's edge, but the odd big wave crept in and soaked us. It was a bit rainy this morning, but just a few threatening clouds for the rest of the day.
There's a gang of tuk-tuk drivers waiting outside the hotel to pounce on us. They were disappointed when we said that we wanted to walk to the local shops and cafe. The cafe was closed anyway, so the afternoon was spent chilling in the hotel and beach and spin-drying underwear from the room fan (see Poomax disaster earlier - it's not what it sounds like).
The price of this hotel includes dinner, so I thought I'd better check what time dinner is. Our friendly chap said that it is whenever we want. I asked if he had a menu, but he said we could eat whatever we want - chef will prepare especially for us. I have now established that we are the only guests in this hotel (those shoes from the elephant foundation must really be smelly).
Talking of food, throughout the country there are bread tuk-tuks. They play a Beethoven tune when they are in the area (a bit like ice cream vans) that is quite eerie. It would be good for a horror movie!
The meal was served by a waiter in a blue shirt. Actually, it was the same chap but I think he was pretending to be another person to make it look like there were more staff. Some other guests have arrived, I think there are two other couples. Nevertheless, our meal in the big dining room was eaten almost alone but we did have a nice guest briefly - a bat flew in and out.
DAY FIFTEEN
This is a bit worrying - I'm on day fifteen of a fourteen day holiday. Have I missed my flight?
Breakfast was a lonely affair again, with just the two of us in the dining area. Both the other guests seem to have disappeared. We ventured out of the hotel and made the tuk-tuk men happy by taking a tuk-tuk to the turtle sanctuary. He wasn't that happy, he wanted to take us to a different sanctuary further away but we stood our ground.
The sanctuary itself was very small, and the guide's English wasn't great so he couldn't answer our questions. There were a lot of injured turtles, as well as eggs and babies. They owners seemed to be working in the turtles' interests rather than commercially which can happen. The guide gave us a fridge magnet at the end of the explanation which was nice of him.
We walked back along the beach to the hotel (it was only a half hour walk) then chilled under a couple of coconut trees by the sea, as the sun was out. It'll be our last chance to enjoy warm weather for six months or so.
At lunchtime we packed. We had the added problem that a lot of ants who seemed to make our hand luggage case their home so we had to evict them. We checked out (I tried to find the man a couple of times to pay, but there was no one other than the swimming pool cleaner anywhere in the entire hotel), and we then put ourselves up as bait for the tuk-tuk men who pounced on us.
We wanted a tuk-tuk to Bentota which was about 10km away, and we were told it was 400 rupees which I know is far too much, it should be 300 or so at the most. Rather than have an argument (with Kate who thinks I'm tight, but I don't like being ripped off), I decided to pay the 400 rupees. After all, it's about £2. The plan was to get the 3.40pm train from Bentota to Colombo Fort, then train to a station near the airport, then tuk-tuk. But the tuk-tuk driver dropped us off early at a bus going to Colombo Fort, and then on to the airport. This follows a conversation with the tuk-tuk man that went along the lines of "Is the bus better than the train?" - "Yes." - "Do you know if the bus is faster than the train?" - "Yes" - Well?" - "Yes?" - "Is the bus faster than the train?" - "Yes.". Despite my concerns, he was spot on with the decision to dump us at the bus station rather than the train station.
We paid our fare of £2.50. I only had a 5000 rupee note (£25) which he took (the only other cash I had was 45 rupees), so I watched the conductor like a hawk until I got my change at the end of the journey.
We set off within a few minutes and I quickly learnt a new crime. It's called bus queue theft. We would drive close to the kerb, slow down at a bus stop and the conductor would shout something then scoop in new passengers, barely stopping at all. He physically grabbed some people by the arm and pulled them up. For a short part of the journey he wasn't as successful until we passed a normal bus and he could scoop up the passengers ahead of him again. Good time was made and we got to the bus station at Colombo Fort but the conductor told us we need another bus. He ran around, carrying our two cases in the heat, until he found our bus where he gave me the change and went on his merry way. It's worth pointing out that we ditched some towels and dog charity stuff but only bought tea bags and a pair of pants so the luggage should be slightly lighter.
We got on our new coach followed by a chap who played a guitar and sang awfully for a few minutes, then had to quickly ask for money as the bus was leaving! He jumped off the moving bus and 45 minutes later we were at the airport with plenty of time to spare. While waiting, we noticed quite a few ants coming out of our hand luggage case! The wait has allowed me to type up today's events and come up with a dozen hints and tips if this waffle inspires you to go on a trip to Sri Lanka:
1) It is normal to take your shoes off whenever you enter a house, room, temple, etc.
2) The scary Beethoven tunes in the distance are just bread vans.
3) Sri Lankan drivers are the best, bravest drivers in the world. Even though they drive on the same side as the UK, I would be more successful driving blindfolded around the Arc De Triomphe. They have a special, clever and unique way of driving that can't be copied.
4) The electric adaptors are two pin, but the sockets are three pins. In order to make them work, you have to put a stick in the top hole. Chompa taught me this, I do not suggest you try it even though I never met anyone who suffered (but dead men can't talk).
5) Elephants like their bellies rubbed. Try it with coconut husk, but don't try it unsupervised and don't try it with wild elephants.
6) Book the smaller boutique hotels and guest houses. The owners are extremely friendly and helpful.
7) Don't expect cold drinks with ice. The water, etc, tends to be room temperature but that's okay, it still tastes good.
8) Standard phone etiquette is to carry a smart phone accompanied by the ever-reliable Nokia 3310.
9) Most accommodation only has cold water unless you splash out and pay over £30 per night. It's not a problem when it's so warm.
10) Booze is hard to come by. But then again, what's the point of touring such a great place with a hangover?
11) Don't worry about coming in the rainy season - it's all part of the experience and reduces the likelihood of sunburn.
12) Expect friendliness and help way beyond any other country that you've been to, this alone will make a trip to Sri Lanka great.
So, with an uneventful journey home, this story comes to an end. If this inspires you to have a trip to Sri Lanka, then go for it but you will need two guides - us! We'll definitely be back...
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY ONE (OR SO)
Well, I've come back. There's a theme here with these trips, initially there were five of us and now we are down to one. Probably a personal hygiene issue! Timing is such that I can come back to to Sri Lanka but it is just me, with a week being spent at the elephant sanctuary, followed by an attempt to meet with Sam, his girlfriend and her family and then who knows what will happen?
What could possibly go wrong?
So I was dropped off at the airport without any issues other than to be told that I must not do nothing stupid like go back to a stranger's house to buy fake aftershave (see www.carryonupthenile.yolasite.com) and with plenty of time to kill I had a drink with a nephew who had just finished a shift at the airport. The flight was wonderfully uneventful, the only issue was after breakfast. A lady went to the loo while it was completely empty, but by the time she came out she had an audience of seven (including me) and the faulty flush which went off at least four times without being asked, and there was also a blocked sink which didn't help her cause.
With only hand luggage, I left the airport pretty quickly, grabbed some cash from an ATM then escaped the chaos by crossing the main road to get a tuk-tuk to a place called Veyagoda which was 38 km away.
After an argument with the tuk-tuk man ( I thought Veyagoda was only 15 km away) who initially agreed an overpriced 1,700 rupees but then got 2,000 rupees from me, I got dropped off and had just enough time to buy my ticket (110 rupees), a samosa and bottle of water before the train came in.
It was the fast train, so I whizzed along to Rambukkana where I hopped off and took a tuk-tuk to the elephant sanctuary. The driver had no change but helped by taking me to a shop where I got some change for him.
I strolled into the Foundation and little had changed. I met Evi who was a new co-ordinator, and I was delighted to find that I'd arrived just in time for lunch, cashew nut curry which was wonderful!
I wasn't sure how long I would last before needing a sleep, so I got straight on with work - painting the shower block!
The co-ordinators are Jade (from UK), Ryan (who we met last year, from Canada) and Evi from Holland. There are also two other
Dutch girls, an Australian girl and an English girl with her French fiancee. They've all made me feel very welcome from the start.
There's a new volleyball court so we had a game with the mahouts who were really good,but I must confess I didn't knw what was going on as they kept chatting, arguing, keeping the score, etc. I may have been on the winning team. Probably not though. We then went for dinner. After dinner, I joined the others for a game of table tennis then tiredness hit. I slept very well.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY TWO
We were up early to sort the vitamins and give them to the elephants and check their feet. Then after breakfast and a shower, we set off to Habarana. Eight of us were in the back of a truck, and we had a really good view of the cars and lorries attempting to overtake us. It was all mildly terrifying, but I am used to it now.
As soon as we got to Habarana, five of us swapped into a jeep and went on safari where we saw quite a few wild elephants in the long grass. It seems strange leaving the elephant sanctuary to go on an elephant safari, but it is good to see them completely free.
We stopped at Habarana for beer and arak supplies, then headed for the bungalow. We were going to sleep in a treehouse in a very remote part of the countryside, but it was raining (it always is when I stay in a treehouse) so we headed for the bungalow instead.
It's very basic, with three bedrooms, a main living area, beds, mattresses, fans and curtains for doors. The shower had no roof and the toilets were quite dark with a few resident frogs. There's no hot water, the same applies to the sanctuary but it's not a problem in a hot country. I do miss the hot showers this time, though. I need to toughen up!
We set off for a five minute walk along the road to a farmer's house. He had made us a very nice curry, all home grown including the nicest rice I've ever had. After a lovely meal we headed back and had a few beers and chat around the table. As tiredness set in, people drifted to their beds including the guys who drove us, who slept in the main living area while we chatted.
Apparently it is quite common for wild elephants to walk through the garden at night. They can damage anything they see, so I'd better be careful if I pop out to the loo in the night.
I apologised to the couple I was sharing my room with for my snoring, but I think quite a few of us were snoring so I got away with it. I'd only known them 24 hours, so it's just as well we had separate beds.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY THREE
Ten of us were staying in the bungalow, so using the outside toilet was a bit precarious as there was no water. We had established that the water had been turned off because the pipe leaks due to elephants walking through and treading on them. Once water was back on, we all got ready (the cold shower was bracing), then went to the farmer's house for a lovely curry breakfast. It started raining Sri-Lankan style, so we were trapped in the farmer house for a while but after the rain eased, we walked to the bungalow where I got my raincoat. Then we headed for the school where we were guests of honour, sitting in the front row of the show.
The school was a very basic building, with a wall separating the main area and two smaller rooms. At the front there were some small swings and climbing frames, and to the rear were toilets and an outside wash area. A curtain separated the stage from the audience.
The display started with a speech and each of us lit a home-made candle in oil. Somehow the curtain didn't catch light as someone moved the curtain at the same time as the candle display was moved.. The show consisted of lots of dancing by the children, mostly traditional music but "I'm a Barbie Girl" did strangely feature on the playlist, all played through a distorted loud music system. After an hour we were called to the back room where we were given tea, although it was more of a mix between tea, ovaltine and sugar. After a few more displays including a great recital of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" by a little girl, we went to the back room for lunch. Again, we had locally grown rice with a selection of very nice curries. We all ate in the traditional way, which involved rolling the food into a ball with your right hand and picking it up and eating it - no cutlery. I soon got used to it to the extent that I might encourage everyone in UK to eat that way.
The children then received Christmas packages including some things we bought out and also some lunchboxes. I agreed to pay for the lunchboxes if Ryan cut my hair for free! The school is very basic with no real income, so the support is crucial to the children's education. They all did so well, and made the excursion well worthwhile. This was a pre-school in a poor area, but they are only financially poor. It seems that they are far richer than most Westerners in community spirit and happiness.
We returned to the bungalow, collected our stuff then locked up the bungalow and headed off on the four hour journey to Habarana. The journey was uneventful but as always, a little bit scary. The rest of the afternoon and evening were spent chilling. We were served jackfruit curry for tea which was well worthwhile. You can't have too much curry!
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY FOUR
There are no jobs at the weekend, and we are free to do what we want. It's just me and the two Dutch girls here, so things are quiet. After yet another great breakfast, we spent the morning lazing in various parts of the sanctuary reading and chilling. I was enjoying reading my book by the river when Ranmenika, a poorly old elephant, had a big wee on the way in to the water close enough for me to have to find another spot. but it was nice to watch her play in the water, get scrubbed and eat a snack there. Ranmenika fell down a well at the age of six, so a long trench (one kilometre long) had to be dug so that she could walk out. The owner of the well took ownership of her and gave tourist rides on howdahs, which are elephant seats to make the rides more comfortable for the tourist, but they are very painful for elephants. She developed bad internal ulcers and fibrosis, so the foundation look after her for the owner and pay for the medical treatment. I hope that, while you read this nonsense, this one thing sticks in your mind if you ever find that you are offered an elephant ride. Personally, I haven't wanted to ride bareback on an elephant - I don't have the need to.
There's a steady stream of tourists who come and ride the elephants, scrub them in the river and have things explained at the small museum. I listened to a chap called Podi explain the museum information, he has a real passion for teaching.
Lunch was good as always, then we thought that after such a tough morning we would go to a hotel pool down the road in Pinawalla where we all read, swam and played Uno with waterproof cards.
Back to the sanctuary, dinner and then we had movie night. It started off with one of the girls having to deal with a leach on her leg, but it ended up being a pretty impressive sound system for the film, we watched Mowgli with real life jungle sounds in the background. The windows were open and the crickets and frogs aren't quiet here!
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY FIVE
Another quiet day today. I had breakfast then just read in a hammock. There must be about nine hammocks dotted around, all very comfy. Not much happened other than a French couple arriving just before lunch. The lady's English is not bad but the husband speaks very little English, and the Dutch girls speak no French. This is my chance to show off my "Delboy style french".
Having said how good the food is to the French couple, we were served tomato and mustard sandwiches! Luckily this was just a starter, but a nice curry style main course followed.
Evi and I gave three of the dogs a bath which was easy despite them objecting, probably because I normally have to bath my own big hairy dog who objects more and is much stronger. I thought I would go for a stroll, so I walked two miles to the next town and then two miles back. I got lots of friendly greetings from passers by, and a lot of tuk-tuk passengers wanted to high five me. I tried high fiving them back but I tried harder to miss because it would have hurt as they whizzed by at 30mph!
As soon as I got back, the mahouts wanted me to play volleyball so I joined in but once again didn't know the scores, or what they were arguing about. I think I was on the losing side again but I'm not sure. I have no sharp knives, so I asked a mahout if he had a knife to cut my limes. He called over another mahout who produced a small machete from somewhere inside his trousers, and quartered the lime perfectly. I think there's Health and Safety issues with playing volleyball with a machete down your trousers.
I returned to the volunteer section to meet two more Brits and an Australian girl. I think I looked a state, but had time to get a shower and we all went off for dinner. Dobby the rescue puppy has had a chew at my shoes as revenge for being given a bath. At the moment my only footwear is a pair of borrowed flip-flops. After dinner we had a bit of table tennis and a chat, then headed for bed.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY SIX
I was woken by the bush squirrels running up and down the tin roof. They made quite a racket. I got up and had a shower, then headed to the office to sort out the elephant vitamins. They have the same vitamins as us but larger quantities, for example ten Vitamin C pills, five folic acid pills, fifteen multivitamin pills. They are wrapped in two home made dough balls and then taken to the vet-check area where their feet are scrubbed, checked for marks and then the dough balls are placed on their tongue. They can't stick their tongues out but they know the routine and happily lift each foot before opening wide for the dough balls. They each have their ittle traits. One was showing off standing on two legs, another must have the dough balls drizzled with honey then placed in her trunk rather than in her mouth.
I was then in charge of the fruit stall, where visitors could buy a basket of fruit to feed the elephants. After half an hour, I sold nothing but had a nice chat with an Ozzie chap.
In addition to wanting to play volleyball, the mahouts are talking a lot about the staff party tomorrow night. I'm getting quite worried!
Then we went to clear out seven of the beds. This was quite hard work in the heat, but rewarding. It involved a lot of clearing branches, removing the poo then washing and scrubbing the beds so that they are nice and clean for the evening. Well, after that we stank so I had my second shower of the day.
After lunch, I painted a couple of signs then went to help someone scrub one of the elephants, Madu. He is young and playful, but after ten minutes we backed off because he started getting too playful. He lay on his side, wriggled his legs then get half up out of the water, ignored his mahout and slammed himself down, soaking the mahout. He did this three times. Then he picked up a stone with his trunk and threw it away from everyone into the bank. He knew exactly what he was doing and what he could get away with. When he stood up to come out of the river we gave him a wide berth but he knew he had to behave, his mahout had him under control.
I went with Rani the elephant and his mahout to put Rani to bed, and watched him eat a few palm leaves but the really impressive thing was when he split a thick sweetwood log to eat. He just crushed it with his weight and ripped strips off with the most incredibly powerful trunk.
We had a bit of spare time before dinner, so Ryan cut my hair in the garden. In return, I am paying for the Habarana children's lunchboxes which is the same cost as my haircut in England. He did a pretty good job, well you would expect him to as he had a major chain of hairdressing salons that he sold before travelling!
Another shower was due, so I gathered my dirty washing, and took it into the cubicle to wash along with myself. I was nicely lathered up when I got the fright of my life.
A scorpion came out of the water drainage outlet.
He was a black scorpion about five inches long and came stomping towards me, in quite a determined way. Well, luckily someone had left a plastic dog bed in the shower so I got him into that, and that gave me time to wrap a towel around me then take the monster out. Everyone was warned about him, and I went back to finish my shower. Apparently he is an emperor scorpion, and has now been released into the wild where he can come back and scare another victim.
Everyone is very tired today, so after dinner everyone went to their rooms.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND THIRTY SEVEN
We are now into a good routine. Get up, clear an elephant bed of twigs and poo, scrub them, tidy the twigs and poo from the day area, vet checks of feet and give vitamin pills, breakfast, scrub out a few more elephant night beds then play with them in the river.
There's a real buzz among the mahouts who are really looking forward to tonight's party. I've realised that they don't have time for volleyball so I am asking them all individually if we can play, so that it looks like I'm keen. Before lunch we platted some palm branches for the party, that's another talent that I have acquired.
The afternoon was spent preparing for the party, although I went for a walk and play in the river with Rani the elephant. We had a lovely time, although it was a bit noisy and smelly walking behind her. We had another play in the river and she gave me a shower.
The party is looking good. In addition to the buffet and bar, there's a big stage with dj, three piece band, christmas tree made from palm leaves, classic games like bowl the toilet rolls with pumpkins, hoopla with water bottles to name but a few things. There/s also a keenness to play "join the dots" with the mosquito bites on my legs. The party preparation is looking good!
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FORTY EIGHT
What a party! WHAT. A. PARTY.!!! I don't think I've ever known anything like it. It started with speeches and the occasional firework that toppled over and went dangerously close to the crowds. Then we were encouraged to get things moving. I am proud to claim the title of first to get a drink but I was shocked to see that they were serving Carlsberg Special Brew. One can could get an eleohant tipsy, so anything could happen if anyone moves on their second can. Last year, I posted that no one really drinks in Sri Lanka. What a load of rubbish!
The band played, the occasional firework went off (You should give fifty yards space) close to the crowd, and Bessy, The Rhodesian Ridgeback circled the grounds eating anything (or anyone) on the floor. Everyone danced throughout the night, and anyone not dancing was dragged onto the floor for a boogie to the live band. I was dancing like Fred Astaire in my flip flops - well, a drunk Fred Astaire in flip flops on a bad day. The mahouts were bouncing about and in fine form, it was great. A lot of volunteers had faded away by 1.00am (understandable), but after the drink ran out (I had a spell of being a fake barman) I made a gin and tonic from my secret supply and joined in the rocking.
I stopped for a while and chatted to a nice guy who I couldn't hear, so we went to a quieter place and we got onto the subject of politics, which is a very delicate at the moment.
Jade saw and rescued him, we stood for the National Anthem that was the sign for the end of the evening and then the last stragglers left.
Well, things are a bit delicate this morning. Only one co-ordinator has got up, there has been no sign of the other two all day. We are all very late and nothing will be done at any great speed. I was luckily on pill duty, leaving the others to sort a few smelly beds. The after breakfast we were about to set off to clean more beds when Evi sent me to the river to scrub Rani. This was a good result for me but I felt guilty for not helping the others clear the beds (not really!).
While I was scrubbing Rani, I just felt something against my leg and just saw a long thin black thing in the water. Well, I jumped out of my skin, my flip-flops fell off and started to drift down the river (this is my only footwear, remember) and the mahout said exactly what I was thinking - "cobra?"
Well, after yesterday's scorpion I am bound to e be on edge when an elephant tail touches my leg in the water. The mahout laughed.
When the scrub was finished I raced as slowly as possible to help the others clear the beds. All went to plan as I met them coming back. We went for lunch then I packed, said my goodbyes and left. I had a tear in my eye, because I know I will miss such a lovely place. All the people are welcoming, fun and entertaining. The work is also fun and there is a great sense of achievement, and I don't know anywhere else where you can be privileged enough to see such large, majestic animals close up. After spending a day there last year, I wanted to spend a week there and I know how lucky I am to have been able to make it happen. I also didn't expect to meet such great people, I have made some very good friends from this past week. I wonder if I can get to next year's Christmas party?
I stood outside the Foundation and flagged dorn a bus to Kigalle (2 miles for 12 pence) followed by a bus to Negombo (three hours for 75 pence). I thought I would walk to my next accommodation, a guesthouse near the sea. It was a bit further than I thought, and my toe that I broke last year seems to have swollen again because of the flip flops. After last year's injury, I don't expect any sympathy from any heartless people reading this.
I arrived in darkness, had a small stroll then ate at the restaurant attached to the guesthouse. There's hot water here, so while I have had my first hot shower in a week I am not sure I like civilisation. I had to choose food from a menu, and it was all pretty rubbish after what I've enjoyed recently.. I feel like a Sri Lankan Crocodile Dundee, I am missing the elephant sanctuary. Still, nothing lasts for ever and there's more fun to be had in this country.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FORTY NINE
This is quite a nice place, but expensive at £20. It's one road away from the beach, and to get to the beach I have to pass the hotel I nearly booked that has a pool, sea views, cheaper, etc. But I'm not upset. The lady running the place is very friendly and asked a lot of questions about me This morning I think she may have tried to plan to pair me with some lady nearby so I ended that conversation bluntly! Maybe something got lost in translation, but I am not going to hang around. The overpriced £20 turned out to be an underpriced £5. I don't know what happened there.
So today is a lazy day, just sitting on the beach until my rendezvous at 5.30pm. Nothing's going to happen, right?
Well, I had my little rucksack and plastic duty free bag, and set off up the beach. My couple of hours sunbathing was interrupted by someone with a couple of things he wanted to sell, but the worrying thing was the man with a sack and a monkey in cute trousers. I made it clear that I wasn't interested in his cool monkey, but it still clambered over me (probably while dribbling rabies spit, having been cruelly taken from it's parents - Do you get the feeling that I feel strongly about these things?). Then he said, "cobra python snake?". I eyed the sack and just wanted to run away. Well, eventually my blunt refusal to play worked and he moved on, and my blood pressure slowly returned to normal.
This is my first time that I am completely on my own, so I have done exactly what I was told not to do. Don't talk to strangers (see www.carryonupthenile.yolasite.com, the incident with the Tutankhamen aftershave). A very nice chap on a bike came up to me and we started chatting about yoga, Buddhism, etc, then we went for a pint and some chips. I enjoyed the conversation, but I still took all valuables with me when I went for a pee. Remember, I don't have a case in a hotel, I am carrying everything I own like a proper tramp. After a few beers, we swapped phone numbers (what a silly thing to do...), I said goodbye and gave a false promise to stay at his house before I fly back from Colombo, then I sat on the beach and watched the fishermen launch a boat. I was very jealous when I saw a Westerner in green speedos just stand there and watch instead of help, and not break his toe (see earlier in this blog, last year).
The meeting point was rearranged to the bar on the beach, where my son Sam arrived with his girlfriend's family and after a drink they whisked me off to a very luxurious house in the suburbs up the coast. They were returning from a wedding and all looked very smart, while I stood there in my paint covered swim-shorts, worn out flip-flops and grubby shirt!
We went out for drinks at a lovely beachside restaurant (interrupted by unanswered calls from the man from the beach) then had more great food at a local cafe before returning home for a game of cards and well earnt sleep. Sam has impressed me. I am travelling very light, whereas he has packed (among other things) his inflatable sofa.
The chap on the bike has my phone number. He called my this evening but I didn't answer.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY
I was up early and got some smelly clothes washed. There are fans in the room, so I might tie the clothes to the fans and let them slowly spin so that they will be dry in time. It's a good job I am up early, otherwise I could have been woken up at 7.30am when the beach man with the bike made another unanswered call. It was the first of several
We had a stroll around the garden, full of wonderful trees and plants like mango, guava, banana, curry plant and we were able to take the ripe star fruit off a tree and eat it before the bats got to it.
We set off by tuk-tuk to a relative's house, five minutes away and were fed very well indeed. This is another lovely house with wonderful plants in the garden, along with a well and shower. After a while eight of us headed to a local hotel pool. One of the relatives who joined us is a professional cricketer, so we played catch for the whole time at the pool (except for a beer break!). We then got the tuk-tuk back to the relative's house and headed to the beach, about 300 yards away. The bay was lovely, with a road running along the edge and fishermens' houses on the other side of the road. For this escapade there were twelve of us, a cricket bat and a couple of balls. It didn't take long before all of the balls disappeared into the sea, but I can say I've played cricket at a professional's level. I found a coconut on the beach and picked it up, not realising that I was pouring fermented coconut juice all over me. The smell was pretty grim and I now have another shirt to wash but this morning's washing is nice and dry.
We were spoilt with even more food when we returned, lots of rottie, dhal, salads, rice etc which were all locally grown. We all sat around the front yard and chatted, then called it a day so we got a tuk-tuk back to our main accommodation where we had a gin and soda on the balcony before calling it a night. It had been a lovely family day where Sam and I met lots of fun people.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY ONE
Today we are heading down the coast. We said our goodbyes and set off slightly later than planned, with lots of nice delays. There are seven of us, and we have a van and driver.
First stop was less than a mile away where we met more family members and had a chat, then a stop to collect some things, then a food stop. We set off for a good long stretch followed by a visit to some more family members, including Nuwan who rescued us last year (see day five), it was especially good to see him again. They gave us far too much lovely food, what could we do but keep eating! We are always made to feel so welcome at everyone's house.
After a tour of the neighbouring buddhist temple, we set off for the last leg of our trip and a few hours later arrived at a very posh hotel. A couple of us went shopping where I finally got some new swim shorts to replace the paint covered old ones. As soon as possible, I tested them out in the hotel pool then we had a massive buffet meal, followed by a search for turtles on the beach then bed. I have a money belt, it no longer fits me.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY TWO
The breakfast buffet was as good as last night's dinner, so I naturally ate too much. A couple of the gang wanted to make the most of the hotel pool, so they stayed there while the remaning five of us decided to head for Bentota where there is a lagoon anda train station.
Our first problem was finding our driver and van, which we did after a few minutes of amusement because the driver accommodation was completely empty. When we found him, we set off for the fifteen minute drive to the lagoon. I hired a canoe while the others got some jet skis. They thought it was good fun to get as close to me as possible at a good speed, so that I got a good soaking.
We then spent a couple of hours by the lagoon chatting, drinking, watching the action in the lagoon and making things out of palm leaves. I said my goodbyes and was dropped off at the train station where my train came in only a few minutes late. For the second time on this trip it was really sad to say goodbye to some great company.
The train was pretty crowded, but after forty five minutes of the two hour journey it emptied and I got a seat. The idea is to turn up at Matara and find a place to stay when I arrive, rather than pre-book. That way, I can get a nice local place on the seafront that isn't advertised in the internet.
It was getting dark as I arrived, so I walked to the coast approximately one mile away. However, I was in a residential area, with no sign of hotels but there were lots of friendly people to help me. I ended up getting a lift half way to the more touristy area on the back of a scooter by a very nice man, then after another five minute walk I found a very nice beach with lots of hotels and guest houses nearby.
The first was full, but the second one was vacant and I took the room straight away because I was tired. The room costs about the same price as a drink at the last place, so it was very basic but clean, with everything defective - electrics hanging off the wall, a wire coat hanger to pull if you want to flush the toilet, etc. I popped down the road to a restaurant for something to eat. I finally fancied a change from curry so I opted for chow mein, and wished I'd had curry!
i had some entertainment in the restaurant as I watched the crabs walk across the restaurant floor, then I returned to my room for a sleep. Just as I was dozing off, a big flying cockroach-type bug fell from the ceiling and landed on my face. I paid good money for this room (£7) so I showed him the door and hoped he didn't leave his mates in the room.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY THREE
I woke early and had a stroll around the area but it seemed like there would be more people selling things than people on the beach. It was a cosy little beach, but with only a few kiosks and not many restaurants, none serving breakfast, I cut my walk short and jumped in a tuk-tuk to Mirissa, five miles down the road.
The driver dropped me at a small sandy path and I walked through to one end of the bay. I was at the quiet end, by a run down shack serving food by the Sri Lankan equivalent of Manuelle (Basil arrived later). The little English he could say was enough for me to not get a Sri Lankan breakfast, I had to settle for English.
As time went on, a chap from York joined me and we had a nice chat. He has worked out that three months abroad and not earning keeps him below the income tax threshold, he has cheap living and long holidays. As we chatted, he commented on a lizard nearby. Well, I caught a glimpse as something from "The Land That Time Forgot" strutted away, owning the place. The two foot long monster was not to be messed with.
Time moved on so I left the shack, wondered along a nearby side street and found a delightful guest house for £10. This place is perfect, it 's away from the noisy bay and really comfy, it is run by a very nice old couple.
I went back to the Bay and had a swim. I hadn't mastered the waves, basically you get three minutes of nice waves then two killer waves in a row. So I was happily splashing about, looking cool with my sunglasses and brand new designer baseball cap costing £3. A big wave came, and I was pleased to have coped well with it, but this was followed by another monster wave which broke on my head, taking me by surprise. I did a complete involuntary flip, hitting my neck on the sand as I went over, then I stuttered and coughed and saw my hat drifting away, but no sign of my sunglasses.
After I recovered, I went back to Sri Lankan Fawlty Towers for more lovely food and then went for another paddle, but this time I was going to be careful. It was all pointless, I got hit again by another wave and my hat disappeared, but this time it never surfaced. While I could argue that t wasn't my fault, I still carried out my pennace of clearing more litter than was taken by the waves.
The rest of the afternoon was spent testing the 2-for-1 drinks while reading my book in the sun. After a meal in the evening at a cosy side road restaurant, I walked along the half mile long bay with hundreds of lights from the restaurants, music and fireworks and I wondered if this is fair to the turtles.
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY FOUR
My plan towards the end of the holiday was to have late nights and lie-ins, so that I could easily adjust to UK time on my return. That plan fell flat when I found that all whale watching trips start early, so I was picked up at 6.00am (1.30am UK time) for a whacky races style tuk-tuk ride to the port. We were quite early, so I had a good spot on the boat. I was always taught not to talk to strangers, and certainly not take pills from them but when I was offered one I took it straight away, in the smug knowledge that this seasick pill could save me if it's rough.
My fears were unfounded, but despite the calm seas we had two casualties who spent a lot of time filling bags (one was a child who was rude and annoying from the moment he set foot on the boat - see, karma in a calmer sea!). There were a few people who insisted on standing in front of everyone else to look for something, including the skipper who regularly told them to sit down so that he could see where he was going. There were six boats whizzing about, all just within sight of eachother, but otherwise all the same except the price they charged which varied from £12 to £30. Guess how much I paid....
After quite a while there was some excitement as a school of dolphins was spotted. They were pretty shy, though, and only went to the surface briefly. I can understand why, with six boats circling them. Everyone would be on the top of each boat looking to the left or right, so the angle of some boats in the water was quite funny.
Some time later, we got a call so all boats raced over to a spot where a blue whale surfaced for a few seconds then went under the water again. I missed it as my view was blocked.
All boats circled the area waiting for another sighting, and after about five minutes or so he would surface in a completely different area for a few seconds, during which time he had to be spotted, every one all the boats would have to rush to the other side of each boat, look and spot the whale for the remaining second or so, before he went below the sea for a bit of peace and quiet. This went on for half an hour, but a got some great photos - of my thumb. Two photos of all the ones taken in the frenzy actually came out, and you can see a little line of the whale's back in the sea. I can now say that I've seen a blue whale though, which I think is pretty cool!
The boats raced back to the port where we became part of a feeding frenzy as tuk-tuk drivers pounced on all passengers and then whizzed about to get us to our hotels as fast as possible. At one point in the car park four tuk-tuks where all heading to collide in the same spot as if we were in a funny cartoon.
I had to pack and clear my room before leaving early, but the guest house owners said that they would look after my bag. When I returned, I walked through the open gate into the empty house with door wide open, picked up my bag by the door, looked for the owner then said goodbye.
I was pretty hungry by now (in addition to seasick pills, the boat served water, tea, a bun, cake and melon but that was some time ago) so I jumped into a tuk-tuk to be taken to Mirissa train station early, so that I could get some food. The only food around was rice growing in the fields, there wasn't a single shop near the station.
I met a young German chap called Max who was also heading to the airport for a 4.00am flight (Mine was later, at midday the next day). He is taking a gap year, either working or travelling. He has been to Australia, worked, then spent four weeks in Sri Lanka, then when he gets back to Germany he will carry out some more work while planning his next trip to Indonesia before starting his degree in the Summer. He has been staying in shared accommodation in hostels, and although he travels alone he has met lots of people doing the same thing. His record for cheap accommodation is £1.50 in Kandy, apparently it was a really nice place!
Not much was available to eat on the four hour train journey other than a man selling a variety of nuts so I had five bags for 50 pence, but as soon as we arrived in Colombo Max and I headed for the restaurant that I had previously been to, we had a good meal then jumped on a bus to the airport where I wished Max a good flight and Merry Christmas.
I chose my accommodation due to the close proximity to the airport, to save me having to mess about with tuk-tuks. However it was much closer to the airport than shown on the online map, so I walked for twenty minutes in the wrong direction before getting a tuk-tuk to the hotel. The hotel was quite formal, with a man on reception who was more interested in some bizarre TV programme than sering me. Mind you, I was tempted to watch the programme as it changed form a woman crying to some people playing appalling music, over and over. All very strange.
My flight back is tomorrow, and I only have to go for a short walk to the airport and go through normal holiday duties (check in, security, etc) so I doubt there's much more to add tomorrow. Another adventure comes to an end, and I have survived and will probably do the whole thing again one day (except the scorpion bit, please!).
DAY FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY FIVE
The hotel breakfast was pretty rubbish, it wasn't even curry. I spent some time looking at clothes in the nearby market, then realised I was running late to I rushed home, packed and then jumped into a tuk-tuk instead of walking.
After a good flight, I arrived in Gatwick and waited to be picked up in the cold wet with flip flops (a dog ate my shoes, remember), long trousers and a jumper that hadn't been word since arriving in Sri Lanka, my second fake designer cap, fake designer t shirt and a very smelly but small rucksack. Who knows what will happen next year...
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