April 5, 2003, Unawatuna, Sri Lanka.
So now with Bangkok behind us, we were on to a whole new culture.....of the Indian sub-continent. The late evening flight would arrive in Colombo in the wee hours of the morning, so papa had made a reservation via the internet for a bed and breakfast as they would pick us up at the airport. All was fine until my mom spotted the many masked people on board the Cathay Pacific flight! It was only then that the folks realized that the flight had originated in Hong Kong and we were going to spend the next 3 1/2 hours cooped up in an enclosed environment! This posed somewhat of a problem because before I knew it, a surgical mask was slapped on me and I was told to keep it on for the rest of the flight. All this was due to the SARS virus scare... The airline itself was not issuing this new accessory (which I might add clashed with my outfit) but a kind stewardess gave me an extra one of hers. There were in fact a few people coughing on the flight, and at that point, not knowing too much about this potentially deadly problem, the folks decided to reroute us home again through Europe instead of using our original HKG-SFO return flight. This flight went smoothly; I was not allowed to leave my seat - but that too was ok as I had my own TV monitor and some colouring stuff to keep me busy. In Colombo we were hit with the sudden notion that it was HOT. Even more so than Bangkok! After collecting our luggage, we were greeted at the exit by a man carrying a card with our name on it. - I felt important! - though the name was misspelt.
The B&B was located in an upscale area called 'Cinnamon Gardens'. Although we didn't know it at the time, there were endless amounts of embassies and of course the security that goes with them. At this point I will elaborate on this, as it is a big part of Sri Lanka at the moment. We saw police barriers and bunkers in place all around the country, and especially in the cities. We eventually started taking them for granted and I actually began to wave to the soldiers as we went by. They always smiled and waved back. The people here are very friendly. The reason for the abundance of security is the fact that this island country has been in the midst of civil strife for the past 22 years. A problem that stems from one group, the Tamil Tigers, wanting an independent state from the Sinhalese - It's the same old thing with most countries: fights and terrorist attacks take place and whole areas become off limits to people as well as to us tourists. I am happy to say that there is however a peace agreement in place and has been for the past year (thanks in part to the heavy police and army control). But enough about politics. We were here to see this 'paradise island' for ourselves and the next day we were going to meet up with my Papy, (papa's father) and his wife, Fouzia, and I was really looking forward to spending time with them.
We woke the next morning to the sounds of birds chirping outside our window. It was a whole new feeling to be in a house environment. And besides, you just couldn't make out the songs of those birds on Kao San Road in BKK... We later went in search for a bank to change money and while walking only a few minutes realized it was just too hot to be outdoors. Papa found us an air-con restaurant serving typical South Indian food. So while mommy and myself ordered and cooled off, he went in search of an ATM machine. I should at this point tell you that with the exception of Laos, Cambodia, and Burma, it has been relatively easy to get local currency from these machines. And Sri Lanka was just as easy as he soon returned with a bunch of 'rupees' in pocket. We were hungry by now and dug gladly into our lunch as mummy was looking forward to the biryani and papa to the 2 ft long dosa (a crispy crepe with masala fillings). They were not disappointed, but I was ... How is one supposed to eat this highly spicy stuff?? Well I soon found out one does it by washing it down with a yogurt of some sort. Either in a Lassi drink, or with a rytha on the side. Whatever the case it works and really takes the sting out of the curry spices. After lunch Papa made a few calls and we were picked up and taken to a tour agency at one of the big hotels. Here we met up with Sudan, a nice jolly man who seemed to know a 'lot about a lot' and a 'little about everything'. We left 2 hours later, having booked a private van and driver for a two-week trip to see the country. Since we were soon to be a 'mini group' with the arrival of my papy and Fouzia the next day, this seemed like the most efficient solution. We left back for the guesthouse and drove along the seaside. It was Sunday and all shops and offices were closed, so everyone was down at the beach promenade to relax and enjoy the day. In the city parks we saw families enjoying picnics, men laying cricket and the curious sight of the 'umbrella lovers' (couples shielding themselves, no doubt from the eyes of the nosey 'grandmothers' while affectionately walking, talking, etc.). A quick simple meal consisting of baked beans and toast at the guesthouse was our dinner before we went to sleep.
At 4 am we were awake and ready for the 45 min. ride to airport. I didn't mind the lack of sleep we got cause I was too excited! My papy was arriving! Outside our guesthouse we met our driver Raja and the 9-seater van we were to have for the next 2 weeks. It was quite comfortable, with individual captain chairs throughout. It was really good to see Papy and Fouzia again and we soon had a great rapport - in French. That morning the city of Colombo was very busy in the streets and roadways: busses were packed with people going to work, women heading to the many garment factories (Sri Lanka has some of the larger manufacturers of designer clothes, for export), etc. We took the scenic drive along the sea but what we all needed was a good breakfast and so we headed to one of the oldest and famous colonial hotels for a nice buffet breakfast. It was wonderful and quite extensive with many western as well as local dishes. The dining area overlooked the sea and a swimming pool where afterwards we hung around in lounge chairs getting re-acquainted and me trying out the new artist set and colouring books they bought for me. But Papa had some work to do: getting tickets organized for our onward trip to India, Europe and home. By mid-afternoon he returned and we were off to the south coast.
