Negombo

And here I am

After my third uneventful flight and a long and uninspiring stop in Singapore I whizzed through customs in Colombo and then waited. Waited and waited at the baggage carousel. I was starting to look up contact numbers for my driver to tell him nit to wait as my bag hadn’t arrived and then I get a glimpse of a small grey bag with a turquoise strap coming round the corner. Whew!  Just as well because for some insane reason my phone would not let me access anything despite my eSim. 

Seeing that bag I heaved a sigh of relief. It was over 24 hours since I left home at 4:00am. I had a few short naps en route but was now at the stage where I wasn’t sure if I was tired or wide awake. I was definitely not on this planet. 

Leaving the arrivals hall I spy a sign with my name and connected with the holder who took me where 2 women were waiting. They were on the same trip as me, two middle aged female friends from Melbourne. Whew!  

Our driver takes us along a highway to the city of Negombo, about an hour north of Colombo. Negombo is a beach city and in the dark of the night looks rather cute. More on that tomorrow after I check it out. 

Arriving at the hotel we find a cute as a button place where I have a room with no view set away from the main part of the hotel. My room is fab, the wifi doesn’t work but otherwise beyond expectation. 

Thinking I was wide awake I mucked around, popped a sleeping pill, turned out the light and voila! It was 7:30am. I resisted the urge to go back to sleep and made my coffee. 

Then it started!  Just as well I didn’t try to go back to sleep as there were noises coming from all directions; banging, crashing, people.  I am near the kitchen, above reception and next to the wall they are building. Oh well. It would have been a shame to waste the day anyway. 

And so my holiday has begun. Time for another coffee. 

The Sri Lankan population (approx 23,000,000 - density 335 per sq. K) is predominantly Bhuddist although there are large segments of Hindis, Muslims, Christians and a sprinklings of other religion. 

The ethic breakdown is as follows:

• 74.9% Sinhalese
• 11.2% Sri Lankan Tamils
• 9.2% Sri Lankan Moors
• 4.2% Indian Tamils
• 0.5% others

It is a unitary semi-presidential republic and was formerly known as Ceylon. 

Negombo is one of the major commercial hubs in the country and the administrative centre of Negombo Division. It is known for its long sandy beaches and centuries old fishing industry. Negombo has a large bilingual (Sinhala/Tamil) population. 

Eyes wide open, ablutions complete I head out. It is oppressively hot. Where is that Wellington wind when I want it.  In the 500metre walk to the main beach street I pass by a number of women doing their household chores.  Their smiles were genuine and each wished me a good morning. I love the place already. 

The roads have pot holes,  there are a few piles of rubbish scooped up carefully on the side of the road, the houses are mainly simple with tropical gardens and occasionally a beautifully landscaped garden belonging to a resort hotel. 

The beach is fenced off for some reason but from where I am sitting I can see a woman raking the sand and pulling off dead leaves from the Palm trees. It is immaculate. 

Once again I compare the people in poorer / developing countries who are open, friendly and from the sparkle in their eyes happy, compared to us in our developed countries with our faces buried in our phones and, for many, an entitled attitude that sucks. 

With an espresso in hand I look out to the beach. A never ending sight of flat golden sand that drops off to the sea which is flat, like a pancake. No deck chairs, no structures just pure unadulterated heaven. A couple of fishing boats are up on the shore and provide a bit of colour but otherwise the grey sky blends perfectly with the dull blue of the water. 

It’s hot, sticky, life sapping hot. Even the locals are saying so. But despite the heat I spent a little time exploring the market on the beach. The smiles didn’t stop. Everyone was so welcoming and not in the “I want to sell you something kind of way”. 

I headed back to the hotel and immediately heard the sound of the construction. Guess a nap wont happen so when its too hot what does a girl do but go to the pool. 

Señor Keith will be pleased to know that I spent quite a while in the cool welcoming water doing widths as giggled to myself. 

Lunch time; and what to have? There were many things to choose from including local and other asian dishes, Italian choices, snacks and grills thrown in as well. But my eyes would not go past the lobster and the prawn dishes. Damn it another decision to make. So hard when you are relaxing. 

The prawns won and I am so glad they did. 10 massive king prawns grilled over charcoal that made me drool. The mojito on the side was the icing on the cake. In a country where many meals are eaten (usually by Muslims) without the use of cutlery just by using the right hand (the left hand does not touch food - it’s the one you wipe you bits with) I was way out of my league. Trying to peel prawns with just one hand is nigh on impossible but I am sure the locals here have figured that one out and wont be offended. 

Using both hands tho gave me an excuse to luck my fingers and remove every speck of goodness from those shells. 

Tummy full, cooled down and happy it was time for a nap

My hotel,  the Sea Horse resort and Spa, isn’t really a spa. Its a low rise hotel with a lovely pool area and outdoor restaurant. Rather gorgeous but they advertise spa services for another place.  The idea of having a relaxing massage was front of mind until I found out I couldn’t just roll off the massage table back to my room ruined that thought. Imagine walking home in that mid-day heat after a relaxing massage. 

And so here I am, just woke from a wee nap, had a coffee and looking forward to the introduction meeting at the start of the tour. 

Our introductory meeting was a hoot. There are ten of us on the tour. With the exception of Regula a young lady from Switzerland the rest of them are all Ockers from either Melbourne or Brisbane. Harry has a birthday today so we were all treated to birthday cake before our tour leader Anand gave us the low down of our trip. 

An interesting mix of people so it should be a fun trip. Anand is a softly spoken guy so I will be the one asking him to repeat himself numerous times cos I didn’t hear a word of what he was saying. 

Time for dinner.   Four of us plus Anand went out to dinner. I must admit I was a little disappointed when I saw the place we were going to as it looked like yet another tourist joint. It may have been but my meal of spicy grilled prawns was exceptional although not spicy.  The many flavours popping into my mouth had me dribbling and wanting more. 

The lady next to me, a Queenslander, ordered a prawn curry and that came with a round of accompaniments. She didn’t like spicy stuff and was a small eater and so I was obliged to help her out. The accompaniments included Pol Sambol (coconut and chilli sambol), popadoms, an eggplant curry, green beans with garlic, potatoes with onions and dhal. Each had their own unique and complex flavours and every single one was delicious. I hope this bodes well for the rest of the trip. 

For some of the group its a start they would prefer to forget. One of the ladies broke her foot and as we ate she was getting treated at the hospital. A couple who shared a suitcase were left without a change of clothes and no medication after their bag didn’t travel with them from Singapore. Hopefully it arrives before we head away tomorrow. 

As for me, I’ve had a great day. Checked the place out, bought a couple pair of culottes for $8 (both of them), walked a bit, chatted with locals, learned a few words, had a swim, rested and had two delicious meals. What a great start. 

Tomorrow we move on. Watch this space.