Marissa

And we are away again in our bus with our trusted crew. 

I ask about education here. Primary and secondary education are free

Tertiary free with sufficient secondary grades but otherwise pay as you do at home. 

We drive through a southern lowland village. A self sufficient farming area full of rice paddys. Workers till the soil with ancient tractors. There are some beautiful homes - in this area more beautiful homes than otherwise. 

Much  of the road runs alongside of the many man made lakes. There is an area of the lakes for public bathing for those that don’t have facilities at home. 

Something I haven’t mentioned in previous blogs is the abundance of staff in shops. Not sure of their usefullness but good to see so many people employed. There is no minimum wage here. They get paid whatever the employer wants. The unemployment rate decreased to 4.30 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023 from 4.70 percent in the third quarter of 2023.

This is a bankrupt country with some scary statistics. 

The world bank tells us:

“STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• One-fourth of Sri Lankans are living in poverty, yet more than 50% are not covered by social protection schemes
• Fragmentation and poor governance have resulted in an inefficient social protection system
• Increased transparency, inclusion, adaptability, and accountability mechanisms such as citizen engagement are essential for building a better social protection system

The COVID-19 pandemic and the worst economic crisis in Sri Lanka's post-independence history resulted in an increase in poverty rates of up to 25 percent in 2022, a dramatic increase from 11.3 percent in 2019. Although one fourth of the country’s population has fallen into poverty, many do not receive monetary support from the government, largely due to the weaknesses of social welfare schemes. More than 50 percent of Sri Lanka’s poorest population is not covered by the government welfare programs such as Samurdhi, the major social protection scheme in Sri Lanka.”

Since arriving I have only seen one street sleeper. Colombo might be different. But although people are poor and live in makeshift homes homelessness is not visible. 

We stopped briefly at a place where they make buffalo curd. Of course I didn’t taste it (or give it a good look) but I did enjoy the coconut treacle that went with it. 

We then stopped to sample some Dodol. What I was eating last night but much better. I’ve got some for supper.   It’s a bit like Uncle Jim’s burnt flour halva. Here is the recipe. https://www.dailylife.lk/kitchen/kalu-dodol/

We are travelling on beautiful roads and now joining the expressway. It is very obvious that this area is far ahead of other parts of the country with many grand infrastructure projects that sit un-used. All the result of an extra zealous ex president with a penchant for spending public money. 

There are NO other vehicles on the expressway and our bus is just cruising. The toll of about $5 for our trip is not likely to pay off this white elephant in a hurry. 

Despite being in an arid barren zone we are surrounded by green; palm trees and rice paddys fed with water from the artificial lakes throughout the region. 

We stop in the township of Walana for a Biryani with a local family in a beautiful home. The biryani is slightly different to what we have at home but equally delicious. It came with fried boiled eggs, green pea curry, a sambal of garlic, chilli and maldive fish (dried fish), a chutney and marinated chicken. The green pea curry was divine. 

The home of the people that hosted us was four storied and very beautiful even by our standards. Like all of our hosts full of smiles and so gracious. I was glad that our driver and assistant joined us for lunch. I wish hosts would too. It would make it feel more homely rather than a commercial experience. 

Watlapa was for desert. A tasteless square of jelly like stuff that I left on the plate. 

It wasn’t long before we arrived at our hotel for two nights.  A beach side hotel with a pool right outside our rooms and a sqillion tourists. My room is lovely but this is not my scene at all. All of our hotels have been better than Intrepid’s usual style but each with its unique quirk. The pool is super, sadly not much sun protection so sitting out there is hard going but there are beautiful grounds and the beach is 20 metres away. It is gorgeous. But not like the small boutique places we usually enjoy with Intrepid. 

We have enjoyed some great meals in peoples homes (far more so than any other food tour) but sadly haven’t been able to interact with them and much of the food has been quite bland. Tourist versions. It has certainly been very different to any other food tour I have done. Other than a quick visit to a city fruit market we haven’t done any markets, nor have we done any non-tourist restaurants. I am disappointed. 

The city/town is very touristy too but not in a naff way. I popped into a few shops, pretty much only tourist shops with the same things at varying prices. 

But having said all that I am not unhappy I am here. The setting is gorgeous, my room looks over the pool to the sea, they have a spa here and also a bar. Not what I expected as part of an authentic experience.  I plan on doing very little tomorrow and not doing part of the itinerary so I will have time to explore some more. 

18:11 and the lights have just come on round the pool. It’s pretty and people are packing it in for the night. 

The waves are breaking on the beach - that sound I love. Wish I was in a beach shack.   Even when I lay on my bed with the aircon I could hear the waves in the distance. Best ever sound to relax to. 

Dinner was a delicious buffet. Great for someone who doesn’t like buffets. Best grilled Prawns with garlic butter. A sausage in bread with anchor butter was something I couldn’t say no to. 

The Butter sculptures around the buffet were quite impressive and a brownie and chocolate ice cream was a great way to end the night. 

Laundry sorted for tomorrow, ready for bed at 9:30pm. Good night from Marissa.