Well I made it. Arrived at the hotel at 5.30 am and the temp was 82 degrees with very high humidity. No way is this a 5 star, more like a good 3 star. All inclusive is great as you just have to order whatever you want and there it is - no charges.
I have just been to Nagombo for a couple of hours to have a look around the beach area and the town. On the beach they are selling fresh, and not so fresh, fish. They also dry the fish on the beach (who knows what for). I am writing this opposite the hotel in a restaurant (which I won't need, unless I get fed up of the hotel's food). I think I will take a boat ride (1.5 hours) for 2.00 pound from here, then back into the hotel for the night.
Being very third world, I think leaving the hotel would be a bad thing to do. There are millions more mosquitoes here than in St Lucia and they are lethal. I must have swatted more than 20 this morning before bed then had to sleep with the bedding completely covering me all night. I have had the room sprayed and a mosquito net put in for the night but I have been told that this doesn't work. C'est la vie.
I'm already getting itchy feet, and wondering what good tours there are. The taxi drivers will be getting excited when I start haggling with them for the best prices (good haggling here!!!).
Anyway better things to do than sit here in the air conditioned hut writing.
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Beginning of day 3…Yesterday I went to Colombo for the day, I got a free trip with some English people that I got talking to. The city is really busy and dirty; dogs, cripples, etc. but it's really cheap. I bought a few nick nacks. WOW I'm sitting here and watching a water monitor lizard, about 3 feet long, swimming past the front of the restaurant. I'm just waiting for Steve Erwin to run past and jump on the poor thing!
Anyway got back from Colombo around 6 pm and promptly jumped in the pool for a while, showered, then dinner for 8 pm (after taking all the anti mosquito precautions that can be taken). It's great this all inclusive. What you do is try a very small amount of everything, then grab another plate and fill it up with your favourite stuff. After that I got a great seat for "a cultural dance show" which I videoed.
Then I sat around getting drunk with 5 English couples. Did I tell you this was a place for couples? Well not all are male and female (traditional) couples if you know what I mean! It's all right, they are all cool. It's the Germans that are quiet and keep themselves to themselves. We sat there chatting and swatting the multitude of mosquitoes that infest the hotel here. Not a bad night. I only got bitten a dozen times by malaria carrying mosquitoes. I haven't done anything about changing my ticket yet (I haven't had time!) I might try tomorrow.
I have organised a trip up to Kandy tomorrow that leaves at 6 am and gets back around 7 pm. I will try later to see if anybody wants to share the 40 quid cost, the guide "Michel" (he said all tours Kandy 1 day! yes?) said he will incorporate all the tours into 1 so I can do it in 1 day if that is ok with me (translation).
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Well it's the 2nd to last day and I leave the hotel at 6am.
The last 2 days have been quite hectic. Thursday I went up to the town of Kandy, near the middle of the islands. This took 12 hours and on the way there and back I did the retired elephants home; the elephants orphanage with 69 babies of various sizes; a spice garden tour; Temple of the tooth (Kandy)(1 of Buddah's eye teeth); a rubber making factory and a tea making factory.
On Friday I acted as a tour guide to a group of 4 to Colombo again. Well I really fancied a KFC so it was worth it, until the temperature climbed to over 40 degrees C (104 degrees F) in the city and the air conditioning broke down in the mini-bus. Wow was it hot? We nearly melted. So far I haven't sun-bathed yet, like today I'm sitting in the shade because the sun is so hot. I have had a game of water volley-ball every day that I have been here, and I have another game in 2 hours so that is getting the alkahole (oops) system moving the blood around my body. I will try to organise a mini-bus for early tomorrow morning to take a few of us down to the very south of the island. I fancy snorkelling around Hikadewer, and if possible, seeing the stilt fishermen, but I think this is the wrong time of the year for them.
Someone at the hotel reckons that this year could be the last for a while for tourists. Things are getting heated. They have put a news censorship on what is happening here. Over 200 have been killed in the last 2 days (around Jaffna) and the president has ordered millions of pounds of new, up to date, armaments so that they can "really kick some ass". This won't be here for another week so I will be home then and hopefully read about it but not be involved.
Well I had better get back to my Clive Cussler book by the pool, with free cocktails all day and night long (only to stop the de-hydration of course!).
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