A five hour journey in two trains, the first uncomfortably standing throughout, brought us to Waikkal. Here, for our last two Lanka nights, we’re staying in a jungle chalets complex, right by the Gin (pronounced yin) Oya river. On the station platform at Hikkaduwa, we bumped into Anne Browne (Plantag), travelling with her friend Linda around the island.

Our chalet has a bathroom open to the skies & insects of all manner & sizes –  cockroaches, beetles, frogs & mantis. We’re in the jungle, yet within earshot of trains & airplanes landing / taking off from the island’s Bandaranaika International Airport. A small chunk of jungle, then.

The complex has two cows plus one junior, a ‘rescue’ called Elodi; they are friendly and roam wherever, incl. to your table in the restaurant, yet no sign of steaming cow pats. Domesticated or what!

Went to the beach & loved the not-so-high waves. Very few people there but many in the series of resort complexes just inland of the beach. On our return, both the manager & the chef warned us of the dangerous sea along Kammala beach; only last month three people drowned, with two trying to rescue the one that was dragged out by a wave. Kaff doesn’t want to go there today (our last in Sri Lanka).

This safari-styled hotel was sold last December. The manager & chef were brought in by the new owners, all the other staff being retained. Have had long conversations with two former and a brief one with the new owner, who appeared yesterday. He informed us he has bought a hotel for each of his two children – they’re 15 & 10. We explained it might not work out quite like that!

Some final thoughts:-

Fire – Lankans like making fire, little fires, border fires, bush fires, brush fires, even a fire in a frying pan. Any excuse, they’ll light up.

Tea – we was misinformed, tea leaves are picked every 7 to 10 days, not years! Agh! The tea pickers are nearly all Tamils, who were imported by Thomas Lipton & other plantation owners from India because the locals didn’t want such hard jobs. Remind you of more recent immigration in western Europe? The picking is eight hours a day for, we were informed, pitifully low wages. The workers mostly live just outside the plantations in what can best be described as shacks. Meanwhile, both the manager & the deputy manager are given houses inside the plantations. No further comment.

We’re due to fly out at 02.55 tomorrow morning. After a three and a half hour stopover in Kuwait airport, we should land at Heathrow at about 13.45. That’s a long day already. The time differential is five and a half hours.

Our generously spaced single-bedroomed flat is on the far side of the road to the long beach, of which parts are coral reefed immediately next to it, parts with becalmed seas (Kaff’s fave) & parts with good old big, surfy waves (my fave).

This town is a tourism honeypot & busy. Visitors from all over the world, & Russians continue to be the most populous, by some margin. Apparently, pre-coronavirus, Chinese were numerous, too. None now to be seen, of course.

Saturday was Poya, the monthly full moon holiday, ‘though no obvious signs of it (other than the moon).

We bussed back to Galle & spent four hours wandering around this part Portuguese (16th century), Dutch (18th) & British (19th) former main port & citadel. We also walked most of the ramparts (for Pop). Some fabulous buildings here.

Back in Hikkaduwa, we watched half of Wales v Ireland in Sam’s Bar, the nearest we’ve been in a pub since the beginning of our holiday.

Sunday we visited the Tsunami Education Centre & Museum. Harrowing.

Went for lunch in The Kala Bongo Lake Hotel, as suggested in Lonely Planet. So remote, even the tuk-tuk driver had to ask the way, three times! Stunning location overlooking Lake Hikkaduwa. Felt a bit trapped. And the bass thump from the neighbour’s music drives a chariot through the tranquility. Time to go …

To The Jungle

We left Mirissa harbour at 6.45am, a double-decker whale-watching boat with about 50 visitors from all over the world. After a 90 mins journey, south then east, we stopped alongside a small boat. Just the two boats. Then a plume of water, three times, & the two boats were chasing hard. The second series of sea fountains told the skipper our whale was taking 11 mins. between surfacings – he informs us the gap is anything between 10 & 15 – & off we charge in what is believed to be the right direction. Except this blue whale seems to be playing with its audience & continues to defy the experts.

And there are increasing numbers of experts gathered; at its peak, nine whale watching craft plus four others form a veritable flotilla. And don’t forget the small aeroplane flying round & round. It has turned into a game more akin to whale hunting, except the prize is being closest, with the best photos.

Eventually, the boats peel off for the home journey. Ours, Raja & The Whales, stays to the end even though we last witnessed, other than its plumes, the single blue whale at least 30 mins ago.

On the way home, we suddenly veer westwards – another plume spotted. But this time we are the only boat, so the whale is, apparently, more relaxed. It takes 13 mins. between surfacings & is travelling in a single direction. The whale we are now uniquely watching is, the expert says, about 22 metres long and considerably older than the first one. And, as per photo, treats us to a full tail-up dive. Spectacular.

As we disembark, the skipper hands out free coconuts to drink. Some clever marketing person behind this company. Of all its rivals in the town, this one has the highest environmental approval. And resilience: we have been asea for seven hours.

After another great dinner of fish – red mullet this time – in a beach shack & a good night’s sleep, well for me because Kaff has come down with reactive bowels, we bus’d to Hikkaduwa. 90 mins watching a never-ending belly dancing mit modern Sri Lanka pop music (probably should be t’other way round) & we were there! Kaff has booked a flat for three nights.

Hikkaduwa

Tangalla (or Tangalle) is the destination as we are taxi’d down from the mountains to the flat, south coast. At the bottom of the first hill, we stopped to admire the Ravana waterfall, a three tier cascade which was pretty impressive but supposedly nothing like after it’s been raining.  Before then we came though substantial roadworks, shoring up the mountain side over the road – just the slippage after the latest rains – a reminder of the things we take for granted in the UK.

Tangalle’s beaches go on & on, a huge curve of jungle-backed yellow sand, with beach shack cafes spread along its length, the nearer the town centre the greater their density. There are further, individual beaches the other side of the fishing harbour. We both love this place, which is remarkably quiet, for the two previously mentioned reasons.

We’ve been staying in a new hotel on Tangalle seafront, for not a lot of money. The hotel is seriously not busy & has staff who don’t seem to know what they should be doing. But we’re better for some resting time.

On, then, to Mirissa, a more commercialised beach which we still think is fab; especially after a lunch of prawns with wasabi mayo & tuna seared sesame sushi. We’re here to go blue whale watching early tomorrow morning. The town is certainly tourism busier than others but still insufficient to match the extensive array of restaurants.

And tonight it rained, only for about two hours, but enough water for everything to stay green. This island seems to have loads of water, hence its lusciousness.

Whale Hunt

After this morning’s walks up a mountain – Little Adam at 1,114 metres with superb views back to Ella – & to see a train – crossing the Nine Arches curved Viaduct, complete with huge crowd turnout – the time has come to consider the holiday so far. We’re halfway through.

Employment – like in India, huge numbers of people are employed within strictly hierarchical structures. This means no-one goes beyond their remit, eg each till has a cashier unable to do anything else, regardless of queues. Employment is seemingly politically more important than productivity. This also means employee empowerment is non-existent which bodes badly for the island’s future economic sustainability. However, as per previous blog, peace and stability seem to be the top priority. And who can fault that?

Bites – as in India 12 months ago, I am more attractive than Kaff. To mosquitoes, anyway. Her hair still has magic, crowd pulling qualities for children.

Weather – in the mountains it has been quite cold at night – 15 to 17 degrees – but daytime blue skies almost everyday, regardless of location. And always in high 20s or low 30s. I know, you didn’t want to hear that.

Dogs – wild dogs are everywhere, in huge numbers, but only their howlingn through the night is a nuisance. The locals don’t seem to hear them – under flight path mentality, I suppose. The photos are .of the common type, as in 85%+, so one dog had amazing genes!

Sauntering – locals do not move, aside or any other way, when occupying paths, pavements, etc. Just a thang.

Order enforcement – Police, Army, Navy, Air Force are everywhere & in numbers. Partly a show of law & order, partly security, partly employment, as above?

Development – everywhere is a building site or next to one. From an investor perspective it might seem impressive, especially the massive Chinese input, but they seem to exercise little, if any, controls. The Tourism Golden egg is in danger. Towns like Ella have changed big time & there is no going back, but this is so not a new phenomenon, viz Mediterranean tourism impact over the last 40 years. This does not make it easier to watch, nor to be a happy local.

The South Coast