Today I took the bus from Hikkaduwa to Colombo; it was easier than the train … I only had to walk out to the hotel gate and hail one down as opposed to having to take a tuktuk to the railway station at additional cost.
It seemed too easy because I got on an air-conditioned minibus within minutes … only to have it break down after about 15 minutes. Most passengers managed to get into are replacement vehicle but I had to wait.
I smiled at the conductor and shook my head; he smiled back and shook his head too. Soon enough, I was on my way … it was cramped and uncomfortable but cool. Whereas the train was hot but spacious! Choose your poison.
Once in Colombo and settled into the Colombo City Hotel, I walked around the Fort area and had some briyani for lunch at a Halal restaurant. Yummy. It deserved a repeat visit so I went back for dinner.
After that bus ride, I was a bit worn so lay in bed and watched TV. Indian Idol was running … beamed from across the Palk Strait. It’s quite funny because I had to guess whether the judges were impressed or unimpressed … they kept shaking their heads. It is contagious as I end up doing it within a day!
I had booked this hotel through hostels.com and it turned out that the listing was done by an agent rather than the property. The emailed instructions were to expect the agency to come collect the payment in cash and to avoid paying anything to the hotel directly. No one turned up.
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- Buses and trains have seats reserved for th clergy. I got given this seat!
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- Old department store in Fort, Colombo.
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- Old department store in Fort, Colombo.
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- More grand buildings in Fort, Colombo.
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- More grand buildings in Fort, Colombo.
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- Fort is also home to top hotels and the World Trade Centre … so it is rather high security.
