Strange stormy Sri Lanka

I've spent a lot of my time here, less than 24 hours, trying to figure out exactly what I'm doing, where. I've forgotten how long it takes to get familiar with an area, especially when you're the only Westerner visible for miles. No matter what you do, you stick out.

So far I like Colombo. It's about 80 degrees and sporadically stormy, with 30-40-50 mph winds, which woke me up overnight, and throw water at you from every direction. The people here are different shades of very nice and hospitable, though it's hard to tell if they're laughing at you inside as some try to rip you off considerably. It's an accepted standard that the "tourist" will pay more, and so for this tourist, it's about coming to terms with that. I haven't yet. We'll see how that goes.

I arrived at the CMB airport at about 11 p.m. Thursday night. Though I'd contacted a B&B in the neighborhood of Mount Lavinia (a handful of kilometers south of Colombo city proper, and a much quieter, somewhat faded resort town), I had not heard back a confirmation on my arrival. I had the hotel address, its phone number (which didn't work), and a couple backup places nearby to check if need be. The airport information desk had a fixed rate price into town via taxi. Of course, the "fixed rate" I ended up paying was quoted more by about 700 rupees, or a little less than $7. In the end, given the late hour, I decided the haggling wasn't worth it. These cars, it was declared, had air conditioning, hence the higher price. I'm not convinced the other cars didn't have A/C...but, life's short, I was tired, and the trip was 45 minutes to my place without the usual heavy traffic during the daytime.

I chatted with the taxi driver, who grew up in a village near the airport. Once I explained my situation, he agreed to wait for me while I checked out the B&B, then we would go elsewhere if needed. After driving down some dark roads and alleys, we finally got where I needed to be. A big metal gate was clinked shut, and there were no lights on nearby. I rang the doorbell a few times as the caustic sound went off indoors and dogs barked along the road. An old man opened the door after a while, I'd woken the house up. Apparently they were expecting me the following day, but as it was already past midnight, it sorta worked. I was taken up stairs to guest quarters in this house, with a dining/kitchen area, and then the room itself equipped with A/C and a mosquito net, as well as a bathroom/shower (no hot water). The fridge was full of water, which was good. There was no Internet though, and so I washed up, plunked down on my bed and read a bit before trying to sleep. The bed smelled a bit funny, but I'm crossing my fingers on the hygiene issue. The covers underneath were clean. As I lay in bed, it was very dark, very quiet, but very noisy outside as well with the wind blowing trees, branches, metal doors and the like throughout the area. As daybreak approached, the train would chug by every hour or so. I dozed on and off through the night, parched, but too tired to get out of bed. At 9:30 a.m. I was out of bed for breakfast in my p.j.s still, I felt like a real sloth, but no one else was around...

Breakfast was a fried egg served sunny-side up, a big jug of freshly squeezed papaya juice, a kettle of coffee (it was very yum), a papaya slice with lime to squeeze over it, toast with pineapple jelly, and the option of butter (I did not select that option), as well as bacon (also not selected). All in all, it was quite good and filling. The owner of the house, whose daughter is in the UK and is who I contacted about the room, came up to see me. He'd had a stroke a few years ago, and so his left side was partially paralyzed, but otherwise he spoke great semi-understandable English and apologized because his wife was in France through Monday (the other kid, their son, is in Australia)... The family appears quite well to do, and the house is a classic beach-type house, with the small peak of the downstairs appearing to hold some rather lavish living quarters. The upstairs is clean and sparse. I learned the man who had initially met me last night was the groundsman/servant at the place. The owner chatted with me a bit then took his leave, urging me to rest more before I continued my day. I guess I looked tired.

I decided to take his advice. I slept, and slept, and woke up a few times, and slept some more...By the time I decided to leave the house it was about 1:30/2 p.m. in the afternoon. I decided to go get a bite to eat nearby at "The Golden Mile." Because of my recent stomach issues, I'm being extra cautious about where I eat. The food there was pricey, and not particularly good, but seemed clean and catered to Westerners. I ate quickly, but ended up stuck in the restaurant as rain started to pour. The restaurant is located on the beach and the waves were mixed with sand and crashing hard. Heavy winds blew back trees, smacking them against the wood/metal roof. Rain flew into overladen canopied areas of the balcony. After about 45 minutes and a mango juice, some of the rain and wind abated. I decided to take my chances and dashed out of the building, across the train tracks (which have no signal when a train is coming by) and up the street to the B&B. When I got in I grabbed my raincoat and the servant dude handed me his umbrella, a big rainbow-colored, sturdy, but rusty thing. It was time to head to the Mount Lavinia train station so I could chug into Fort Station in Colombo and get a ticket eastward Sunday morning to Kandy, Sri Lankan hill country and where they grow lots of tea.

As I walked along the road, a "three-wheeler" or tuktuk driver started coasting beside me asking me to get in. I told him "no thanks," but he persisted. The train ride into Colombo City is cheap, no more than 100 rupees, actually less, though you must get a ticket. The train station was a 2-km walk or a 200 rupees tuktuk ride. The guy told me it was rainy so he'd take me there for 50 rupees, or 50 cents. I got in.

A few minutes into the ride, the 28-year-old driver offers to drive me up to the Fort train station. It's roughly 11-km away. I decline, telling him I can't afford to pay that, and was planning to take the train. He tells me he'll do it for 700 rupees (about 100 less than the standard 800 rupees for that journey). I tell him 500 rupees or nothing. In my mind the ride is a nice tour of Colombo, and so worth the extra money, but not *that* much extra. He turns the car around, says "Okay, 650 rupees." I tell him no way! I will not pay that, sir. Meanwhile, he is going pretty fast with the wind shades on the sides of the car up. I don't like his creepy look. I tell him I won't pay more than 500. After a few minutes of more back and forth, he agrees. As we're continuing on, he periodically turned and would put his hand on my bare knee (I'm in shorts and a teeshirt, w/ the raincoat on). I pushed his hand off twice, as he smiled, unashamed. It really is interesting, but I've read that people are not shamed into behaving here (people, i.e. men). And well, so far it's been true. After 10 minutes or so, the driver stops to get petrol. He asks me for money. I tell him I won't pay him until we arrive. The guy feigns innocence, and says he is a good man, and will make good on his word. As he talks he puts his hand on my inner thigh. I push it off and glare at him, "Don't touch me," I say. He laughs, gets out and takes my 300 rupees, walks about the back of the tuktuk, then comes back in and we drive away. I don't believe he got any petrol. As we drive along he tells me he loves me, and tells me he can go with me to Kandy. I tell him no thanks. He grazes the tip of his knee with his fingers, and I tell him again, "Don't touch me. Keep driving." As he starts to slow down a bit. At this point I'm staring at my rusted umbrella tip. I've told him I'm staying with "friends" in town, who are working. We finally get to the station. I hop out of the tuktuk, but not before he tries to touch me again. I stand outside and tell him to give me 300 rupees change, so I can pay him my 500 rupees bill. He complies, taking out his wallet with multiple bills, including mine, inside. (Why did he want my money earlier?) On the last leg of the journey he'd said some unintelligible things about a friend/family member in Kandy who could put me up in a Penthouse hotel, or "the" Penthouse hotel (couldn't tell) for free. I firmly said thanks but no thanks. He asked "why not?" Guess he didn't get the not-so-subtle hints. After I paid him, I turned to walk away. He said, "see you tomorrow." Huh?

The entire experience wasn't helped by the fact that I had to urinate quite badly. I got to the station and dashed into a hole-in-the-ground stall to relieve myself. Then it was time to figure out my ticket situation. Sadly all the rain, tuktuk issues had made me late. The station only sells tickets between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. I spoke with the station chief, dude in the tie in the office, who said I'd have to get my ticket early tomorrow. But he offered to arrange it for me, and gave me his cell phone. I popped it in my phone. He told me to call him when I came by tomorrow afternoon to pick up the ticket. The whole thing was quite nice of him, though we'll see how it all turns out. That experience has been somewhat the norm for me here thus far. As I walked outside the train station it was drizzling again. A man urged me to open my umbrella. I did, as we walked along in the crowds of Pettah area (which has tons of outdoor shopping stalls). Along the roads were multiple military checkpoints, and soldiers and police mingled with the pedestrians rushing about in the rush hour traffic. The guy, Hamid, and I started chatting as we hurried along at a fast pace with the crowd. I told him I was on my way to a net cafe. He ended up touring me around, asking friends he knew in the area, trying to find me one. When we did, he gave me his cell phone and told me to call him if I ever need help.

The net cafe I found ended up being quite a hot, mucky mess with the Internet connection dying every few minutes. And so I quickly left after a few emails. It was time for dinner. Nearby street vendors were setting up, but because I'm trying to stay relatively healthy this trip I decided to pay my tourist fee and get some decent food. I ended up going to a Japanese restaurant in the Hilton lobby, which was just around the corner from the net cafe and the World Trade Center. I was planning to stay at a hotel right near the WTC, but a military camp is next door as is a bunch of checkpoints because it is in the Fort area. Those facts, which make it more of a target, but especially the price, made me decide not to stay there. Anyway, I ate a pretty delicious, though pricey dinner of tempura udon, tuna sashimi slices with rice, salad and pineapple along with some tea. I'd not had Japanese food in so long...it was really nice. I decided against getting the green tea ice cream, which I've been hankering for for ages. It's $4! Or the equivalent of three days' lunches here. Anyway, the restaurant staff brought me one for free. I guess I looked incredibly disconsolate. Needless to say, I was very very happy!

Well, that about sums up my day. The lady at the business center here is having me pay the 10-minute fee of 155 rupees, but allowing me to stay as long as I want. I'm quite grateful as this net connection is reliable, I don't need to go out into the dark and rain to find another spot, and well, though it's about 2.5 times the regular fee outside (60-80 rupees for ONE HOUR)...I've probably been online now for as much time as I need with much much less hassle. Tomorrow I'm planning to hit up the National Museum as well as the garden nearby the University of Colombo. For now, I'm going to stroll along the main street (weather permitting) and do a bit more discovering. My biggest challenge tonight is finding a bus/taxi ride back to my B&B. Both experiences can be somewhat shady...tomorrow I'm packing my knife with me. Yet, despite all this, I'm actually enjoying my time here. This is a strange country...with a very unique history.

Oh, totally random note, the best meal I've ever had on a plane was on my Emirates flight into Colombo. Curry chicken, with some coconut curry too, salad, apple cinnamon dessert. Mmmm...I also watched the movie "Valentine's Day," or whatever that film was, which was essentially a mindless ode to Los Angeles. I loved it though. It made me quite happy. Damn is it good to be out of Baghdad.

IJW