Unawatuna 1

Breakfast was omlette and toast instead of hoppers. Flies again, getting annoying. As I was leaving, the son, who had been the "customer service rep", asked me if I could give him an Australian money bill; he had a collection of various currencies from guests. It seemed that I was the first Australian to patronise their guesthouse. Unfortunately the smallest note I had was $20 and this was too valuable. I didn't have any coins either, having dumped them into the charity box at the airport.

I took a tuk-tuk to the station to stay dry. Hopped onto the Matara bus. A monk wanted my window seat, just behind the driver. I didn't understand what he was saying but the conductor helped me find another place. Later elsewhere I saw signs indicating that the forward seat on the right in buses and train carriages is reserved for clergy.

At Matara bus station I was tempted to buy a short eat or two but seeing the flies inside the display case, gave up that idea. I settled for a bottle of water and an ice cream cone from a small supermarket. Another bus took me to Unawatuna, about 5 km outside Galle. I missed the closest stop and had to walk back about 200m. What look like lanes on maps are usually more like alleyways.

I got upgraded to a balcony room for free at Bedspace. Very glad to have a shower. I came down to lunch and ate a yummy Pad Thai. A welcome cocktail was also provided. David, co-owner of Bedspace, with keen assistants and trainees, cooks up delicious dishes. A quibble, I thought the shallots should have been sliced finer.

After a cool nap I went for a late afternoon walk on the beach, which is about 10 minutes by foot. The surf was strong at the eastern end, which is a delight for surfers but most bathers went to the calmer western end.

Facing the beach are many guesthouses, eateries and shops.

Beach dog heaven.

Strong waves.

These beach dogs looked healthy, if small.

Not adverse to getting a bit wet.

These however are the good looking ones. There are charities that treat, vaccinate and sterilise street dogs to stem the overpopulation, and spread of rabies, similar to efforts in other countries like Thailand.

These tables get busy in the evenings.

You can see that the sand dips sharply away from the shore.

A beach game.

View from the western end, and approaching beach belles.

Excursion boat.

Always in search of warm weather.

This was a practice I saw but didn't want to contribute to, wild animals for pictures.

With the help of GPS, I located Marco Ristorante Italiano in a back lane, which served up a good thin crust pizza. A welcome change from rice with curry.

Went to bed early again. I never really adjusted to the Sri Lankan timezone because I wasn't interested in nightlife and it suited me to wake early before the day got hot. That allowed me to realign with Sydney time easily after the trip.