Felt again that sadness just before waking. No single cause, just the annoyances of travelling in Sri Lanka, recent events, and unfinished business back home. This was the midpoint and high point of the trip; and I would be losing altitude from here on.
The guesthouse faced Ella Rock and I watched as the sunrise lit it up.
Kitelella Road outside the guesthouse was, despite its narrow width, a secondary road to Bandarawela so there was traffic noise from it.
Ella Rock is a major attraction, but I was undecided if I wanted to scale it.
Breakfast was hoppers and bread, with butter and jam, some fruit, and tea.
I walked down to town. The road ran through a verdant tea plantation. Later I was told that, while still important economically, tea has been displaced by tourism as the top export.
Pretty good looking dogs and chickens.
I was glad that I started early. Even up in hill country, it was hot in the sun.
My first stop was the train station where I bought a ticket for the next day. Backpackers were waiting for the same service that I would be taking. The line runs from Colombo to Badulla, a bit further uphill. The train trip into hill country is one of the main attractions for visitors.
I decided to tackle Little Adam's Peak. The trailhead is about 2 km outside town. The path ran through a tea plantation. Next time you have a cup of tea, spare a thought for the workers in all tea producing countries, mostly women, who have picked the leaves you are imbibing. It's hard and poorly paid work on steep terrain.
From a vantage point I could see the winding road I had ascended the previous afternoon.
Bright green tea bushes.
Will one get tea flavoured milk perhaps?
The final stretch consisted of steps on the hillside. This part took about as long as the walk up the trail, some 20 minutes. At the top fellow travellers were cooling themselves in the shade, enjoying the vistas.
There were views towards the south coast through Ella Gap.
Ella Gap road, looking even smaller from the height.
Ella Rock, with a deep gash on its flank.
I chatted a bit with a German couple and a Belgian couple and even made a call on their behalf to a tea plantation to check tour times. Mobile service in Sri Lanka was far better than one might suspect for a developing country and I had mobile connectivity nearly everywhere.
At the fork to the steps a sign indicated that I could divert to the 98 Acres Resort. Why not? I could use a beer and maybe even get lunch.
This turned out to be an upmarket resort, the kind privileged tourists head straight to by chauffeured car from the airport.
The views through the Gap were excellent but the haze limited the clarity. I didn't lunch outside though, it was too warm.
Instead I took a table in the main hall, which had a pleasant cool breeze.
The food and drink prices were higher than the norm but quite affordable compared to Australia. I even treated myself to a dessert fruit platter with marshmallows and chocolate sauce.
Flowers on the resort grounds.
I bought a bottle of water from a rather sparsely stocked supermarket in town before taking a tuk-tuk back to the guesthouse. I had the idea to stay on until dinner before returning but this was clearly impractical; I was too tired. So I would have to dine at the guesthouse.
I never found any bottles of sugar-free drink in Sri Lanka. I guess the hard working locals need the sugar.
As it turned out dinner was much better than the night before, comprising 7 curries with rice. The curries were: jackfruit seed, potato, ladies fingers (okra), banana flowers, beans, possibly dhal, and chicken. Dessert was yogurt. The owner gave us some Sri Lankan honey to try.
The Dutch ladies were leaving by the by same train so we agreed to share the tuk-tuk down the hill.
Charming though staying in an old fort may be, I didn't think Galle merited more than a day, so I had only the morning before moving on. I woke before sunrise, as expected, backed up the photos in my camera to my tablet, and wrote in the diary to pass the time until breakfast. For some reason, a Sri Lankan breakfast wasn't available that day, maybe the cook was on leave. This was the first inkling that I had arrived in the shoulder season. So I took the Continental breakfast. The pattern for western breakfasts, repeated throughout Sri Lanka was: toast or pancakes, butter, jam, tea or coffee and fresh fruit. The plunger coffee was passable but of course not barista. The fruits were papaya, pineapple, and banana, with a slice of lime.
I went for a clockwise walk on the fort wall. From there one can see the coastline, as the fort is on a peninsula. Notice the strong surf. Except for the northwest quadrant of the avocado shaped island which faces India, the coast is exposed to the open Indian Ocean and there is no land to the south before Antarctica.
The most common bird in Sri Lanka is the crow, no doubt because of the rubbish that is openly dumped all over. Dogs looked healthy if small and thin probably because they get fed by the Buddhist Sri Lankans. If you want a good life, come back as a beach dog in Sri Lanka. There's nothing for them to do but laze around all day.
But I also sighted less common bird species.
Couples were having appointments on the wall. The shade of choice for Sri Lankan ladies is the umbrella. At the northern wall I could look back on the modern town of Galle, not of much interest to visitors, except for the bus and train stations. There was some kind of circus or rally happening on the green.
I passed a party dressed in traditional Sri Lankan garb. It seemed be a wedding party photo shoot.
A bit further on, a man with a cobra in a basket tried to interest me in paying to take photos of them. I declined.
This is a tuk-tuk, a Sri Lankan taxi, really a 3-wheeled scooter. This one must have been the pride of its owner because it was shiny. A driver later told me most were made in India. Except in Colombo where some have meters, the fare is negotiated. Fares aren't exorbitant; short rides start at 100 LKR. Despite bargaining, as recommended, I always felt that I had paid more than locals. But I didn't bargain hard. What is a dollar or two for me might be a meal for them.
The beach at the eastern side of the peninsula.
The lighthouse at the southern edge.
A restaurant which probably served Chinese tourists and other foreigners wanting a change from standard fare. A lot of Sri Lankan restaurants claimed to offer Chinese or Asian dishes, usually vaguely Thai due to the proximity with South East Asia. I wasn't game to try, to avoid disappointment.
Sri Lankans swimming in an area slightly protected from waves by reefs.
At the tip, looking back on the town and the lighthouse.
Another guesthouse, on Rampart Street, like mine.
The western path.
Strong waves crashing on rock outcrops.
Rewarding myself for hard work with a gelato. The quality was quite good.
I showered and checked out. I met the German co-owner of the guesthouse. She was planning to take a trip home as the high season was winding down. The guesthouse arranged a run to the bus station in a tuk-tuk for me. And that was the end of my stay in Galle.
