Round The World and other travels
A frequent flyer's collection of trip diaries
This is: Indian Ocean 2012
Sandblasted!
There was absolutely no rush to get up this morning. When I did wake up and realised the day of the week, I was amazed that the trip had already slipped into Week 2. I also assimilated the strange little fact that, of this four-night booking at the Hilton, this was the first and only morning that we would be having breakfast. After this was over, the plan was for an easy-going day that neatly divided into discrete sections: a morning walk in the Fort district, an afternoon stroll along Galle Face Green and then an evening split between the Executive Lounge and the hotel's premier restaurant, Spoons.
When we were ready to head out, I suggested that
the first order of business should be to visit the office of Sri
Lankan Airlines next door in the World Trade Center. I was nervous
about what state the remainder of our respective itineraries had
been left in, following the events of a few nights ago. It turned
out that my sense of discomfort was well-founded: the tickets and
reservations for our remaining sectors had been cancelled due to our
alleged no-show at Dubai!
If I was annoyed about the fate of our tickets, the issuing agent
seated next to me
was furious - or at least, deeply unimpressed. In fairness, the Sri
Lankan Airlines agent quickly saw what had happened and reinstated
almost everything without any argument; a couple of the original
seat assignments were, however, irretrievably lost. Thank heavens we
got it all sorted then, before attempting to check in for our
early-morning flights the following day.
| We were then able to get on with the main business of having a short stroll around the Fort District (Colombo's central business district) and down towards the port. I had to be careful about what to photograph, as I knew that the authorities were sensitive about security matters. I managed not to upset any police or military. |
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BELOW and LEFT: Grand Oriental Hotel | ||
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| When passing the Grand Oriental Hotel, the doorman invited us to come inside for a look around. It was an interesting diversion and a welcome interlude from the heat and humidity. |
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It was an enjoyable taste of Colombo's central area, complete with crumbling colonial architecture. The other highlight was the recently restored Dutch Hospital, now home to shops, restaurants and a spa. Our arrival there coincided with a heavy shower. We stayed under cover for the worst part, but I was glad that I had my brolly for returning to the Hilton!
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We
made it back to the Hilton without getting too badly drenched and
took a little while to settle down and recover before taking lunch
in the hotel's English-style pub, Echelon. We then set out
for our intended afternoon walk along Galle Face Green, which was
actually brown due to the lateness of the rainy season this year.
This meant first passing through a very sensitive area of Government
buildings, so I put my camera away to avoid any misunderstandings.
It was a pity, as the buildings were particularly grand-looking, but
I certainly didn't want to invite any trouble.
The walk along the promenade proved to be a bit of an ordeal: there was a gale blowing in off the ocean, which meant that we (and everyone else who had decided to brave the conditions) were being blasted by an unpleasant mixture of fine drizzle, salt and sand. I could taste the salt and feel the sand! These conditions also constituted camera hell; I managed to take a few iPhone photos, but even that was fraught with difficulty as I could barely see anything through my glasses.
Sadly
these were desperately poor conditions for what ought to have been a
pleasant afternoon stroll and the Galle Face Hotel, at the far end
of the green, offered little in the way of respite. We returned to
the Hilton along a more inland path that brought slightly improved
conditions. We eventually freshened up, made the customary visit to
the Executive Lounge and had an excellent last-night dinner in
Spoons restaurant, the most prestigious in the hotel.
Unbelievably, the following morning would already bring a parting of
the ways as Bruce would be homeward bound via Hong Kong on his
one-week, whirlwind, RTW itinerary. We set the alarm for a perfectly
hideous 0345.
