Sri Lankan bus driver selection questionnaire:
- Do you enjoy driving insanely fast?
- Do you accelerate hard and brake even harder?
- Do you overtake like your life depended on it and leave only just enough room?
- As long as passengers have at least something touching the bus (not necessarily a limb), are you happy to pull away?
If you answered “yes” to 3 of these questions, congratulations – you can become a bus driver for the Sri Lankan Transport Board. If you can answer “yes” to all 4 questions, you automatically qualify for our elite driver programme – “The Nutter Bs” – where you’ll get to drive the most thrilling routes on the most dangerous buses.
Hurtling along the main road between Mirissa and Galle, I caught snapshots of the walled resorts that line the coast. Each to his own, but I’d top myself after a few days. Maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration. After a few hours. Ok, ok, I’d be lucky to last 60 minutes without gnawing my leg off. Anyway, I’m glad people like these places because it keeps the crowds away from the interesting stuff 😉 But the sea looked amazing:
She was holding the food in her right hand subtly, so it wasn’t obvious it was there. The only tell-tale sign was when she lifted it to her mouth. The stick-thin waitress had taken a handful of someone’s leftovers as she returned the plates to the kitchen and was trying to consume it without being noticed. But I noticed, and my heart wrenched. I looked at the bag of mango I’d bought as we’d got off the bus. I love mango. She’d love it more. It wasn’t your conventional tip, but at least I knew it’d get to where it was needed.
Galle fort is a world heritage site and the largest remaining European-built fortress in Asia. Galle was the main port on the island when the Portuguese arrived in C16. Both they and the Dutch (C17) fortified the city – you can clearly see the influence of both the natives and their visitors.
A self-guided walk took us in a leisurely circle within the main walls, starting with the Dutch Reformed Church whose floor is paved with gravestones from the old Dutch cemetery:
The post office:
People bathing:
The lighthouse:
A flashback to Cienfuegos:
Never seen one before today, but here’s my second monitor lizard in as many hours:
The first one was just outside the office of one of the whale-watching companies we visited this morning, and was significantly bigger. My instinct was to run, but she (or he) didn’t seem to mean any harm:
Back to the clock tower:
I was clearly waiting to be served. He muscled his shoulder in front of mine, and I’d just stared at him. I like to think it was a stern stare, but when I’d practised this look on MC he started laughing, which wasn’t quite the effect I was going for. Anyway, I stared. And he stared back. And then got served. A voice behind me said, “They don’t understand queueing.” I looked round to see a friendly Sri Lankan face looking a little forlorn. “They don’t queue. You won’t get served.” He then asked what I wanted from the busy bakery and, as he ordered it for me, said “I am embarrassed by my people.” Yes, Sir, but your kindness goes some way to mitigate their uncouthness, and I thank you.
Back at Rudy’s niece’s friend’s place, we ate. Oh boy, did we eat – the best devilled chicken so far (although Sumana’s comes a very close second, falling down only on the small quantity (to a western appetite, albeit it a dwindling one), but that’s not unusual in these parts). And then lots of conversation, explanation and reminiscing. We had the pleasure of being introduced to her daughter – a studious, pretty young woman who is extremely motivated, not to mention successful, in her studies.
We’d visited a few whale-watching companies, spoken to some tourists and didn’t know what to believe – some said we’d see the big blue things for sure, others said they weren’t in town. Gayani called her friend who gave us the truth – it’s out of season, some have been spotted in the past few days, but a sighting isn’t guaranteed by any means. That’s what we wanted – the truth. We’re booked in for tomorrow 🙂
Random stuff from today.
As we walked past the bathing area at the tip of the fort, a Muslim family passed by. The difference between the genders was striking with the man and child in singlets and shorts, wet from the sea, and the woman buried in her burkha. I will defend people’s right to believe in what they wish, but surely this isn’t just. Even if she thought she was choosing to wear the attire, I do think the desire is a result of the pressure of a highly patriarchical culture. Surely freeing women from these expectations has got to be a good thing – why shouldn’t she enjoy the sea, too?
More construction – a large percentage of Sri Lanka is a building site. As a tourist, I’m well aware of my part in this, even if I don’t stay at the resorts.
