Saturday, December 30, 2017

Sri Lanka : Day 1 - Kch - Kul - Cmb

There were 8 of us who signed up for the trip. 2 cancelled at the last minute, and so there were only 6 of us left. They canceled because just days before our departure, a tropical cyclone hit the island, causing parts of the island to be inundated by flood.

We read about it on the news on Friday, and tracked the progress over the weekend. News was slow to come by as there weren't current updates. But by Sunday, I felt that it was safe to go ahead with the trip. There was no travel advisory issued by any of the airlines. And there were no alerts issued by the country too. So it had to be safe to travel there.

On Monday, I made up my mind to go. I collected by trip documents on Monday. The most important document was my visa, for which without, I could not enter the country. I also started packing for my trip that day.

On Tuesday, we found out the name of our tour guide - Mr. Don Buddika. We contacted him and he said it was perfectly safe to visit. According to him, the floods hit only the Northern and the Eastern side of the island, and we were not even going there. I was even more assured.

In fact, the trip to Sri Lanka turned out to be wonderful. I found the Sri Lankans to be very warm and hospitable. Service was excellent at all hotels. And there wasn't a single drop of rain throughout the entire trip. :))

***

On Wednesday, we departed Kuching in the morning for Kuala Lumpur and then on to Colombo. We flew Malindo Air all the way. I had gotten a window seat, but when I reached my seat, it was already occupied by a child. His mother sat next to him, so I settled for the aisle seat. Gladly, in fact. I much preferred to have access to the toilet at all times.

Nasi goreng kampung and chicken satay on board

The journey was 3.5 hours, and there was a time difference of 2.5 hours between Colombo and Kuala Lumpur. So we landed at Bandaranaike International Airport before midnight.

We were greeted by our guide, driver and his assistant from Jetwing Travels. 3 staff serving 6 tourists. Lol! We got a mini bus with plenty of seats for us and our bags. The best news was there was wi-fi on the bus! 

We were brought to our hotel, Pegasus Reef Hotel. Check-in was quick and effortless. I dumped my bags, changed my clothes and slept.

My room at Pegasus Reef Hotel


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