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Published: August 16th 2018
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We'd booked a walking tour of the old part of Colombo which started at 11. So we thought we'd go via the train station to book our tickets for a train ride to Kandy tomorrow. Little did we know there had been a train strike last week and that the trains were now completely booked out - except you could rock up tomorrow and just pay to get on the 3rd class carriage and stand the whole way - it would be cheap but the thought of spending three hours or more wedged in to a steaming hot train was just a bit unappealing, especially as we had luggage. So we needed a plan B,.......
We met our lovely guide Harold at a smashing little precinct called the Old Dutch Hospital - close to the World Trade Center - quite a sanctuary surrounded by high rise new builds. As it turns out, it was only the two of us for the walk - result! as we later found out, he takes groups from cruise ships around too. We had the best 4 hours and a fantastic introduction to the different colonial influences - Portuguese, Dutch and British and currently Chinese
- although theirs is more of an economic colonial take over - or bondage as Harold described it. He took us all around the Fort area, showing us the different architecture of the Portuguese, Dutch and British. We had tea overlooking the port, close to the coastal area where there is a huge development (it will be a financial district/ marina/ container port/ apartments etc etc ) taking place on land reclaimed from the sea - more Chinese investment. Then we went on a short tuk tuk ride to see the red mosque, the wholesale market / veg and spice market and the Hindu temple - places we would never have dared go ( or known about ) without him. We finished back in the Dutch hospital for a light buffet lunch. But we had found our plan B - Harold has links to drivers and cars - so we're going to Kandy by car ! It's a bit disappointing as we had wanted to take the train but .......
After leaving Harold we walked to the coast: Galle Face - it's a park area by the sea - waves were amazing - we walked to the Galle Face
hotel for a beer by the sea - lovely old colonial hotel with many famous guests in the past and then just as it started to rain we got in another tuktuk to go back to hotel.
Food tonight - nothing we fancied close by so we got another tuktuk - we're experts at negotiating now - to go back to the Dutch Hospital to a lovley seafood restaurant we'd spotted earlier - yum
That's about it for today - car picks us up tomorrow at 10ish - so that's all for today there should be some pics as well
Oh and I nearly forgot - we found a wedding - in fact 2 - one couple leaving on a tuktuk and another in the hotel - very ornate traditional costume!
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