Now here's the end....for this time

,In Ratnapura , when on a local gem mine tour, what a silly question....'do you want to go down(into that primitive, leaking hole in the ground, ankle deep in water at the bottom, shored up with rubber tee wood, and packed with ferns to prevent the sides from caving in, via a single rail very non OHS  ladder 40 feet that was still serviced by a hand windlass, and a pipe for communications)into the mine for a look.  Of course I did.   Second real opportunity NJC has had to claim on the super.....the shaft was about three metres square, 17 m deep, with an adit, into the gem gravel was about 1.5 m x 1.5 m and was about 3 m long.  The ground water was constantly trickling from  the roof and walls.  Most of the digging is loosened by crow bar and moved by hand into bags to be lifted to the surface.  .

Note the safety helmet, safety vest and boots

After climbing out. Bare foot, shirt stripped and .yes that's mud.

The gravel is then stored either in a locked room or a pit. When all the usable gravel is lined the pit is filled with water and the gravel is sifted using woven baskets.  Alas there were no sapphires in the  load we brought up.   Animist belief still reigns here as they have spirit houses and ceremonies to bless the site and drive out the evil spirits.

Three and a half hour bus to colombo, including a change of tyre, while we were still in the bus.  The driver and conductor both chewing betel nut...with the requisite red spit marks down the side of the bus.....

Hotel a luxury...hot water, cold water, sheets, air conditioning, towels, a tv that we will never turn on, an elevator, more than one power point, and a view of the beach ...(over the railway line ) about 10 ks south of the city central in Mt Lavinia.  But it will cost a lot more than the average $20-22 night accom we have been paying

Galle face green for kothu meal where we started three weeks ago.

Flag retrieval ceremony Galle face green

 Bus cost $1.00 for both of us, but the ride back to the hotel was amazing.  To say the driver was high spirited, understatement .  Following on I phone maps worried when according to the map we were driving along the sand.  Maximum speed per the meter was 49 kph, seemed like 160. We were starting to get worried when he said the journey would cost us rs1000, when we thought rs 400 max.   Just as well this wasat the end of our time in Sri Lanka, because our heart rate would not have gone over 150 this time.

At the airport now. Heading home.

Highlights

Me.

Galle fort- built 300 years ago still solid and standing

Jaffna- the damage that the war has done

Anurandhpura - 1500 years old and still standing.  And the cobra handling

Sigiriya  lion rock and the elephants

White monkey home stay haptule 

All the local train bus and taxi rides

Nathalie...of course

Low lights

Trincomalee - poor excuse for a hippie beach bum backwater- if you've never seen a decent beach maybe it has some charm.

Next.......maybe Indonesia, but maybe after that India. 

8. Eight oche, the one after seven

Badulla has the highest waterfall in Sri Lanka. We stayed at a rather forgettable hotel, which apparently rented some of the rooms by the hour.  The beds were on concrete platforms, somewhat reminiscent of the beds in police cells.  

But it was just a place to sleep, and wash.  And the beds don't move.

Dunhindha water fall is a good half hour walk from the road, along a partly paved, partly dirt and mostly scramble path, but every few hundred meters the path goes through a local food, trinket, or drink shop...all the way to the falls. 

The shop not yet open for business.

The falls, all 64 m of it.   It must be rather amazing in the wet season.

Because we were the first down there for the days we disturbed a rather large gaggle of monkeys, 25-30 of then and it was for a moment a bit of a stand off, as it appeard they did not want us to get past.   Unlike the beggars and touts, one yell, clap of the hands and waving of the arms, they let us pass....we might have outsmarted them ..this time.  

On the way back ther driver took us to the suspension swing bridge over the Budulla river.  I don't think it has seen much maintenance, planks missing mid stream, and a whole section where you had to slide along the edge of a board,  but swing it certainly did. 

I'm sure the nails will hold

With not a second glance the water buffalo took over the roadway, but they apparently 

a.have right of way, 

b.do not need any supervision and

 c.know where they are going

I don't know why we should be concerned....they aren't 

Haptule.

Another local bus ride to the next stop a place called Haptule about two hours, cost us r72 each. (80 cents).   We had booked the previous evening a place called the White Monkey (Dias Rest)guest house.  About 3 ks straight up from town.   The steps down to the rooms are a bit daunting if not downright terrifying, but well worth the effort.

Yes that the reception all the way down there.

 We were greeted with a cup of tea and plate of fruit.

Absolutely gorgeous location on the edge of a mountain 1480 m above mean sea level  (Colombo ) it is a bit smoggy/misty so visibility probably only 50 or so ks.

From our room window,

The host suggested that  we have a walk through the adjoining tea plantation up to the nearby cliff, which one again offered wonderful views.  Don't ever  let it be said that NJC has not had the opportunity to make a claim on the superannuation, in fact she insisted that ABC move back.

The cliff to which we walked.

White monkey is more a home stay than a guesthouse, with wood fire cooked, coconut roti, and tea, lots of tea, mountains of tea....you'd reckon it grows on trees around here.

It is a whole family thing, but as to who is family and who isn't is a bit flexible, as are the nominative terms, uncle, mummy, brother and aunts.  Seems they are the cater for a three year old bundle of trouble, who I think is a great nephew of Dias. His dad is a ner-do-well, who is working in Colombo, and his mum is working in Saudi Arabia, in what appears to me all but slavery.  

Yes that's him.

About half to one third of the family.

Breaking the Ramadan fast.

The interaction between the 18 year olf son  of the owner, and the guests, especially the multitudinous female ones is interesting.    Currently there are four French and two American female backpackers.  

This the birthplace of Sir Thomas Lipton's Sri Lankan tea empire from 1890-1930.  There is palace called Lipton Seat which is a bluff 1970 metres high, with a amazing view northward.

 We did , of course walk it, about 20 k round trip...7.5 hours ..all tea plantation, 

Walking through the tea plantation, 100s of pluckers at work, through small villages, to the top where the charming host at the tea shop, gave us the cooks tour of the view, and a lovely cup of tea. 

The tea shop host at 1970m

The repast. Left to right (if you rotate the photo 45 deg anti clockwise) coconut syrup slice, samosa, and dhal cookies.

The view from the very very top - tea shop in foreground 

We weren't temptet to take gratuitous close up shots of the tea pluckers as they would then idemand money.  The cheeky school aged children will chat with you, then ask for pens, money and sweets, in that order.  If you've got them, see no problem with the pens, but the other two.....nah.  

The pluckers work six days a week from 7,30 to 4.30, with Poya days off.  If they work high on the mountain they dont go home for lunch instead finish at 2.00.  Theyy have to pick 22 kgs of leaf a day, and get $5.00 a day.  According to our source rorting by the weighers is rife, and if the workers arc up they dont work tomorrow.  Need a union here.      

The tiny dots are the pluckers.

Dodging the angry red busses, the beggars, many dogs, and tuk tuks, the walk was not without interest.  The road is switch-back in nature, in very good condition, but very steep in parts.   As we were coming down the school children knew all the short cuts, as in the perilous 'staircase' but it did cut off a few ks...so we followed.

The short cut!

The Sari.

Desi's sister in law in the next villiage, makes saris.  Not big town or tourist pice....so NJC selected and was'fitted' for a sari.  The entrainment value of the local women marvelling at the pale skin, and big feet, was worth a dozen guided tours.   No privacy, the kids and others stood at the window.  It was great.   The good thing is Nathalie had much assistance and advice in respect of selection and wearing of the Sari.

 And that is only some of the crowd.

Stayed there three days, with most of our meals cost only $70.00 ish.  Fascinated with the food,  Nathalie almost was allowed to help with the cooking.     

Nathalie helping to prepare  the meal....Nathalie is the one behind the camera.

Haven't had decent Internet for several days so this one will be posted now, from Ratnapura, the gem area. 

Just had a big chuckle.  A young French couple in the next room quite agitated  came onto to the balcony where we are sitting to ask is we had any la kookaracha, as they had 'one' in their bathroom.   Cockroaches, I would have thought do not even rate a mention....it is the tropics,  it is Sri Lanka, they are staying at a guest house....I don't think they were assuaged by ABCs assurance that the cockroaches don't eat much.   If it was a snake, or a tiger maybe.....