Choo Choo Choo

I've been way behind on the blog folks, mainly because I have limited internet access and have been quite busy settling in and trying to find a meal every night. I have a lot to write and lots of pictures (get a sneak preview at my SmugMug site) to include so sit tight...

Last Saturday was my first chance to explore Colombo since I had nothing to do all day. My goal was to attack on foot and spend the afternoon walking around, stopping by random spots to eat, and gain an understanding of key landmarks along the way.

Global Towers, my hotel/apartment, is in the Wellawatte district of Colombo - known for its high concentration of Tamils, the Savoy Cinema, and the Beach Wadiya seafood restaurant. Wellawatte rail station is also close by, just across Marine Dr. and about 100m south.

Wellawatte is situated along the coast, south of the "main" center of Colombo known as the Fort area. The attached map shows Colombo and its districts/neighborhoods. My plan was to begin the day up north by the Fort and work down back home. I was feeling adventureous so rather than taking a touk touk up north I decided to head over to the rail station and take the train. I got to the station and looked around for signs - nothing in English - so I went to the counter and asked for "Slave Island" - a stop right before the Fort. The attendant handed me a little cardboard ticket, collected 5 rupees (that's $0.05) from me and directed me to the platform where the train was scheduled to arrive in 2 minutes. On the platform I got a few stares - common in South Asia - but was a little creeped out by a guy who for 15 minutes was staring at me dead in the eye, nonstop. I looked away, moved around the platform, even made faces, but every time I looked back at him he gave me the stare. Strangely, right before the train came (20 minutes late) he rolled out and left the platform.

Anyway, the train ride was surprisingly easy. No overflowing cars or packed spaces. The track runs along the beach so the view is magnificent and a cool ocean breeze carries into the train. I didn't get a seat but had plenty of room to stand which was more than I expected. The train stopped a few times along the way at other stations, ones that weren't well marked or labelled except maybe in Sinhalese, but I managed to pick the right spot to get off because I followed a Hilton Colombo employee off the train.

I ended up getting off right by the Colombo World Trade Center, also close to the Hilton, the Galadari, and the Galle Face Inn. I first decided to check out the WTC - a set of twin towers (20 stories) built within the last 15 years. Not much going on in there on a Saturday, though I caught a glimpse of the gem & jewellery exchange, a collection of dozens of jewellery and gem shops in the WTC. Sri Lanka, known for its sapphires, thrives on the gem business.

After walking around the WTC area I decided to head to the Hilton for lunch. The Hilton is known for its restaurants but I was really in the mood for some bar food so I ended up sitting down at the Echelon Pub. I had a nice big much of "Hilton" Lager - not sure what it was really but it quenched the thirst. For lunch I had a surprisingly tasty tandoori chicken melt at the pub, something I plan on going back for at some point.

After grabbing a bite I headed down Galle Face Green for a stroll. The idea of Galle Face Green was to be a park for anyone, rich or poor, to enjoy. Unfortunately the maintainence hasn't been up to par and its now more like Galle Face Brown. Still, it was filled with kite fliers, cricketers, and a bunch of young couples under umbrellas doing things they can't do at home. As I was walking down the boardwalk by the beach a couple young boys playing cricket waved me over, so I obliged and for the first time in my life tried to play cricket. What a debacle. I swang and missed several times, even when the guy bowled the tennis ball as slow as he could. To my defense, the "bat" was little more than a 2 foot piece of plywood I was flailing. Anyhow, it was fun to goof around and play cricket with the boys, and afterwards I spent some time chatting with them over a Coke. I told them I'll be back in the next three months so watch out.

After an exciting run at cricket I kept walking down south, stopping by the Queen's Cafe for a drink of fresh mixed fruit juice. I ended up walking down Duplication Rd., which houses a good number of restaurants, bars, cafes, and higher end shops. A fellow Accenture colleague who was in Colombo last year for an ADP project, Dan, recommended a few bars and restaurants along Duplication including the Cricket Club Cafe and Bistro Latino, so I'll be sure to check them out.

I spent much of the afternoon walking down Duplication and Galle, really just taking note of places and streets. I feel like I have a good grasp now of the main street in Colombo, which should help when I'm trying to get around or negotiate touk-touk rates. As a bonus, I can also say I've taken an inner-city train in Colombo, a feat that was received with surprise and even bewilderment among my colleagues at work. Some said they haven't been on a train in 20 years. What can I say though, I'm a man of the people here in Sri Lanka.