Nearly home!

Another grey dawn greets the fishing fleet off the beach at Negombo

14/01

Back in Damboola. More light drizzle as we begin our penultimate day in Sri Lanka. Last night I noticed two Belgian Girls checking out our bikes in the car park. This morning I got down to breakfast to find them at our breakfast table. It turns out they are motorcycle journalists writing an article on touring Sri Lanka by bike. However things are not going too well for them. They showed up a week ago, to the motorcycle hire place in Negombo, to find that there had been a double booking. This is the same place we had hired our bikes from. I suspect that Suranga will not come off looking too good when the article is published. After a few phone calls it was decided. We could save them anymore down time, if we gave them two of our bikes in return for their rental car. Well not a rent-a-car as such, actually Suranga's wife's car. (I'll bet he was in trouble when he went home).
Everyone was looking at everyone else, a little reluctant to part with the bikes. After four hard days on public and private buses, we were really looking forward to getting back on the bikes. In the end Jake and I lost our rides.
After posing for final photos and a couple of wheelies and burnouts it was time to hit the road. Jake didn't let the fact that he had lost his bike worry him too much, as we put the little Yaris through its paces. With me navigating, we launch off after the bikes, cutting through the traffic like a Sri Lankan bus driver on a mission. I will admit, there were times when I was little scared. Maybe even a lot scared. At other times it was like being the co-pilot of a rally car( minus the roll cage and racing harness).
Our fist stop for the today was the Elephant orphanage at Pinnewala. The rain continued to fall as we pressed on through small towns and road works. A police escort went past in the other direction with the Cricket World Cup aboard, followed by a truck load of armed soldiers. As the boys on the bikes became wetter and wetter it looked as if our decision to take the car was not so bad.
We hit Pinnewala about 1:30, just in time for the elephant bathing. The entry fee here is about twenty dollars each, plus the usual hassle from hawkers of bananas and parking spaces and elephant-poo paper. Lionel seems to remember that it used to only be $5.00 to enter, and I'm told by a tuk-tuk driver that the locals still only pay about $2:00. Oh well that's progress. That said, aside from the tiered hotel developments either side of the road, the view greeting us at the river was spectacular. At least fifty elephants were splashing about. Ranging from little babies to large bulls. We watched for about an hour and also bought some over-priced bananas to feed a few. These things are eating machines, even more so than Will, Jesse and Jake. They eat close to 190 kgs of food a day each, and the few bananas we bought quickly disappeared down the hatch peels and all. My poor photos in the limited light, just can't do it all justice. It was, even in the rain mesmerizing. So graceful. A couple of youngsters tussled the whole time we were there, pushing each other over and under. They would disappear under water for a time and then, just as you start to worry, up periscope!
All to soon it was time to push on to Negombo. With no sign of the weather breaking it was going to be one wet slog for the final leg home.
Another 2 hours on the bikes and finally we rolled into the Cylonica hotel, where we began our adventure all those days ago. Greg looks at me and comments that he didn't even get this wet surfing. It looks like our $7.00 rain gear has done nothing. I look at my dry pant with a slight tinge of guilt.
Over all we have clocked up about 1500 km's on the bikes and maybe 500 km's more on the buses. And a majority of this has been through rain and floods and despicable traffic conditions. All this time we have kept all the bikes operational, upright and free from any other major mishaps. An achievement in itself.

15/01
Our last day before going home. The younger guys absolutely demolished the $7:00 buffet at the three star hotel down the road, and then suited up for one last ride. This time it is to Colombo, about 45 mins south, to do some last minute shopping. Tonight I have organized one last rice and curry at a small place down the road and tomorrow we leave at 5:30 for the airport and our flight home. See you all on Monday!

Bike Hire Details

Sha Lanka: http://www.negombo-motorcycle-tours.com/
Tel: +94 777488746