Preening

The journey from home was long, 19 hours, but we knew it would be and prepared as best we could. Of those 19 hours, 11 was flight time. The rest was just waiting and queueing and I still haven't figured out how to prepare for that. Sleep was elusive, alcohol was never refused and there are consequences of that.

We ventured out in the afternoon to follow a walk given in the guide. The beach and the famous Galle Face Green were deserted - hardly surprising with a temperature over 30.

Our walk, diligently followed, took us by the World Trade Centre and the sad Cargills dept store which has seen much better days. The route led us into National Police headquarters. We were politely ang gently led out; polite and gentle seems to be the way to do things in these parts.

Developments in the area will have come after the map was produced. These developments have also reduced the marketing function to the entertaining. I am sure there are views of the Indian Ocean from each room in the hotel, you can certainly se it from ours. But also prominent is the large container port and construction work for its expansion. We didn't mind sitting by the pool watching cranes at work.

Couldn't find a crane, so a pelican will have to do.