April 22, 2025
Cycle day 26 - Pinnapolegama to Ilanthadiya
Pinnapolegama to Ilanthadiya = 74km (Total distance on this trip so far = 1688km)
Weather = Low of 25 with a high of 33 degrees. Yip feeling hot hot hot!
Accommodation = Dolphin Chilling = 4950 rupees ($25.80 AUD)
Yes definitely had a bad nights sleep last night. There is no insulation in housing here it is all just concrete walls that heat up during the day and retain their heat over night. So it is like sleeping in an oven. When you book accommodation they all say if they have airconditioner or fan. It could be a pedestal type fan or a ceiling fan, you don't know until you get there. Ceiling fans are good for sleeping whereas the pedestal type fan is generally no good. So by the evening our room was a sweat box that you couldn't escape from! Later on in the evening the host dropped of a really super powerful pedestal fan which helped so that was on all night and a little loud but it was alot better than the small wall mounted one. Another problem that we have with some of the places whether they are homestays or hotels is the drain pipes in the bathroom. They can be seriously smelly and last nights was really overpowering so much so that due to mossies we close the bathroom window and that heats up the bathroom which makes the smell even worse. This morning it was very unpleasant to brush your teeth! That being said the host is a lovely person and tries their best. We went down to his folks place for breakfast and polished of bread, jam and a banana and raisin fruit bowl drizzled with local honey. Back on the road heading back down to Nikaweratiya to rejoin the main road.
So it you are eating your breakfast while reading this I would advise you to skip the next part ...
We have been very fortunate on this trip that we haven't got sick and we put it down to not eating fish from local places as we don't know the storage facilities of some of these restaurants, local food establishments etc. But riding back into Nikaweratiya I feel like I need to go to the toilet again. Which is strange for me as I am as regular as the sun rise with the sun rise! So I just think of yeah it is wind. I keep riding and the cramps and urge become stronger. So I begin to look for a “place” and like anything here there is none! It got to the point that shit I am really going to have to go and now I have to inform Neil. I pull over and realised there was a local nearby. So I tell Neil and then continue, OMG I am desperate by now and need to go. At the corner of my eye I see a side road so I swerved up there about 30m up, parked the bike and made Neil park his close by so at least the bikes and the tall bush line give me some privacy and I squat right next to Neils bike, ripped the shorts down JUST IN TIME! I am squatting and the relief to get it out but oh the pain! Poor Neil, I am holding his leg and his pannier bag for balance (as I had to squat for a long time) and I felt so degraded that I just nestled my head (helmet still on!) between his back pannier and legs so letting the wave of relief wash over me. I think I have finished and proceeded to finish off but I can feel more but didn't want to force it. We didn't have much toilet paper left and unfortunately another wave came over me so we moved up a bit and again I had a motion, just a small one but I tell you I felt so much better once it was all out. You were right Sharon - don't block it with immodium just shit it all out so that is what I did. Once all out I felt right as rain and we continued on to town ... first stop was the supermarket to stock up on toilet paper just in case! Now I know Russell you have just had a flashback after reading this of when you and Leanne where in Vietnam. I mentioned this to Neil and funny that he thought the same thing!
From town we were back on the highway. I felt much better but wasn't sure if I could eat food. But by 40km I was ready for a sweet tea and plain sponge cake. Got that into me and felt a millon bucks! Over the course of the day I drank alot of water and by the time we got to our next food stop I was confident I could have some vege/egg samamosas!
It was a nice ride today, a little rolling but nothing arduous although I am feeling a little heavy in the legs and will be glad to get to the beach for a 2 day rest. The highway was busy but not chaotic. At 50km we took a small road so we could bypass Puttalam. This is a busy road that had a lot of look at. We passed salt pans, saw an oxen towing a cart! And if I was depressed after seeing all the lovely vege producing gardens in Nuwara Eliya ... well I am really depressed now as we have come to the beach region and I am flabbergasted that they can grow veges in what looks like sand!
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We can see windmills along the beach front and on the estuary side and the main power station is ever present. We think it is coal burning but the 3 chimney stacks don't have smoke and there is a long jetty where we think they unload coal there. It is unlikely to be Australian coal as that would be too expensive. Indonesia is not far so it might be their brown/dirty type coal that gets used here.
The place is nice and there are 3 villas together but only us and another Italian woman is here. The room is hot and there is a pedestal fan but it seems to do the trick. The bathroom is nice, small but at least it isn't smelly! We have a balcony with an extended palm woven extension as the sun sets in front of us which doesn't offer much protection from the heat but there is a south westerly blowing from 4pm so we get that breeze to cool us down a bit. At least we have an area outside where we can seek solace from when the room gets too hot.
We did go for a swim today and I wouldn't say it was a cool refreshing swim as we reckon the ocean is about 30 degrees which is really warm compared to the ocean temps around Australia which in summer is around 19-20 degrees. But it was nice once you got out with the breeze blowing on you.
The rest of the afternoon we spent sweating under the verandah sipping strawberry tea and then watching 2 men prepare their nets and then launch their boats only to come back in 20 mins later – so they must leave the nets out over night.
Today's ride: 74 km (46 miles)
Total: 192 km (119 miles)
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Luckily it passed for you to carry on to your beautiful beach accommodation!!!!
Felt for Neil & thank god you had enough toilet paper….. when I was travelling top of the list top priority was making sure I had enough toilet paper even before my smokes lol 😂 in some countries it was easier to find my smokes than it was to find the toilet paper!!!!
Enjoy your break ❤️ Jayden is here till Sunday 😃
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