From Galle to Mirissa

Breakfast at The Arches Fort Hotel

It took me a long while to get to sleep last night. You gotta love jet lag… NOT.

I have low energy this morning. Fortunately we have planned a relaxed day.

Breakfast is supplied by the hotel. We help ourselves to fresh fruit and coffee. We are given a choice of English or Sri Lankan breakfast. I ask what a Sri Lankan breakfast consists of. The owner explains. I am very bad at understanding accents so after he explains twice, I don’t want to ask again. I ask if it is spicy. He says no. John and I both order the Sri Lankan breakfast. It consists of a very thin crepe shaped as a thin bowl, a bowl of daal, a bowl of onion something, toast, a flat, dense  bread and jam.  For no spice it has quite a kick and my sinuses kick into action. It is quite good. We finish the meal with yogurt and honey.

Last Walk Around Galle Fort

John and I head out for one last walk around the Fort. A few monitor lizards are out and about in the cooler (25°) morning air. The snake charmer is busking in his usual spot with his unfortunate, lethargic snake.

We check out the luxury Amangalla Hotel, which used to be the home of the Dutch governor. 

Next door is the National Museum of Galle. It is small but has some interesting exhibits.

We finally check out the Old Dutch Hospital which has been reinvented into an area of shops and restaurants. Actually we had eaten supper in its courtyard last night.

I am dying to try the Sri Lankan Blue Tea but despite looking, the place for tea tasting is closed until 11:30am.

Sri Lanka is known as a great place to purchase sapphires so I console myself by going into one of the many jewelry and gemstone shops. I don’t stay long because I can feel John standing outside of the shop, breathing deeply.

We head to a cafe for coffee before returning to our hotel. Our driver picks us up at noon and we head to Mirissa. Mirissa is a town on the southern coast known for it’s pretty beach.

Momma Mia -Airbnb

There is a lot of horn honking on the one hour drive to Mirissa. We are actually staying at an Airbnb on the more tranquil Fisherman’s Beach since Mirissa is a lot busier and louder. We are only a 15 minute walk to Mirissa Beach.

John chose a gorgeous place for us to spend the next three days. I am thrilled. I’ll let the picture do the talking.

Mirissa Beach

After settling in, we walk to Mirissa Beach to check it out. We walk into the town to book a recommended cooking class for Sunday and I book myself a massage for tomorrow.

With all the important things booked, John and I head back towards the beach. I spot a tea store where we can purchase a cup of blue tea. It is very plain but would be fine if flavoured with some lemon. 

When we get to the beach, the tide is out so John decides to walk across and climb up to the top of Parrot Island. They named it that because someone thought it looked like a parrot. John and I check it out from all angles but don’t see it.

John says that I wouldn’t have enjoyed the walk up Parrot Island cause the stairs are very rickety.

Supper at Garlic Restaurant

We head back into town to a recommended restaurant called Garlic where we have a phenomenal meal. We start with an appetizer of poppadom chips and mango salsa. Then I have the freshest, tenderest grilled calamari with vegetables and salad. This is the largest amount of vegetables that I’ve had in a meal since we arrived! Seafood is so fresh here. John has a grilled chicken salad which he enjoys.

Leaving the restaurant, we notice monkeys  (actually Toque Macaques) running across the power lines. Yikes.

Evening at Momma Mia

We were thinking of watching sunset from the beach but decide we’ll have just as good a view (if not better), from our Airbnb balcony and a lot less people to share it with.

We buy non-alcoholic drinks from a store and grab a tuktuk back to the Airbnb. Click here for a short video of the viewpoint from the back of the tuktuk.

I find some weights and yoga mats at our Airbnb and along with the pilates ball and exercise bands I brought with me I am able to do a full workout on our balcony as the sun sets and waves lap.

As it darkens, a tropical woodpecker type bird climbs the trunk of the palm tree in front of our place.