Passekudah DIY – August 8/9
8/8
I get up very early, and, at around 7.00, I start walking towards Passekudah, which is not far, about 1.2 km, immediately after a curve.
The cheapest guest houses are located at the beginning of the village, fortunately on the side from which I am oncoming. At a juction some tuk tuk drivers try to send me to Monya Guesthouse, which in fact should be economic, but I’m afraid of the commission and then instinctively I head to the opposite direction, where a quite elegant building is, the Passi Bay Hotel, large windows and white curtains. I ignore it (room cost 6000 LKR). Immediately after there is a palm grove with bungalows which attracts my attention, is the Inn on the Bay. They offer a bungalow with leaves roof in 1500 LKR, with attached Maldivian style bathroom (open air). The construction is of course very simple, but clean, sheets smell good, so I give confirmation for a couple of nights
So far I run like hell, I think it’s time to rest. The Inn on the Bay was the first guesthouse built in Passekudah. And it’s one of the few that fits well into the natural context in which it is located. I leave the luggage in the room and head to the beach, first toward the east, past the Monya and the tuk tuk drivers who look angrily at me. I reach a beautiful stretch of golden beach, desert, dotted here and there with colored wooden boat. It is 8.00, sun is still down to the horizon, slashes of warm and low light that blinds me. Palm trees in the distance
Going west of the Inn on the Bay there is a big sandy area used as a parking lot, where crowds of buses and tuk tuks bring day trippers.
Wooden stalls display toys and sweets. In one of them, a young man is preparing chapati for breakfast
I am invited to sit inside, which looks like a chicken coop, and I order tea and treats. They have a kind of brioche that reminds me of the Susa sweet bread, 50 LKR, and offer me some bananas. Some resort tourists pass, approaching curiously but look disgusted at the stand, and at myself, as if I were a healthy carrier of cholera. In the two days I will spend here in Passekudah I will never ever see white people eating at this stall. I buy a kind of crunchy peanut, a delicacy (50 LKR). I walk northwards along the beach, in the area where there are luxury hotels, and construction sites. A bit over the top, I would say
Some local people will refer to me with bulging eyes the daily price: LKR 22000, about 120 euros. For them these figures go beyond human understanding, I would not spend that money even if I were in Polynesia. Going on, the beach narrows, and is exposed to the winds, the seabed is very low, waves are rippled
Some tourists shelter under the few palm trees, I can’t find any shade left, so go back for lunch at the breakfast kiosk (samosas, tea and water 150 LKR), and I lie down in in the area crowded by the locals. I don’t take off my dress, not to attract any unwanted attention. None around me is wearing swimming suits. The women’s clothing varies from saris to shalwar cameez, to get to the black coat with chador worn by the most observant Muslim ladies.
Almost nobody is able to swim, among the crowd in the water. Fortunately the bay is sheltered, the water is calm and gently sloping. Too bad I do not love swimming wrapped in shorts and T-shirt, because here is really a godsend, even if the water is not very transparent.
Soon the sky darkens and it starts raining, so I hide in my bungalow, surrounded by dogs and big monkeys. These ones are not particularly intrusive.
At dinner time the situation is distressing. Although not particularly attractive, the restaurant at the Inn on the Bay, with its roof of leaves and colored lights is one of two alternatives to the resorts, I guess the most attractive, since the buffet at Passi Bay is deserted. At Inn on the Bay, instead, waiters have to send away people waiting in line, because the few tables are full, and they are too slow with service. I was told that, if I wanted to dine here, I had to book well in advance, which I did, specifying time, and also listing what I wanted to eat. Despite this, I wait for over 40 minutes. The reviews are not bad, though I have not been satisfied, the fish is full of bones, many parts are scrap, like the head and tail, and the rice is not enough. I ask for more rice and they want to surcharge it, so I give up. For a poor meal I spend 590 LKR
8/9
100 LKR for breakfast at the usual shack (3 croissants and a cup of tea), go back for lunch (130 LKR rice and curry). Dinner at Inn on the Bay (390 LKR)
Day spent at the beach, beautiful weather in the morning, cloudy in the afternoon. Taking advantage of the bad weather I gather information among local people, trying to figure out how to get back to Valachchennai Junction spending as little as possible. There are direct buses to Jaffna, it’s not even necessary to change in Vavuniya