We traveled through Sri Lanka for several days absorbing the culture, exploring ancient ruins and enjoying the scenery. Perhaps our expectations were too high, or we were just exhausted from four days of Bikram's wedding, but nothing we saw really wowed us. That changed when we went to the beach.
Immersed in a thick sea of warm humid air I gaze up at trunks of slender curving palms topped with crowns of feathery green fronds that flutter in the gentle tropical breeze. Young coconuts shelter beneath the spindly leaves, hiding from the brutal equatorial sun. I squint through the dappled canopy blinded by the glare of an azure blue sky sprinkled with puffy white clouds. Beneath me, lush green lawn slopes down to brilliant white coral sand at waters edge. Tourists, their tenure here obvious by the shade of their skin, walk along the beach. To the right, I watch powerful waves break into lines of
white froth to curl up on the strand. To the
left, young boys frolic in a tranquil lagoon sheltered from the surf by a
towering rock island.
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| Marissa Beach |
The kilometer long crescent of Marissa Beach is fringed with palm trees that arc over the sand. Small guest houses tucked in the palms provide cheap beachfront lodgings. Beach side restaurants with tables at waters edge offer the catch of the day for a few dollars.
A kilo of grilled barracuda, doused with lime juice, salt and pepper is served with fries and salad, costs about five U.S. dollars.
You can add a 22 ounce bottle of ice cold Lion lager for about a buck and a half.
Costing less than two dollars, fresh squeezed tropical juice cocktails are served at happy hours that last all day.
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| What's for dinner |
A light breeze tempers The oppressive mid morning heat. A cooling dip in the 85 degree surf works up an appetite for lunch. Clothed only in swimsuits and sunglasses we walk along the beach and stop at the Curry in a Hurry restaurant. Escaping the noon day sun, we grab a table in the shade beneath swaying palms. We order the daily special of prawn curry. While waiting for lunch to be served I realize I haven't worn a shirt since yesterday and haven't worn shoes since we got here four days ago. My thoughts are interrupted when the waiter places a stainless steel tray on the table. Two veg curries fill little compartments on the tray. Coconut sambar fills another. A large compartment holds enough rice to keep a Samoan happy. This is all capped by a giant papadum with a generous dollop of mango chutney on top. A bowl full of small curried prawns completes the package. The curries are spicy but delicately flavored. There is plenty of food for two; all for less than three dollars.
While munching on the curries, we watch he surf pound the sand a few yards away. Two to four foot waves come in at an angle to the sand to break in about four feet of water; a perfect setup for body surfing. After lunch, I drop my sunglasses on a lounge in front of restaurant and dive into the surf and catch four waves in rapid succession. I continue to catch waves until my arms have turned to rubber. I crawl out of the surf to collapse on the beach lounge to bake my bones in the hot afternoon sun. I doze off dreaming of paradise. Much later, I awake with a smile on my face. Sitting up, I look around and pinch myself to make sure I am not still dreaming.
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