Sri Lanka 1 - Colombo

We flew Tiger Airways from Singapore; a three and a half hour flight. You can get your visa online for US$ 30 before you arrive which we recommend to save you queueing at the airport. Take some US$ in cash as an emergency but there are ATMs .
Remember to inform your bank of your intention to use cards overseas or they may be blocked .  The exchange rate is about 100 rupees to the Singapore Dollar. We booked the first two nights accommodation including airport transport online to save the late night hassle. The flight gets in after 10pm. We stayed at the cheap and comfy Colombo City Hotel which is very central and right next door to the Old Dutch Hospital, an area of restaurants, pubs and shops with branches of Odell and Barefoot for tourist shopping. One day in Colombo is probably sufficient and getting around is cheap and easy in tuk-tuks which charge between 200 and 300 rupees a ride depending on journey distance. We lunched at the Cricket Club Cafe, an expat favourite with an old colonial atmosphere. Our love of exploring local life led us to spend a few hours wandering around the Pettah Market area. It's busy and chaotic. An evening stroll along the boardwalk through Galle Face Green is a must; where locals are out in abundance watching the sunset over the sea, exercising or snacking on vendor food. Follow this up with sunset drinks in the garden of the historic Galle Face Hotel built in 1864. This is the other good option for accommodation too. There is a lot of new construction going on in Colombo, with Hyatt and Shangri La hotels on the way. Of course you could also stay at the Taj or the Cinnamon Grand if your budget stretches that far. We had dinner at the Palmyra Restaurant at the Renuka Hotel . Excellent Sri Lankan food and more locals than tourists, which suits us.
Hoppers are thin pancakes made with rice flour and coconut milk cooked in a small, deep wok-like pan so that the edges are crispy and the middle thicker and softer. They can be plain or have a filing such an egg. Pittu is a Cous-Cous like grain cooked in a bamboo stem with various additions like nuts, veg or fish served with coconut cream. Poriyal is a very spicy curry served with rice. For dessert we had a Wattapannan; a dark caramel custard.