Hikkaduwa before the internet

Colombo near Fort Station. Photo courtesy: Calflier001 – Wikimedia.org

Being in Hikkaduwa for six weeks before the internet meant day trips to Colombo to pick up snail mail.

South to Galle

Photo courtesy: Krankman – Wikimedia Commons

I took a bus from Hikkaduwa to Galle. It was only a half hour trip along a coconut fringed coastline to the quiet southern town.

Bike ride to another world

Tamil pickers – Photo courtesy: Dennis Keller – Wikimedia Commons

Behind Hikkaduwa were a tea plantations. I cycled along Galle Road then turned away from the sea climbing until I reached hills where verdant trees covered the landscape like a thick green blanket.

Hikkaduwa

When I visited this west coast location decades ago, there were no buildings along the waterfront except for the one resort on the point. A row of buildings stretched along the coast behind Galle Road and beyond that lay forest and coconut palms.

Hikkaduwa

Photo courtesy: Astronomyinertia – Wikimedia Commons

South of Colombo lay Hikkaduwa. This beachside resort was normally a major tourist spot even during the early days when I was in Lanka. But due to the disruptive political times, most travellers had deserted the entire island.