Happy Wanderers: February 4, 2019 - Hambantota, Sri Lanka

February 4, 2019 - Hambantota, Sri Lanka - Monday, Day 29

I was up at 4:30 for my 3 mile walk. Then I went up to deck 12 forward. This is the highest point on the ship accessible to passengers. Last night the captain told us that as we approached Hambantota we would cruise through waters where Blue Whales had recently been sighted. Since I was awake I thought maybe we would get lucky and spot one. No such luck, but i did see a nice rainbow that became a double rainbow for a few minutes.

Soon we docked in the industrial port of Hambantota. There were 2 RO-RO’s docked and hundreds of new cars were waiting in an enormous storage lot. We wondered where these cars were built and where they were going. Goggle disclosed that this port is used for transshipping cars. They can come for China, Japan, India or South Korea. These were Hondas. We are guessing they are from Japan. The destinations are South Africa and the Middle East.

This port looks new. It was built earlier this decade with financing from China. In 1917 Sri Lanka defaulted on the loans and gave China 70% of the port and a 99 year lease. It seems that the creation of the port was a boondoggle from the beginning. Political corruption led to the enrichment of many at great cost to the population. Some consider the Chinese involvement as an indicator of a policy of lend and grab.

The port provided a shuttle to the gate. There passengers were met by the now common hoard of Tuk Tuk drivers and taxis. It was not possible to walk to any part of the town. We were in the boonies. The development plans for this area crashed with the “failure” of the port.

We rode the shuttle and when we got to the gate many people were waiting to take the shuttle back to the ship. They never left the port. They warned about overcharging for rides and also said the only thing worth seeing was the salt flats. They were 4.5 miles away.

We notice some passengers being helped by the guard at the gate. When he became free we asked about the cost to go to the flats. He went outside to consult with some drivers. He returned to tell us it would be $50 roundtrip. When we said no, the price dropped to $25. We hesitated again and the fare dropped again. It was still too high for a short ride. It was clear that whatever the driver wanted, this guy was going to get a good piece of it. We got back on the shuttle for a quiet day onboard.

Alice has been working on pictures all day. I have spent the time working on the blog and experimenting with adding pictures. I think I have found the secrets. I hope you will enjoy the pictures.

This has been our first disappointing port.