It is an easy drive from Habarana to Trincomalee, a straight line of around 80km, with air conditioning in the form of the canvas sides being down on the jeep, we were nicely wind blown and exfoliated on arrival, such fun! Another form of transport to tick off the list ✔️
Prior to arriving we made a short stop at the Hot Water Wells, these are hot water springs at a local temple, it was a wonderful sight seeing many of all ages splash the water over them selves, laughing and embracing this natural phenomenon. We also saw our first snake, he was a massive one being held by a local asking for money to have a photo- ah no thanks!
Trincomalee or “Trinco” as the locals call it is known mostly for its naval base and has many surrounding beaches. It is a town spread along a stretch of coast with bays and inlets. Our guest house was just a short walk to Uppuveli beach, built, owned & operated by Jacob, he had great English and was most helpful to us.
The sandy stretch of Back Bay is lined with colorful fishing boats side by side on the sand with the remnants of the civil war, which ended just seven years ago evident in the neglected and damaged buildings also dotting the coastline. Unfortunately the areas also dominated by the fishing trade are also littered with rubbish, not only spread over the sand but bobbing about in the water. Further up the bay there are a handful of resorts and backpackers where an effort has been made to clear the rubbish so we enjoyed our swim there in the bath temperature like waters.
Our full day in Trinco was spent attending a morning Catholic Church service spoken in English at St Mary’s Cathendral. It is always lovely to be a visitor at another parish and this was no exception. The best way to see a destination is always on foot so we did spend a few hours walking and exploring, however this has been one aspect of the trip the children have found most challenging especially in the heat, but we battle on and there is usually some form of reward in the form of something cold.
Earlier in the day we stumbled across Dutch Bay, as Mum had stepped in cow poo (cows wander freely here) she made a beeline for first sign of water she came across, which happened to be a cleaner calmer beach than our first day. So while Dad donned his long baggy pants to visit nearby Koneswaram temple, Mum took the kids to the beach for the afternoon where our little water babies were in their element. We were a bit out of place with our fair skin & swimsuits, I guess swimming togs are not widely owned here as everyone was swimming in their clothes.
It was a wonderfully relaxing way to spend the afternoon, we spoke to many fellow swimmers, who were mostly visitors in Tinco for the long weekend. It was almost like any other beach scene with picnics, ball games, icecream & food vendors, apart from the fellow deer that scattered the beach in search of food!
Our last morning in Trinco we decide to hit one more beach, we dialed up our TukTuk driver from the previous nights ride home as he had an upscale “family size” TukTuk! We headed north to Nilaveli Beach, a little further north this stretch of beach is much less developed (although progress is evident) and subsequently cleaner and quieter, a lovely beach to visit that will no doubt develop substantially in coming years.
We enjoyed our time in Trinco, however there is much more of this fascinating country to experience so a bus ride this time onto our next destination…….. Batticaloa.
Noodles and Notepads 