16 Nov. Nuwara Eliya

I just couldn't sleep. Maybe it's because my body clock is still on the blink, or maybe I'm giddy about a trip on a choo choo train to Nuwara Eliya. It was an early start so no breakfast in the digs. The train from Ella station arrived 'stylishly late', and the journey got off in the mist and damp air.
About three hours and a short stop later (yes, 3) the train rose and fell through the hills and we got to the station stop nearest Nuwara Eliya. It needed a walk and a bus ride to get to the town itself. They don't mention this in the glossy travel mags, but a bit of sun burned off most of the gloom.
Nuwara Eliya carries a lot of 'touristy baggage'. It gets tagged 'Little London', which is way off the reality. There are some odd looking buildings to be sure - more Alpine village than Asia.
A wander around the town didn't take long, and I think I saw most of what was easy to spot: the famous old Post Office for instance. (Yes, I did the tourist cliche thing of sending a postcard home.)
But the drizzle didn't hold off for long so I decided to avoid the train and got the handy bus - quicker and cheaper.
Back in Ella I had the best meal of the trip so far: a really nice chicken curry and garlic rice. (Chicken on the bone but good nonetheless.)
Today's observations:
I've noticed (and you will have too) that most Sri Lankans have quite deep-set, dark eyes. This makes it tricky to shoot portraits - that's my excuse at least.
The tuk tuk drivers have nerves of steel; the bus drivers have no nerves because they have no conception of death; the pedestrians need to be lucky.Read more