Thurs 18 February Sri Lanka

Easy flight - got a better seat on plane due to some confusion about my online booking. Got Fast-tracked for check in and immigration. This always helps! A smooth journey.

Arrival at Colombo was easy. Modern air terminal, clean and well organised. Calm atmosphere. No chaos and panic anywhere. Thing I notice most is - it's CLEAN!

My luggage arrived. I am quietly amazed and jubilant - no unnecessary delays. My previous experience has removed all complacency I might ever have had about baggage handling.

Irage (relative of my guide) is my driver and he is there in the Arrivals Hall with a small calm group of other drivers. There is no sense of crush or panic or hustle and this is most welcome.

Am constantly making comparisons with my arrival in Trivandrum 2 months ago. Sri Lanka feels like a fully developed nation compared to Kerala. The car passenger loading area feels just like Heathrow. Yes, there is ducking and weaving of cars and mini vans, but mostly it feels efficient and safe.

Colombo airport lies 65 km North of the city and the closest decent place to stay is Negombo Beach -10 km away. There is a cluster of tourist hotels along the beach which faces the West - and the setting sun! The sea is usually rough due to a brisk breeze and not terribly conducive to swimming but the views are good.

On the way, Irage finds me an HSBC bank which allows me to get equipped with local currency. HSBC, I am later to discover, has a good coverage in most places in Sri Lanka. Unlike India.

I have pre-arranged Paradise Beach Hotel and just as well, as it's fully booked. My room is large and airy with kettle and tea making facilities, a desk, wifi, TV and air con, balcony overlooking the pool. This bathroom could be updated but after India this is not a major problem for me. Most of all it has everything you need in it and it's CLEAN!

That, to me, is the most striking impression of Sri Lanka. The roads are clean, there is no rubbish hanging around everywhere, pavements are in good repair. Shops are tidy and identifiable. By that I mean you can actually tell what a shop sells from the outside instead of having to peer inside to find out. People seem to take pride in cleaning up their little patch of land and keeping it that way.

Traffic is well behaved and there is no constant hooting! Maybe this is just because this is NOT Colombo! Culture shock - and I am enjoying every minute of it.

Paradise Beach is just what I have been dreaming of. and I don't take long to settle in. First objective - POOL TIME!   Swimming then lying in the sun then more swimming and reading. This is BLISS!

It's midday and there are very few people round the pool. I watch many lazing about under the shade of the palm trees that extend to the boundary with the beach. There are a few vendors waiting to sell anything to anyone who ventures one step outside the hotel precinct.

The beach doesn't look particularly inviting at this time of day, there are boats pulled up on the sand and locals wandering around with umbrellas. The sun is strong and pounding down mercilessly. I'll wait till later - sunset perhaps?

My first lunch in SL is rice and curry - and it will be this same menu every day for the next week or so. Always copious and varied, according to each area, local veg specialty and chef, of course.

Afternoon passes quickly and lazily. I do wander out to the beach and check out the denizens and the boats. There are stray dogs around and I am wary, boys playing cricket and I am riveted by their after-school energy.

Back to the room for emails and laundry, and a rest before supper. I am meeting my guide driver Nimal for the first time tonight.  At 6.30 pm we are to go over the itinerary and accommodation. I will be spending the next 7 days with him. I want it to go well.

As it happens we hit it off very well, Nimal's English is excellent and he has a good sense of humour. He has travelled a lot, lived in Germany and the Middle East and worked in the hospitality industry. He knows about service and what Western clients expect. He seems too good to be true. We talk of many things. The chemistry feels right. I send up thanks for this blessing.

After supper of yet another rice and curry, I get this strong feeling of the lull before the storm. I am preparing not only my mind but also my "stuff", repacking and sorting through things so that I am ready for the 8 am departure tomorrow. Another early start!