On March 23, we started off on our next adventure - a spring break trip to Sri Lanka. We chose Sri Lanka since we had such a good time in Thailand last year. We wanted another tropical beach vacation, but to try it somewhere new. Vietnam and the Philippines didn't work out because of flights (we couldn't leave until March 23 because I was away at a conference in Atlanta until late Monday night - March 21). We thought about going back to Thailand, but the prices for hotels were double what they were last year - a consequence of Russia's bad relations with Turkey and the closing down of Egypt as a Russian tourist destination.
We booked flights on Etihad airlines, and our hotels in Unawatuna and Colombo online and were ready to go. We took a taxi to the airport at 3:00 p.m. and had plenty of time to check in and wait before we boarded the airplane at 4:30. The airline was nice, but we didn't feel like it was really any better than most other airlines we fly - even though we were prepared to be wowed since Etihad has a very good reputation. We landed in Abu Dhabi and taxied to a parking lot. We took a bus from there to the terminal, and then had to run back through the terminal, pass through additional security, and then check into our flight. We had to take a bus from the terminal back out to the plane. We missed the first bus, and had to wait until all the stragglers checked in. It was a very tight connection, but we made it.
When we arrived at Colombo, we were not sure where to go. We had applied for e-visas before landing, but weren't sure if we were to pass straight through customs, or whether we had to stop at the counter for e-visas. After using the restroom, we waited at the e-visa counter. After 15 minutes we were at the front of the line and were told to just go to the immigration line.
We waited in that line for about 10 minutes before we got to the counter. Yulia had put our email confirmation of visas into the passports and handed them to the immigration official. He threw them back at us and asked us where our immigration cards (that we filled out on the plane) were. We told him we had them. He told us to put those in instead. Yulia and I did that while he helped the next lady. He then took our passports, gave us a dirty look, and proceeded to stamp them and throw them back at us. It was not exactly a welcoming experience at the airport!
We had only checked one bag, and it didn't arrive. We had to go and fill out paperwork at the counter. I got sucked into helping a Russian couple translate. I don't know how they determined that I spoke Russian, but it worked out. We were told that our bag would be delivered to us at our hotel in Unawatuna probably the next day. We exited the baggage area and changed some money. Then we saw our driver holding a sign - we had asked that he be ready by 6:30 and it was only 5:30, but we went to his van and he drove us to Unawatuna and to our hotel - the Hotel Flower Garden, where we arrived by 8:00 a.m.
We were early, but they gave us a cool drink and they prepared our rooms for us and we checked in by 8:30. We had arrived!
We booked flights on Etihad airlines, and our hotels in Unawatuna and Colombo online and were ready to go. We took a taxi to the airport at 3:00 p.m. and had plenty of time to check in and wait before we boarded the airplane at 4:30. The airline was nice, but we didn't feel like it was really any better than most other airlines we fly - even though we were prepared to be wowed since Etihad has a very good reputation. We landed in Abu Dhabi and taxied to a parking lot. We took a bus from there to the terminal, and then had to run back through the terminal, pass through additional security, and then check into our flight. We had to take a bus from the terminal back out to the plane. We missed the first bus, and had to wait until all the stragglers checked in. It was a very tight connection, but we made it.
When we arrived at Colombo, we were not sure where to go. We had applied for e-visas before landing, but weren't sure if we were to pass straight through customs, or whether we had to stop at the counter for e-visas. After using the restroom, we waited at the e-visa counter. After 15 minutes we were at the front of the line and were told to just go to the immigration line.
We waited in that line for about 10 minutes before we got to the counter. Yulia had put our email confirmation of visas into the passports and handed them to the immigration official. He threw them back at us and asked us where our immigration cards (that we filled out on the plane) were. We told him we had them. He told us to put those in instead. Yulia and I did that while he helped the next lady. He then took our passports, gave us a dirty look, and proceeded to stamp them and throw them back at us. It was not exactly a welcoming experience at the airport!
We had only checked one bag, and it didn't arrive. We had to go and fill out paperwork at the counter. I got sucked into helping a Russian couple translate. I don't know how they determined that I spoke Russian, but it worked out. We were told that our bag would be delivered to us at our hotel in Unawatuna probably the next day. We exited the baggage area and changed some money. Then we saw our driver holding a sign - we had asked that he be ready by 6:30 and it was only 5:30, but we went to his van and he drove us to Unawatuna and to our hotel - the Hotel Flower Garden, where we arrived by 8:00 a.m.
We were early, but they gave us a cool drink and they prepared our rooms for us and we checked in by 8:30. We had arrived!
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| Sophie enjoying her complimentary cold cinnamon drink at the hotel |
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| Finally in Sri Lanka. Don't be fulled by our kids' looks, we just escaped winter. It is 90F outside and very humid. |
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| A view from our hotel room |
Unawatuna is a great name for a vacation spot!
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