March 30, 2025
Cycle day 10 - Addalaichenai to Batticaloa
Addalaichenai to Batticaloa = 58km (Total distance on this trip so far = 571km)
Weather = ah the usual – a low of 25 with a top of 30 degrees and hot! A sunny day with no rain forecasted again. A very light easterly breeze.
Accommodation = Juda Holiday Villa = 2800 rupees ($15.00 AUD)
It was another early start today – unintentionally as well. We were ready and out on the main road by 6.40am. I didn't realise we had started that early and there were very few people out and about and if they were they were waiting outside their favourite eating places or shops waiting for it to open.
Us too were looking for a bakery to be open so we can get out sweet buns for brekky. Alas they were all closed or had nothing in their windows ready. We did finally find one but they said it is all from yesterday as they are still baking. We got the remaining 3 jam buns and scoffed them down. They were not stale but later on we got some fresher ones and yeah they were soft and spongy to eat!
As you leave Addalaichenai there is no distinction between towns for the next 30km. They are all blended together as one long suburb! At times the traffic got heavy around the main shopping areas and then died of as you were on the edge of that particular town only to start up again as you got to the shopping precinct of the next town!
Because it is just one long suburb there are a variety of temples, buddhas and mosques along the way and it is all just a big melting pot here. Here are just a few of the temples, buddhas and mosques we passed throughout today
| Heart | 3 | Comment | 1 | Link |
| Heart | 1 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Crossing a long bridge today I could see these sort of sticks with shade over them sticking out the water and then I spotted this eagle, wings apart, drying itself on one of these (which I have no idea what they are for!)
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 1 | Link |
We could see across the water there was a local fisherman in his outrigger
Plenty of people want to say hello and chat to you and when we took break under some trees and watched a very informal game of local cricket – a shirt uniform but no padding or protection what so ever and we think it was played with a tennis ball.
Watching them we had group of young women (aged 16-18) come over and say hi, they were a bit shy and continued on only to pluck up enough courage to come back and converse with me. Meanwhile at the same time a lady with her young daughter pulled over and they chatted to Neil (I managed to give the young girl one of those Aussie pens and sticker packs I have been carrying and she loved it!). So my young women were part of an atheletics team and I think they were there to watch a football game after the cricket match. Neils mum and child – the mum is a public servant for the Education dept and wants her daughter to learn/speak English and took advantage of us being English speaking and for her child to encounter westerners. You might think that strange wanting to encounter westerners but they are very uncommon here and we are stared at alot and looked at alot!
It was an easy ride today – flat as a pancake and no wind really. Plenty of people on bikes carrying produce or going to one of the many market stalls along the roadside. But this one caught my eye
They have crafted carrying pouches out of banana leaves to carry the melons in (couldn't quite tell if they were papaya – not sure as the 2 ends were too rounded to be papaya)
Neil took this video of me riding along as well as the decorative arches we come across
We get to the outskirts of Batticaloa
and find a supermarket with shade and get out breakfast and a 1 litre tub of icecream as we are a little early to check in. That icecream is very refreshing in this heat.
Our accommodation is nice, not on the beach but it is a block or 2 away and we will investigate tomorrow as well as go into Batticaloa central market and fort.
Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 256 km (159 miles)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 5 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |