Author Topic: New Years in Sri Lanka.  (Read 38415 times)

Offline Emkay

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New Years in Sri Lanka.
« on: April 17, 2016, 02:22:47 PM »
I woke up way to and headed to the airport at 6am. My excitement was very slightly dampened when checking out the weather where I was and the weather where I was going.


 The Check in agent couldn't print me out a boarding pass for the AMM-AUH-CMB legs on EY for some reason.  25 minutes later I was in the Dan lounge, (nothing changed, the same substandard, mediocre lounge it always was.) 
More frustrating then waking up early for a flight is waking up early for a flight and then it getting delayed  :( though in this case it wasn't so bad as I had a 5 hr stopover waiting for me in AMM and I was fine missing part of that. 45 minutes after the original departure time I boarded and was in for a surprise when I saw they changed the usually scheduled train with wings to a lie-flat 787 :).


Soon after settling in I took my camera out of my carry-on to take some pics. I immediately had a stewardess come over to me and seductively whisper in my ear "are you going to be taking pictures of me"? Taken aback she then reworded it as a statement that I may not take pictures of the cabin or crew. The rest of the 1:15 that I was trapped in that tube with the 20 minutes I was actually in the air was otherwise uneventful and nonsexual. The cabin had 2-2-2 seating and felt extremely spacious and open, it just felt a little less private than lots of other configurations.  From my seat I was able to view the screen of basically every other seat which contributed to the lack of privacy feeling, other than that it was quite decent. The Doona I had purchased right before this trip was an absolute lifesaver and is one of the greatest travel inventions of all time.


Upon landing in AMM I was told by transfer desk that they also cannot provide an EY boarding pass and they would need to send an agent to the ticketing counter that was before security for me, but alas they only open 3 hrs before departure which was still an hr away. In the meanwhile I was stranded in the 20 ft wide arrivals hall with a toilet and a hard steel bench, (a little touch of NY airports :D ). Half hour later when it came out I was flying business they immediately changed tunes and an agent walked me past security and to the lounge where he then disappeared for way to long with my passport to procure my passes and check me in. The lounge was decently large and overlooked the entire terminal. Had an empty room of daybeds where I rested until time for boarding the next flight.


AMM-CMB was operated by EY A330 with lie-flats seats and had a full business class.


Good thing I boarded early as it took the flight attendant 15 minutes to connect the car seat.  The cabin had a 1-2-1 configuration which for some reason felt cramped yet more private.


There was no human meal served although they did provide Stogel cat food in case I brought my pet along. Since when are Muslims not allowed to eat Kosher? Maybe they realize that if they serve this to them the UN will jump up with claims of Zionistic mistreatment of Muslims.


 On second thought, I actually may have found something edible.


Cabin crew was very nice and extremely child friendly. There was no jet-bridge so we had that dreaded airport bus waiting for us. It was surprisingly pleasant and smooth with no waiting. Usually I absolutely hate them and would avoid airports and carriers that use them as the standing in smelly, seat less cattle cars waiting for yet another soul to be crammed in has the ability to ruin my experience.


AUH airport is immaculately spotless and well kept. I cringe every time I fly into the states and experience the subpar, pay $6 to rent a cart, $12 for WiFi, rundown infrastructure and rude CS .
There are huge 3 ft wide screens all over the airport with flight info, shop locations, and turn by turn directions to your gate or lounge.


I headed to the Etihad lounge in terminal 3. Its quite expansive and aesthetically pleasing . There are showers, spa, barber, salon.... They provide a short complimentary treatment for all passengers. There is a fully stocked kids room where people were leaving their kids with the attendants. My stopover passed quickly and I was off to my final leg.
I missed the business airport bus so was forced to endure a not brief enough reminder of why I fly premium. Aircraft was EY A320 with recliner seats in 2-2.


 Was 1:30 from boarding until takeoff. With a child this down time is by far the worst for me. As much as I hate it we lived to tell the tale.  60 seconds of grumpiness and my kid fell asleep. I tossed and turned before waking up to the same non-edible excuse of a meal. Upon landing in CMB it took a couple minutes to get through a joke of a passport control and headed into the duty free which for some reason is by arrivals. I was never under the impression that large appliances are a big seller by duty free although apparently here they are. 9 out of 10 shops were washing machines, ovens, fridges....strange.


 I found my driver waiting for me and picked up a Sim card for 1300Rs/$10 for a month with 5gb data and a bunch of minutes. There are a bunch of different kiosks in arrivals to pick up a Sim including ones that come free with some service that they hope you fill up at one of the million shops selling them around Sri Lanka ( funny thing, everyone has cars vehicles but gas stations are few and far between. No one has phones yet every other store sells sim cards and top-ups.)but at that price I just looked for the best which seemed to be Dialog. They only accept cash so go to the ATM prior. Walking out of the airport the humidity hit me like a truck. Below I have included a pie-chart I made to better illustrate the discomfort.


To hopefully be continued.....
« Last Edit: April 17, 2016, 04:01:00 PM by Emkay »

Offline Joe4007

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #1 on: April 17, 2016, 06:01:48 PM »
Nice start. Looking forward.

Offline yochiek93

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #2 on: April 17, 2016, 07:24:59 PM »
Sounds good so far

Offline dandu16

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #3 on: April 17, 2016, 09:21:23 PM »
Non sexual? Did you mean something else?
"It is only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing themselves - in finding themselves"

Offline Ydad

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #4 on: April 17, 2016, 09:50:55 PM »
Non sexual? Did you mean something else?
Read the last paragraph.

Offline Yehoshua

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #5 on: April 17, 2016, 11:53:01 PM »
Nice TR so far. I like the straight-to-the-point style.

Offline Emkay

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #6 on: April 18, 2016, 12:51:04 AM »
Nice start. Looking forward.

Sounds good so far

Nice TR so far. I like the straight-to-the-point style.
Thanks.
Non sexual? Did you mean something else?
Nope.

Offline mgoldhammer18

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #7 on: April 18, 2016, 09:05:05 AM »
Nice start.  Glad nothing sexual happened on your first flight lol

Offline sillypainter

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #8 on: April 18, 2016, 09:51:25 AM »
Nice start.  Glad nothing sexual happened on your first flight lol

He / she wanted to check if anybody is reading the TR or just glancing at the pictures.

Offline Emkay

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #9 on: April 18, 2016, 10:01:43 AM »
He / she wanted to check if anybody is reading the TR or just glancing at the pictures.

Offline CS91

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #10 on: April 18, 2016, 03:25:28 PM »
Great start! Did you book your kid a seat or they let you use an empty one?

Offline Emkay

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #11 on: April 18, 2016, 03:28:40 PM »
Great start! Did you book your kid a seat or they let you use an empty one?
The way there I booked a seat and way back one leg wasn't available so I paid 10% and they let me bring the car seat on each flight.

Offline Drago

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #12 on: April 19, 2016, 02:29:41 PM »
waiting impatiently for your next post.
What in the world could you be busy with?

Offline Adam101

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #13 on: April 19, 2016, 02:38:36 PM »
waiting impatiently for your next post.
What in the world could you be busy with?
probably the same thing everyone is busy with now this time of year

Offline Emkay

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #14 on: April 19, 2016, 02:41:33 PM »
waiting impatiently for your next post.
What in the world could you be busy with?
Thats funny, I literally started working on it as you posted this.

Offline MosheD

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #15 on: April 19, 2016, 09:08:56 PM »
Great start.
I had the same experience in AMM and telling them I was flying premium didnt change anything...

Offline IsraelGuy

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #16 on: April 20, 2016, 03:49:43 PM »
Nice TR so far-looking forward to more.

Had an empty room of daybeds where I rested until time for boarding the next flight.
What was the room of daybeds like? Haven't heard or seen any pictures of it...

Did you check out the 'hotel-like' rooms at all?

Great start.
I had the same experience in AMM and telling them I was flying premium didnt change anything...

Were you able to get around it?
I have a 6 hr layover in AMM before connecting to EY, don't want to get stuck in the hallway with the family...


Offline MosheD

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #17 on: April 20, 2016, 04:00:13 PM »
Nice TR so far-looking forward to more.
What was the room of daybeds like? Haven't heard or seen any pictures of it...

Did you check out the 'hotel-like' rooms at all?

Were you able to get around it?
I have a 6 hr layover in AMM before connecting to EY, don't want to get stuck in the hallway with the family...
Its all about k,owing how to deal with them.
That said I waited over an hour...

Offline Emkay

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #18 on: April 20, 2016, 04:05:42 PM »
Nice TR so far-looking forward to more.
What was the room of daybeds like? Haven't heard or seen any pictures of it...



Sorry all I have is a foot selfie


Its just a darkish room with 6 daybeds in it, no dividers between them.
Quote
Did you check out the 'hotel-like' rooms at all?
Never heard of such a thing.

Quote
Were you able to get around it?
I have a 6 hr layover in AMM before connecting to EY, don't want to get stuck in the hallway with the family...
If your not traveling with an infant why not print it out before when you do online check-in?

Offline Emkay

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Re: New Years in Sri Lanka.
« Reply #19 on: April 21, 2016, 01:53:16 AM »
Once outside the airport I must have been approached by taxis over 15 times in the 120 seconds I was waiting for my driver to pull the car up. So although I didn't ask for a price I can imagine its quite easy to get a cab for a very reasonable price at any time of the day there. Was a 40 minute drive along one of the only 2 highways in Sri Lanka and thankfully with zero traffic. I had taken a gamble when booking this hotel hoping that although check in is usually around 2, I would possibly be able to give them a story plus some charm to be able to check in at 5 am. Upon arrival it was no dice, my luck dictated that I get a trainee who wasn't about to swerve from official policy one iota and gave me 2 options, to either wait 45 minutes until 6 am and pay half day price or check in now for full price. I made a quick calculation using an advanced soon to be patented method and concluded I wanted sleep so I chose to check in immediately. They graciously agreed to give me a room on the lowest floor as requested.
The hotel was built one year ago and is very nice. Rooms are comfortably furnished and design is perfect.


There is a phenomenal rooftop bar


and infinity pool 26 floors up with remarkable views of Colombo.


It is the closest location to Chabad, directly across a one way street, less  then 100ft away.There was some picketing happening outside then.


Crossing the streets are quite the experience, there are no traffic lights and drivers are certifiably cray cray. After a couple times I got the crossing tactic down pat. Its,
1) Wait 30 seconds for a clearing in the cars by which to pass.
2) When that doesn't happen grab you're loved ones hands.
3) Say a quick prayer.
4) Run.
5) Avoid the tuk-tuks and smaller, everything else is going to slow to really injure you if hit.
All in all I highly recommend it.... maybe unless staying for Shabbos. As I soon found out, the actual hotel rooms only start on the 12th! floor, and all doors including the front desk are electronic (lobby and front desk is 7th). These issues can definitely be dealt with and even if walking up 12 flights it still may beat walking a block in that severe humidity with a chance of a random downpour without warning in monsoon season, its a choice to make. There are only 2 points hotels there -both Hiltons- and minimum 15 minute walk. In the end I stayed in the actual Chabad house for Shabbos from sunset to sunset where the extremely kind rabbi hosted me.
After sleeping for a couple hours I went off to tour Colombo. There really isn't that much to do there especially considering what the rest of the island has to offer but for a weekend it was perfect.
Checked out independence square celebrating the liberation from the British in 1948 (2 months before Israel). Lots of locals seem to just come here to relax in the shade.


And the presidents office which they believe and proudly mention is a carbon copy of the White House.


I checked out the waterfront for a short while, nice place to go for a walk and there is a beach there. Complete with free Wifi.


as well as a bunch of other non interesting (to me) sites. 
The Floating Market is a letdown similar to the "hoverboard" in that it isn't floating and it's barely a market. Also has some of the nastiest, greenest water.


The regular Pettah market about 3 minutes away is a must visit though if in the area. There are separate sections for fruits and veggies, clothing, electronics, crap.... Wild, packed, exotic, colorful, its a full immersive cacophony of different sounds, smells, and sights.








Some of the most disgusting looking and smelling dried fish.


Lots of this nastiness.


I didn't see a single tourist yet this whole time since exiting the airport. In Pettah Market it was only locals. Every single face turned to stare at me, it was as if I was a strange creature.


Everyone was whispering amongst themselves and pointing at us,and a path was miraculously cleared for us wherever we walked. There was not a child to be seen the entire day, apparently having babies in public is taboo, (a possible alternative explanation is they leave them all home when its this darn hot), the only child we saw came over to my sons stroller to see the "white baby". My 16 month old boy was getting whistled at like he was a 16 year old scantily clad female in the Bronx. Was getting late and inexcusably hot so back to my hotel I went.
I headed over to the Chabad  compound across the street from the hotel and shabbos arrived and left before I knew it.


It was low season so there was no minyan but was a nice davening nonetheless. Staying there that week was the classics. An Indian mashgiach on assigment from OK, an older American Israeli couple,a businessman, a smartly dressed and very charedi looking individual from Israel whos mother was very sick and whos caretaker convinced him to seek out natural medication in her hometown, a couple expats trying to get a fresh start, and some irreligious Israelis.
It seemed I had come the perfect week as a businessman had been there the week prior and paid for them to install AC in the main area, I honestly don't know how they lived before, ridiculously unbearable without it.  I had read some reports about the Chabad in Sri Lanka but this family is a different one, they have only been here for a year and a half. Chabad also operates some sort of restaurant (with delivery) though the Rebbitzin does everything and it's all in their house. They also provide free hostel style rooms and rooms for couples. Incredibly kind couple who go above and beyond.

To be continued......maybe
« Last Edit: April 21, 2016, 02:30:05 AM by Emkay »