A bit of background

I decided about six weeks ago to come on this trip, at the invitation of a friend who is Sri Lankan, Vinu. She would be staying at her sister's, Kalli, who lives in Colombo and had an extra room I could rent thru Airbnb. At just $25/night, it seemed like a great deal. So as to allow Vinu time to visit her family and friends without me hovering about, and so I could see more of the island than Colombo, I decided to take a tour. With the help of one of Vinu's many friends in the travel industry, I settled on my itinerary - I would be gone for four nights and five days, and would set off on my solo adventure the day after arriving in Sri Lanka.