"Compared with the experience I had crossing on the ferry, my return to Sri Lanka by air, turned out to be a pretty straight forward and uneventful affair, covering, in just a few hours, a distance that would have taken me at least 4 days, had I had to go back the way I had come. Being able to save so many days was to prove crucial later, in enabling me to complete the rest of my planned route.
 
On my arrival back in Sri Lanka I again stopped at the guest house in Negombo, staying two nights. This gave me a welcome easy day before setting off early the following morning, first on the bus to Colombo, then by train, along the coast, to Hikkaduwa. I had intended on stopping in Hikkaduwa as it had a Youth Hostel, but found the town to be just a big resort full of foreign holiday makers, not my scene at all, so I decided to give it a miss, continuing on by bus to Galle." - MH