Sunday 1st March 2026

I had a bit of a longer sleep and a lovely relaxed breakfast at Colombo Swimming Club before heading off in a tuk-tuk to do some final shopping at One Galle Face Mall, where my only disappointment was to find the shop that had always stocked a small selection of Susie Watkins pottery had closed down since I visited last year, which will be disappointing news for my very good friend, Barbara Fox, as I have got her some amazing bargains from there over the years!

I'm not a great fan of shopping malls, but today was quite good, as there were lots of small market stalls on two of the floors, so I enjoyed them a lot. After my final shopping spree, I took a tuk-tuk to Fairview Hotel where Daya had planned a surprise 'High Tea' birthday party for Vino (who is 25 tomorrow). I think Vino was genuinely very surprised when she arrived and it was a lovely family occasion, with her father and sister were able to join us as well.

We had a brief walk down to the Indian Ocean, which was lovely, then Ragu drove us to Afwaj's home, which is really a quite beautiful place, in sharp contrast to Ragu's room, which he rents a very short walk away and is little more than a slum. I would so love to get him out of there, but even renting a room like his is a ridiculous price (for him) in Colombo, and he has lived there for two-and-a-half years, sharing it for the first two years with his good friend Murali.

A couple of people have asked me if I will be okay flying home on Wednesday, given the US attack on Iran, and the impact of that in the Middle East. Fortunately, I only got a connecting flight via the Middle East on my first couple of trips to Sri Lanka and have always flown direct from London Heathrow to Colombo ever since. I am keeping a careful eye on the situation, of course, but fingers crossed I will get home on Wednesday, as I am looking forward to going home now.

Today's photos are just a selection of dozens taken at Vino's birthday surprise - the reason being that my phone has an excellent camera, so Ragu borrowed it to be the official photographer for the event.









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