Around The World In 80 Waves

I have had a great time in Sri Lanka, but as ever it is time for my adventures to move on once more. Sadly I am packing up my surfboard for the last time on this trip, but I may yet get this local board caddy to help me get it to the airport.

I have enjoyed staying in Hikkaduwa and have been winding down the extremes of my surfing, especially after hitting the reef so hard a week ago but have savoured surfing in shorts for the last time on my trip.

I say my goodbyes to the lovely Austrian couple, Kathrin and David, who have been staying next door to me, and will check in on their own travel blog when I get home.   

I have a long journey ahead of me today, which starts with a three hour drive to the airport and then then two four and a half hour flights before landing in Egypt.

Arriving in Africa I will complete my collection of continents visited on this trip. (I didn’t see much point in heading to Antarctica before anybody starts splitting hairs!)

Looking at the original route I had planned for this trip, you will notice that the last country I am expecting to visit before returning home was Egypt. The reason being that there is not much in the way of decent waves between India and the UK and I thought I should break up that journey a bit, rather than just do a long haul flight all the way home.

A year ago things were looking pretty good in Egypt and I was looking forward to seeing the piles of old rocks which are the pyramids, as well as some of the associated culture and museums. However things are not looking as clever now as they did twelve months ago when I bought the ticket and the foreign office is not overly fond of it’s citizens heading that way right now.

It might be possible to change my tickets (no doubt involving a considerable sum of money based on past experience with airlines), but given I managed to miss just about every ancient ruin in the Americas and haven’t really seen any in Asia, I am loathe to give it up as an option.

Instead I have decided to once more hide behind a hairy face because it worked so well in getting me through Mexico unscathed. As a consequence of that and the fact that it is Movember for the remainder of my trip, I will not be shaving at least my top lip for some time.

I have no idea exactly what style I will be going for but thought I would aim for something in between Alec Guinness’ hirsute face in Lawrence of Arabia and Michael Beihn’s lip fungus in Tombstone. (Both of which you see here.)

Do not be alarmed therefore if you spot a caterpillar crawling across my face in coming weeks. I will not be growing something like Ho Chi Minh but am looking forward to seeing how it develops!