JAN 28 BIKING POLONNARUWA

BKE ADVENTURES
We decide to bike around Lake Parakrama. Within the first half hour Kathy's front bike tire blows. We check in at a fancy (from our perspective) hotel and the staff try to repair the tire. They locate a bicycle pump but it comes apart on the first attempt to put air in. We try to tell them it needs more than a pump. There is a big hole in the tire and the tube is shot. Finally we contact our host and before long he comes along with a replacement bike sticking out the sides of his tuk tuk. He takes the inoperable one back and we continue on our journey but it is 33 C and we are soon ready to head back before we get to the National Park at the south end of the Lake. We return through the village countryside and the villagers are friendly but not nearly as excited to have us pass them on bicycles as in the jeep the day before. Don and I go for an afternoon swim in the lake. It is clean and wonderfully refreshing slightly cooler than the air outside A nice relaxing day after yesterday and before tommorow.