Stranded tourists find savior

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The tourists came to see the magical waterfalls and mountain views of the lowland jungle and rain forest. But then the pandemic hit, and they were stranded in Sri Lanka.

When flights were canceled and the airports shut down, Darshana Ratnayake came to the rescue.

Ratnayake, a cafe owner in Ella, a former colonial hill station in Sri Lankan tea country, organized free food and shelter for dozens of stranded tourists.

“We were totally blown away,” said Alex Degmetich, an American cruise line entertainment director. “Locals providing us — tourists — free food and accommodation, is really humbling.”

The Sri Lankan government imposed a nationwide curfew on March 20 to curb the spread of the virus, sealing off entire regions of the Indian Ocean island nation. Degmetich was among 40 tourists from 11 countries stranded in Ella, 120 miles east of the capital, Colombo.

Ella’s famous treks tend to draw a young backpacker crowd, and Darshana knew they’d soon be out of money, and the small bedandbreakfast lodges out of food. He was right: Many of the tourists had just enough money to pay for the trip, and broken supply chains meant the lodges were running low on provisions.

Darshana established his Chill Cafe as a juice bar with two tables 13 years ago. The business has grown to a full restaurant and boutique hotel with 72 employees.

Just after the curfew was imposed, Darshana prepared a list of those staying in lodges and began boxed dinner deliveries. And he convinced lodge owners to let their guests stay for free.

“Our livelihood depends on tourism. We must help tourists when they are in trouble,” he said.

Bharatha Mallawarachi is an Associated Press writer.