What would Buddha do?

Leaving the Galle Face Hotel, I was beset by the usual array of tuk tuk drivers. I declared I wanted to walk. While waiting to cross the street, a man introduced himself as the hotel bartender and asked if I needed any help. I said I just wanted to go sightseeing and he said I could follow him to the festival at the Buddhist temple which was only a short distance away. Now, I had read in my tourbook about people touting such festivals at inflated prices, but he seemed legit, so off we went. Sure enough, he summoned a tuk-tuk driver and when I asked about the price, he said, "Don't worry, he has a meter." I didn't see a meter, and I got even more suspicious when they didn't seem to be in a hurry to get to any festival, because we pulled over to take pictures of a Hindu temple. The next stop was the biggest Buddhist temple in Sri Lanka. No festival-- just a lot of tour buses.
The temple is the real thing. The amazing images of Buddha in every possible pose dominated the main room. Then, a sad, chained-up king elephant munching on palm leaves while the monks ushered in heavy construction equipment. I'm told this is the temple where the VIPs worship, but it seemed rather disorganized. There were a lot of statues just lying around as if no one knew where to put them. My guide took me to a room where a monk was serving tea and gave me his blessing. Unfortunately, the blessing didn't save me from the big ripoff. I insisted I needed to return to my hotel, but the tuk tuk went in the opposite direction to a gem dealer's store, despite my protests.
When I refused to buy anything or even look, they got the point and started driving me back toward the Hilton. About two blocks from the hotel, they pulled into a side street and informed me the fare would be 2,000 rupees... outrageous in a country where 500 can get you almost anywhere in town in a real taxi. considering there were two of them and they could have grabbed my entire purse, I felt the wisest choice was to pay and leave. Then the "bartender" chased after me, demanding more payment for his services, so I gave him the equivalent of five bucks and found my own way back to the hotel.
I'm glad I saw the buddhist temple and don't think I would have found it without help. However, I think these guys should be honest up front about the tour guide services they are offering and the price, instead of posing as a helpful employee of the Galle Face hotel and ripping off the tourists after the fact. The hotel security should look into this.