We arrive in Kandy, Sri Lanka. Our "home" for next 2 weeks.

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Ayubowan! (Hello and wishes for a good, long life),

We arrived in Kandy, by bus and tuk tuk on Sunday, 18 January to begin living at a home stay and volunteering in Sri Lanka for two weeks. Our hosts, Buddik, Darcy, their 15 month old son, Shanau (pronounced Sha New) and his grandmother met us at their home. The couple have been married 3 years.

The home has an open living/dining area, 3 bedrooms, a small kitchen as well as cooking area outside (for wood burning for heating water, etc) and a bathroom. They have 1 dog and maybe a 2nd that is always around.

Gated door to keep baby inside

Queen's Hotel, downtown Kandy

We spent Sunday getting to know the family (Buddika speaks some English and Darcy is learning) and then attended our Orientation at the Volunteer house of Green Lion, our local sponsor. Our home is a 10 minute walk on the street (sadly, no sidewalks and LOTS of traffic) to the larger Volunteer house which can accommodate approximately 50 international volunteers at any time, perhaps more!? Food is served dormitory style and rooms hold up to 4 bunks, or 8 people. Cozy! No couples rooms, or we may have stayed there for the camaraderie of fellow traveling volunteers. Sweden, Denmark, Germany, England, Canada, China, USA are most of the countries represented.

Ages range from 18-62, (guess who?), with the vast majority on the 18-24 side. Volunteer stints are from 2 weeks to 6 months....many part of a GAP year for wanna be college students who choose to take off some time to decide what it is they wanna be! Aaron is quite impressed with their confidence and willingness to give this a try. Many of the "kids" are smart as whips and have their own interesting stories....already, at ages 20 something? These gals (above) happen to be part of Aaron's project team. There are guys too, but not as many, in case you were wondering.

Darcy prepares our meals. Bread, egg and tea for breakfast, and usually rice, crispy poppadoms (a large circular piece of thin, spiced bread), a soy or chicken curry dish, vegetables and a carrot, cucumber/tomato salad.  Lunch is packed for me and Aaron gets fed at his project. Not a bad "thank you" or in Singhala, "es-toothee" for helping the monks, who prepare and serve lunch like the one below.

Our First week. Pictures tell the story for both our projects. Aaron is restoring temples at a local monastery he can walk to. He cleans and paints under the guidance of a coordinator from Green Lion and the local monk. Get a load of before and after on this sacred stupa - dome structure (the top has yet to be done). Not sure the project lead has figured out a way to safely get the top done, yet!

Temple Stupa

Aaron putting on finishing touch!

As for me, I am teaching preschool in the morning, also at a monastery, and teaching the 4 teachers English, and how to teach English to their students, most afternoons. There is no option to teach older kids this time, (public schools aren't keen to have volunteers), so, preschool it is. I am more like a pre-school aide or helper vs teacher, but learn something new everyday! After my first day of "new to school" kids, ages 3 - 4.5, AND "new to principal and school" teachers, I took 2 aspirin and can't believe our niece and a few of her friends, do this for a living!! Granted, I am in Sri Lanka, different culture, but I am guessing the tears are the same?! A few kids did not stop the whole time, 830-12 noon. Even during recess. Sydney, my hat is off to you!!!!

Brushing teeth after food break, trough style for 60 kids

My fellow female teachers as English students along with Upendra, my coordinator from Green Lion and translator for the first week.

Our Weekend. We went sightseeing to Sigiriya, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We left at 6am with 7 other volunteers in a private car to get there before the heat and crowds.Check out more by clicking on Sigiriya. It is one of the best preserved examples of ancient urban planning. Most of the elaborate constructions on the rock summit and around it, including defensive structures, palaces, and gardens, date from 495 AD. Sigiriya was then turned into a Buddhist monastery, which lasted until the13th or 14th century. It is one BIG climb up 1100 stairs for stupendous vistas and panoramic views of the area.

 

Next stop was Dambulla cave temple complexes. the latest archaeological site of significant historical importance found in Dambulla,. The 5 cave temples provide evidence of the presence of indigenous civilisations long before the arrival of Indian influence on the Island nation. Statues and paintings in these caves date back to the 1st century BC.For more, click on Dambulla.

 

Since we had the driver for the day, we stopped by a local village and were treated to lots of hellos, smiles and an insight to living in a local village. Everyone knows to say hello, may ask for pens, candy or just smiles.

 

Temple of the Tooth, one of Kandy's most revered temples, (Link here for more) was our destination for Sunday. It is located in the royal palace complex of the former Kingdom of Kandy, which houses the relic of the tooth of Buddah. Since ancient times, the relic has played an important role in local politics because it is believed that whoever holds the relic holds the governance of the country. We went at prayer time, a definite happening. There were hundreds of locals dressed up and accompanied by their families, bringing offerings, mostly of lotus flowers, some silk pillows, fruit plates and money to Buddah. We were not allowed "in" the temple that allegedly holds the Buddah's tooth, as it was prayer time. Aaron seems to recall he was allowed in during non-prayer time when he was here 6 years ago.

 

A man is kind to share a flower with me to add to the pile of blessings.

 

10 murals tell the story of the "tooth"

 Week 2 of volunteering, next post, stay tuned. We make a logistical change that works out well! Hope our blog is a nice diversion from snow for those in the Northeast (sorry!!!).

So, what have we been doing since we landed in Sri Lanka?

You do not have to join Google +. Simply click on the "link" (above) if you are reading email. If you prefer, just go to http://skgasia15.blogspot.com for latest update.

Ayubowan! (Sri Lankan Greetings of Hello and wishes for a good, long life),

Arrived safely after a total of 30 hours in flight and/or airport lounge, Fortunately for us, we got to use the Airline Club, complete with shower, delicious hot and cold food, drinks, open bar, TV, wifi, the works. Supposedly, Turkish Airways Club is one of the nicest, we were told? We did not try out the free massages or suites, perhaps another time!!

Our first stop for 4 beautiful and restful days was in Unawatuna village and beach. A perfect spot to chill and get our bearings as we start this new adventure. The 3 to 4 dirt streets of the village are sprinkled with places to eat, buy wood carvings, funky batik type clothes or rent a scooter. Fish is a big menu item, fresh from the sea. The beach is in the shape of a crescent with a large Buddha looking down over you. It is the first of many a Buddha sighting and picture, so prepare yourself! The water temp is cool enough to refresh, yet warm enough to walk right in along with the breaking waves. Our hotel overlooked a lovely infinity pool and the ocean.

We took a day trip to Marissa beach, about 20 kilometers away, where the waves were HUGE and STRONG enough to knock me on my butt, steal my watch, remove my hat (which I was able to recover) and yep, even skin and bruise my knee. Fun, hmmmm? I chose not to go back and we stayed at the more tranquil Unawatuna beach! Also went to the old, Dutch colonial city of Galle, surrounded by a stone fort. We enjoyed a home cooked, 7 course meal at a local woman's home who runs THE WHITE HOUSE guest stay. She even has a room called the West Wing!!! Meal was delicious. Cost $7.00 for the two of us!

Leaving Unawatuna relaxed and psyched for our "travels" to begin, we headed to Kataragama, followed by 4 days in Ella.Our sole purpose to visit Kataragama was to observe the daily evening pilgrimage by Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims to their various temples, all co-located on the grounds. Specifically, the Buddhists come each evening, bathing first in the river and then buying lotus flower, fruit and other gift offerings to the Temple. It starts promptly at 6pm with ringing bells, swinging incense pots and special monks coming to perform their blessings. Aaron got dressed for the occasion (only males may visit some of the holy spots) and we were both "blessed" and received white string bracelets (which just about EVERYONE in this country is wearing....at least the Buddhists). A neat ritual is the lighting of a coconut, praying for whatever, and then slamming the coconut on a rock. If it cracks in two, your wish comes true, if it shatters....better luck next time. We witnessed both.

Next stop Ella. Just like the song! A beautiful, very windy, steep climb around the mountains in south central Sri Lanka, lands you in Ella. Another very relaxed town, dirt roads but much busier than Unawatuna. A haven for travelers to see some of their first waterfalls (Rawana), climb/hike mountains (Little Mt. Adams) and visit tea plantations and see how tea is made only after donning "scrubs" to cover our hair and feet at a Green Tea factory. We did all 3. The tea leaf "pickers" start at 7am and pick till mid morning......each bringing in close to 30 pounds of tea a day. That's a lot of picking and a heck of a lot of teabags!

Our guest house was a short walk from town and run by a lovely woman, names Sumithra. She and her helper, Chitra made us feel quite welcome. Again, had a home cooked meal as well as breakfast each day here. Rented a car and driver who picked us up at 4am in order to get to Horton's Plains by sunrise. A 2 hour drive, passing Eucalyptus tree forests (tall, straight, plain trunks with few limbs) and arriving just in time for sunrise. Our destination....Worlds End. Just like it implies, a 3 hour walk through cloud forest and plains to arrive at what looks like, the end of the world (sort of). A sheer 1 kilometer drop with no railing or platform to support you as you look over. The end of the walk is through the plains.....where flowers, birds, fish and some animals (they say even leopard) roam. Closest I came to a leopard was this stuffed one! Wrapping up Ella, all I can say, is great sights, very good food and lots to do for 3-4 days.

Transportation has been primarily local buses, where we have been lucky to get a seat by starting at the bus station verse being picked up on the side of the road and tuk tuks for shorter distances (3 wheel carts). The latter rates are always negotiable! However, from Ella, we took the local train to Nuwara Elia (pronounced New Rail E Ya).Both travelers and locals enjoyed the passing sights. 2nd class gave us reserved seats, not sure 1st class was any different except for upholstery!? 3rd class was unreserved and as you may have guessed, more crowded and more interesting meals brought on board to share. Our one night in Nuwara Elia was to break up our journey to our final destination for the next 2 weeks....Kandy. We went to the Grand India Hotel, a very stately, British old world hotel where we enjoyed a great Indian meal and people watching in the large lobby of this 4 star hotel. The gentleman playing the piano took requests so in anticipation of our 30th anniversary (May), he played "Hello" by Lionel Richie.....our wedding song. Nice touch don't you think?

Bus and tuk tuk the next day delivered us to our home stay family. We met Buddika, Darcy and their 15 month old son, Shannu. Next post will tell you all about them and our volunteer projects. We hear snow is coming......to the Northeast. Stay warm, dry and safe.

Susan and Aaron