What I Learned on my Sri Lanka Vacation

           1.     It can take 6 hours to drive 200km
2.    Spiders grow to the size of dinner plates (we saw a bigger one than this but it wouldn't fit on this page!   Swear to God!

1. 3 The internet is not to be taken for granted

4.      Frogs and geckos are cute compared to spiders, bats, centipedes and flying cockroaches

     5.      If you sit still long enough someone will offer you exactly what you need, even if you
            don't know exactly what that is.

            

    6.   If you sit still for too long you will have something crawl on you

  

   7.   The moment to make sure there is a flashlight and candles in the house is at least 5 minutes before the power goes out       

                    8.   When a gorgeous young man invites you to party,  

                                      you may be the only invited guest

  

    9.   If a guide offers to show you new construction at a 2000 year old site 

                         there might be something fishy.

1 10. It feels good to be taken care of.

Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage - very sad

We thought we would see rescued elephants; instead we saw elephants who need to be rescued.

The Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage is not an orphanage. It is not a sanctuary. It is a crime scene, where elephants are bred for the amusement of humans. A blind elephant is chained by a front and back foot, forced to stand in one place day after day for people to look at. An elephant who lost part of his from leg from a land mine limps a few steps at a time around the park. Every elephant is “trained” with a bull hook. In order to have tourists pay for photos the workers fetch each elephant in turn by catching them in a tender spot with the bull-hook and drawing them to the unsuspecting tourists. An elephant is persuaded to lie down in the water, and a bull-hook is laid across his neck to convince him to say in place. He lies there for hours. Two young elephants are chained under a roof, too far apart to reach each other. They strain at their chains, trying to reach each other. An elephant is chained at river’s edge, the only one not allowed to enter the water, She spends the next two hours swaying, attempting over and over to immerse herself in the cool river along with all of the others. Tourists feed peanuts to the elephants, who are then chased away by the workers with the bull-hooks.

Elephant with bull hook

I don’t know much at all about elephants, but I know something about fear. These elephants are obviously terrified of the workers, and no doubt they should be. It is brutal and incredibly sad to watch.

This is not a good life for the elephants. It is also bad for the humans. The way we treat animals has an effect on us. By being economically successful with this approach, we become convinced that it is the right way, perhaps the only way. I want to believe these people, workers and observers do not know better. I want us to spread the word about operant conditioning, teaching, real teaching through positive reinforcement. I want us to let elephants live in the wild where they belong.

I ask for your help in educating tourists, so we stop supporting this abuse. We also need to educate the management on how to treat animals, to allow them to live in the wild, and, for those truly injured or orphaned, to offer them the best quality of life possible. Stay tuned for more info.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293961-d587660-Reviews-Pinnawela_Elephant_Orphanage-Sri_Lanka.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293961-d587660-Reviews-Pinnawela_Elephant_Orphanage-Sri_Lanka.html

Friday, The Ellerton and Mt Sigiriya

The Ellerton Hotel, 18 km from Kandy is a treasure. Built in the early 1900’s, it offers three guest rooms in the main house. The Valley house, where a small tea factory once stood for bio-organic tea plucked at a certain phase of the moon, houses an additional three guest rooms. The view from the Valley house is beautiful. The estate was originally called Seethevalley, and had more than 1000 acres of tea. There are now only 13 acres of tea planted on the much smaller estate.

There was an interesting assortment of guests, including a couple en route to Autralia following a year in Bangalore, and two Canadian women who didn’t socialize much. Alison's theory is that just as there is a difference between joggers and runners, so too is there a difference between tourists and travelers. We met Jennie and Ed, a couple traveling from a 4 year stint in Shanghai to live in the UK. They are traveling with their 5 year old son and were great company on the first evening for drinks. Friday night we all had dinner together.

We were served a feast of vichysoisses,papadums, curried chicken., curried fish, dhal, aubergine, yam, green beans and rice, There was pannacotta for dessert. A frog sang to us from the window, a spider was retrieved from another guest’s room, and Ed captured a large moth that had been dive bombing us during our otherwise relaxing meal. I will not miss the “wildlife”.

The main adventure of the day was a 3 hour drive to Mt Sigiriya, an ancient monastery built in the third century BC. The mountain itself is impressive; one wonders why anyone would think to inhabit it. The entry includes bricked-in foundations of former water fountains. This was a very early example of Sri Lankan hydraulics technology. Four fountains were fed by two adjoining moats, creating what must have been an impressive entryway.

We were greeted by guides selling their service. Alison explained that she had been there before and was not in need of a guided tour. One guide responded “But you haven’t seen the new parts”. I guess he was right – we didn’t see any new construction in this site built more than 2000 years ago. We did see beautifully preserved frescoes, believed to be at least 1600 years old, and The Mirror Wall, with very faded art, inscriptions and graffiti.

There are 1200 steps to the top of the mountain. It was very hot, and in some places the steps are worn so unevenly you can imagine slipping to a dramatic demise. The view from the top is both beautiful and satisfying for having been brave enough to arrive.

Tsunami and Sea Turtle Rescue

Thursday morning we had our last wonderful breakfast prepared by Chandrani, and then said goodbye to our gracious caretakers and gorgeous home. We were heading to the next chapter of our Sri Lanka adventure.

Hikkaduwa was hit very hard by the 2004 Tsunami. It is just at sea level, so the water swept across the area destroying everything in its wake. Many people, mostly women and children, boarded a train thinking it would withstand the force of the water. It did not, and 1270 lives were lost as the train first rolled over and then was submerged in the wave. Today you can see hundreds of shells where homes once stood.

The Japanese erected this huge Buddha to remind us of the event and guide us on how to live following such a tragedy. Two men visited separately while we were there; it appeared that both had lost friends and family in the Tsunami. This really brought home to me how many were personally affected. To lose your friends, family, neighbors, your home, your source of income, is more than we could be expected to bear. Today the people here are looking forward.

Our next stop was a happier one. At the sea turtle rescue we were greeted by two volunteers from England and Scotland who chose a volunteer stint in Sri Lanka instead of a more typical vacation. When the turtle eggs are laid on the beach, locals either eat them or rescue them to sell to a turtle rescue. These 1 week old babies will be released soon under cover of dark to protect them from predatory birds.

We then had a 200 km drive which took 6 hours to complete. I kid you not. We drove on a narrow two lane road full of cars, trucks, tuk-tuks, motorcycles, and school buses –an interminable trip. We arrived in Kandy tired and pretty much fed-up with car travel. A cocktail made from local Arrack, passion fruit, angostura bitters and sugar at The Queens Hotel cheered us up somewhat.

Dinner was at a place with a beautiful view and quite awful food. We moved on to our hotel, The Ellerton, 18 kms away. Imagine driving down a series of increasingly narrow roads, lanes, pathways deeper and deeper into the jungle, higher and higher up a mountain in the dark. Our driver asked every person he saw for confirmation on our directions, and called the hotel repeatedly to make sure we were not lost. We arrived eventually and were greeted warmly by the staff. My room was gorgeous, but Alison’s was just okay. We negotiated an equally lovely room for her, unpacked, and joined a couple in the bar for a nightcap.

This morning I am sitting in the sun with Ben the Labrador. We have a wonderful view, a lousy internet connection, and a morning to ourselves.

Pleasant and less pleasant surprises

Tuesday we decided we actually needed to leave the house and go to Galle. It is a fortress town originally built by the Dutch and later taken over by the British. Because of its high surrounding walls, the fortress part of the town escaped most of the Tsunami destruction elsewhere.

We planned to take a bus, but at the last minute had a guy at a neighboring hotel call a taxi for us. After some negotiating on the price (why do we bother when they actually know how to do this?) we were told he was 200 yards away and would come straight away. After 15 minutes we were getting impatient. Apparently the driver was 200 yards away having lunch, a point that was not communicated from the beginning. We got a little hissy and suggested that the delay would affect the price.

The driver readjusted our thinking. He offered to not only drive us for less than the originally negotiated price, but also to spend the day in Galle doing his own business and bring us back whenever we were finished. He told us not to rush, enjoy a nice dinner there and call him when we were ready. Another lesson for us: Time is relative.

We found some very nice shops, bought a gift for our host, and very nearly bought a fabulous necklace for Alison, before heading to the Galle Fort Hotel for a much needed cocktail. This was a charming place with only 12 rooms and an excellent bartender. While sitting out as the sun was setting we were bothered a bit by mosquitoes. The duty manager noticed and brought us a very nice rose scented mosquito repellent cream along with a nice after-bite balm, both at no charge. If you sit still long enough someone will offer you exactly what you need.

We Checked out the menu – very British (and dare I say boring?). We were advised to go to Serendipity for local food. Upon entering we saw one large communal table, which was fine, and no alcohol, which was less fine. Change of plans – we would head back to Hikkaduwa.

Our driver was already waiting for us at the designated spot, and recommended we go to "Refresh" in Hikkaduwa. He accompanied us to a beautiful beachside restaurant which we had not discovered earlier in the week, and made sure we were being taken care of before leaving us to our dinner, which was the best we have had so far here.

Hopped in a tuk-tuk to go for our nightcap at Top Secret, and were joined at our table by 3 men, a Swede and 2 Sri Lankans. They admitted they were already quite drunk but sat with us and talked our ears off for an hour or so. We left them to come home, keeping an eye that no one was following us. Upon arriving at our locked gate we attempted to rouse our night watchman. While repeatedly banging on his window and our gate, 3 men appeared on motorcycles and stopped just across the road, watching us. Of course we were sure they were somehow threatening, so we banged louder and woke the neighborhood dogs, and eventually the night watchman. I am pretty sure he was drunk. We decided to just lock our doors and hope no one was going to attack us, since he quite obviously would be no protection on this night.

We noticed something strange on the floor, but the light was dim so we agreed to call it flora vs. fauna for the evening.

Then the power went out. This is a big old house, and we were already on alert from the night’s events. Now it is a big old pitch black house. And we could not find matches to light the candles. And there was no flashlight.  The moment to make sure there is a flashlight and candles in the house is at least 5 minutes before the power goes out! Back to the night watchman, woke him up again, and asked him for a lighter. He came into the house, watched us light a couple of candles, and then offered us the only flashlight. We accepted. We also decided to sleep in the room with 2 beds, not that we were frightened or anything just for practical purposes you understand. Of course by the time we went to bed the power came back on and we called off the alarms. Well Alison did. My body decided to stay on high alert for the whole night just in case any remaining danger should present itself.

This morning we got a proper photo of our late night visitor. It wasn’t flora.

Delicious local food and scary creatures

I woke up Saturday morning to friendly voices and the wonderful aroma of breakfast being prepared. Chandrani prepared a feast of plain hoppers, egg hoppers, chili sambol, which is a mixture of chilies, onions, dried fish, and salt all ground up with some lime juice squeezed over at the end, dhal curry, papaya and bananas. Incredibly good. We decided it would be a good idea after to walk the 1.5km to town, but chose the hottest part of the day to do so. We bought what we needed and walked back home for a 2 hour siesta. Lounging by the pool, cocktails, and dinner at Moonbeam Restaurant beachside, a drink at Top Secret beachside, was all we needed to have a lovely sleep that night.

Sunday was similar, except breakfast was string hoppers, fresh tuna, potato curry and coconut sambol. We did not leave the property all day, enjoying the pool and of course the requisite siesta. When we finally decided to go for dinner we walked about 5 minutes to Top Secret and had very mild (too mild) curries next to the Indian Ocean. The surf pounds along the shore here quite dramatically. A nice young local man invited us on his brother’s boat Monday afternoon. It is nice but we probably won’t make it at that time. He also invited us to a private party on the beach where he and his friend will be drumming, and that we might accomplish. Funny story at Top Secret: the poor little dog I was feeling sorry for the night before is actually doing okay. I made friends with him, but when I offered him food he said "No thank you I have already eaten." Live and learn.



Sorry to say but the most exciting thing that happened was wildlife related. Late Sunday night I toddled into my bathroom for the usual reasons and discovered a spider the size of a dinner plate resting on my towel in front of me. I screamed which brought Alison running, and then we screamed together. Unperturbed our new guest continued whatever he was doing. We then ran out, stopping to unlock the door, and tried to explain to the night watchman how much we needed his help. He did not understand but came with us to investigate. As we issued him directions in a language he does not understand from outside the bathroom he searched in vain for our intruder. This was not going well. Finally we creeped into the bathroom and showed him the damn thing which by then was on the floor to take advantage of his camouflage. We pointed, screamed and ran back out. Well he just couldn’t see it, which of course meant he could not remove it. He did his best, looking under all the furniture with his flashlight but no luck. All I could imagine was waking up in the morning and having this monster in bed with me. Yuck.

Dinner at Top Secret Hikkaduwa

Yes he was on my head this morning!

Okay now get this. The next morning, as I walked into my bathroom something landed on my head. No it was not the monster spider from the night before, but it was his little brother. Another big scene, our caretakers came running and finally removed it, still alive, to the great outdoors where it belongs. I have always hated spiders, but will no longer be afraid if the little bitty ones we get in the western world.

The day improved when Chandrani presented us with tuna, milk rice, and chili sambol for breakfast. Quite possibly her biggest challenge was not to laugh too hard at the silly girls.

 

Well fed local dog



Neverlost-Everlost:Quel Voyage

Quel voyage!

Thursday was a rather important day at work. I had planned a client teleconference at 10, a new business development meeting from 11-1, a second new business development meeting at 2, and found myself at 5 still not back in Paris. This I mention because I had also planned to go home, finish my reports, pack, do an errand for my friend, and leave for the airport by 7:45 that evening. Time was running out. It didn’t help that my client report came back immediately with suggested changes.

But there I was somehow at 7:45 waiting on the street for my taxi which was exceptionally late arriving. At 8 a taxi finally arrived, explaining that the first taxi had had an accident en route and this fine gentleman was in fact the replacement.

Never mind I was on my way. I was greeted by a long queue at Charles de Gaulle for Qatar economy, and then I was on board the flight leaving for Doha where I was to meet my friend Alison somewhere in Duty Free. And sure enough there she was between me and the duty free alcohol. What a surprise.

Next stop Colombo. Arrived approximately 30 minutes late, found our driver, withdrew 50,000 Sri Lankan rupees (just felt wrong) and started the next leg of the trip by car to Hikkaduwa. You remember it was already a long day, going on 16 hours of travel for me. Well we spent 2 hours driving from the airport into Colombo to pay our travel agent, and another 2 hours driving out of Colombo, followed by 2 hours on the road, to at last arrive at the house in Hikkaduwa tired and hungry. For those of you who know me, the only thing worse than me tired and hungry is me tired hungry and cold. Some might say the difference is marginal.

At this point however things were looking up. The house is absolutely beautiful, big, lots of common space and also huge bedrooms for when we need to have time alone. The caretaker, his wife, and the ancient security guard all greeted us on the front porch. They showed us around, and then realizing we really hadn’t eaten all day, sent the night watchman for some food. We were told to expect fish and vegetables, but actually received something quite different. Hard to describe really but welcome. A couple of cocktails by the pool, and we both collapsed in our respective canopy beds complete with gauzy mosquito netting. A busy Thursday-become Friday was finally over.