So apparently I haven't posted in one week! How crazy is that!? I guess because most days are pretty much the same I don't bother. I'm hoping to change that! Bandula said he'd find more/different work for me, which should lead to some adventures and most posts!
The past week was basically working at the orphanage. Two of the children have moved to the 'big kids' side and now there are 6 children. However today one child was transferred to another home so we are down to 5 children. I guess this is a good thing.
There was another girl from the USA here on a vacation with her family and she spent the mornings volunteering. She is going to be a senior in high school. We talked a bit. It was cool that she is also Sri Lankan (like Erandi) and can communicate with the workers at Suwasetha. However, she was only here for a week and a bit and left today.
The only real 'news' I have is that this weekend Mason/Masano, Maia (a new girl here from NY), Ben and I went to Hikkaduwa Beach, which is along the south west coast, but before Galle. We took the train on Saturday morning for a mere 70Rs and rode for about 1.5-2 hours.
Once we got there we walked from the train station down a long (hot) road looking for accommodations. Since Hikkaduwa is very much a tourist destination, there are lots of hotels and restaurants. Finding them wasn't the problem. Finding one for cheap was. We looked at about 4 hotels before settling on Whispering Palms Tourist Rest. It is a 4-room hotel at a family's home. They were a young family (and mother-in-law?) and were extremely helpful. They gave us a deal of 3000Rs for 2 double rooms. It was a very fair price, mainly because it is 'low season' in Hikkaduwa right now.
It is low season because it is monsoon season on the west coast. Basically that means it rains every day for a bit. We have not had storms and only one incident of very bad weather when I first arrived. Many fisherman lost their lives. In addition, the beach is much smaller and the current is stronger. Without proper guidance from locals, you could be swept in the undertow or get caught in a tough place to swim. I did not experience that problem.
Hikkaduwa is very popular for surfing and also the coral sanctuaries and fancy fish that are found only feet from the shore. We saw one man learning to surf but the waves were not big enough for real surfing.
After checking in and getting settled we went to rent some snorkeling gear and go to the beach. For the whole day I got fins, mask, and snorkel for 500Rs. We walked to the area of beach known to have coral. It was only about 7 minutes away. We were directed by friendly locals and were also told about the glass-bottomed boats you could rent to go out to the reef or just view it without getting wet. Mason swam out to the post in the water that marked the location of the reef. The waves were more rough here and he said that the sand was being kicked up by the current... no view.
Maia and I then snorkeled in a neighboring area to test that section out. There was a lot of coral... huge chunks the size of big rocks. However, they were very close to the surface. With the waves and current I was slowly pulled around the coral while in the 'starfish position' - floating on the water. There was one hunk of pink tube-like coral but the rest was brown and looked dead. What made it better was to see the variety of fish that existed despite their destroyed habitat. Dark fish with yellow stripes, brown, white with yellow fins, all sorts. It was nice! There was a school of about 50 that ate tea buns out of our hands under water. They were very friendly. Ben cut his knee on the coral. We decided to maybe take a break... or just hang out with the fish. No sense in getting hurt.
We swam for a long time after this and then shared some food at a restaurant called Mama's. I had mixed seafood noodles. It was good. There was a variety of seafood in it, like squid, fish, prawns, etc. It was also very affordable. We spent some more time on the beach and then freshened up for dinner after returning our snorkeling gear. We had a huge seafood platter at a place called Moon Light. There was lobster, crab, fish, squid, giant prawns, and shrimp. I really enjoyed the crab.
Maia and I crashed pretty early while I think Ben and Mason had a 2-hour long discussion about Buddhism. We were well rested by the morning and ready to go by 8:00. The boys however..... late. Eventually we headed down the road to Barista, a nice coffee shop with light meals. I had an Americano (thinking of you, Max!) and waffles with chocolate sauce and whipped cream. I decided to indulge as I was on a vacation and I am so glad I did. The breakfast was to die for! It didn't keep me going as long as bacon and eggs, but that kind of thing doesn't exactly exist in many restaurants.
We returned to the beach for a majority of the day. Maia and I spent over and hour just in the waves talking. It was so fun! However, the water was dirty with plastic and other garbage. But that was only 'here and there'. It was scary because there were crabs that would latch on to our bathing suits and skin. It didn't hurt or leave marks, but was just a little spooky! I think the crabs were getting revenge on me for all the crab I ate the night before! ;)
I didn't notice the horrible burn I got until we returned to the hostel. I was beat red in the face, chest, shoulders, and back, despite putting sunscreen on well before swimming. I was also nauseous and my legs felt weak. I ate some leftovers from dinner the night before after laying down for a bit. I drank a lot of water. No dice. We caught a bus to the bus station and then walked from there to the train station. The train was on time (woo!) and we got some nice standing room. I was not okay on the train. My head was bobbing and I couldn't tell if I was just exhausted or going to pass out. Luckily a woman saw I was having a rough time and gave me a small section of her booth to sit on. This helped enormously and I felt much better by the time we arrived at Moratuwa Station. From there we took a bus to our stop and walked back to headquarters for about 5:30.
Sunscreen and 'after sun' do not exist here. Aloe vera gel does not exist here. Sri Lankans don't burn... they just get darker! Luckily there is an actual aloe plant outside the hostel so Chandima cut some branches/leaves off and we put the fresh gel on my burned areas. Maia was also burned so she took advantage of the aloe too. It hurt so bad I could hardly wear clothes. I'm feeling a lot better on day 3, and hoping this turns into a rockin' tan. No sense being in this much pain for nothin'.
This week has not been special. There is a mother-daughter pair that is volunteering at the orphanage. It doesn't leave a lot of things to do so I find myself sitting a lot. I sorted clothes, but who knows how long that will last. I told Bandula about my concern and he said he will make some calls and get me more work. I'm jealous of my peers as they have many meetings and plans. I feel neglected, and I think Bandula acknowledged that. He said that we haven't really talked about how things are going in a couple weeks. True. Let's fix that.
I raised my concerns about the orphanage to the director, Bianca. The children have no proper discipline or respect. It makes me not want to go. Boys pull up my skirt and look under it, take out toys from the bin as others are putting them away. I got a hunk of my hair pulled out. And get this: when on the potty before showering, the kids would empty the contents of the potty on the ground, play in it and then wipe their hands on me. It's super gross. It's frustrating because I get no support from the other workers and can't communicate to anyone how disgusting, unsanitary and rude it is. Bianca seemed appalled by this and suggested I lead a work shop about how to correct the child's behavior in a positive way. Some workers spank or twist ears and that is not ok. I hope I can come up with a good workshop. I'm worried that it won't stick or be successful but at least I can try. And maybe I won't be here to see it fail in a few weeks.
Dr. DeSilva emailed me back about helping in July. He said that there is no work right now as data is still being gathered but maybe I could join on some field visits soon. I really hope he keeps to his word. I really want to do something meaningful and learn more. I feel useless right now.
Women's Movement will be going on some field visits soon... Hopefully I can tag along with them. They already said I could... but will they remember?
Karen is coming in 10 days and while she has sent me a list of things she'd like to see while she is here, I'm having a hard time planning. I'm hoping to get some guidance from the people in the office. They know a lot more about 'how to see the country' than I do. I've still got some time but want to get it done sooner rather than later.
Little points:
-I'm really enjoying tea time. Once in the morning and again in the afternoon. I don't take sugar and I think they use powdered milk, but the Ceylon tea is awesome.
-Bandula was talking about how the number of elephants post-war are much fewer than pre-war because not only was the conflict between Tamils and Sri Lankans, but between the people and elephants. I'd like to learn more about this conflict. There are some elephant orphanages in the country.
-There is a wedding on Thursday that I am attending. I am very excited to wear my fancy saree and see a real Sri Lankan wedding. They look beautiful!
-I saw a parrot on my way to work the other day. It was amazing! I wish I had my camera!
-Last week the other volunteers and I had a celebration for World Day. It was a holiday we made up to celebrate Canada Day and 4th of July but also include those from Japan and Switzerland. We just sat in the common area and had ice cream, cake, crackers, and more. It was relaxing, but the party didn't go late.
-I am desperately in need of new clothes. I definitely did not pack enough. Originally I had the idea that I'd buy more clothes here. But they are not made for people my size because everyone here is quite short. Boo. My clothes are stained and discolored and I'm not sure if they will make it 6 more weeks! Donations are accepted!
-I will talk to Bandula about going to the north to learn more about the conflict there. He said he would speak to some people here about finding more work as well.
-There is a train strike here so I'm not sure how to get places as apparently now the buses are packed. In addition there is apparently some voting happening in the North in September. I wonder what that's about!
Hopefully my week is more exciting and I can update more!
The past week was basically working at the orphanage. Two of the children have moved to the 'big kids' side and now there are 6 children. However today one child was transferred to another home so we are down to 5 children. I guess this is a good thing.
There was another girl from the USA here on a vacation with her family and she spent the mornings volunteering. She is going to be a senior in high school. We talked a bit. It was cool that she is also Sri Lankan (like Erandi) and can communicate with the workers at Suwasetha. However, she was only here for a week and a bit and left today.
The only real 'news' I have is that this weekend Mason/Masano, Maia (a new girl here from NY), Ben and I went to Hikkaduwa Beach, which is along the south west coast, but before Galle. We took the train on Saturday morning for a mere 70Rs and rode for about 1.5-2 hours.
Once we got there we walked from the train station down a long (hot) road looking for accommodations. Since Hikkaduwa is very much a tourist destination, there are lots of hotels and restaurants. Finding them wasn't the problem. Finding one for cheap was. We looked at about 4 hotels before settling on Whispering Palms Tourist Rest. It is a 4-room hotel at a family's home. They were a young family (and mother-in-law?) and were extremely helpful. They gave us a deal of 3000Rs for 2 double rooms. It was a very fair price, mainly because it is 'low season' in Hikkaduwa right now.
It is low season because it is monsoon season on the west coast. Basically that means it rains every day for a bit. We have not had storms and only one incident of very bad weather when I first arrived. Many fisherman lost their lives. In addition, the beach is much smaller and the current is stronger. Without proper guidance from locals, you could be swept in the undertow or get caught in a tough place to swim. I did not experience that problem.
Hikkaduwa is very popular for surfing and also the coral sanctuaries and fancy fish that are found only feet from the shore. We saw one man learning to surf but the waves were not big enough for real surfing.
After checking in and getting settled we went to rent some snorkeling gear and go to the beach. For the whole day I got fins, mask, and snorkel for 500Rs. We walked to the area of beach known to have coral. It was only about 7 minutes away. We were directed by friendly locals and were also told about the glass-bottomed boats you could rent to go out to the reef or just view it without getting wet. Mason swam out to the post in the water that marked the location of the reef. The waves were more rough here and he said that the sand was being kicked up by the current... no view.
Maia and I then snorkeled in a neighboring area to test that section out. There was a lot of coral... huge chunks the size of big rocks. However, they were very close to the surface. With the waves and current I was slowly pulled around the coral while in the 'starfish position' - floating on the water. There was one hunk of pink tube-like coral but the rest was brown and looked dead. What made it better was to see the variety of fish that existed despite their destroyed habitat. Dark fish with yellow stripes, brown, white with yellow fins, all sorts. It was nice! There was a school of about 50 that ate tea buns out of our hands under water. They were very friendly. Ben cut his knee on the coral. We decided to maybe take a break... or just hang out with the fish. No sense in getting hurt.
We swam for a long time after this and then shared some food at a restaurant called Mama's. I had mixed seafood noodles. It was good. There was a variety of seafood in it, like squid, fish, prawns, etc. It was also very affordable. We spent some more time on the beach and then freshened up for dinner after returning our snorkeling gear. We had a huge seafood platter at a place called Moon Light. There was lobster, crab, fish, squid, giant prawns, and shrimp. I really enjoyed the crab.
Maia and I crashed pretty early while I think Ben and Mason had a 2-hour long discussion about Buddhism. We were well rested by the morning and ready to go by 8:00. The boys however..... late. Eventually we headed down the road to Barista, a nice coffee shop with light meals. I had an Americano (thinking of you, Max!) and waffles with chocolate sauce and whipped cream. I decided to indulge as I was on a vacation and I am so glad I did. The breakfast was to die for! It didn't keep me going as long as bacon and eggs, but that kind of thing doesn't exactly exist in many restaurants.
We returned to the beach for a majority of the day. Maia and I spent over and hour just in the waves talking. It was so fun! However, the water was dirty with plastic and other garbage. But that was only 'here and there'. It was scary because there were crabs that would latch on to our bathing suits and skin. It didn't hurt or leave marks, but was just a little spooky! I think the crabs were getting revenge on me for all the crab I ate the night before! ;)
I didn't notice the horrible burn I got until we returned to the hostel. I was beat red in the face, chest, shoulders, and back, despite putting sunscreen on well before swimming. I was also nauseous and my legs felt weak. I ate some leftovers from dinner the night before after laying down for a bit. I drank a lot of water. No dice. We caught a bus to the bus station and then walked from there to the train station. The train was on time (woo!) and we got some nice standing room. I was not okay on the train. My head was bobbing and I couldn't tell if I was just exhausted or going to pass out. Luckily a woman saw I was having a rough time and gave me a small section of her booth to sit on. This helped enormously and I felt much better by the time we arrived at Moratuwa Station. From there we took a bus to our stop and walked back to headquarters for about 5:30.
Sunscreen and 'after sun' do not exist here. Aloe vera gel does not exist here. Sri Lankans don't burn... they just get darker! Luckily there is an actual aloe plant outside the hostel so Chandima cut some branches/leaves off and we put the fresh gel on my burned areas. Maia was also burned so she took advantage of the aloe too. It hurt so bad I could hardly wear clothes. I'm feeling a lot better on day 3, and hoping this turns into a rockin' tan. No sense being in this much pain for nothin'.
This week has not been special. There is a mother-daughter pair that is volunteering at the orphanage. It doesn't leave a lot of things to do so I find myself sitting a lot. I sorted clothes, but who knows how long that will last. I told Bandula about my concern and he said he will make some calls and get me more work. I'm jealous of my peers as they have many meetings and plans. I feel neglected, and I think Bandula acknowledged that. He said that we haven't really talked about how things are going in a couple weeks. True. Let's fix that.
I raised my concerns about the orphanage to the director, Bianca. The children have no proper discipline or respect. It makes me not want to go. Boys pull up my skirt and look under it, take out toys from the bin as others are putting them away. I got a hunk of my hair pulled out. And get this: when on the potty before showering, the kids would empty the contents of the potty on the ground, play in it and then wipe their hands on me. It's super gross. It's frustrating because I get no support from the other workers and can't communicate to anyone how disgusting, unsanitary and rude it is. Bianca seemed appalled by this and suggested I lead a work shop about how to correct the child's behavior in a positive way. Some workers spank or twist ears and that is not ok. I hope I can come up with a good workshop. I'm worried that it won't stick or be successful but at least I can try. And maybe I won't be here to see it fail in a few weeks.
Dr. DeSilva emailed me back about helping in July. He said that there is no work right now as data is still being gathered but maybe I could join on some field visits soon. I really hope he keeps to his word. I really want to do something meaningful and learn more. I feel useless right now.
Women's Movement will be going on some field visits soon... Hopefully I can tag along with them. They already said I could... but will they remember?
Karen is coming in 10 days and while she has sent me a list of things she'd like to see while she is here, I'm having a hard time planning. I'm hoping to get some guidance from the people in the office. They know a lot more about 'how to see the country' than I do. I've still got some time but want to get it done sooner rather than later.
Little points:
-I'm really enjoying tea time. Once in the morning and again in the afternoon. I don't take sugar and I think they use powdered milk, but the Ceylon tea is awesome.
-Bandula was talking about how the number of elephants post-war are much fewer than pre-war because not only was the conflict between Tamils and Sri Lankans, but between the people and elephants. I'd like to learn more about this conflict. There are some elephant orphanages in the country.
-There is a wedding on Thursday that I am attending. I am very excited to wear my fancy saree and see a real Sri Lankan wedding. They look beautiful!
-I saw a parrot on my way to work the other day. It was amazing! I wish I had my camera!
-Last week the other volunteers and I had a celebration for World Day. It was a holiday we made up to celebrate Canada Day and 4th of July but also include those from Japan and Switzerland. We just sat in the common area and had ice cream, cake, crackers, and more. It was relaxing, but the party didn't go late.
-I am desperately in need of new clothes. I definitely did not pack enough. Originally I had the idea that I'd buy more clothes here. But they are not made for people my size because everyone here is quite short. Boo. My clothes are stained and discolored and I'm not sure if they will make it 6 more weeks! Donations are accepted!
-I will talk to Bandula about going to the north to learn more about the conflict there. He said he would speak to some people here about finding more work as well.
-There is a train strike here so I'm not sure how to get places as apparently now the buses are packed. In addition there is apparently some voting happening in the North in September. I wonder what that's about!
Hopefully my week is more exciting and I can update more!
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