The past several days have actually been outrageous! I'm not sure where to start, so I'll just jump right in!
On Friday there was an impromptu goodbye party for two of our volunteers who had been here for around a month. Almost all the volunteers were there and the three individuals working in the International Unit, Bandula, Chandima, and Mangala. We had Kik (Coke), baby bananas, and chocolate cake... Sri Lankan style! It was super delicious and a bit grainy, but I liked it! It reminded me of when you eat the cake batter right out of the bowl pre-bake!
I was supposed to meet with Bianca, who is in charge of Ma Sevana (the teenage mother home) but things didn't work out as she was busy with other things. Maybe this week?
Saturday I was supposed to pick up my sarees but they weren't quite done. I ended up going to buy fabric in the morning for a skirt and dress the sewing unit said they could make for me. I hung out with the girls who are deaf and they painted my nails a fun pastel pink color. I really enjoy my time there but sometimes it feels weird. I can't always communicate what I want and sometimes they all just stare at me and wait. I'm not sure what they're waiting for but I just want them to go about their day and talk among themselves. Oh well.
I left around 5:00 to come back to the hostel to grab a snack and also to drop off a lot of heavy things in my bag. I walked down to the main road went to Queen of Angels Catholic Church for 5:30 mass. It was in English and I was surprised not only at the size of the church but also how many people attended the English service. The church is pretty much open-air but also has fans. Despite the wooden pews I was comfortable. The mass was almost word for word. It was the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time. I'm not sure if that's what it is in Canada right now. It doesn't seem quite right. Maybe someone could let me know? Everything was pretty much the same as mass in Canada. Although they are very 'old fashioned/traditional' by mom said because we had to walk up to the front of the church and kneel to receive the Eucharist. I was fine with it and seemed to 'rock it' and didn't stick out (besides being the only foreigner there!) The church announced a fundraiser it was having to pave the front drive and car park because right now it's just mud. With rainy season it's pretty messy. There were puddles everywhere. So for 100Rs (less than $1.00) you can 'buy a brick' for the future driveway/parking lot. So I bought one and felt pretty special. Years down the road I can reflect back and remember that one of those stones is from me!
The next morning, Chelsea (USA) and Masano (Japan) and I left for the Moratuwa Railway Station. We took a bus there and arrived around 8:25am. Our train was scheduled to leave around 9, but was late. We bought our tickets to Galle and then walked around outside the station, which is home to many shops selling fruit, snacks, and other cheap goods. I bought an orange crush to take with me and we browsed a fish stand that was there. We saw ray fish, tuna, bonito, yellowfin, and many prawns. There were other types of fish of all sizes (some HUGE!) but I can't remember those breeds!
I had butterflies as the trains passed but once we got on our train I was ok. We were 3rd class and it was pretty packed. A man said we could go up to 2nd class at the next stop so we did. The only difference seemed to be that 2nd class had bathrooms and seats instead of booths. Some transit officers came by and checked our tickets. Seeing that we were 3rd class they said we were on the wrong car. After talking to one officer he said we could stay in 2nd. Then another officer came and sent us back to 3rd. It was a series of back and forths through the train cars. There were fans in the cars and the windows rolled up and down. Luckily we were standing by the doorway (no actual door) and had a good breeze there. A friendly Sri Lankan man who was studying in Germany chatted us up and when we said we were going to Galle he said it was no good. A little concerning! But he suggested we first stop in Ambalangoda, a small town with a moonstone mine, blue lagoon, and a sea turtle hatchery. It was two or three stops before Galle and we could use our tickets to get back on the train. We decided to do that. In the meantime, we passed beautiful views of the ocean mixed with sights of slums and rich communities. Many men passed on the bus selling spicy prawns, nuts, gum, and various other snacks. They held their baskets on their head sometimes. It was neat. I didn't buy anything though... You never know...!
So we stopped in Ambalangoda with this Sri Lankan man who was there to transfer on a bus. He talked to a tuk tuk driver who also spoke English. He told him to take us to the aforementioned places at 110Rs/km (about 35Rs/km a person... and they charge per person!) and to let us pay no more than 2500Rs at the lagoon. The tuk tuk driver also waited for us at every stop and took us to get short eats.
Anyways, first stop was the moonstone mine. It is actually the only one in the world and houses the rare blue moonstone. We got to see down into the mine and watch the process of sifting out sand for the precious gems, which Sri Lanka is very rich in. We also saw other men polish and shape stones while fitting them into jewelry pieces. We got to view the gift shop and I may or may not have bought something. Ok, I bought something! I got a nice pendant (I have a chain at home) with a blue moonstone (not actually blue, but clear and in different light it looks blue-ish) and a white sapphire. It is government certified (I've got the document) and since it is from a government shop there was no tax. I got the cheapest one. That's good enough for me! It will be a nice memory and it will match with lots of outfits and is fancy too!
Next we went to get some short eats. I had some rolls that look like big egg rolls. They had minced meat and vegetables and a half boiled egg inside. It was super good and usual quite spicy. But the egg brought it down a notch. I really liked it. I also had a vegetable bun but there was fish in it. It was ok, but I enjoyed the roll much more. I also had a little piece of Sri Lankan cake (addicted!). I think the whole thing cost me around $1.00 It was a great deal.
Next we went to the blue lagoon. It is not home to the famous cocktail and wasn't really blue either. For 2500Rs each the three of us got to share a boat and get a private tour of the lagoon. We saw many different types of mangroves and lots of water monitors. I had no idea that those were a type of lizard until I actually saw one! They are quite big! We also saw many people checking their nets for prawns and many bamboo 'walls' and 'chambers' that allows prawns in but not out. The men were out on tiny little canoe thing and pulling up the nets. During our tour we saw an island with a house on it. The homeowners harvest cinnamon and we got to see the man peel, polish, and cut the cinnamon. Turns out it's a tree and the leaves are used for oil, bark for the cinnamon sticks/powder and I think the stick itself it used for cooking. Apparently cinnamon oil is like a cure-all! In addition, we saw him make a very strong rope from the fibers found on the inside of a coconut. This is the material they use to secure fences and furniture... It's strong stuff! He was selling his products but they were outrageously expensive. I didn't buy. Next we saw an island with a temple and a single monk. It was very beautiful and gave us a tour of all the old relics it had. Some scrolls (on palm leaves) were over 500 years old! To write, you scratch letters into the leaf and rub charcoal powder over top and then seal with oil. It obviously works because it is still legible! On the boat ride we saw many lizards, birds, eagles, and monkeys jumping around in trees! It was about 1.5-2 hours... Very fun and relaxing!
I'm tired just reliving this!
Ok, so next we got our tuk tuk to take us to the sea turtle hatchery. It was 500Rs to enter, but all the money goes to the turtles. Five of the seven breeds of sea turtles can be found in Sri Lanka. These include Loggerhead, Hawkbeak, Green Turtle.... and some others but I forget their names. Turtle eggs are often dug up by poachers who can sell them quite easily, as they are eaten here. The nests fall victim to natural predators too, such as lizards. The momma turtle comes to shore to lay the eggs and return to sea. That's it. This organization saves the eggs and protects them as they hatch. Once they are older they are let back into the sea. Each nest can have over 120 eggs and they had dozens of nests ready to hatch. They are all labeled by breed and number of days until hatching. Luckily, the day before a nest had hatched, so we got to see barely 1 day old turtles in the sand. They reburied them after we had a glance. Next we got to see the 1-3 day old turtles in the tank. There were probably 300 of them! I even got to hold two of them and their little legs/fins wrapped around my fingers. It was super cute! We then saw turtles who were being raised in the hatchery. Some were blind or had a disability. A few had been rescued from fisherman's nets and no longer have legs. They also keep the females for 5 years before release so they have a better chance at survival. Only about 2% of a nest is female. That's like 4-6 females per nest... and only about 95% of the nest survives. So there aren't a lot of ladies to repopulate the turtle world. That is a pretty big design flaw, God! We saw a rare albino turtle... only about 1/2,000,000 are born albino! I don't think he will be released since he will quickly be spotted and hunted. Turtles can live up to 300 years... He's got a long time in the hatchery! They also names him Michael Jackson! Just awesome! I had a blast at this stop!
Finally our driver took us back to the train station. We gave him a generous tip (he was like a tour guide on the way and didn't charge for the waiting.. most people do.. and he waited a few hours!). Our train didn't leave for a while so Masano got some bananas and we had tea and short eats while we waited. The train ride to Galle was also busy but it was short so it didn't really matter. Although, it was very hot. It started spitting and the people closed the windows. With just an oscillating fan, I was having trouble! One family watched us talking and when we'd point out the window at the ocean they'd all turn and look. It was kind of cute! About 30 minutes later we arrived and due to the pouring rain we took a tuk tuk to the hotel, Thenu Rest. We got a room with 2 twins and a mattress on the ground for 3000Rs. It was $8.00 each. The three of us shared that room. I was not weirded out by sharing a room with Masano (man). They are all very nice and we were only in the room to sleep and shower. We wandered around the old town of Galle which was an old port and has a large fort surrounding it. The Portuguese were here, followed by the Dutch and the British. It has a lengthy history and you can certainly feel it in the area! The streets have old cobblestone and the buildings have a Portuguese flair to them. Nothing about it is Sri Lankan. It feels like you are in an old colonized area of Mexico. It was a little weird! We walked the ramparts a bit and then had some dinner. We had a wicked awesome pineapple and cashew dish as well as a Thai seafood one. There was tandoori chicken and naan. It was kind of a mishmash of Chinese and Indian but it was good. Chelsea and I each had a chocolate milkshake (thick chocolate milk). It was what I needed. But I think my stomach was a bit upset later because of the dairy. I haven't had that much dairy in over 5 weeks. Luckily I wasn't sick, but my tummy was definitely like 'woah, settle down girl!'
The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel. It came with pineapple juice... I think they actually put the fruit in a blender. It had hunks of fruit and juice and also a nice froth. It was just awesome and only in Sri Lanka! I went to an ATM to get more money (didn't bring enough since I wasn't anticipated the pricey/fun stop in Ambalangoda) and paid our bill at the hotel and left. They were nice enough to let us leave our backpacks there and we took a purse of our things needed for our day. We toured more of the ramparts and saw the old clock tower. In addition, there was a very old tomb that houses a Muslim saint (I didn't know such a thing existed) and is said to cover an old fresh water spring. We moved on to the bus station and caught a bus to Mirissa, a little town that boasts amazing ocean fronts. We wandered around for a long time along a shore with a harbor... we figured eventually the beach would turn up! After asking for directions we realised our long detour was headed no where near the beach. Ooops! So we followed our new path and stumbled upon many guest houses and restaurants. We decided to eat at one called SuduWeli (I believe). It was like a beach hut and the waves were lapping up almost to the platform the place was raised on! I had vegetable fried noodles and a coke and enjoyed the breeze from the Indian Ocean. We decided to skip taking the train home as it would only give us about 40 minutes to enjoy the area. So with the help of the men there they told us that buses go to Colombo (and therefore Moratuwa) very often and run very late. We all agreed to enjoy Mirissa for the day. We all went swimming and loved the waves. The water was not warm or cold, but just perfect! It was sparkling blue/green. Further down the beach were more tourists (who I am not even excited to see anymore) and some man surfing. There were little crabs digging holes on the beach and ran back inside with any movement I made. It was an amazing day. We had tea at the restaurant, paid our bill, and walked up the beach to the bus stop.
The bus took us to Galle. We walked back to Thenu Rest to get our bags and then returned to the bus depot. We picked up some more short eats to take with us on the bus and got some great seats on the bus. It was less than a dollar to take us to Moratuwa. By the time we left it was very dark (6:45pm) and quickly became black. The bus ride was nauseating and a gravol didn't quite do it. I didn't get sick but a couple times I wasn't sure. The bus ride took 2.5 hours. We got off by K-Zone and walked back to headquarters. It didn't take long. Once I got home I had a shower and crashed. I was sunburned and just tired. Longgggg day!
Today I did my usual work at the orphanage and picked up my sarees from the tailor. I tried them on there. I'm still not used to how tight the blouse piece is but I managed to hand wash laundry in it... so it can't be that bad! Tomorrow I think is a regular day but I need to talk to Bandula about finally getting out there and trying some new things!
Little tid bits:
-I got a mystery cut that I noticed on the train on the top of my foot. It was bleeding quite a bit. It is like a giant chunk was skinned off. It has been oozing since. Gross. Why does my body always have one point of oozing on it?!
-Karen booked her flight here from Nepal! She will be arriving July 19 and leaving July 27. I am very excited for her to come and get to go on some adventures. I hope to be a good host like she was to me!
-I am definitely getting more tan! Yay!
-Banana trees produce big flowers at the end of the branch with the bananas on it. This is sold and eaten as is like a fruit!
-People seem impressed to see me in my saree. Sometimes I feel like everyone is watching... probably because they are. But everyone says 'beautiful!' and 'wow!' so I guess it's good! :)
-Some restaurants have an automatic 10% service charge. I don't know if this is the tip or like tax. So I still tip a bit anyways. I should probably figure it out!
-Amara from the Women's Movement keeps sending me pineapples! It's nice but I don't need them all the time!
-I really hope I can try some new things and explore some more Sarvodaya divisions.
-Happy belated Canada Day!
I think that's about it for now. This week seems pretty chill (phew!) but I'm excited to plan the adventure for this coming weekend...
On Friday there was an impromptu goodbye party for two of our volunteers who had been here for around a month. Almost all the volunteers were there and the three individuals working in the International Unit, Bandula, Chandima, and Mangala. We had Kik (Coke), baby bananas, and chocolate cake... Sri Lankan style! It was super delicious and a bit grainy, but I liked it! It reminded me of when you eat the cake batter right out of the bowl pre-bake!
I was supposed to meet with Bianca, who is in charge of Ma Sevana (the teenage mother home) but things didn't work out as she was busy with other things. Maybe this week?
Saturday I was supposed to pick up my sarees but they weren't quite done. I ended up going to buy fabric in the morning for a skirt and dress the sewing unit said they could make for me. I hung out with the girls who are deaf and they painted my nails a fun pastel pink color. I really enjoy my time there but sometimes it feels weird. I can't always communicate what I want and sometimes they all just stare at me and wait. I'm not sure what they're waiting for but I just want them to go about their day and talk among themselves. Oh well.
I left around 5:00 to come back to the hostel to grab a snack and also to drop off a lot of heavy things in my bag. I walked down to the main road went to Queen of Angels Catholic Church for 5:30 mass. It was in English and I was surprised not only at the size of the church but also how many people attended the English service. The church is pretty much open-air but also has fans. Despite the wooden pews I was comfortable. The mass was almost word for word. It was the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time. I'm not sure if that's what it is in Canada right now. It doesn't seem quite right. Maybe someone could let me know? Everything was pretty much the same as mass in Canada. Although they are very 'old fashioned/traditional' by mom said because we had to walk up to the front of the church and kneel to receive the Eucharist. I was fine with it and seemed to 'rock it' and didn't stick out (besides being the only foreigner there!) The church announced a fundraiser it was having to pave the front drive and car park because right now it's just mud. With rainy season it's pretty messy. There were puddles everywhere. So for 100Rs (less than $1.00) you can 'buy a brick' for the future driveway/parking lot. So I bought one and felt pretty special. Years down the road I can reflect back and remember that one of those stones is from me!
The next morning, Chelsea (USA) and Masano (Japan) and I left for the Moratuwa Railway Station. We took a bus there and arrived around 8:25am. Our train was scheduled to leave around 9, but was late. We bought our tickets to Galle and then walked around outside the station, which is home to many shops selling fruit, snacks, and other cheap goods. I bought an orange crush to take with me and we browsed a fish stand that was there. We saw ray fish, tuna, bonito, yellowfin, and many prawns. There were other types of fish of all sizes (some HUGE!) but I can't remember those breeds!
I had butterflies as the trains passed but once we got on our train I was ok. We were 3rd class and it was pretty packed. A man said we could go up to 2nd class at the next stop so we did. The only difference seemed to be that 2nd class had bathrooms and seats instead of booths. Some transit officers came by and checked our tickets. Seeing that we were 3rd class they said we were on the wrong car. After talking to one officer he said we could stay in 2nd. Then another officer came and sent us back to 3rd. It was a series of back and forths through the train cars. There were fans in the cars and the windows rolled up and down. Luckily we were standing by the doorway (no actual door) and had a good breeze there. A friendly Sri Lankan man who was studying in Germany chatted us up and when we said we were going to Galle he said it was no good. A little concerning! But he suggested we first stop in Ambalangoda, a small town with a moonstone mine, blue lagoon, and a sea turtle hatchery. It was two or three stops before Galle and we could use our tickets to get back on the train. We decided to do that. In the meantime, we passed beautiful views of the ocean mixed with sights of slums and rich communities. Many men passed on the bus selling spicy prawns, nuts, gum, and various other snacks. They held their baskets on their head sometimes. It was neat. I didn't buy anything though... You never know...!
So we stopped in Ambalangoda with this Sri Lankan man who was there to transfer on a bus. He talked to a tuk tuk driver who also spoke English. He told him to take us to the aforementioned places at 110Rs/km (about 35Rs/km a person... and they charge per person!) and to let us pay no more than 2500Rs at the lagoon. The tuk tuk driver also waited for us at every stop and took us to get short eats.
Anyways, first stop was the moonstone mine. It is actually the only one in the world and houses the rare blue moonstone. We got to see down into the mine and watch the process of sifting out sand for the precious gems, which Sri Lanka is very rich in. We also saw other men polish and shape stones while fitting them into jewelry pieces. We got to view the gift shop and I may or may not have bought something. Ok, I bought something! I got a nice pendant (I have a chain at home) with a blue moonstone (not actually blue, but clear and in different light it looks blue-ish) and a white sapphire. It is government certified (I've got the document) and since it is from a government shop there was no tax. I got the cheapest one. That's good enough for me! It will be a nice memory and it will match with lots of outfits and is fancy too!
Next we went to get some short eats. I had some rolls that look like big egg rolls. They had minced meat and vegetables and a half boiled egg inside. It was super good and usual quite spicy. But the egg brought it down a notch. I really liked it. I also had a vegetable bun but there was fish in it. It was ok, but I enjoyed the roll much more. I also had a little piece of Sri Lankan cake (addicted!). I think the whole thing cost me around $1.00 It was a great deal.
Next we went to the blue lagoon. It is not home to the famous cocktail and wasn't really blue either. For 2500Rs each the three of us got to share a boat and get a private tour of the lagoon. We saw many different types of mangroves and lots of water monitors. I had no idea that those were a type of lizard until I actually saw one! They are quite big! We also saw many people checking their nets for prawns and many bamboo 'walls' and 'chambers' that allows prawns in but not out. The men were out on tiny little canoe thing and pulling up the nets. During our tour we saw an island with a house on it. The homeowners harvest cinnamon and we got to see the man peel, polish, and cut the cinnamon. Turns out it's a tree and the leaves are used for oil, bark for the cinnamon sticks/powder and I think the stick itself it used for cooking. Apparently cinnamon oil is like a cure-all! In addition, we saw him make a very strong rope from the fibers found on the inside of a coconut. This is the material they use to secure fences and furniture... It's strong stuff! He was selling his products but they were outrageously expensive. I didn't buy. Next we saw an island with a temple and a single monk. It was very beautiful and gave us a tour of all the old relics it had. Some scrolls (on palm leaves) were over 500 years old! To write, you scratch letters into the leaf and rub charcoal powder over top and then seal with oil. It obviously works because it is still legible! On the boat ride we saw many lizards, birds, eagles, and monkeys jumping around in trees! It was about 1.5-2 hours... Very fun and relaxing!
I'm tired just reliving this!
Ok, so next we got our tuk tuk to take us to the sea turtle hatchery. It was 500Rs to enter, but all the money goes to the turtles. Five of the seven breeds of sea turtles can be found in Sri Lanka. These include Loggerhead, Hawkbeak, Green Turtle.... and some others but I forget their names. Turtle eggs are often dug up by poachers who can sell them quite easily, as they are eaten here. The nests fall victim to natural predators too, such as lizards. The momma turtle comes to shore to lay the eggs and return to sea. That's it. This organization saves the eggs and protects them as they hatch. Once they are older they are let back into the sea. Each nest can have over 120 eggs and they had dozens of nests ready to hatch. They are all labeled by breed and number of days until hatching. Luckily, the day before a nest had hatched, so we got to see barely 1 day old turtles in the sand. They reburied them after we had a glance. Next we got to see the 1-3 day old turtles in the tank. There were probably 300 of them! I even got to hold two of them and their little legs/fins wrapped around my fingers. It was super cute! We then saw turtles who were being raised in the hatchery. Some were blind or had a disability. A few had been rescued from fisherman's nets and no longer have legs. They also keep the females for 5 years before release so they have a better chance at survival. Only about 2% of a nest is female. That's like 4-6 females per nest... and only about 95% of the nest survives. So there aren't a lot of ladies to repopulate the turtle world. That is a pretty big design flaw, God! We saw a rare albino turtle... only about 1/2,000,000 are born albino! I don't think he will be released since he will quickly be spotted and hunted. Turtles can live up to 300 years... He's got a long time in the hatchery! They also names him Michael Jackson! Just awesome! I had a blast at this stop!
Finally our driver took us back to the train station. We gave him a generous tip (he was like a tour guide on the way and didn't charge for the waiting.. most people do.. and he waited a few hours!). Our train didn't leave for a while so Masano got some bananas and we had tea and short eats while we waited. The train ride to Galle was also busy but it was short so it didn't really matter. Although, it was very hot. It started spitting and the people closed the windows. With just an oscillating fan, I was having trouble! One family watched us talking and when we'd point out the window at the ocean they'd all turn and look. It was kind of cute! About 30 minutes later we arrived and due to the pouring rain we took a tuk tuk to the hotel, Thenu Rest. We got a room with 2 twins and a mattress on the ground for 3000Rs. It was $8.00 each. The three of us shared that room. I was not weirded out by sharing a room with Masano (man). They are all very nice and we were only in the room to sleep and shower. We wandered around the old town of Galle which was an old port and has a large fort surrounding it. The Portuguese were here, followed by the Dutch and the British. It has a lengthy history and you can certainly feel it in the area! The streets have old cobblestone and the buildings have a Portuguese flair to them. Nothing about it is Sri Lankan. It feels like you are in an old colonized area of Mexico. It was a little weird! We walked the ramparts a bit and then had some dinner. We had a wicked awesome pineapple and cashew dish as well as a Thai seafood one. There was tandoori chicken and naan. It was kind of a mishmash of Chinese and Indian but it was good. Chelsea and I each had a chocolate milkshake (thick chocolate milk). It was what I needed. But I think my stomach was a bit upset later because of the dairy. I haven't had that much dairy in over 5 weeks. Luckily I wasn't sick, but my tummy was definitely like 'woah, settle down girl!'
The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel. It came with pineapple juice... I think they actually put the fruit in a blender. It had hunks of fruit and juice and also a nice froth. It was just awesome and only in Sri Lanka! I went to an ATM to get more money (didn't bring enough since I wasn't anticipated the pricey/fun stop in Ambalangoda) and paid our bill at the hotel and left. They were nice enough to let us leave our backpacks there and we took a purse of our things needed for our day. We toured more of the ramparts and saw the old clock tower. In addition, there was a very old tomb that houses a Muslim saint (I didn't know such a thing existed) and is said to cover an old fresh water spring. We moved on to the bus station and caught a bus to Mirissa, a little town that boasts amazing ocean fronts. We wandered around for a long time along a shore with a harbor... we figured eventually the beach would turn up! After asking for directions we realised our long detour was headed no where near the beach. Ooops! So we followed our new path and stumbled upon many guest houses and restaurants. We decided to eat at one called SuduWeli (I believe). It was like a beach hut and the waves were lapping up almost to the platform the place was raised on! I had vegetable fried noodles and a coke and enjoyed the breeze from the Indian Ocean. We decided to skip taking the train home as it would only give us about 40 minutes to enjoy the area. So with the help of the men there they told us that buses go to Colombo (and therefore Moratuwa) very often and run very late. We all agreed to enjoy Mirissa for the day. We all went swimming and loved the waves. The water was not warm or cold, but just perfect! It was sparkling blue/green. Further down the beach were more tourists (who I am not even excited to see anymore) and some man surfing. There were little crabs digging holes on the beach and ran back inside with any movement I made. It was an amazing day. We had tea at the restaurant, paid our bill, and walked up the beach to the bus stop.
The bus took us to Galle. We walked back to Thenu Rest to get our bags and then returned to the bus depot. We picked up some more short eats to take with us on the bus and got some great seats on the bus. It was less than a dollar to take us to Moratuwa. By the time we left it was very dark (6:45pm) and quickly became black. The bus ride was nauseating and a gravol didn't quite do it. I didn't get sick but a couple times I wasn't sure. The bus ride took 2.5 hours. We got off by K-Zone and walked back to headquarters. It didn't take long. Once I got home I had a shower and crashed. I was sunburned and just tired. Longgggg day!
Today I did my usual work at the orphanage and picked up my sarees from the tailor. I tried them on there. I'm still not used to how tight the blouse piece is but I managed to hand wash laundry in it... so it can't be that bad! Tomorrow I think is a regular day but I need to talk to Bandula about finally getting out there and trying some new things!
Little tid bits:
-I got a mystery cut that I noticed on the train on the top of my foot. It was bleeding quite a bit. It is like a giant chunk was skinned off. It has been oozing since. Gross. Why does my body always have one point of oozing on it?!
-Karen booked her flight here from Nepal! She will be arriving July 19 and leaving July 27. I am very excited for her to come and get to go on some adventures. I hope to be a good host like she was to me!
-I am definitely getting more tan! Yay!
-Banana trees produce big flowers at the end of the branch with the bananas on it. This is sold and eaten as is like a fruit!
-People seem impressed to see me in my saree. Sometimes I feel like everyone is watching... probably because they are. But everyone says 'beautiful!' and 'wow!' so I guess it's good! :)
-Some restaurants have an automatic 10% service charge. I don't know if this is the tip or like tax. So I still tip a bit anyways. I should probably figure it out!
-Amara from the Women's Movement keeps sending me pineapples! It's nice but I don't need them all the time!
-I really hope I can try some new things and explore some more Sarvodaya divisions.
-Happy belated Canada Day!
I think that's about it for now. This week seems pretty chill (phew!) but I'm excited to plan the adventure for this coming weekend...
I'm always amazed at the level of detail you portray in these blog posts after literally just having experienced it. You'd think these posts would get tedious for you, but I enjoy reading them :) you look so hot/drained in that pic of you in your new saree. I love the pink nails too :)
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