Sri Lanka has been a place of rest, relaxation and reminiscing!
Sanjeewa came to New Zealand as an AFS student in 1986 and lived with the Akers for 9 months. But the way Sanj recalls names and events, you would think it was just last month! It was obviously a very special time for him and New Zealand made quite the impression. Logan and Sanj had not seen each other for 22 years but they were instantly like brothers again. They have delighted in each other`s love of 80`s music and Sanj has relived his New Zealand days listening to “Reckless” and other Australian Crawl “classics” on our iPod – over and over again! 🙂 We are so pleased we put Sri Lanka on our itinerary!
Unfortunately, Sri Lanka is not in a good place right now. Terrorism attacks by Tamil Tigers are a real and present danger and tourism has been badly affected. Lucky for us we had Sanj to keep us safe and away from potential risks (public transport, gatherings, rush hour) while still showing us some of what Sri Lanka has to offer. It is a beautiful country and we hope that peace prevails soon.
The highlights have been:
Seeing the sea!!! It had been 4 months! The water was warm and clean, the sand stretched for miles, and the sunset was stunning.
Spending two nights at a lakeside cabin shaded by fruit trees and away from all the world`s worries.
A jeep safari in Udawalawe National Park – elephants in huge family groups, peacocks, hornbills, a fish owl, an eagle, salamanders, and a green vine snake slithering across the track.
Indulging in Sri Lankan hospitality at a beach-side hotel down the coast from Colombo.
Eating at least 13 different kinds of fruit – yum yum!
Meeting Sanj and some of his family and friends – they have all been so kind and super generous. It has been lovely to feel “at home” for a while and experience what daily life in Sri Lanka is like. Thank you so much Sanj for a fabulous stay in your beautiful country! We look forward to seeing you, Charika and Rovinya New Zealand soon.
It is an early start tomorrow for our flight to Hong Kong. We have just three weeks left, yet still three more countries – the countdown is on but we are still living it up!!!
