So the New Year is almost upon us and it is a good enough time as any to reflect on the changes 2008 has wrought and what the future could hold for the coming year. I’m not sure why but I’m noticed for that the people around me and even myself 2008 was a year of adjustment and some oddly trying times, and I get the feeling that for better or worse the New Year will give a few answers but ultimately throw some more ‘interesting’ challenges in our path.

I could write about my thoughts on the current economic crisis, Religion, US elections, war, peace, celebrities or the hundreds of other events that punctuated the previous 365 days throughout the stretches of routine that we call our daily lives… but I won’t. In part because I’m lazy though as well because it doesn’t really matter (or fit the purpose of this post), taking a look and seeing how much has changed for better or worse depends on each individual and their own opinions, some people were probably horrified that Obama was elected President, others ecstatic… a judgment of the year that was is in the eye of the beholder.

So if you do get the chance to ponder the year to be and reflect on the one that was, see how far we have come, how much farther we have to go, and the many mistakes made on the way. Then grab a stiff drink and toast the health of all humanity and beings great and small.

If one were to ask of me the thoughts I harbor about the year past, I think I would just ignore them because I really don’t like explaining my brain to other people and in all honesty I doubt it would be easy to put my feelings into words… though perhaps five would do: “It was an interesting year”

Uhm, yeah and in case you were wondering, yes that is a Guinea Pirate - the most feared of all creatures.

Terrorists, bombs and spies Oh my…



Well somehow in between the hectic schedule of work and running around like a… something that runs around a lot, was able to watch a couple of spy action movies. Now I’m sure you’ve all heard of the first one “Quantum of Solace” the latest in the Bond series known for nifty gadgets and witty dialogue… though there wasn’t too much of that in the new movie, meh, whatever.
Quantum delivered what I suppose the movie going audience expects these days, lots of action one liners and explosions. To be honest, I did enjoy the film as a regular action movie but for me Bond represented a sophisticated spy, a well-blended mix of brain and brawn. The franchise owners must have taken a look at Bourne and thought they needed to spice up the action a bit, so that is pretty much all this new Bond does throughout the film, shoot at things and kill people, no subtle manoeuvring that is really the essence of being a spy, which means he’s just a Rambo type mercenary that wears a suit. Still for all it is a good movie and I think it is interesting how they are building the evil organization in the background. However I saw another movie that make me think the Bond franchise needs a rework or should really be put to rest.

The other movie is “Traitor”, a somewhat more realistic movie that explores the world of terrorism and the Islamic faith. This was not a movie I looked for or indeed wanted to watch, but was instantly drawn into the feel of the film as it started playing. ‘Traitor’ showed the more unglamorous side of spy work, where moral ground becomes tricky and the strength of character (not skill with weapons) needed to carry through a mission.
Don Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda, Crash) gives a believable performance of a man devout in his Islamic faith. The movie challenges some perceptions but in a subtle way, considering the events leading up to the US election (especially in the McCain rallies) this movie is probably something most Americans would benefit from watching – though I doubt that would happen. This movie doesn’t seem to have gotten a lot of mainstream coverage as compared to the aforementioned Quantum of Solace. To illustrate this point, the wikipedia pages on these two films is a bit different, “Traitor” has one screen of information while “Quantum” has about five times that.

All said and done both movies were entertaining in their own way but, at least with “Traitor” one can feel like they are not just wasting time watching mindless entertainment, by no means is watching a movie equivalent to understanding – but if it can get a couple of people to challenge their preconceived perceptions that it’s value is far greater than “Quantum of Solace” even if it doesn’t bring in the big box office cash.

While I am happy...





By now I believe everyone in the world has heard the news, the junior Senator from Illinois Barack Obama has become the President-elect of the United States of America. To say that this is an historic event is a bit of an understatement, if not already a cliche. As I see the amount of joy and excitement created around the world by Obama coming to power... I can't seem to shake a few doubts that seem to surface whenever I want to join in on the festivity.

Don't misunderstand, I'm still happy that Obama won... it just seems that people may be placing a bit of an unrealistic expectation on this man to change a system that is ingrained in policy and economics. One also has to question how he gained the funds for his campaign, to have an impressive record breaking bankroll is quite a feat, yet I can't help but wonder who he would be indebted to. The more I ponder the subject in general the more I realize that aside from the color of his skin, Obama really is like most other politicians.

There is a message of hope and change that was used to bolster his campaign, but in all honesty if you take a look at the policies and stances on issues there really isn't anything different that what another candidate might bring. So I have to go further and ask myself, if Obama ran the same platform with the same message of change and hope but was white... would he win? Actually in all probability I think so, at least to me Obama doesn't represent the first black candidate but just a more intelligent and savvy leader especially in comparison to the previous one, the message he brought was what people needed. In a way Bush paved the way for Obama's election to the Presidency, would an America in an economic boom happy with the status quo also elect Obama... a point to ponder.

Still I can't shake this feeling that something isn't quite right, perhaps it's the blind devotion that his supporters seem to have. I've always had issues with people giving support for superficial reasons without looking into the root causes of problems or even trying to learn different aspects of an issue. As well seriously, as much as the American people might complain about how they suffered under the reign of Bush for 8 years... they were the ones that voted the guy in.

Perhaps I also have this fear that one day we'll all wake up to find that Obama was actually some 'Manchurian' candidate that was groomed by corporations to mesmerize people into blindly step in line and repeat more of the same policies keeping the rich richer and the middle class in debt.

Meh, what do I know anyway, so congratulations to Obama and the United States of America, I truly wish the best for the newest President. How much change he can bring is something only time will tell, and even for all my cynicism - I am hopeful.

Thoughts of Guinea pigs…

For an odd reason the funny furry creatures known as Guinea pigs has been on my mind quite a bit lately, I seem to take some comfort in pondering the existence of the odd little mammals. To those who have not had the good fortune to have one as a pet they are probably the most useless animal in creation. They are about the size of a grapefruit, loot a bit like a rodent though with a more vacant expression. There are several different types that come in a variety of colours, I’m not going to take the time to describe them all so an excerpt from the dictionary will have to suffice, Guinea pig: a big fat harmless rat.
Quite appropriate I think, having had three Guinea pigs as pets it is without any reservation that I can remark; they are perhaps the dumbest mammals in existence (four legged ones at least).
However, all said and done I find them to be quite fascinating and there is indeed something comforting about the creatures. Aside from the obvious aesthetic features of being incredibly cute, and that they purr when petted (not quite like a cat but similar), they seem to have some quality that it quite endearing.
Perhaps it is because even though they are basically a food source for natural predators lacking any defences or special abilities except for running… err…waddling away, they retain an innate sense of curiosity. It is amusing to watch them investigate new environments, waddling, bleeping and nibbling around everything in their path.
In a way I admire the little things, which some may find odd... actually to relate a funny story; I had decided to take lessons in Kung-Fu and after the first month they had a group interview to determine if I was mature enough to learn more techniques. One of the questions asked was;

“What is your favourite animal?”

I replied, “Guinea pig.”

There was a moment of silence and the sensei said, “Pick another animal.”

Looking back (with humour) I regret not taking the opportunity to explain my choice. Guinea pigs are creatures that neither have the intelligence nor abilities to do anything other than fearfully run from anything bigger than they, yet are not paralysed by fear. They always retain that inquisitiveness that may cause them to be the midday meal of another animal, but could also lead to the discovery of something new and interesting.
I guess, it is a kind of fearlessness that I admire in them… though it might be the stupidity… oh well, either way they at least look cute. (I’m so tempted to add analogies to the last statement, but I’ve been trying to behave myself lately).

Okay okay, so looks like I went a little squirlly with the last post...

Hey look it's a baby dressed like Hitler, awww how cute in a disturbing sort of way. Anyway mediate on that for a while, later!
(quickly runs for the door and on the waiting escape vehicle).

A bit more serious today...

For the most part the posts of the past couple of months have been fairly fun and actually quite pleasant for the most part. Though after being in Sri Lanka for all this time, I think I've finally come to the point where some things are a bit 'indigestible' for me. A lot of it has to do with politics (sigh, what doesn't these days), and more so the lost potential of a nation as well as the belittling it receives at the 'well-meaning' first world countries. Of course there is a lot more than just that, the attitude of common people and how easily they are mislead in the simplest means sometimes (this is a problem everywhere). It has come to a point that I need to vent a little or I might explode in a cascade of assaulting verbal diarrhea on the next hapless person to ask 'how's your day going?'.

I guess I should explain a little about how it came to this point, I've been doing a lot of reading mostly for my own interest and as well to gain an understanding of this country and the habits of people. As well I've been studying history (always a dangerous area to venture) to see how things got the way they are, and if any patterns emerge. Though one thing has shown itself to be quite clear - interference of foreign powers for their own self interest.

The reason this frustrates me is that most people in the west (believe me growing up in Canada I know the attitude more than I care to admit) have this self satisfying image of themselves as the champions of democracy, selflessly going to other countries bringing peace hope and the word of god (well, not the last part so much anymore - I need another time to rant about that particular topic). People seem to think that when countries like Canada give aid, it is like giving food to the needy or, lending a friend a helping hand. I appreciate that it is a noble sentiment but the amount of damage foreign countries do - and continue to inflict leaves me in a rage sometimes. It is only through the efforts of local activists that harmful policies are rejected, I shall give a few examples of the 'generous' support given internationally.

The WB (World Bank) decided that Sri Lanka should increase exportable goods, and recommended converting vast fields of paddy (rice fields) to grow gherkins... yes gherkins. Rice is a basic staple of the local populace but the WB said it was an inefficient use of land "it would be more productive and lucrative to the farmers to grow gherkins for export". Actually they are probably right in that regard except that they are looking at the extreme short term, fortunately local community groups realized this and strongly opposed the plan, encouraging local farmers to keep growing rice.
Then the world hit a food shortage... the price of food is going up everywhere, Canada, Sri Lanka, I mean everywhere, especially when it comes to imported goods. Now, if Sri Lanka had fully initiated the WB plan we would have a wondrous supply of gherkins for export, though would have to import most of the rice people required for daily sustenance.

This isn't the only area where WB influence has caused harm, they are pressuring the Sri Lankan government to privatize the education system. Currently all levels of education in Sri Lanka is free - yes, even university. There are some problems and competition is fierce but if someone has absolutely no money but wants to study... the opportunity is there, no need for student loans or having parents save for years just to receive education. There was a network of community schools in remote areas which gave the country one of the highest literacy rates in the world at 95.7%. With the move to privatization so far 700 local community schools have been closed forcing students to travel long distances and making education inaccessible for some.

I know that some people honestly try to help but it is just so misguided that one wants to scream, and trying to convince people of how they are hurting a country by introducing half-baked or ill-conceived methods is met with some amazingly stubborn ignorance and denial. I really should devote a more thought out post for this topic but haven't had the patience to wait while the frustration continued to build on a daily basis with every person I talked to and fact I learnt. Probably what is really scary is that the west is forcing Sri Lanka to make the same mistakes they did in regards to industry, the environment and social policies. For example there are species dying across north America with wildlife habitat reducing at a steady rate. Sri Lanka has devoted one of the greatest percentages of it's land mass to national parks, even since the times of ancient kings 2500 years ago wilderness was considered precious and vital to the survival of the people entrusted as 'guardians' of the land, not owners. It was custom for farmers to always leave one section of their fields to grow freely for birds and local wildlife to use, that practice was discouraged as an 'inefficient use of land' by the WB.

There shouldn't even be a food problem in Sri Lanka either, fruit trees grow on the side of the road like weeds - WEEDS! Coming from a place where you couldn't grow anything for 6 months of the year and even then the climate and conditions allowed only a select number of viable crops - it's pretty freaking amazing.

What I find hilarious is the fact that people in Sri Lanka can lead the type of life that westerners dream about. Warm climate fresh foods and friendly people, having the option of taking it easy or working hard depending on the day. Then people in Sri Lanka wan the type of life glamorized in the west, surrounded by glitz and glamor, driving expensive cars, with high-tech electronics and modern conveniences. Actually both images don't take into account a lot of problems associated with the lifestyle choices, but trying to convince people of the reality is always a challenge.

What really bugs me, I now realize is that the west is trying to export a broken system to Sri Lanka and the rest of the world. If you don't believe it is broken, then I have some excellent sub-prime mortgages to sell ya!

Alas no photos...
Well, maybe one... though it has nothing to do with what I want to write about. The photo is a antique reminder of my ancestors liquor merchant heritage, it's probably about 100 years old. So now it is used as a prep table for cooking. As a side note the family is now mostly vegetarian and don't drink, funny how generations change.

Though to start writing about what I was to write about... of course now I completely forget. It was pretty important too, hmm. Oh well, since last post been working hard at the Daily Mirror, a local English language newspaper with their own nifty website. I get the privilege of updating the site and authorizing comments of the 'special' people who comprise most of the Internets' denizens.

However, also get access to the breaking news and all the news that doesn't get in pretty fun. As well have the opportunity to write for the paper, so while the routine stuff is kinda boring, the people and potential are pretty swell... I think some of them may even have this blog site address... Uhm the people at the Daily mirror are the most wonderful fantastic beings to grace the earth! Okay that was a bit too much, anyway my other projects are slowly progressing. Still working on websites and trying to find a decent server in Sri Lanka to host the sites, either they are affordable but highly questionable or ridiculously overpriced.

Another thing I noticed is this facination with having photo's on the internet, while designing the sites, the clients would want an absurd about of photos that didn't really relate to the subject of the site. It actually took a bit of convincing to show that having that many pictures on a website is really unprofessional (unless it's a porn site - was tempted but didn't say that to the client).

Getting the hang of getting around and other stuff, though in truth haven't done too much the past couple of weeks. Perhaps the 6 day work weeks are getting to me, but my English class is a lot of fun. Started to try more serious work to get them thinking with English words instead of just a conversation class. Though I think what keeps the students interested is that the class is a lot of fun, one said that she always laughed so hard from class that her face hurt when they went home... I think that's a compliment.

Well, that's about it for now, time to get back to work or at least what seems like work ;) To all a good night!

Feeling a bit like James Bond...



Well now it's official, I am a Dual citizen of Sri Lanka and Canada. Recieved passport in the mail the other day and boy is it nifty, with nearly 3 times as many pages as my Canadian one. It feels kind of cool to be able to travel on 2 different docs, though how wise that would be... is debatable. There are a few interesting things though, with the Sri Lankan passport I can visit a few other countries (such as India) without a visa though still it is a lot easier to get around on the Canadian one.

Hmm, let's see what else... been trying to take a few more pictures for the blog though it's getting more difficult with time in short supply and a excess of security in the scenic areas. Though occasionally find a nifty shot to take. Above is the 'Green Path' that runs through Viharamahadevi park in Colombo, it's next to the National Art Gallery as well so quite a few 'Artists' set up shop along the road to sell paintings. I say 'artists' because I'm not sure how much of what they paint is meant as expression versus as a means to sell, that is something I've always wondered about. If something is created purely for monetary gain with no thought behind it what so ever... is it still art? Meh, probably, after all it is 'in the eye of the beholder' that appreciation for the art is found.

Been a little busy working on a website for my Aunt's Union, had the site launch last Saturday and it was an akward experience. Firstly I'm not exactly experience building a lot of site... in fact only 2 and they were incomplete half-hearted attempts made with the built in web tools. So this time fired up Dreamweaver with all sorts of nifty photo editing plugins like Fireworks and got to work. I was surprised I could actually design somthing half-way decent but still not too happy with the result. Another problem is finding a reliable hosting service in Sri Lanka, looking on the web I found a couple that seemed reliable until I phoned them up to ask more questions. So for the demo I had to create a subdomain on my own site and show off the few pages I had done. Actually for a first serious attempt it's not too bad, though realize it will need a lot more work to properly represent the All Ceylon Union of Teachers or ACUT. I have other comments I could make about the nature and frustration in getting proper material for the site, but not wanting to say anything negative I'll just say it was an interesting and almost typical experience of Sri Lanka.


Though now I don't have an excuse to miss future posts, I have internet! A cool USB doohicky that provides 3G services (wide area Wi-Fi) so I can be blogg'n on the road or other places... I begin to debate the wisdom of writing on this subject, oh well. Anyway the device is definately a god send which is what allowed me to finally finish the above mentioned website on time - trying to build a website without internet access is like trying to drive a car without tires.

Hmm, I suppose I should explain how I got my hands on such a wonderful little gadget but I'll have to save that for another post, until then my friends. (hey that rhymed!)

Ouch, been a while

Sigh after what seemed like a regular interval of updating the posts kinda lagged there, not that I don't have quite a bit of material to use (in fact maybe too much) but slow to non-existant internet and an involvement in a variety of side projects has kept me from this pleasant past-time. So today I'll show that I haven't bummed around the whole time in Sri Lanka since my last post (though there was a bit of that too;). Below are a few pictures I managed to take but they really didn't have much place in an opinionated piece so they were just sitting on the hard drive gathering electronic dust, anyway for your enjoyment some random photos of things with a brief caption if I have the engery :)


The above picture is the road outside my house, in the community of Rajagiria Udyanaya (as well I am a figure head president of the community association by an odd series of events to relate at a later time).

On the west coast in Colombo (the urban hub of Sri Lanka), this was the day I managed to see the beach for the first time... though wasn't much beach, mostly rocks and trains. The day was a bit overcast as well but just felt the need to see the ocean and feel the salt in the air.

Now the above picture is a favourite simply because it was taken quite by chance as I was walking home, happened to look up and saw this sight... and it wasn't some exotic location, just about 30 feet from my house.

A water monitor just off a bridge close to parliment grounds, the parliment area is quite scenic but as it is considered a High Security Zone (HSZ) pictures aren't supposed to be taken... fortunately being a clueless tourist serves well to avoid any 'inconveniences'

Another pic near parliment grounds, pretty self explanatory - a buddhist temple with standing statue... or it could be an advertising thing...

That's about all I have the patience to upload right now, wish I had taken more pictures recently but sometimes it's good to not draw attention to oneself (I do that enough already ;). Anyway if I get a chance will update later with some photo and comments or if you're really luck a full length blog entry.
Ah, I do have another excuse for not being able to update in the future but that in itself is another post away... oh well. Take care all

August 24th 2008
Day 11, Sunday

Cricket!

Quite suddenly one day I was invited to a cricket match for the 3rd game in an India vs Sri Lanka test match, of course being ignorant of all things cricket I just went along out of curiosity. Without much of a clue as to what the day would entail I just packed my camera and my outing hat for a day at the greens (that probably isn’t even the proper term, but just roll with it).
Was picked up by Sanjeev (the cousin who invited me to the game) around noon and we picked up a few more people on our way to the stadium. I learnt that the stadium security allows only non-alcoholic drinks, so our ingenious crew took a sealed water bottle removed the water via a small hole in the bottom and injected white coconut arrack (40%-50% sharp tasting alcohol), along with a bottle of cola to mix all was well.
As we approached the stadium I could see greater crowds of people traveling along the roadside and the traffic became quite congested. Fortunately the seats we were able to get came with a special parking pass that got us right beside the stadium – otherwise a bit of a trek with long line ups to get into the grounds. The pricing for seating were as follows; standing area for Rs. 100/ ($1 CAD), lower level seating for Rs. 1500/ and upper level seating for Rs. 2500, there is also special boxes for the relatives of the players and other officials. Again we were quite fortunate to get the upper level seating with a good view of the field, after getting seated the game had yet to start so I took the opportunity to learn at least something of cricket which Sanjeev was able to impart.

It’s similar to baseball but there are only 2 innings, the first to bat is decided by coin toss. Here is where it gets a bit complicated, there is a bowler and he throws 6 balls in one over, after an over the batsmen switch side – oh, I forgot to mention there are always 2 batsmen on the field. Instead of a diamond the field is a large oval, with an inner border, the pitching field is in the middle consisting of a rectangular track with a set a wicket at each end. The wickets are 3 poles stuck in the ground that have 2 small wooden pieces resting at the top. The goal of the bowler is to hit the wicket and knock the piece over to get the batsmen out, per inning each team has 10 wickets – or 10 outs after which the teams switch positions. As well wickets can be taken from catching the ball before it falls to the ground or penalties such as the ‘right foot rule’(if the batsmen is standing in front of the wicket so that it is covered).
There are a bunch of other rules but I have no desire to go into them here, nor do I actually remember that many more so let’s continue with the story…

As the game was about to start more and more people started pouring into the stadium, the crowd was fairly mixed though in the upper level more of the well to do and ‘cool’ people were in the crowd. I was surprised to see a five person band seat themselves not too far away, a fairly common thing they are called ‘papara’ bands denoting the type of beat they usually adhere to. It seems the band is part of the attraction of seeing the game live, I must say that they were quite good at keeping things lively.
The game started with a coin toss which India one – they elected to bat first. As the people took their positions on the field the cheering became intense and people began using these inflatable plastic noise makers that were handed out at the entrance of the stadium, even the band got louder and played a faster beat for the crowd. The cheering reached a crescendo when the first Sri Lankan bowler threw the first ball resulting in a scratch (no run or out). Afterward everyone settled down a bit then divided their attention between the game and listening to the band.
By far the center of attention were the bands, people around them were dancing and cheering along with them, as honestly to keep attention on the match itself would be kind of boring. Every once in a while an exciting play took place and everyone got up to cheer, but only the really hardcore cricket fans could really stay focused on the game all the time.
Scoring for the game was fairly straight forward, if a batsmen hit the ball far enough away he and the other batsmen would run the length of the centre pitch, being awarded 1 run for each length they ran. If they hit the ball so that it rolled along the ground over the outside boundary 4 runs were awarded. Then if they hit the ball in the air over the boundary then that was 6 runs (the most that could be awarded).
The rest of the game was a mixture of various types of runs awarded to India and a few plays that resulted in wickets. The game had a maximum of 50 overs per inning which translates into 300 pitches (and chances to score), though again if a team got 10 wickets it was over.

I’ll take a little break here to mention ‘Percy’ the one man cheering squad. It seems that for ages there was only one patriotic elderly fellow (I so wanted to use old geezer) who would be the only one cheering for Sri Lanka at international and all local events. He was so dedicated showing up for every single game in uniform and waving a Sri Lankan flag that he was officially recognized by the team and sponsors. A self made celebrity, who just loved the cricket team… or had way too much time on his hands, either way quite an interesting story. So carrying on where I left off…


After the first 50 overs (and roughly 3 ½ hours) India had 237 runs, not exactly a high score but average. This began the ‘half-time’ so we took the opportunity to get some beer and short eats, such as chicken hot dogs and nuggets. The crowd was quite large around the 4 concession tents with the beer line by far the longest. The whole thing seemed an exercise in chaos familiar to anyone who has attended a major sporting event anywhere in the world.
Sri Lanka came up to bat and the crowd became rowdier than before, as many started producing smuggled bottles of Arrack and other alcohol to consume for the second half. We also broke open our ‘bottled water’ and had a few drinks as Sri Lanka started their batting, they had to score 238 runs to win the match. Again it was a bit of a boring affair watching the game in length but dividing ones time with the festivities of the papara band and the occasional cheering moments on the field made the time go by quickly. Unfortunately Sri Lanka was penalized several times early on for about 5 extra wickets, so after only 20 overs they had only 2 wickets left and about 50 runs. It didn’t look like Sri Lanka was in any form to win against India.
Though as the game continued one could not help but get caught up in the excitement as the Sri Lankan team tried to rally for more runs, it then became an exercise in math as we would calculate how many pitches were left and the number of runs needed per pitch, and average number of runs they needed per over. For a while it was very close but India played well and wickets Sri Lanka received early on proved their downfall as the game ended at 48 overs after a pop fly was caught by the Indian fielders.
The final score was India 237 – Sri Lanka 204, actually quite a dismal showing by the Lankan team according to the spectators. The stadium emptied out pretty quickly (a few people left early on after when Sri Lanka had 8 wickets at the 20th over).

With that we waited a bit for the crowds to lessen and headed home, a few drunken revelers were outside but otherwise fairly tame. I can’t say that cricket is my new favorite sport, or that I really appreciate the game – I like the atmosphere of watching with other people, and the excitement created by the bands and revelers. A few people may have taken it a bit far in my opinion, dancing like possessed spider monkeys in seizure. Though what I also liked was that everyone regardless of age, gender, religion, background etc. was there to have a good time and cheer on the national team. In a country that has been given an image of a society divided by civil war, seeing a show of unity is quite uplifting – even if rather inebriated.

Adventures in Fort
August 20th – 23rd
Day 7-10

I had scheduled this post for writing about the cricket match between Sri Lanka and India but decided I need to finish up on a few thoughts and some experiences otherwise… actually for no real reason other than to see myself write?... there doesn’t seem to be an appropriate parallel to hear oneself talk, oh well. Anyway a few things that took place in the same time period as the previous posts.

I was offered a position teaching spoken English to students, was quite surprised to learn that there is a overwhelming demand for teachers here and there are quite a few quacks that offer comprehensive English courses that don’t really teach anything practical (basically like the mandatory French language programs in Alberta – c’est merde). Even among the more illustrious institutes like Royal Academy, there is more of an interest in making money than in a students education… do I really need to add a quip here?

My first class teaching is Wednesday August 27th, well 2 classes one 10-2pm and the other at 5pm, most of the students are in their 20’s and want to practice spoken English for employment purposes, honestly it’s pretty easy work but I’m going to try to challenge them a little… an evil part of me briefly considered talking with a Newfie accent but I was able to suppress that instinct. It doesn’t exactly pay much by Canadian standards but for this location it will serve well for getting groceries, travel and various knick knacks (I’ve always wondered at the history of that phrase). Starting with one day a week then depends on my popularity as a teacher… I should start handing out candy in class, or maybe cell phone minutes would be more popular – oh, in reference to my previous post I have to add one more thing that is awesome about the Sri Lanka cell services, you can send people extra minutes! That’s right if your friend is about to run out of minutes and you have some to spare you can basically SMS (some sort of txt system on steroids) them some of your extra minutes.

Okay, so the teaching thing is interesting and we’ll see how that turns out. Now I would like to expand a bit on my first adventure touring around the main city Colombo by myself on the local transit and how I avoided pick pockets, shills, and characters of dubious repute and interactions with the friendly people with machine guns, or as they are known the Sri Lankan Military security (whose checkpoints sport all sorts of advertising – fortunately nothing too out of taste).
When I had taken the bus (for the first time) to the heart of Colombo called the Fort area, my goal was to see the ocean and head to an area called Galle Face Green, a well known park by the seaside. The place I got down was about 1km or so away and I thought it would be fairly easy to just walk down to where I wanted to go. I was quite mistaken. Firstly when one gets off the bus in Fort it seems like utter chaos busses are haphazardly moving in and out of the area, people are milling hurriedly in all directions and various street hawkers are yelling either something about what they’re selling or ancient Klingon poems (I’ll try to keep future geek references to a minimum).
I easily got disoriented as there are few – make that no street signs to speak of and most of the sidewalk space is occupied by the peddlers of things ranging from pirated DVD’s to fake designer bags. While I was tempted to try shopping a bit, my main goal was to see the beach and so I just picked a direction and kept walking. To make a long story short, I chose incorrectly. Fortunately I had a street map of the area and was able to discover my error after only about 45 minutes of walking under the hot sun. So heading back the way I came looked around for alternative routes, as well by this time my shirt was soaking with sweat not so much from physical exhaustion but uncomfortable heat and humidity. With that I really looked out of place and was approached by quite a few ‘helpful’ people that wanted to take me where I wanted to go, and one persistent fellow walked with me for a few blocks saying he was a person not ‘from Colombo’ and didn’t want any money but wanted me to follow him to his place. It seems he also collected stamps from various countries… yeah, and I was born under a Bo tree. Eventually plotted a route to take me to the long anticipated beach but was puzzled by these “High Security Zone” notices as I approached the street, then I was politely stopped by some security officers wearing very crisp green uniforms and although seeming quite well used, serviceable machine guns. After an initial language confusion was able to convey my intentions and they were actually quite helpful (if a bit hard to understand) and pointed me in the direction I had to go in.

Unfortunately this began… the term ‘rat in a maze’ comes to mind. It’s not that I didn’t know where to go but every other street or area I needed to get to was blocked by HSZ’s (aforementioned High Security Zones). I probably spent about 3 hours wandering around the center of the city at times I even smelt a cool sea breeze… and finally I found the right street to take, but at that time I needed to head back home.

That technically ended my first adventure to the area I would later learn is called Pettah, the infamous street market district. The area itself is quite overwhelming aside from the street hawkers there are several side streets that seem to be dedicated to various goods, down one street there are gold smiths and jewelry shops (mostly owned by Muslims), down another is household electronics, and down one is textiles so on and so forth. I definitely plan to do a bit of shopping there in the future but it is extremely crowded and also a bit dangerous to the unwary. Pickpockets are abound so you have to keep a close watch on your valuables – which one should really keep to a minimum in the first place. As well the shop keepers will try and charge you as much as possible so one has to be knowledgeable about local prices or fairly good at bargaining. So while it is easy to get ripped off one can find a variety of clothing and other items for around Rs. 500/ ($5 CAD) that may cost you around $20- $90 CAD back home. Eventually I did return to Pettah for a little shopping and picked up a pair of pants for Rs. 150/ and a nice shirt for Rs. 475/ probably overpaid for the shirt but even by local standards the pants were a steal… hey, where’s my wallet?


(Oh there it is, under the pile of pirated DVD’s I got for Rs. 100/ ($1 CAD) a pop - MPAA eat your heart out)

A few days later…
August 20th – 22nd
Day (7-9)

So a few more observations I want to write about… actually I think we’ll skip that for now and I’ll relate my other experiences just getting around the area.
Anyway, after about a week in Sri Lanka finally felt well enough to head out on my own with the local transit system. Here, I’ll have to do a bit of explaining as the system of transit is vastly different from what you would find in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Probably the biggest difference is the majority of busses are privately owned though they do prescribe to set routes designated by numbers, for example to get to Colombo from where I am staying in Kandana means taking the Ja-ela 187 bus, or Airport bus. There are also 2 types of busses the larger 40-50 seat buses and the smaller vans, the vans are air conditioned so are a bit more expensive for the same trip, a trip to Colombo runs Rs. 24/ for the regular bus and Rs. 80/ for an AC van.

Busses come with fair regularity and the first time I went didn’t wait for more than 15 seconds (seriously) before a bus rolled up and jumped on and took a seat, the most I’ve waited as of to date is about 5 minutes for a bus. The busses themselves vary in mechanical maintenance and cleanliness, some are spotless and run as well as Calgary Transit busses, others sound like they are a large bump away from losing the entire engine and you can’t tell the original color of the interior for all the dirt – Though most busses fall somewhere in between.

The procedure for getting a bus is a bit entertaining as far as I’m concerned, you can either wait at a bus stop… I use the term loosely, or as the bus approaches flag it down. The bus slows down and the conductor shouts the destinations, you then hop on and grab a seat if available or find suitable standing room. Then after the bus gets on it’s way the conductor comes around and collects money from the new passengers. Not speaking Singhalese too well, have run into a few problems in the past but usually another passenger knows enough English to help me out. Some of the conductors also provide receipts or tickets… not sure why since no one ever seems to use or need them.

Then one just sits back and enjoys a bumpy ride listening music pumping over the speakers of the bus. The music is mostly Singhalese so don’t really understand it but it seems to suit the riding the bus and kind of grows on you. During my first trip was listening to what I though was a really catchy tune when I realized it was a couple of people who were playing music on the bus! The guy had a drum and kept beat while the girl had a tambourine and sang, it was kind of enchanting traveling down the dusty road with people singing as the bus bounced to and fro. Near the end of the route the couple passed around a basket for tips so gave a few Rupees as the experience was to be remembered.

The main bus junctions can be a confusing affair with dozens of busses moving slowly up the street trying to pick up more passengers before the leave, I’ve seen a few bus drivers roll forward and back to get people on the bus faster. In general using the bus is fairly easy and cheap way to get around, one just has to know which stop to get off at. Unfortunately there is very little in the way of documentation on the Sri Lankan transit system, routes and availability to be found on the internet or even with the transportation ministry itself. Not knowing the language can be a huge deterrent to bus travel but the experience is far better than trying to travel by taxi (and a hell of a lot cheaper).

After quite the pleasant experience traveling by bus I decided to take the local train for a few travels too and from the city. Tickets for the train are a bit cheaper at about Rs. 13/ for 3rd class but the times are a bit limited, the morning train is at 8:15 AM and the next one is at 11:30 AM. The local station is divided into two sides and to get to the other side one has to jump down and cross the tracks (a finable offense in Calgary). During the morning commute, a couple of military guards check bags at the entrance to the station, the terrorist situation is still a bit of a concern.
So after waiting a few minutes the train actually arrived 15 minutes early, it definitely had a used look to it, most of the cars were designated for 3rd class. Though the first car had signs painted in Singhalese, Tamil and English stating “Reserved for Clergy”, though either people didn’t take these signs seriously or “Clergy” encompasses a wider variety of people than I previously believed. After getting on the train found all the seats occupied so just stood near one of the door ways, actually the younger teenage passengers preferred the doorways as they would hang outside the doors while the train was moving for entertainment. The train car definitely had a bit of a used look to it but was pretty functional, there were rotating ceiling fans that kept conditions inside pretty comfortable. The passengers seemed to be daily commuters and occasionally groups would break into a song that others would pick up on as the train went on its way, then everyone would just sit as before lost in thought as their commute continued – not a bad way to travel.

One slight hiccup in the whole trip was the realization that I was indeed the victim of groping… hard to believe, I know. I brushed it off at first since I assumed it was because of crowding but even when I moved to a more open space the creepy old guy sort of followed along. I’d rather not go into details, but suffice to say it was a rather uncomfortable experience. It was only later that I learned that even among locals some people are afraid to ride the train for reasons as above and that the daily commuters have taken a very proprietary view on the train, they assume that since they’ve been riding the train for so long that a particular seat or car is basically ‘theirs’ and they have been know to force people off of train cars that are invading their ‘rightful space’. I’m not sure how much of this has been exaggerated and how much is based on truth but given my previous experience I am leaning toward the latter.

In any event travel by local transport is easy enough after the initial plunge but can definitely take a bit of adjustment. Meh, given a couple more weeks will eventually be a seasoned traveler, for now signing off for another day. Next time will tell tales of cricket and how it puts sporting events in Canada to shame – just for the atmosphere created by the audience.

Of Bombs and Foreign Policy

Unfortunate result of being behind in my postings (I blame the lack of a reliable computer or internet access) is that I have to interrupt the timeline of events sometimes to the point that I’m unsure of the proper sequence anymore. Be that as it may, I need to break consistency here to make a few comments about some events that happened over the weekend of August 31st and a brief recount of some related topics in Sri Lanka.

Now, every since I came to Sri Lanka on the 13th of August I have been impressed by the efficiency of the people and in particular the military. Security guards no longer consist of overweight and extremely bored looking individuals scattered at seemingly random intervals, the army is a persistent presence along the main roads leading into Colombo and the check points are in key junctions well manned with serious (and well armed) troops. As well the terrorist group that called the LTTE has been under increasing pressure from Government troops and last week the Sri Lankan armed forces began major pushes into LTTE territory, capturing key administration junctions and training camps for the terrorist group. All this comes at the end of stretch of government victories over the LTTE as well as relative calm in the major cities with no explosions for about 3 months in Colombo – for citizens here that is considered quite a feat.

Unfortunately all that ended last Saturday when a bomb went off in the Pettah district of Colombo… an area I was in only about ½ an hour after the blast. Oddly enough I had no clue about what happened, it was raining heavily that day and many of the street stalls in the area were closed – I assumed it was because of the rain. Whether the rain washed away evidence of the blast or people have become extremely efficient at clearing areas of wounded and debris is unknown, it just highlights the one troublesome fact of living in Sri Lanka. Not knowing if you’re next bus trip or shopping excursion will be your last. [The above photo I took unawares of what happened earlier, just thought the rain was cool]

While I still don’t worry about traveling around the country (whether it is bravado or stupidity is debatable), I can’t help but notice how close I was to being in the middle of the blast. In fact I was only delayed from shopping in the Pettah district because my Aunt designated me to take a few photographs of her Teachers Union meeting. The blast itself was relatively tame by previous incidents, 45 people were injured including 2 children and only 2 people in serious condition. The fact that the bomb was considered ‘tame’ by local standards says something about the kind of terror people used to face every day. Now I don’t relish the idea of being caught in a bus explosion or having my legs blown off while shopping for knick knacks, but I don’t see the point in hiding at home or avoiding using the most reliable local transport. It seems that people here have learnt that giving into fear is how terrorists control people, and if you don’t give in to that fear then… the terrorists have no power over you. Of course this is probably the opposite of the attitude in the states where even the remotest town lives in fear of ‘terrorists’ after 9/11. I’m not making light of the tragedy of that day or the sacrifice people made, but living in constant fear does no justice to anyone, and actually allowed the US government to make the world a place were terrorism can flourish. Take a look at the current US embroilment in Iraq and how because of their commitment they cannot afford resources to other matters, such as in Georgia.
Here I have to say a bit about the perception people have about the western world in Sri Lanka. There is a certain amount of chagrin as Western powers call for human rights inquiries and election watchdogs when not too long ago the world saw picture from Guantaunamo bay and the voting irregularities in Florida from the 2000 presidential elections. In particular the United States, Britain and for some reason Norway have all take a bit of interest in Sri Lanka in ‘concern’ for welfare of the people. However the countries have absolutely no moral high ground to make any judgments are any attempts to do so are met with sarcasm. There’s a saying in Sri Lanka that the only difference between the corruption here and the corruption in the west is that they have institutionalized corruption to the highest powers of government in the west… made it more efficient if you will.
I mention this because I can guarantee you – as the LTTE seem to be approaching an inevitable end, Western countries will be clamoring for ‘peace’ and use human rights as an excuse for cessation of military operations. I’m curious as to where these people were when the US invaded Iraq… hmm, that’s a bit too easy. Though the fact is, western countries do not want strong and stable governments to exist for the reason that they are much harder to exploit. While countries do give ‘aid’ these are in reality devious sorts of loans that generally involve using the money to import goods from the donating nation, while preventing the building of infrastructure that would actually improve conditions.
I’ve gone on a bit of a ranty tangent here, but it is a topic that as I learn more about the more disgusted I become. Not that I haven’t known some of this before, but it’s only once you get close enough to actually smell the shit that you have to hold your nose.

Side rant

I wish to expand a bit on the topics of my previous post… but still have a lot more to expunge (hmm, that doesn’t sound quite right… in fact kind of gross), a lot more to expound? Ah, a lot more I wish to impart (that’s better) regarding my impressions of Sri Lanka, it is difficult to write in a more orderly fashion about the subject as most of the impressions are of relatively small things that pique the curiosity as they defy the normal conventions as to which I am accustomed – or to but it more bluntly, I’ve noticed things that have broken misconceptions and stereotypes previously held.

A few examples with a bit of background; within the first week I decided it would be a wise idea to get a local cell phone as I wanted to do some traveling on my own and it would be a good way to keep in touch with relatives and perhaps ask for help if hopelessly lost or in other dire situations. Now Canada for all it’s status as a first world nation is a horrible place in concern of cell phone companies and plans offered, even with three cell companies the plans and prices are much greater than in the United States as well customer service is treated as something of a fanciful myth. I’ll share my own experience concerning my plan with Bell mobility which I wanted to suspend while in Sri Lanka since I really wasn’t going to use the phone – which they wouldn’t allow. So I asked if I could use the phone in Sri Lanka and how much would it cost? They replied that the cost per minute would be $5.99 – for roaming charges! (just to keep the cell phone on would cost six dollars a minute) As well, to reduce the plan to the cheapest available still meant paying $40 CAD a month for a service I’m not using. Even the pay as you go plans are not much better, you would have to spend at least around $100 for a cell phone and then minutes are on average $0.25/min with an expiry of 30 days.

So looking for a phone in Sri Lanka, with relative ease got a cheap phone with simm card (activation chip for the company)… with due apologies I’m going to add a bit more in my criticism of Canadian cell companies. Another thing that really bothers me is the fact that most of the cell phones are ‘nerfed’ or aren’t able to use all the features they are designed for because the companies don’t support them or use a proprietary operating system on the cell that forces you to use their services, again using Bell as an example; my cell in Canada is technically capable of using mp3’s for its ring tones and I should be able to just hook it up to my computer to add files and choose the ring tone of my choice. However Bell’s operating system has disabled that function, instead forcing you to purchase inferior ring tones from their network with additional cost of $2-$3 CAD per tone! As well if you decide you want to change companies – you can’t use the same phone! This forced loyalty only works because companies can continually get people into 2-3 year cell contracts (since the pay as you go plans are pretty bad in themselves) that seem attractive at first but in reality means a royal ass-[expletive deleted], by the company.

Whew, well getting that off my chest I’ll continue my Sri Lankan cell phone experience, so the cell phone with activation came to Rs. 4000/ which is roughly $40 CAD, and for per minute usage it is Rs. 5-7/ $0.05-0.07 CAD per minute (with per second billing) and the expiry date of the minutes is 6 months! As well there is IDD (International Direct Dialing) from the cell, so I can call Canada for only $0.20 CAD per minute! It is cheaper to call Canada from Sri Lanka by cell that it is to use a cell in Canada for local calls! The mind literally implodes from the absurdity of the whole thing. (Of course I’m aware of labour costs, market forces and such… still there is a bit of a point here)

In any event I now have a cell phone and if anyone feels like calling me up the local number is 071 9022989, not sure what the country codes for Sri Lanka are but in any event for the price of one month of cell service in Canada I can buy a cell and also purchase enough minutes to comfortably last for about 3 months here, it doesn’t make sense but then again the world really doesn’t make much sense in general – and if it did we would all lead rather boring lives.

Unfortunately ran out of time to continue with other observations and confusions, such as seeing a Buddhist monk buying a hands free set – consider for a moment the image of a Buddhist monk as one giving up worldly possessions and living a life dedicated to reaching enlightenment as well as helping others reaching said status. Now consider why a monk would need a hands free cell phone attachment… no good reason comes to mind but I’ll expand on the subject at a later time, so much to write about and so little time (and internet).

First week.

I would have liked to document a day by day progress, but as I lead a fairly mundane existence at the best of times we’ll just condense things as space requires. In any event my first week in Sri Lanka was marred a tad by the effects of jet lag, an allergy to the mosquito bites causing my joints to swell and trying to adjust to the incredible heat and humidity. Let me just comment here on how much of a difference it was to my usual residence of Calgary Alberta… at home it can get so dry that even cactus plants get dehydrated – maybe I’m exaggerating a bit (okay a lot), but it’s just an analogy, so in my first week in Sri Lanka it felt like I was being steamed alive. At first my skin felt it was about two sizes too small which made the simplest movements stiff and awkward, the slightest effort would result in heat exhaustion or light dizziness, but still with all that was enjoying my time of… adjustment.

So with that, doing anything during the beginning of my stay was accomplished through great mental effort and a bit of leading around by relatives. As well I should note that I was going full force into the local lifestyle without the benefit of A/C and a very good mosquito repellant (Off! sports cream works well in Canada but the mosquitoes here treat it like an aperitif) – so the average tourist would probably fare much better as the environmental and cultural shock to system would be minimal.

Now as to my experience the first week and a few impressions, I do have a few interesting tales to tell; firstly my uncle (who is know in the family as a bit of prankster) had been preparing for my arrival a few days before and the local children were curious and asked him what he was doing, to which he replied that a visitor from Canada was arriving – the children immediately assumed it was a ‘sudtha’ or white person and got excited at the prospect. Of course instead of correcting the children on their misconception, he proceeded to play on their imaginations with stories of how the ‘sudtha’ needed things to be very clean (hence he managed to get some of the kids to help), as well ‘sudthas’ could only eat certain foods, were very tall and giant in stature… etc, etc.

So the next morning I woke up and shortly after breakfast, and a bunch of kids came around to see the strange ‘sudtha’... I probably looked a bit strange to them but was obviously no white person. Which was taken in good humor that they had been tricked but were still curious and tried talking to me in Singhala- unfortunately I had a rather limited vocabulary. Still I managed to play a few games and even taught a few card tricks to them, though jet lag set in pretty fast so only after a few hours took my leave and zonked out again.

The next few days were more and the same, gradually getting accustomed to the climate and picking up a few extra words of Sinhala here and there. Also visited my other uncle and by some rhyme or reason became President of the Rajagiria Udayana Community Association. In fact, there is a bit of a rather lengthy background story to this that would take knowledge of my Uncles’… eccentricities to fully appreciated, but for now just assume there is quite a hilarious story behind the whole thing.

Unfortunately the same uncle had chest pains that same night and had to be taken to hospital, though he was cleared by the doctors a couple of days later. We were a bit worried as he is getting on in years but was in regular form in no time - a mixed blessing, but a blessing none the less.

Here I would like to share a few of my observations and general impressions, firstly Sri Lanka is a hot and humid country... okay old joke, actually the country is in far better condition than I imagined. I had only my experience as a lad of twelve to go by, and in comparison the country has changed quite a bit. Firstly the roads and infrastructure and in much better condition than they were previously, but more importantly there is a greater sense of national pride and confidence. While I wasn’t as aware of everything at work in the country when I was 12, I did notice that people really didn’t seem to care or had very little hope in the future. At that time the LTTE terrorists were stronger and there was also another terror group called the JVP and between the two, traveling by bus or going to market was a life threatening endeavor. I am giving a very bereft description of the situation which I hope to rectify at a later time with a thoroughly researched essay on the topic, already have a bit of documentation but the issue is so complex that it’ll take a bit of time (a slight understatement).

Though getting back to the topic at hand, another thing I noticed is the odd prevalence of western culture – and I mean odd in that it shows itself in ways I really couldn’t anticipate. For example, it was interesting to hear the orchestral themes to a few movies on the local TV stations, but their implementation left me scratching my head a bit – the theme to ‘Superman’ being used to showcase a political talk show, and the ‘Back to the Future’ theme used to introduce a nightly news program. As well the use of advertising, for some reason it was deemed a good idea that every half hour no matter what the program is in the middle of, a short ad will appear with the change of time for example your watching a debate when all of a sudden there is a beep and a graphics screen with 7:30 pm flashing and then a quick commercial of whatever company sponsored that intrusive ad – and the show itself kept on going while the ad ran!

Heck even government security signs have commercial support, it does seem quite silly and almost reminded me of some moments in the movie Idiocracy (brought to you by Carl’s Jr.), but there is one difference. The people here just use the ads for money, and loyalty to the company providing them is almost non existent, now to explain why would take a lecture on the cultural psychology that I really don’t want to get into but suffice to say, while the ads here are more intrusive I doubt they really do as much damage as to people in say Canada and the US. Again I’d like to go into that further but for another time.

Surprisingly enough say a few familiar ad signs that made a bit nostalgic for home… and made me feel a bit ill – a very strange feeling if you ever have a chance to experience it. Almost curious enough to try the ‘McRice’… almost.

Well tis getting late and I’ve written probably most of the important events, if I think of anything later I’ll be sure to add an entry on the subject, but for now I’m going to sleep -brought to you by Carl’s Jr. (seriously if you haven’t seen Idiocracy go out and buy it right now, ah, who am I kidding… just torrent it, you glorious pirating bastards)

Landfall

So with departure from Hong Kong the flight to Colombo was pretty uneventful, stopped in Singapore for the plane to be cleaned and refueled. Though otherwise by this time too tired to really do anything or take notice of too much.
Although there was free Internet use in Singapore so was able to waste a few minutes while waiting for the plane.
So after about 22 hours of travel landed at the Colombo international airport without incident or any fanfare (strange I know).
Recalling my previous experience traveling to Sri Lanka I immediately noticed a few difference between my past trip 16 years ago and my current one. Firstly we got off the plane straight into the Air conditioned airport building, previously we had to get off the plane to the tarmac amid a sudden and almost bewildering change in temperature and humidity – I remember if felt like being thrust into an oven that someone was cooking water in (actually if you cook it right water can be a very satisfying meal).

From the terminal made my way to the long line for customs, most of the other passengers were locals and they had various parcels (mostly hard liquor) to carry with them. I was near the end of the whole section so about the last one through, the agent just asked a few questions as to the length of my stay and other mandatory questions – got my stamp for 30 day visit and was told I’d have to apply for an extension later – though getting dual citizenship so won’t need too

anyway.

The baggage claim was a little further on and had to pass by what I’m guessing was a duty free section for people to buy last minute gifts for friends and relatives – what surprised me was the amount of appliance stores and house wares being sold! I mean seriously how on earth is someone going to get a fridge from the airport?! For that matter who on earth would even buy a fridge from an airport? At least those were my initial thoughts, the rational part of my tired brain, droned on about customs, importation of goods, local economy blah blah blah.
Picked up my bags with ease as my delay meant that baggage was already processed, so with bags in cart breezed through customs saying I had nothing to declare, fortunately didn’t get checked – I think the customs agent took a bit of pity on me as I was thoroughly zonked out by that point (while fun my adventure in Hong Kong was a bit of a drain).

Walking out into the open I was hit by the heat and it didn’t seem as bad as I remember – though I could also have been in a state of tired shock… for sake of simplicity lets say the former. After looking around for a few seconds in a dazed and confused manner, my uncle saw me and warmly greeting me and took me to a waiting transport (a car is transport… so are elephants – no I did not take an elephant, though that would have been awesome).

After about half an hour arrived at my Aunt and uncles place in Kandana a town about 20 Km outside of Colombo – what surprised me is that it was considered a separate town, when traveling along the main road shops and buildings of all sorts appear without break so for the Canadian born traveler who is used to going for hours with only wheat fields and the occasional surveillance bush (Canadian sitcom reference) on any side of the road it is pretty hard to understand how one town is considered another.

Well getting to my relatives place we just chatted for a while then I went to bed after a much needed shower – also encountered my first super bug, a giant bright green grasshopper… thing that flew in whilst taking said shower. Given my previous knowledge of the creepy crawlies in Sri Lanka I considered this guest to be non-threatening even if it’s legs were quite sharp and pointy as well as the whole thing being about the size of my cell phone.

So ended the first day, since I arrived at about 10:30 pm at night local time, there really wasn’t that much I could see that could leave an impression, but was just glad to have arrived and a warm… make that a bed with a mosquito net under a fan to sleep, or more accurately pass out in. And with that my first few hours in Sri Lanka were over, and I had no real thoughts of anything as slipped into unconsciousness.

Touchdown in Hong Kong

So after 12 hours (it seemed like quite a bit longer) arrived at the bustling city..err I mean airport of Hong Kong – the city is actually a fair ways from from the airport itself. I had heard that the airport was actually on a man made Island but it was indistinguishable from the rest of the landscape so no good photo ops presented themselves.
With legs feeling decidedly cramped and strained hobbled through the airport wondering where the heck I should be and what my next move was, originally I had planned to spend my 10 hour layover wandering around Hong Kong a bit and maybe take in a few sights and window shop – however due to flight delays the layover was now about 6 hours.

This was a bit on the uncomfortable side as if I happened to get lost anywhere along the way I would be in danger of missing my connecting flight and that wasn’t too appealing. To slightly complicate matters my boarding pass for the next flight didn’t have a gate number attached to it and the departure wasn’t listed on the board yet… and not knowing the airport too well – you get the idea. Finally after about 15 minutes of wasted indecision (and about 10 min trying to finding a washroom) threw caution to the wind and dutifully lined up at immigration for Hong Kong visitors. After about another 20 minutes in line, got to the counter and presented my shiny passport and boarding pass. The clerk did a slight double take as he noted the departure time on the ticket and asked me to clarify if I wanted to exit the airport (I’m sure he wanted to check to see if I wasn’t another silly foreigner lost in the wrong line, which was nice of him to do), I explained my intentions, not sure how much he understood but stamped an entry visa and sent me on my way.

Now still feeling quite a bit unsure of my bearings tried following the signs for MTR and sure enough saw “CITY TRAIN MTR” signs pointing the way. I changed some of my cash to HK$ and purchased a same day return train pass to Hong Kong it was $100 HKD roughly $15 CAD. The trains arrive every 12 minutes like clockwork and take about 24 minutes to get to the city, given that I still wasn’t sure what gate my plane was at as well as time to get through security I estimated that I had about an hour of gawking time before I had to find my way back to the Airport.

The train was truly brilliant, clean, comfortable, and pretty darn fast. In what seemed like no time at all passed by a few stops and finally at the HK station. Deciding to follow the crowd (I’m being generous here, there were only about 10 people) went up a few escalators and ended up in a mall – oh joy… a very western expensive and pretentious mall… joy. Unfortunately I decided that I only had time to explore the mall a bit so walked around seeing if there was anything interesting or a nice local styled place to eat. Alas if I was shopping for designer clothes or looking to sample exotic ‘western’ food such as McDonalds this would have been a great place to stop by… as it was a bit of a disappointment. With time running out I braved the outdoors in search of anything remotely local, so took a walkway that seemed to lead to a promising location.

Aside from a few nice pictures of HK city, there wasn’t much at the end of the walkway, a few tourist gift shops and a Baskin Robins (they still have those?). The heat was now getting too me and combined with the 12 hour flight I had truly ‘expired’ (see Russel Peters for reference) so went back to the mall which was called the IFC standing for ‘International Finance Centre’. Tried to see if I could find a cheap T-shirt place without luck, then got something to eat at a chique little coffee place called LGB (or was it LGF?) a veggie sandwich and coffee came to about $60 HKD, not exactly cheap or particularly local but decent nonetheless.

With time running out I made my way back to the station and right beside it found the food place I was looking for – a local busy chain kitchen serving rice with BBQ pork, fried cutlets and other fast food goodies, all for less than $30 HKD, *sigh… oh well. I took note of it for any future trips and made my way back to the airport well within time to catch my flight. Even found an overpriced T-shirt to wear for $150 HKD (it was either that or be very uncomfortable for the next 9 hours… or buy the $900 HKD designer shirt), with that my brief yet fun visit to Hong Kong was over, on my flight back definitely plan to spend a few days there seeing the sights and acting liking a foolish American tourist - just kidding ;)