Minor differences,

Aside from the few noticeable changes I mentioned in my previous post (general upkeep, level of perceived safety) have a few observations about the how things of changed in Colombo, I'd assume the rest of Sri Lanka might have similar changes:

Electricity, in 2009 there would be frequent brown outs and black outs (in addition to those created in response to air raids), power levels would also fluctuate so having a UPS was almost necessary to ensure safety of electronics, or as my aunt and uncle would do, basically unplug anything while it wasn't in use. I've only been aware of one brown out since I've been here, which is quite remarkable since last time the power was out the day I arrived.

Food, prices are 2 to 4 times what I remember for basic staples (vegetables, bread, rice), there is a greater number of grocery stores (Cargills, Keels, Laughfs) so travelling to local 'kade' (shop) is transitioning a bit. Cleanliness has improved for most restaurants with routine inspections carried out, though oddly food doesn't taste as good as I remember... I wonder if there is a connection.

Beggars, they used to be much more varied and prolific, in daily routine would encounter the unluckiest people on Earth, half their family was dead, the other half would be deathly ill, with a few pregnancies thrown into the tale. There would be families, young mothers, old mothers, grandmothers, the infirm, disabled, and as detailed the healthy but unlucky, begging for change on buses and busy streets.
This time around there are a few, but I encountered more people asking for change within 1 hour of arriving at a hotel in downtown Edmonton than the first two weeks in Sri Lanka.

Tools, there is quite a larger number of power tools being used in renovation and construction work, labour costs have gone up but access to quality tools appears to have improved consistency in a variety of industries. Contractors can still be crooks though.

Animals, there does seem to be some population control for street dogs and cats. They don't seem as common as before, also haven't seen any goats, cows, or elephants wandering the streets.

Driving, it is still horrendous... truly it takes a resolve of questionable sanity to attempt driving in the main city streets. Though there are noticeable differences, the state of vehicles on the road is generally a bit better, there is the odd black chimney on wheels but also a fair number of hybrids (oddly haven't seen any smart cars on the road). People seem to be slowly learning that sidewalks are for people and not motorcycles - for the most part. Liberal use of horns to navigate traffic seem to have more purpose than just 'get out of the way', there are hand signals as well as use of turn signals, quite astounding.
Also noted more women drivers and motorcyclists, had seen the odd female driver back then but it would be an uncommon occurrence.

Pedestrians, sidewalks are actually in a reasonable state of repair, and stores no longer extend their storefronts to occupy the entire walkway. Crossing streets is still an exercise of faith in a higher power but back in 2009 crosswalks were at best considered 'suggestions' by vehicles and pedestrians alike. Now most people will try to use a marked crosswalk, and probably 1 in 50 cars will make a show of slowing down (about 1 in 100 will actually stop).

News and politics, ... actually not much has changed here. The propaganda machines pump out nonsense on a regular basis. Anecdotal evidence is reported as fact, and the 'Who' and 'Where' seems more important than the 'What', 'Why', and 'When'.

So overall, Sri Lanka seems headed down the road of progress, hopefully it doesn't get run into a ditch by the new driver.

Quite a change,

It's been just over five years since I was last in Sri Lanka, when I left back in June of 2009 the country (at least Colombo) was in a state of celebrate marking the end of decades of civil war.

There was an air of optimism for the future of the country, well founded it seems.

Upon returning to the Island what struck me the most aside from the new public work projects and general state of upkeep and cleanliness for roadways (varying from marginally to greatly improved), was how much less cautious people seemed. Perhaps I worded it poorly, before there were security checkpoints, bag checks, and you needed to keep a very close watch on your personal possessions... not that isn't still true in some areas but there is less likely hood of your shoes being stolen the minute you're distracted.

It's also a curious crossroads at this time, there is an election in tomorrow which is a neck and neck race between Mahinda Rajapaksa (MR) and Maithripala Sirisena (MS). To say it is a bit of a divisive election would be an understatement.

The main issue is corruption in the incumbent President's (Rajapaksa) regime, unfortunately the opposition party is not exactly better... an all too familiar scenario.

I am by no means an expert, and have been a bit out of the loop for the past few years regarding Sri Lanka politics (it gets a bit weird if you follow it for a while). Sri Lankan politics seems to have a habit of going from one extreme to the other, in the 60/70's a communist style closed economy with a focus on creating internal goods was so harsh that the next regime changed to an open capitalist system.  I can't say which is better than the other but the rapid change between system caused a lot of problems.

If MR wins, the good will be a continued vision for the country which is showing results, MR is also quite a strong leader which is necessary to fend off foreign influences that have a history of crippling the development of the country for economic or ideological gain. Unfortunately is part and parcel with systemic corruption and a concern that solidifying his power will lead to a family dictatorship.

The opposition MS is touted as being able to bring an end to a corrupt regime and re-establish "Democracy", whether or not that is accurate is beside the point, as the old saying goes 'Politicians are like diapers, they should be changed often... and for the same reason'. That said, the concern is that MS will dismantle the progress achieved by the the previous regime and devolve powers to provinces that could create future problems reminiscent of the conflict that ended just a few years ago.

 Everyone is waiting to see what will happen tomorrow, most are avoiding making any plans just in case something happens, the feeling is that if MR loses there is a chance of a coup taking place as he has control of the Army and Police. The actual chance of this is probably fairly small, but this is an odd Island so better to play it safe.

Daily life continues, and the Pope is scheduled to arrive a few days after the election so everyone wants things to run smoothly. It seems I happen to have arrived during interesting times, I've forgotten how stimulating this place can be... though at the same time it can be quite frustrating, it took a total of 5 days to get a bank account open and activated, 4 days to find a place to cash Canadian Travelers Cheques (which apparently banks will issue but won't cash), and don't get me started on trying to make appointments on time using local taxis.
As I've observed, Sri Lanka has taken the British system of bureaucracy and perfected it to an almost praiseworthy inefficiency (kind of like the Vogons). The work around is knowing the right person who can help 'cut through the red tape' as it were.

In any event, it will be curious to see what tomorrow will bring.