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By Hannu
I'm in Sri Lanka, a beautiful egg-shaped island southeast of India.
Long sandy palm beaches, nice waves, cooler up in the hills, smiling
short people. But before I got here, I was in Calcutta, which is
where you last heard from me...
I took the train to Madras/Chennai to meet up with a friend I met
in Johannesburg last year. Odd to meet again after such a long time,
we both agreed, since she had been working in Dublin and I have
been traveling endlessly. We spent a few days together seeing Madras,
Mahabalipuram and Pondicherry before she decided she'd rather travel
on her own. Nothing wrong with that; I prefer traveling on my own
too; after all, you get to experience more by doing that.
In Mahabalipuram I stayed in the same place I had stayed in back
in 1995. "Erwin Danussi Cottages," run by 59 year-old Frieda. She's
a bit of a mother-type, takes good care of you and makes sure you
are happy. And, most amazing: she remembered me from 5 years back!
Not immediately, but after I told her I had stayed there 5 years
ago and said I was from Sweden, she burst out "The postman! Where
is the parcel you promised to send?"
True, I had indeed promised to send a box of Swedish stuff to her,
but as most of you know by now, my diary from that time (with her
address in it) was stolen in 1995. The same diary that was given
back to me this year in Calcutta, by the man who in 1995 found it
on the Varanasi-Calcutta train. Now I showed Frieda my old diary
and what I had written in it at the time, and she showed me her
visitors' book from 1995 with my comments. Well, this time I will
make sure she gets a Swedish packet with some goodies...
Well, from Pondicherry onwards I traveled on my own to Trivandrum
in Kerala where I met up with the Dutch chef/globetrotter David,
whom I had first met in Uganda in November of 1999. Nice meeting
up again and I got his guidebook for Sri Lanka, from where he had
just arrived back to the mainland, plus loads of info. I then booked
a ticket on the fully booked flights to Sri Lanka. I had to wait
9 days for a free seat, and so David and I spent a few days on the
beach of Kovalam, before he took off for Calcutta/Nepal and I spent
my last days in India in Kodaikanal, at the cool altitude of 2000
meters.
On the 7th of April I landed here, and got 30 days to see the Island.
I went to the gem city Ratnapura and found out what star-rubies
are all about - a Sri Lankan specialty; gemstones that show a star
when lit up!
The following loooooong weekend I spent on the beaches of Hikkaduwa
and Unawatuna. At Hikkaduwa I did a dive, but this time I definitely
decided it is NOT my cup of tea. I got down with great pain in my
ears for the first 5-10 minutes, and came up with my nose slightly
bleeding. Unawatuna is said to be one of the world's most beautiful
beaches. And it sure looked like paradise...
And I also celebrated: on the 12th of April it was two years since
I left Sweden. A cold beer and a good dinner, I think I deserved
it...
It was a long weekend because of the Tamil and Hindu New Year on
April 13 and 14. People went back from the towns to their home villages
to meet up with their families and relatives. Sri Lanka is said
to be the country with the most public holidays in the world. For
instance, every full moon is a holiday for religious reasons. So
are the Christian holidays such as Good Friday and Workers Day.
All these holidays mean you have to really plan your bank visits
and when to go to museums and when to go and see sights and attractions.
Since then I have been up to the hills for a while. The monsoon
is soon to arrive in Sri Lanka, and temperatures at sea level are
HOT! The hills of Sri Lanka are cool though, and the big parts are
covered with that most famous of Sri Lankan exports - tea! Rolling
hills as far as you can see -beautiful! And in Haputale, where I
spent a couple of nights, old Mrs. Queenie Daniels became my mother
for a few days, calling me "son" and making sure I ate enough of
her home-cooked specialties. Probably gained a kilo or two there...
The train is the nicest transport you can use in Sri Lanka, going
along hill slopes and through endless tunnels through mountainsides,
with awesome views. I took the train to Kandy after Haputale, and
that's where I am now. Here there is a temple where they have one
of Buddhas tooth's in a gold casket; I'll see it tomorrow. Or at
least it's said to contain a tooth - story goes that the Portuguese,
who ruled here years ago, once stole it away
and burned it in Goa/India. "Not true," say the Buddhists though,
"that was just a fake one" - the real one is still in the casket.
Who knows? One is not allowed to check...
Anyway, it's been a long day and Internet costs money too. I hope
to get back to you guys soon!
Hannu
Read more of Hannu's adventures.
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