days 3, 4, 5

Day 3 passed fairly slowly. None of the people I wanted to interview were in the village. I went into the center in the morning but mostly ended up sitting around and using the internet. I perfected my survey and in the afternoon tested it out on Radhika and one of her friends. Some of the questions were hard but they were able to do all of them. It’s still questionable how many answers the younger students will be able to give. There isn’t much value placed on individual work and I had to constantly tell the two girls to stop talking to each other as I didn’t want exactly the same answers.

I am really surprised with the amount that people bathe in this village. It makes me embarrassed that I bathe so little. Every day around 4, the women go down to the canal and scrub themselves from head to toe using soap and some kind of husk. Clothes are also washed in the canal at this time. Women wash their hair every day, and wash it with shampoo every other day. The water in the canal is sometimes cold and the closer it gets to the evening, the colder it gets. I would try to avoid this daily bathing ritual but the fear of giving Indians a bad name as a dirty people allowed me to persevere.

At night lots of random people came to see me because I am new in town and we ended up sitting in Radhika’s hall and chatting. They did most of the chatting as there was no common language, but Radhika occasionally translated. The most thrilling part of the evening was that a snake was spotted outside of the house. I, of course, sat under my mosquito net, very afraid, but Radhika’s dad scared it away with loud noises and fire.

Day 4

I was pretty busy conducting my research today as everyone was in town. I interviewed the headmaster and the manager as well as visited the district secretariat to get statistics on local demographics. It’s amusing how formal these district offices are and the formalities it is necessary to go through. I had to meet several intermediary people just to meet the district secretary’s assistant who could finally give me the statistics I needed. I met the other teachers at Horizon and ended up staying there until quite late. I got to bicycle myself there, which was quite fun and much less painful than sitting on the crossbar or pedaling while someone else is on the crossbar.

The night ended with a lot more people coming over. Unlike North Indian villages, women have quite a lot of mobility in Sri Lankan villages. At night I noticed pairs of women walking with flashlights on the road. They were unchaperoned by men. During the day women can go wherever they want by themselves, even for a bath. Girls roam about in sleeveless tops and skirts without a problem, and are free to ride bicycles to school. However patriarchy asserts itself in different ways. People defer to the wishes of the all-male Buddhist clergy. They marry young and have many children, preventing women from being able to pursue a career. They also value the qualities of shyness and timidity in girls and many of the girls in the program are discouraged by their families from playing sports or participating in recitals. That said, I think it’s much more progressive than India when it comes to women in public spaces. As I have stated before, there is very little leering at women in public space so women are not meant to feel as if they don’t belong there.

Back to Colombo

Saturday was extremely busy as it was the first day of classes at Horizon. I bid farewell to Radhika’s mom, a very sweet woman, and headed off to class on the bus. The mood of the students was cheery and we walked the remaining 1km to the Horizon center. The younger students were taught in batches and the senior students helped the teachers as well as loitered about playing carom and chatting. I tried to teach them chess but I am not the greatest chess teacher so the lesson was short.

I administered the survey taking into account the Eastern problems of cheating and made sure the survey was completed in total silence with students positioned so that nobody could see anyone else’s paper. After the survey was complete I bid goodbye to Horizon and got in the van that would take me along the bumpy dirt road to Anuradhapura.

The trains in this country are easy to figure out (there aren’t very many of them) and have much nicer interiors than Indian trains. For some unfathomable reason, they don’t go fast. Even the express train goes really slow and is only nominally faster than going by car. Train is infinitely more satisfying though and I have five hours of gazing at paddy fields as the old woman next to me bought every possible snack available from the train vendors; from peanuts to salted mango. I reached Colombo at night and not being in touch with the news, happily boarded the bus back home, pleased that I saved 300 rs that a cab would have cost.

Day 2

At 6 am I heard voices from the other room calling my name in order to wake me up. I rolled out of bed, washed my face in the basin outside and got ready for another day in MV. Breakfast was freshly made hoppers eaten with bananas and washed down with tea. As it was a poya (full moon) day, and therefore a Sri Lankan holiday, many of the students were going to the Horizon center to watch movies and hang out. I came along as well on a bicycle. In MV nobody seems to own a car. Very few people have motorcycles and most people ride bicycles everywhere. It’s not uncommon for two or three people to ride on one bicycle.

We made our way to the Horizon center, past lakes filled with lotus flowers and lush green paddy fields. We passed people bathing in the canals near the road and cows grazing in grassy patches. We also passed a number of military stations. MV is close to the LTTE controlled area so the military has a stronger presence here. There are soldiers at every intersection and it can be a bit unnerving at times to see men riding past on bicycles with machine guns slung over their shoulders.

While I did my work in the center, the kids watched Harry Potter, one of their favorite movies. They love Harry Potter and mimic many of the lines from the movie. Around 2pm Radhika’s father brought us out lunch and we ate together outside. I finished up my work and we all headed home again, two per bicycle.

After we got home we read and chilled for a bit and then got ready to go to the temple. We had our baths in the canal and then came home to pick flowers from the garden for offerings. We then took off around sunset for the village temple. The full moon was bright and shining and we didn’t even need to use the flashlights we had brought with us for light. The temple was illuminated too with hundreds of small oil lamps. We made out offerings and Radhika’s mom spread a small blanket for us to sit on and say our prayers. Many people from the village were there and used the time as an opportunity to gather and socialize before dinner.

Dinner was delicious as always and the night was only briefly interrupted by the arrival of a snake outside. Fire was waved at it and loud noises made and it soon left. Radhika’s family went back to the Indian soap operas and I went back to my computer before turning in. What is striking to me here is the ease in which people can simply sit around doing nothing. The rice is planted, it is growing, the family works hard but it’s not like the backbreaking exhausting work that one stereotypically associates with farmers. There is time to rest, to eat ice cream, to chat with friends. Furthermore the dad helps out a lot both with R’s school and with tasks in the kitchen. Perhaps at harvest time things get a lot busier, but for now, things are fairly calm and relaxed. Downtime is calmer because there is literally nothing to do. People come to visit and occasionally break the monotony but there are no phones, no mail to open, no errands to run, just nothing. They also lack that guilt that I was taught to have about just sitting around doing nothing. I am trying to make the most of it though and get as much done as possible although working on a village schedule is very challenging.

Day one in the Village

On Tuesday I boarded the 5:45 train from the Colombo Fort train station for the Northern city of Anuradhapura. I had a second class reserved seat (no first class on this train) and I managed to get to my seat without a problem. Many people have told me horror stories about the Sri Lankan trains. I have heard that it’s unsafe for a woman to travel alone, that I was bound to get harassed, and that people would try to steal my stuff in Anuradhapura. I took the usual precautions by dressing conservatively and not attracting attention and the trip went off without a hitch. In fact, people in the compartment were quite nice and when the soldier came around and checked my passport, people asked if I was an Indian and we chatted for a bit. I was also able to find my stop based on the help of other passengers.

Radhika, my student host from Mahavilachchiya was at the train station to get me, as was her father. We loaded up the rental van and got on our way. Radhika has been studying English for the past 9 years, she is currently 18 years old, and while her English is good, it’s not quite what I would call fluent. She is able to understand and reply in a basic to intermediate conversation but it’s tough for her to explain things using multiple adjectives and verbs. We chatted about her interests in Indian dancing, Bollywood movies, and Indian teledramas. It seems that nobody in MV is even slightly interested in the fact that I am an American; they are very excited that I am an Indian and keep asking me questions about Indian and Indian actors and actresses.

We made a quick stop at the Horizon Lanka building which is the headquarters of the Horizon Lanka NGO, the group responsible for bringing English and computer education to the village and also the group that worked with a number of other organizations, including mine, to set up wireless internet in the village. The building was brightly painted and located in a nice big compound with a playground and many small shelters built for outdoor classes. The center serves the purpose of an after-school center as the village kids come to the center after school to participate in activities such as karate, dancing, computer lessons, and English lessons. The center also boasts a small library of films and books, gym equipment, and 20 or so state of the art computers. There is also a small printing and fax facility available at cost.

I briefly saw the center and then headed to Radhika’s house for lunch. I don’t know quite what I was expecting in terms of accommodation in the village. I can only thank the girl scouts and my parents for making me prepared for all kinds of living environments. Radhika lives in a small brick house with a large courtyard and garden. There are lots of fruit trees in the garden and an internet tower with one of the nodes. Her house consists of her bedroom, her parent’s bedroom, a living room, and a kitchen. Radhika’s dad, like everyone else in the village, is a farmer. While their house isn’t large, it’s quite comfortable and clean and they are able to afford some creature comforts. There is a tap out back of running water and an Asian-style outhouse. They are probably in a low income bracket but are not what I would consider poor. They have nice clothes, good plentiful food, and seem to be very happy and content.

I am once again struck by the kindness of the Sri Lankan people. Whatever people have, they generously give to others and they don’t have that suspiciousness and slyness that we Indians sometimes possess. Perhaps it’s a city vs. village thing but it’s nice to feel truly out of the rat race and among people who are just chilled out and content with life. Content would be the best way to describe people here. They are just very happy with what they have a good lesson for someone like me who is never quite satisfied. Radhika's parents are very kind and welcoming and though they don’t speak English, have made me at home here.

After arriving at her house we sat down for a delicious lunch of rice and curry and a boney lake fish that was deep fried whole. Rice is the staple diet here and is served for all three meals with some kind of coconut product. Example: breakfast of hoppers and grated coconut chutney, lunch of rice and vegetables in coconut curry, dinner of rice noodles and vegetables cooked with grated coconut. Dessert is usually bananas. It’s all so fattening but so delicious.

Lunch was followed by a nap and then a bath. To bathe we went down to a canal which is near the paddy fields. I think the canal is used for irrigation. There was fish and tadpoles and things swimming in it with us. To take a bath in the canal we had to first wear sarongs. The bath is taken while wearing the sarong so that people passing from the road don’t see anything. While bathing, people wash their clothes as well. I soaped up and jumped in and then spent a good deal of time manipulating the wet sarong and my dry clothes so that I could get dressed.

In the afternoon people visited Radhika’s house and dropped by to say hello to me. Most people didn’t speak much English but as it is a village, they were interested in meeting the visitor from India. Indian culture is very popular here so people seemed happy to meet me. After it got dark we had dinner and sat down to watch Tamil soap operas. The best were the Hindi soap operas, dubbed in Tamil, and subtitled in Sinhalese! I went to sleep under my mosquito net early at 9:30 as people tend to maximize daylight hours here and wake up really early.

New Years

New Years in Colombo was a grand affair and I went with my friends to one of the poshest parties in town at the Galle Face Hotel. Tickets that originally sold for 5,000 rs were being scalped on New Years Eve for 15,000 rs! I got all dressed up, met up with my friends and headed to the party around 11.

There were no drinks included in the cost so we had brought some drinks from home and kept them at out table. I didn’t have more than one or two because more would have ensured I fell asleep by one. It was a fun time, the hotel pavilion was near the ocean and we could look out at the sea as well as hear the waves crashing on the beach. The who’s who of Colombo were there, dressed to the nines and looking to have a good time. Midnight came and went, there was a Sri Lankan breakfast buffet, nice music, good friends, all the ingredients for a good time but somehow my heart wasn’t in it. Sometimes the magic just isn’t there. I had a nice time but I missed my family and friends a lot.

Bombay meri jaan

The trip to Bombay was exciting but hectic. Its always a bit strange returning to familiar places for just a short time because you feel like you want to make yourself at home but you are constantly planning for the day of your departure. Coming back to Bombay really made me realize how much that place has now become home to me. I get comfortable in my grandmother’s house, call up old friends and go out in what is now my city.

It’s strange because when you first come to Bombay you are inspired and want to go home and write about it and talk to everyone you know about every little thing that you encountered from the cardboard train tickets to the bottles of milk. Tiny, insignificant things are great enough to write essays on. You would think if you stayed long enough that this would go away. It doesn’t. What does happen is that the feeling gets more subdued, things become more familiar and sensations overwhelm you to the point that you don’t know what to say anymore. You don’t want to seem childish or trivial so you keep your thoughts and words to yourself and then inwardly marvel at everything.

Mom did not let me relax and together we combined our shopping powers and hit up the major Bombay bazaars such as Zaveri bazaar, Mangaldas Market, Mohamed Ali road, Bhendi bazaar, Colaba, and even hit a few shopping malls. Shopping in Bombay is always an adventure as everything is spread out and sold in its particular market rather than a one-stop-shop. Mom and I laughed at the fact that in the US we just go to Target for an hour while in Bombay we schlep all the way to the market on the bus, haggle with vendors, and load up shopping bags with merchandise. Truly, we are champions.

It was also lovely to see my old friends. It will be hard to leave Bombay because of them. I have good friends in America, but Bombay is somehow more like college; plans are fluid and people live close enough by that they can meet up on a weekly or daily basis. One doesn’t have to make plans weeks in advance. (Though this can get frustrating when you do want to plan) People are just more accessible in Bombay which is very comforting. It’s the kind of place that if you go out on Friday night you will probably bump into people you know. However if you are sneaky you can choose places where you a guaranteed not to know anyone. It’s the best of both worlds.

The days in my most favorite and loved of cities ended quickly though and I had to say goodbye to everyone and get on the 3:30 am flight to Colombo. Coming back to the guesthouse, all my lonesome was tough, especially because I had moved rooms and the place was a mess. It was also challenging to get back into the routine of work and haggling with Sinhalese speaking trishaw drivers every morning. I miss my grandmother bringing me my afternoon tea!

mini-vacation

The lack of recent updates has been due to my recent travels in Lanka and India. Mom and Dad came last week and we embarked on Sri Lankan taster trip. The trip was very short and one needs much more time to see Sri Lanka but we had fun.

When they arrived at 6am from Bombay I was waiting at the airport with the car and driver, Mr. Sarat. We then proceeded to drive to Kandy on the Colombo-Kandy road where we stopped to see the elephants at the Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage. There had just been lots of babies and it was very adorable to see them get fed and try to swim. The elephants were out in an open field and we could walk right up to them. It was quite different from the DC zoo where the elephants are far away and separated by cement walls and a moat.

We napped in the car as Sarat drove us to Villa Rosa, our hotel in Kandy where we relaxed a bit and had tea. The villa had an amazing view of the Mahavehli River, and its remote location was worth the breathtaking view which reminded me of the Amazon. We then got back in the car and went to explore the city. In Kandy we drove to various lookout points to better see the “Switzerland of the East” as the city is sometimes called. Mom kept referring to the place as a “quaint town” which is funny considering it’s the second largest city in Sri Lanka.

We then proceeded to watch a Kandyan Dance performance, saw the famous temple of the tooth, and enjoyed a candlelight dinner at the villa. The next morning my parents woke me up freakishly early as always and we headed off on the long, long drive to Bentota. We left Kandy at 10am and made a quick stop at the national botanical gardens along the way. We then drove straight to Bentota and the trip ended up being around 6 hours.

We were so tired once we got to Bentota we had energy only for a quick walk on the beach before dinner. We then left the Taj and went to a little hotel café where we tasted the best prawns curry I have ever had. The next morning we got up early again and went to Galle for the morning. We walked around the fort and marveled at the clearness of the ocean. We then went back to Bentota with a quick stop at a sea turtle sanctuary where we got to touch baby sea turtles. Two different kinds of baby animals in one trip! The weather was unpleasant so we went out for lobster dinner, saw another dance performance and went to bed.

The next day we got lucky and the sun came out so we stayed in the Taj longer and swam in the ocean until 2. We then headed to Colombo for a little shopping in Odel and had my awesome birthday dinner at gallery cafe. My parents stayed in my guesthouse, forgoing the luxury of the past three days for a night in my humble, mosquito-ridden home.

The next day went in hectic Colombo errands. We went to the madhouse that is House of Fashions, a giant clearinghouse for surplus Western garments. Name brand shirts at HoF cost something like $2 usd per shirt. Pants for $3. The crowds were ridiculous as it is close to Christmas but we emerged triumphant with bagfuls of clothing. We then stopped at the mall, the supermarket, my office, and the Paradise Road store before staggering home. Finally we moved my stuff from the mildew room I was living in, into a much smaller, less mildew ridden room in the same guesthouse. The rest of my birthday was spent sharing some wine with dad and getting on the flight to Bombay!

the gunya

I have been out the last five days with the infamous chikungunya disease. Most of you probably haven’t heard of it but its currently an epidemic in South India and Sri Lanka. Like Malaria, it all starts with a simple mosquito bite. In a few hours you start to feel muscle pains, usually in your back. Then comes a pounding headache, a sense of fatigue, and dizziness. So, you innocently go to sleep thinking that everything will be fine in the morning and then BAM, you have a 102 degree fever, you can’t walk and all of your muscles are frozen in crippling pain. The good news is that it isn’t fatal and that it usually runs its course in 5-7 days. I got lucky and it only took 3 days of suffering and two days of feeling so-so. Last night was my first c-gunya-free night and it was fantastic.

While afflicted one of my aunties (family friends) took pity on me and had me stay at her place for a night so I could recover. I felt bad because all I really had the strength to do was sleep and eat. I went to sleep in her spare room under the auspices of some sleeping pills and was happily passed out when I heard a noise in the room. Who do I see but the faces of two Sri Lankan army officers peering down on me. This just goes to show what a bad state this country is in. Because of the terrorists and the stupid war, the cops can actually come into your house, into your bedroom, and make sure you are doing what you are supposed to be doing. If the Fairfax county police ever came into my bedroom and were watching me sleep I think that would make some kind of national news. Anyways, these police just took pity on a poor feverish girl and left without demanding ID.

On Sunday I was feeling a bit better so I decided that the perfect thing to do after I had been sick for a while was to go to a carnival. Sri Lankan carnivals are just as weird and awesome as carnivals everywhere. The blasting Hindi music, the cheap ice cream, what could be better? To top it off there was a haunted house called “Terror House” which was one of those very weird structures where many rooms of a building are turned into various scary rooms staffed by people in monster masks. These people wait for people like me to walk by and then they jump out and wave their hands in front of them and say “ooga booga” or something to that extent. Then, people like me, because we are generally afraid of all moving things (and some stationary ones too) run around screaming. Good times.