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Published: November 2nd 2006
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Kandy Lake
This was pretty early, on the morning I was visiting the crisis centre...it's actually a man made lake but it's still nice huh? O.K, so I lied. I’m not in Kandy. I’m back in Unawatuna. But you know, I did’nt find myself in the hills (unless you count the fat girl inside me, who was trying to get out)… and other than looking for yourself and eating, there wasn't all that much to do.
Having said that, Kandy is a truly beautiful town. After a couple of not so great guest houses I found a Room with a View. Perched up on a hillside, and with a wall of windows, the curtains redundant, I’d open my eyes at 5 am dreamily looking down to the Temple of the Tooth, the early morning sun reflecting on a glistening lake, and the tree covered misty hills rising up on the other side of the valley. Accompanying this was a soundtrack of energetic and persistent drumming by monks, lonely beep beeeps of early restless tuk tuks, and an assortment of noises from the local waking wildlife. Needless to say the rest of my day would be inescapably anticlimatic.
Jess met me in Kandy to spend a long weekend together. We had decided to go higher up into the hills to visit Nuwara Eliya, an historically
Kandy Street
Of course,Kandy wasn't all tranquility and charm... Oh and I hope you've noticed the Vogue sign. I made sure it was in the photo thinking I was being all arty and witty. colonial town surrounded by tea plantations. With a case of what turned out to be really bad timing, we joined hoards of Sri Lankans sharing the same destination, for a weekend of Deepvali (or as we call it Devali) celebrations. Rather than being immersed in colourful and convivial festivities, we were stood like sardines for four achy hours amid a bunch of guys who, having cracked open a bottle of Arak from the outset of the journey (8:30 am), got progressively pissed and unpleasant. Reminiscent of a game of twister, or dancing in strobe lighting, we moved to avoid unwanted contact whilst grasping for whatever was available to prevent a potential pile up. Undoubtedly it was this exhausting and dirty journey that set the shape of things to come - a weekend of luxury.
Now to set the scene, Nuwara Eliya is a strange place. And despite what ought to be a romantic setting, it is also fairly ugly. Imagine quaint bungalows crossed with Pontins. Imagine an elderly persons home crossed with a cheap boudoir. Throw into the equation mounted antlers, deep fried spicy food, extortionate prices, a race course, and guys who drive straight at you to freak
Sandwiches *
I was so hungry after the trek I nearly ate these sandwiches, but Jess was so disgusted she shamed me out of it, thankfully... that night we ate the buffet and I needed all the stomach space I could spare. * Please note the bed spread. you out. Yeah, Nuwara Eliya isn’t my idea of heaven. It was, however, apparently heaven for the British colonialists who craved a taste of England. A taste of England does not it seems equate to having taste. Resulting instead, in the remarkable and unfortunate knack of falling short of kitsch at every opportunity. But maybe you should ask a fan.
It was here, however, that I experienced true clarity about the purpose of my trip. With warmth in my centre, and the feeling of being whole for the first time, I realized that the greater meaning of my journey, the reason fate brought me to Sri Lanka, was to experience the best buffet of my life. So, it was in beautiful and expensive hotels, with fine dining, and the taste of good red wine on our lips that Jess and I wiled away hours avoiding the inevitable culture clash that awaited us outside, and at the hotel we could actually afford to stay in.
Oh, and we went for a walk. With time as a constraint, we decided to experience the local environment with a 5 hour trek up the nearest mountain and around the surrounding tea plantations.
Toothpick
Jess took this picture of me in one of the fancy hotel restaurants. I am pretending to be sophisticated by using a toothpick, while the waiter was obviously thinking how unsophisticated we were for taking photos in a restaurant... Keeping up with the unrelenting pace set by our local guide, we walked amongst diverse flora and fauna including Australian eucalyptus trees, got a bit too close to a poisonous 20 cm long millipede, passed through a Tamil village with a Hindu temple guarded by quirky stone carved characters, through a quiet local school meeting pose happy kids, were welcomed into a tiny and busy church decorated with masses of bright flowers, and whose congregation, celebrating in their Sunday sari best Saint Mary’s day, fed us sweet bread and coconut rice…it was exhausting but worth every minute, and the buffet calories it burnt off!
On our return to Kandy, and in keeping with our weekend of luxury, we went for an Ayuvedic massage and steam bath to mark what would be our last day together for a while. I had never had a full body massage before. I had never realized how full a full body massage was before. I am a changed woman.
A further reason I went to Kandy, was to meet a woman, Pearl, who I had albeit briefly been in touch with about the national organization, the Women’s Development Centre. Contemplating whether I could
The Back of My Guide
This guy took power walking to new heights...hee hee contribute something, despite not being the art therapist she had hoped for, I spent a day visiting a crisis centre at a middle-of-no-where location outside of the town. Here I struggled to communicate in anything other than smiles with young women who were not safe in their own homes having suffered from violence and abuse. This centre was in contrast almost eerily serene, the women without exception seemed quietly content. Intentions of returning to do an art project were in the end largely absorbed by a week of contending with what I am told is typical Sri Lankan bureaucracy. I.e. Sending continual e mails persistently asking questions and trying to arrange meetings, which are never returned. I discovered that the question “But will Ivan be in the office on Monday?” will never receive a simple yes or no answer.
So I returned to Unawatuna for some respite, for a surf in a tropical storm, and an unforgettable day at the Lighthouse, an exquisite hotel designed by the Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa. His distinct style, which in this case boasts two infinity pools that appear to seamlessly spill into the sea, is identified by simple but sophisticated geometric structures
Another Sunset #2
This was the sunset watched from the lawns of the Lighthouse hotel. Sorry I couldn't resist! and lines that are at once distinct from surrounding nature and in unison with it. But it is moreover the feeling of tranquility that his design instills that is, with the help of a cold glass of wine at sunset, quite magical. Now a die hard fan, I intend to visit at least one more of his hotels before my Sri Lanka time is up…
And back in Shangri La, with friends, and with potential ventures to fill the next few weeks - helping Norwegian Annekin to kick start a community based lace production project in great need of marketing and design input, and investigating doing my own mini digital photography project with some women down the coast - I am for the moment busy. And whatever the outcome of my ideas may be, being busy and rediscovering my brain means, for the time being, that I’m pretty content. And so, whilst taking into consideration logistical issues that mean I may now not have the time or facilities to save the world, it does seem there is at least hope of saving my sanity.
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Laz
non-member comment
Ughhh!
I am jusy upset by the site of those sandwiches! And your pun about the guide pic was about as appetising! But anyway, glad to hear you are now content and enjoying your time. I am so so jealous of your experiences and beautiful surroundings. See you soon.xxx