Colombo, Sri Lanka (7-28)

Monday morning at 6:30 I left Pokpak’s apartment to go to the airport for the flight to Colombo. The time in Sri Lanka is 1.5 hours behind Thai time; so I woke up at 4:30 AM Sri Lanka time. Too early!

At the Colombo airport I hired a taxi to take me to the hotel. I like the pre-paid, set fee taxi services at many airports. When the driver delivered me to the guesthouse, he hung around for a few minutes before leaving. I realized later that he was probably waiting for a tip, but coming from China where tips are not expected and being very tired, I didn’t thought about it. In the evening I looked up tipping policies in Sri Lanka and learned that I am indeed in a “tips are expected” country again. I’ve enjoyed being free of that expectation.

Having gotten up so early and had the time change, I was tired when I arrived and didn’t think I’d be able to do anything that afternoon. However, after resting for an hour, I was ready to venture out to the national museum, which is near the guesthouse. The man gave me directions to walk there. At one multi-street intersection where I wasn’t sure which street to take, a man joined me and started to chat; so I told him I was looking for the street to the museum. He offered to take me there, as he works at a hotel and likes to speak English. After a few minutes, he got a tuk-tuk, which surprised me because I had understood that the museum was quite close. We went way up the street and then back on the parallel street, as they are one-way. The man could have walked me up the street faster than the ride took. We chatted and it felt like the several times in China when someone walked out of their way to make sure I got where I was going. When we arrived at the museum, he told me that the tuk-tuk was 8800 rupees/$66, which would be the cost for several hours. I knew that was way too much for the ten minute ride and realized that I’d fallen into a scam. I refused to pay that much, telling him I knew it was too much and was a lot more than I had paid—2900/$22—for the hour-long trip from the airport. When he asked me how much I’d pay, I offered 500/$3.75, thinking that was probably still too much but I was willing to pay that much for my naivety in trusting the man. The man said I could pay 5000 and he’d pay the rest. I still refused. Later he showed me that he didn’t have any money to pay the driver. Too bad. After I handed over the 500 rupees and walked away, the man asked about something for him, which I didn’t acknowledge hearing. He could share what I gave the driver, who may have been his friend/accomplice. This was a harsh reminder that this country is different and I can’t just trust everyone. I don’t like not trusting people who offer to help, but I will be more wary here.

The museum is a huge 19^th century colonial building that is in the process of being renovated. 

I enjoyed becoming acquainted with Sri Lankan styles of art. I always enjoy noticing the different styles around Southeast Asia. 

Sri Lankan Buddha statues have a flame on top of his head.

I was also fascinated by the paintings and seeing how the images are different from ones in other countries. 

After eating at the café at the museum, I walked through the nearby park.

Tuesday morning I took a tuk-tuk to buy a train ticket for Wednesday. The man at the ticket window said there isn’t a train to Dambulla and I should take a bus. I could buy a ticket somewhere across the way; it wasn’t clear to me where that could happen. After walking for a few minutes, I came to a travel agency and decided to ask them. The man explained that they only do tours. But he made a phone call and another man gave me a map. They explained that I had to take a train to a different city and then get a bus. So I went back to the train ticket window where I was told to go to a different window inside. After asking three people, I found the correct window and emerged with a train ticket. I still like being able to do these things successfully.

After purchasing the ticket, I decided to walk for a while. In the market area outside the train station, when I looked at a pair of pants, the man found some in my size and I ended out buying a pair. I’m working on phasing out my too-short Chinese pants. Then he took me to a few other stalls to look for a shirt, but I didn’t see anything I wanted. I did buy a length of fabric that can be used as a sarong or made into something. I wasn’t going to buy it; so when he pushed for “how much you pay?”I offered a third of what he had stated, thinking he would refuse and I could leave without purchasing it. He said it was too little, and I said I knew that but I didn’t really want to buy it. Then he agreed to my offer; so I have fabric for someone in Thailand.

I was trying to get back to where the driver had left me off in the first place, but I never got there. I ended out in another area where I enjoyed looking at the local shops and the homes down the alleys between them. Buildings and some old trees have Buddha statues or small altars. 

Then it was time to get a tuk-tuk to the Gangaramaya Temple, an important Buddhist temple. The temple includes a museum as well as the main hall and several other rooms. 

The main hall has very colorful statues. 

I was fascinated by the painted palms. 

Another area has sitting Buddha statues up a hill to a stupa. 

There’s a really old bo/bodhi tree with an old Buddha statue. People tie coins in cloth and tie them to the tree roots. This was the first time I'd seen a bodhi tree. 

The ticket to the temple includes Seema Malaka, a small temple on the nearby lake that has an assembly hall for monks. 

The assembly hall is surrounded by sitting Buddha statues. 

On another island there is a Buddha under a bo/bodhi tree. 

There are four guardians in small closets at each corner. Only three were open. The contain statues—two females and a Ganesh— that are very colorful. Two women were at the fourth closet for a long time. When they left, I returned to see what is in that closet, but it was closed, which made me wonder what statue is in it that is so special.

Next I walked to the coast. The map showed a church, and I decided to check it out. Saint Andrew’s Church is a very basic Christian church. 

From there, I walked to the green area, a promenade along the seaside that is a popular place for local people. I sat on a bench and watched and listened to the waves for a while. 

As I walked back, people were arriving and standing on the sand so the waves would reach their feet. Many looked like they hadn’t done this before; so perhaps they are tourists from another part of the country or from India.

When walking down the street, I had seen a small café and decided to eat there: chicken biryani that was quite nice. Then it was time to head back. After eating, I wanted to walk. Outside one of the big hotels, I encountered a man who told me about a festival I should go to at Gangaramaya Temple that was once a year and happened to be that night. The man Monday had also told me there was a festival I should go to after the museum that was only once a year and was that day. So I was a bit leery. I guess it’s possible that there were festivals at two different temples, but my trust level was low. Then a tuk-tuk driver followed me after I left the man and wanted to take me to the temple. It may have been fine, but the experience on Monday had left me wary. Later I came to a Hindu temple with interesting statues. After walking for a while, I took a tuk-tuk the rest of the way back. It’s nice to have that option so readily available.

That was my experience in Colombo. I was a little surprised that I enjoyed walking around the city. I had thought I’d hire a driver to take me around. Several offered to give me a one-hour tour for a good price, but I didn’t want to just drive past places. I still enjoy walking and seeing what I see. That’s what I do. I found people to be friendly. Most would smile if I smiled or nodded to greet them. But a day and a half in the city was adequate. When I took out my paper for the guesthouse in Dambulla, the dates were July 30 and 31, not 29. I was mystified. Then I checked the paper for Colombo and realized I’d booked three nights there. Since I was ready to leave, I quickly made a reservation for the 29^th at the guesthouse in Dambulla.

Money: In less than a week, I have gone from $1=6 yuan to 34 Thai baths to 133 Sri Lankan rupees. Where 100 used to be a lot, it’s now not much. It took a few days to readjust my thinking.

Motorcycle drivers and passengers wear helmets.

Driving is on the left side, as in Thailand.

Crossing the street: There are yellow striped pedestrian crosswalks. When people walk there, traffic stops. The first time that happened I was so astonished that I almost froze. But it happens consistently. It seems so civilized after constantly having to be extra vigilant in China because cars did not respect pedestrian crosswalks.

Brief reunion with Thailand (7-26)

When I arrived in Bangkok Thursday evening, Pokpak met me at the airport. It was so nice to see a friendly face waving to me. She had agreed to let me leave my big suitcase in her apartment while I travel. When I saw that her apartment is one room, I especially appreciated this. As I thought through my travel plans, I realized that I’ll pass through Bangkok four times, and she was gracious enough to say I can stay with her overnight each time. Although I’d met her a couple times at Khun Yindee’s house, I’d never spent any time with her. So this was a good opportunity to get to know her on a personal basis.

Thursday night we had dinner at a place near her apartment. My first Thai food for a year. The ginger chicken was so delicious that I ate most of it quickly. I was also hungry from traveling and having time go back an hour. So it was almost 9:00 China time when we ate.

My traveling to Thailand at this time was planned so I could spend the weekend in Singburi. I wanted to see Tuk before leaving Asia. I was a little hesitant about going there because they always have me stay with Khun Tik and Khun Jalasi, my original host family, and the last time I was there I hardly saw them and it felt strange. However, this time they were all smiles when greeting me. Since my Thai language is pretty much gone, I can’t really talk to them, but we shared lots of smiles.

When we arrived, I saw the whole family. Khun Warawan gave me two Thai silk bags, which are their current project for selling in the market. I was happy to see that she looks really good again, as the last time she was still looking weak from her experience with cancer. Friday night I went with Tuk to have dinner with her friends. We met them at a fish restaurant I’d been with her before. So the meal was fish, shrimp, and soft crab curry. I think I ate most of the crab, as it’s one of my favorite dishes.

Tuk had planned to do something with me on Saturday, but her assistant at the coffee shop took the day off; so she had to work. I hung out there with her for a while. Maprong took me to get a haircut and walk around the wat. She’s a high school senior now and hopes to get into the top university in the country. She wants to come to the U.S. in five years—after she graduates from university.

In the evening, Tuk, Maprong, and I went to Tesco-Lotus to eat at her friend’s shop there. I had somtom and fish soup. Two more favorite Thai foods. After dinner, we did some yoga, as they wanted to learn a few moves.

Sunday I had a two-hour Thai massage (cost 240 bahts/$7), which was one of the things I’d thought about doing there if Tuk had to work. It was really good. The man spent most of the time on my legs. Since many places hurt a lot when he pressed on them, I guess the work was needed. For lunch I had pad Thai, the last of the foods I really wanted to eat that weekend. Then it was time to return to Bangkok. 

I was really glad to have seen everyone and to have some time with Tuk.

Leaving China (7-23)

Tuesday morning at 6:00 I left the guesthouse in Danba to begin the eleven-hour bus ride to Chengdu. It was drizzling, and by the time I arrived at the bus, it was raining. I was really glad to have had such a nice day for my outing on Monday. As often is the case, I had to tell the young man next to me that I wanted my assigned window seat. This is something I won’t miss.

For the first hour and a half, we went through the mountains. Literally through them in a series of tunnels with very little space between them. Then we went over the mountains along a river. Weather was overcast all day; so the views were not magnificent.

At 1:00 we stopped for the lunch break. When I walked to the end of the area, I realized that it was the same place we had stopped on the way to Kangding.

The good news of the trip was that we arrived in ten hours, not eleven as I had been told. And we arrived at the bus station from which I could get a direct bus to Wenjiang. After a long day, this was especially nice. I arrived back on campus at 6:30. Since I was very tired, I didn’t do much that night.

Wednesday was “getting ready to leave” day. Part of that process was deciding to mail one more small box. Dale’s pillow started that thinking, as it weighs a kilogram and didn’t fit in my bag. Along with it, I sent the cold weather clothes from the trip; so it was good to have them out of the way. On the way to the post office, I stopped to ask Yang about getting a driver to take me to the airport. I was surprised when only the man was in the office because I’d been told that everyone would be working until the end of the month. But it was nice to know that they weren’t required to work every day. When I commented to him that I wanted to ask about getting a driver to take me to the airport on Thursday, he offered to help and called Mr. Huang to get permission and then called a driver. So I was set.

I made a last trip to DaWan to see what was open for dinner. Some places—such as the eggplant restaurant at which I had thought about eating—were closed, but I was surprised to see how many were still open and how many students from SUFE were around. I returned to the restaurant Diao Min had introduced me to—and at which I’d eaten twice with friends—because I wanted a good meal, not just street food. So I had my last authentic—Chinese food cooked in China—Chinese dinner, and it was delicious. After eating, I bought my last boiled soybeans from the couple who have always been friendly to me. I tried to tell them that I was leaving, but I could tell that they weren’t paying attention to my Chinese and were just smiling. So I said “good-bye.” I wondered if they’ll realize that their regular foreign customer isn’t there next semester.

Thursday I finished stuffing things into my bag and did the last cleaning. All too quickly it was time to depart. Since no one was around and I’d said my “good-byes,” leaving felt a bit anticlimactic. Bittersweet as always. The university was a good place for me for 2.5 years, but I knew it was time to leave. I had many good experiences there and have several good friends, most of whom I know I won’t hear from again, which is part of the sadness of leaving. Strangely, in the last few weeks I had had several students from past years stop to tell me that their teacher had said I was leaving and that they would miss me. A couple even asked for a hug. I guess I meant more to them than I knew, which is often the case with teaching.

As I made my way across campus to meet the driver, I heard my name being called. When I turned around, two students—Pearl and Betty— I’d had the first semester I was at the university were behind me. I was surprised to see any students, especially one I knew. I hadn’t seen Pearl for about a year, and I didn’t know Betty. They carried one of the bags and walked with me to the car. They were on their way to the library to study, as they are spending the summer studying for the graduate school entrance exam they will take in December. It was really nice to have their company and to chat with them. And it was nice to have someone wave me off.

Thus ended my 2.5 years in China. Betty asked me if I love China. I have liked China, but I haven’t loved it. Many foreigners do, but it didn’t affect me that way. Some of what they like is the attention and special treatment they get because they are foreign, but those things don’t appeal to me. I have been treated well, but in many ways it was an isolated experience, as we were not included with—or introduced to— the teaching staff; so I never really felt like I was part of the university like I felt like I was part of the Thai schools. We did our thing, and the rest of the teachers did theirs; and there was no interaction between us. My friendship with Peggie and Hannah from the Foreign Language Department and with Yang and Michelle in the Foreign Affairs Office were what kept me going as far as having relationships. And my special office hours’ girls. Relationships with them also kept me feeling involved beyond mere classroom instruction. The positive feedback I had from students related to what I did in class always made me feel like my teaching had made a difference to many of them, which is what teaching is about in the end. In addition to teaching, I was able to travel to many places in the country that I had never thought about visiting. And to neighboring countries I hadn’t thought about visiting. All in all, I would say it was a successful 2.5 years. It’s an experience I’m glad to have had. And I’m glad to be moving on.