Welcome to Cricket Crazy Sri Lanka!

Oh Lanka how I adore thee, I love your sandy beaches, your mountains, your supreme natural beauty, your spicy food and the people with perpetual smiles on their faces, but above all I love the many public holidays that I get to enjoy all of my favorite things.

A couple of days ago while I was surfing the web (I am an addict) I ran out of things to read. More precisely I ran out of things that I perceived as being worthy of my time. It was while I was indulging in this addiction of mine that I came across the Sri Lankan Calendar for 2011. I knew that we had plenty of public holidays but 27? That’s only a few days short of a month! 

I grew up in the hill capitol, Kandy so I will from time to time post about my native land. Anyone who has ever set foot on Lanka will tell a tale of a country so unique that not even its own citizens will ever fully comprehend. To fully understand the country and its people one would have to study its 2000 years of History which thanks to Buddhist roots is well documented in the Mahawansha. It describes the life and times of the people who forged our nation, from the coming of Vijaya in 543 BCE to the reign of King Mahasena (334 – 361) (6th Century BC to 4th Century AD). A companion volume, the Culavamsa or Choolavansha ("lesser chronicle"), covers the period from the 4th century to the British takeover of Sri Lanka in 1815.

Nothing absolutely nothing feels better than returning home. I touched down in Sri Lanka last week for the first time in three years. This is also the first time that I am setting foot in a war free Sri Lanka (the three decade long civil war ended in 2009). To spice things up further the country is in the midst of co-hosting the Cricket world cup and a banner of ‘Welcome to Cricket Crazy Sri Lanka’ is the first thing one sees when entering the main terminal building at the airport. Life size posters of the nation’s star players line the walls while the employees sport matching blue and gold Cricket jerseys. Opposing teams are sure to feel a little intimidated and will know that they have entered the Lion’s den.

The last time that the tournament came to the subcontinent in 1996 Sri Lanka emerged victorious and will be hoping for a repeat. When the then captain Arjuna Ranatunga lifted the trophy in Lahore it set a nation off. The celebrations in Colombo lasted all night and in that moment an entire nation forgot that they were at war. It also made sure that Cricket became a part of the Lankan identity. The story of Sri Lanka Cricket since then is an amazing one that is worthy of its own blog.

In the last edition of the tournament held in 2007 the Sri Lankans went all the way to the championship game only to have their hopes shattered by a formidable Australian side on a rainy day in Barbados. Unlike in India where Cricket is a religion in Sri Lanka it is still a sport and the team was given a warm welcome. The country has forgotten that heart break and moved on and are now ready to mount a fresh assault.

There is of course more to Sri Lanka than Cricket and I will write a little more about it in the future. Whenever I write about Sri Lanka I am left with this sense that I did not do it justice because there is so much that I could write. However, I have no intention of writing a book so I will stick to short posts.    

For now it is goodbye from warm, sunny and Cricket crazy Sri Lanka!

The Best Seller of them all

“The World is a book; those who do not travel, read only one page”~ Saint Augustine

I came across the above quote the other day and it got me thinking and I do believe that Saint Augustine got the idea right and we shouldn’t forget who the author is either.  However I think that in a modern context it is probably more accurate to say that the world is a library and that those who do not travel only read one book.

The world today is for one thing a lot more accessible and travelling to far off places is almost as easy as checking a book out of the public library in your neighborhood. Easy doesn’t however mean cheap and rising oil prices have put a heavy burden on the modern day traveler.

Not even in today’s context does anyone ever cover the entire world; it is as close to impossible as reading every book in a sizable library is. There are bound to be books that you do not find interesting and ones whose content you will not agree with. Similarly the world is so diverse that there will be places that you will love visiting and others that you won’t enjoy as much. Two readers could read the same book and not agree on the message; likewise two travelers could visit the same place and come out with two completely different experiences.

However, the truth that the words of St Augustine hold is apparent to anyone who has turned the page. There are those who will spend the entirety of their lives not travelling and be content, not knowing what they are missing out on. It is when you venture out of your comfort zone that good things happen and travel is no different. For most people like me travel is as addictive as any drug that’s out there. If you are still wondering whether you should flip that page over or not all I can say is go for it! I promise you that it will quite literally change your world.      

It is kind of like Swimming

In the past couple of months I have started going to coffee shops more frequently. I am no coffee addict but I like having a cup of coffee while surfing the internet or while working on random projects. I have met a lot of interesting people during these times and had a considerable number of stimulating conversations. It was during one such conversation that I found myself discussing study abroad experiences with a group of friends. The conversation got me thinking about some things that I considered being blog worthy.  

            If you have ever travelled or if you have interacted with tourists in your own country then I am sure that you have come across those nice polite ones who seem to respect the people and the culture around them. However, you are also likely to have crossed paths with those who seem oblivious to what is culturally acceptable and what is not. They do not seem to realize that behavior which is culturally acceptable in their home country may be frowned upon in their new surroundings. To be fair by those who are new to global travel it is hard to know what to expect and how to behave in an unfamiliar environment. It is a skill that you learn the same way that you learn how to swim. You can’t learn how to swim without getting into the water; similarly you can’t interact with different cultures while sitting at home. Once obtained these skills will not only help you survive in this new environment but it will allow you to enjoy being there.

            In the summer of 2009 I spent five weeks in the city of Oviedo in northern Spain. Famous for its mild winters which attract many a celebrity, this region of Spain has been untouched by mass scale tourism. Most of the tourists prefer the warmer Mediterranean beaches of southern Spain and the better known cities of Madrid and Barcelona. I enjoyed visiting Oviedo immensely as it provided me with a rare insight into the experiences of a traveler of an earlier generation; before globalization and the internet shrunk the world. Oviedo has remained small town Spain. The people speak Spanish and although most can understand a little bit of English they are mostly reluctant to do so unless you get them to have a couple of Cerveza’s (beers) in one of the many local bars.

            Oviedo was first place where I genuinely had problems communicating with people. Most of my previous experiences of Europe or non English speaking countries were in the major cities where the majority of the people can speak some English. In Small town Spain if you don’t know any Spanish then you are in for a rough ride. However, there are skills that will help you get through it. These skills work all around the world the same way that swimming does in any body of water.

            The first thing that I figured out that I needed to do in order to communicate with people in Oviedo was to learn to say a couple of things in Spanish such as ‘Hello’, ‘I do not speak Spanish.’, ‘Do you speak English?’ and ‘Sorry’. A Spaniard is more likely to engage in a conversation with you if you say ‘Hola’ instead of Hello. That’s a fact. The famous Sri Lankan smile also does tend to do wonders. When I started off conversations with strangers in Spanish by asking if they spoke English they were more likely to take their time to talk with me. In most cases we were able to use a mixture of my broken Spanish and their English with a touch of sign language to communicate pretty effectively. However, there were those who tried to walk up to people and speak in English and in most cases were left wondering why the Spanish seemed so rude as they would mumble an apology and go on their way.

It shouldn’t really be that hard to understand why locals prefer it when you try to use their language and customs even if you make a mess of it. Firstly it shows that you respect the fact that you are in their country. More importantly by embarrassing yourself you set a lighter mood where they are more comfortable using whatever little bit of English that they know. After all you showed that you are willing to embarrass yourself and you might even be able to get through a whole conversation just laughing at yourself. I am not suggesting that you embarrass yourself on purpose. If you can speak the native language fluently then by all means do so. Either way making an effort to learn the customs of the land will win hearts of its people.

 Think about it would you like it if someone comes up to you and starts speaking to you in a language that you don’t understand? Let’s say that you are American how would you feel if a tourist comes up to you and speaks Spanish?

In Oviedo I found myself talking to an older couple about the weather in a pub and I wanted to ask them if they thought that it would rain the next day as we had plans to go to the beach. I did know the word for tomorrow so they did know which day I was talking about but I had no idea how to say rain. So I resorted to pointing at the sky and making gestures of stuff falling from the sky saying ‘Aqua’ (Water) the whole time. They simply laughed it off and said that it should be sunny the next day by drawing a smiley faced sun on a napkin which I still have in my collection of random things from abroad.

None of this is rocket science if we take the time to look at ourselves in the cultural context. In doing so we will not only enhance our global experiences but we won’t find ourselves wondering why the locals seem so snobbish. Trust me they are not and I am not just talking about Spain. Locals tend to treat the traveler with the same amount of respect that the traveler extends to them. We often forget the age old wisdom ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you’. 

Learn without paying??

Today I was reading an article online about some things that are free today because of the World Wide Web. It talked about a website called Academic Earth. So I decided to take a peak as I had some free time on my hands. It has free online courses where one can watch videos of the lectures. Of course there are no tests and you don’t get a certificate at the end of it but for those who wish to educate themselves or learn more about a subject of interest it is an invaluable tool. Interestingly most of the courses listed on there are from well known Universities.

I found a course on there about the Conceptual Foundations of International Politics that I thought that I would check out. After sitting through 3 lectures I find myself hooked the same way that I get hooked on TV programs. I feel like a nerd but as I am always interested in International affairs so I think that I will sit through all of the 10 lectures and maybe I will walk away with some valuable knowledge on how this world of ours works.

This post is just a quick one to tell you about my find (that’s assuming that you do not already know about this). The site is full of courses ranging from classical mechanics to Roman art! So if you always wanted to take that course in college but just didn’t want to cough up the dough here is your chance. 

The Big Apple

As Thanksgiving becomes a memory and Christmas rolls in to Ames, IA the flurries bring a timely reminder of not just the masses of snow that will soon engulf the Midwest but also of the finals that are just around the corner. However, sitting at Café Milo and sipping my Coffee I am not thinking of the days to come, but of a Christmas spent in the Big Apple not too long ago. Christmas is a time that always brings a longing and a desire to be with family. It has indeed been a long time since I spent Christmas at home. In the 5 years since my last Christmas at home a lot has happened: I have graduated from both high school and college, travelled to a lot of different places, and made many friends. That however, is a different story which will have to be addressed when I write about Ames, IA.

To the world New York is the ultimate city. What better place to start explori ng NY than Ellis Island where many a migrant entered the US for reasons that were as varied as their backgrounds. This place still gives one the feeling of a new beginning.  This is what it was to the new migrants, whether they were German, British and Irish nationals seeking a better life or those from Eastern Europe fleeing persecution. They were all here for the American dream. For a third world national like me, with quite a bit of global travelling under my belt this dream is still very real as it is to many outside the US. The vast majority of the world, if asked where they would like to relocate to, will undoubtedly say the US despite the current economic downturn and international ill will brought on by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although why the US wanted to invade a country whose name most Americans can’t even pronounce still baffles me.

I however, did not enter the big apple through Ellis Island (although I would have loved to); I had to settle for landing in Newark, NJ and then driving to Staten Island. We spent most of our time crashing in the living room of a Sri Lankan family that let us stay. This was a great relief for us college students on a tight budget. The first morning we decided to take the ferry to Manhattan. Getting to the Ferry itself was an adventure, as the directions of “Keep going down this street and then take a right” seemed simple to start off with but after just one wrong turn we were lost! So we had to walk into a gas station and ask for directions.  We were taken aback when the attendant addressed us in Sinhala. We soon learnt that a lot of migrants from Sri Lanka work at gas stations in Staten Island. I figured that if one could find people from a small island on the opposite side of the world in NY then this must indeed be quite a diverse place.

Diversity is pretty much the theme of the city. Skin color, hair color, and even accents varied from one person to another. I am sure that most of these people were tourists but even so in a strange way they seemed to all belong. Even on the beautiful beaches of Sri Lanka almost exclusively reserved for tourists you know who belongs and who is visiting, but on the streets of Manhattan those rules don’t apply. The guy dressed in a suit that screams out ‘Wall Street’ could well be the tourist and the guy peering into a shop dressed in a bright orange beach shirt may well have an apartment down the street! What gives a tourist away in this city is the map of the subway system that they carry and the look of awe on their face when they set eyes on the brightly lit Times Square or the Glass cube that sticks out of the ground housing the Apple Store!

                For the rest of our stay in NY we did all of the things that tourists do. We took a cruise that took us around the Statue of Liberty; we climbed up to the top of the Empire State building, we visited the Museum of Natural History, visited the giant Christmas Tree at the Rockefeller center and even went up to ground zero and took a moment to reflect on the tragedy that shook not just the city but the entire nation. All of these places were great to visit and I would recommend that anyone visiting NY do all of these things. However, I will not dwell on these experiences as I will simply be writing stuff that one can easily find in a guide book. It is the less publicized and less flashy parts of NY that appeal to me. The subway system for instance although dilapidated and in desperate need of a facelift adds so much character to the city. The image of narrow streets with yellow cabs zooming through while many a tourist tries desperately to catch one is as much a part of New York as the Empire State Building. The little Italian pizzerias found at the corner of almost every block  present a far better (and cheaper) dining option which captures the flavor of the city better than any rooftop restaurant with a view of the statue of Liberty.

                Of all of my experiences of New York, I did save the last and the most cliché one for the last! If you are in New York for New Years Eve where do you spend it? Do you sit on a couch and watch TV? Or do you brave the cold, the unruly crowds and go see a ball being dropped in Times Square?  Being of the more adventurous type obviously I had to pick the latter! Apart from the size of the ball being dropped which was too small for having millions of people watch, Times Square did not disappoint. Standing for nearly 12 hours in freezing temperatures was not enough to dampen the mood of the crowd which had come from many different places to what is probably the biggest New Year’s party in the world. However, the well prepared police force was able to keep the huge crowd in check. I am sure that I will spend many a New Years Eve sitting on my couch watching TV and I might even see the ball being dropped in Times Square; but the one spent standing in Times Square while my toes froze, listening to people singing ‘there were 99 bottles of beer’ over and over again will be the one that I will always remember and talk about. 

                My advice to anyone visiting New York is simple: do go see the statue of Liberty, climb up to the top of the empire state building and do all the touristy things that you can find, but do save some time to ride the subway, to walk the streets and talk to the people on the street, enjoy a hotdog made by a street vendor or a slice of pizza from a road side pizzeria and while you are at it try to catch a cab and you might even get lucky!

               

Introduction: This is me.

I am not the most eloquent writer nor am I an award winning photographer but what I do have is a hard drive full of photographs and a ‘human hard drive’ full of memories. It was a family friend of mine that first suggested that I write about my experiences after listening to my stories. This blog is my humble attempt at using what I have accumulated during my time on earth to document my travels and life experiences in general. I intend to describe my experiences as they happen but in the meantime while I wait for my next adventure (whenever the funds and time allows) I will go back in time and write about some of my past experiences.

Any one individual’s experiences of a place and its people are unique. It depends on the time as we do live in a constantly changing world and also on his or her background. Therefore reading this blog would be like holding a picture taken at a particular point in time and looking at it through a lens that both enhances and distorts it simultaneously. For this blog that lens would be me which is why I thought it important enough to describe myself in sufficient detail so that the reader will have a better idea of the context of the posts.

In an increasingly small world there are an increasing number of people who have a legit claim to Global Citizenship. Having been Born and raised in Kandy, Sri Lanka and having lived/studied on 4 continents (Asia, Africa, North America, and Europe) and having traveled extensively during my quarter of a century of existence I think that I have earned the right to call myself a 'Global Citizen'.

I am a graduate of Iowa State University and a Chemical Engineer by profession. As for what I will do with the rest of my life and where I will spend that time I have no idea. What I do know is that where ever God may take me, and whatever plan that he may have for me, that will be my future. I am sure that I will follow along enthusiastically when he leads me along paved roads and grudgingly when he wants me to blaze a trail through the thick wilderness. I know that there will be both good and bad during the course and I pray that he gives me the courage to stick to the path.