Heading to Sri Lanka

This morning I got up ready to head to Sri Lanka! Honestly, I would have loved to have slept longer because my throat has been feeling really scratchy lately. But at least my flight was a 1PM and not at a super early hour. I was able to arrive at the airport around 10:15 AM and left around 9:50AM. Once I got the first round of security to the shops my goal was to find a pharmacy to buy cough drops or vitamin C… but lo and behold there were none. Closest thing to vitamin C would be fresh orange juice so I sat down and had a drink with no ice. Another guy sat and had a cappuccino. Then a family came in. A dad with his daughter and son. The dad, Sharief, introduced himself right away and asked for a photo. I said it would be OK as long as I got one too. So they got their photos and I got mine then he offered to get an Americano ☕️ for me which I offered to and ended up splitting with him. His daughter and I were buddies all morning. She’d always spot me and wave, saying “Hiiii” or I’d spot her, smile and wave. 👋🏾  At the boarding area, at her seat on the plane, filling arrival cards, etc. She was super cute. Her dad said she was 13 I think and her little brother Abdullah 7. Their mother died this summer. Her dad said he really appreciated the memory of meeting me and I was happy to take the photos with them. 

I’m in the arrivals area now waiting on the last volunteer to get here for the past 1.5 hours. It’s a 3 hour drive to Kandy so we all need to carpool together. I hear there’s another volunteer who took a weekend trip waiting outside. 

This time it’s a hostel type living situation so should be interesting especially since I haven’t had a dorm room, bunk bed sleeping situation since … well college lol. This time I may have a mosquito net too. The net was way bulkier than I thought but I guess that’s to be expected; it takes up a lot of surface area.  

Now I’m just people watching as hosts with signs greet guests they don’t know and families and friends reunite with big smiles, flowers and hugs. I did find some bottled water which I dumped a vitamin C pack into and changed some money. Now just texting people and writing this post as I wait. We have a 3 hour drive to Kandy so won’t submit this post till the night is truly over! 

A few hours later….

I’ve met two other volunteers both women. One will be teaching English with me the other volunteering at a hospital. The last person arrived almost two hours after I arrived so we got on the road and 1 hour into the ride I realized I would have to go to the bathroom before this 3 hour ride was up! 😩 it was all that water I drank in a 2 liter bottle with my vitamin C. I was dreading being the one to mention I had to go especially since that was the last thing I did before leaving the airport! So when we pulled over I was so relieved! 

We had just stopped at a local friend rice restaurant connected to a hotel! Surely they would have a bathroom! 

Well they had something and that outhouse did the job. I was taken down a paved path behind the building using my iPhone flashlight to see. And here I was there was light at the end of the tunnel! And a pipe with a bar of soap too! 

I felt so much better after that and was able to enjoy the meal and the car ride to Kandy without forcing myself not to think about my bladder, water, rivers, etc… 

A few more hours later… 

We are here! I’ll have to continue tomorrow it’s been a long day and my throat is bothering me…