I’ve spent the last two days going to stores that sell furniture trying to determine what’s available and costs. I’m done and ready to go to the house and measure some rooms to make sure we don’t buy a dining room set that is too big or get other furniture that doesn’t fit the scale of the rooms. Hopefully we can do that this week. Our lease contract should be delivered today. We then fax it to ICMA for approval. Once approved, I can start making purchases and store things at the house while final touches are being done to wrap up construction. In between I need to drag Ron out to see what I have scouted and make some decisions about aesthetics and of course cost! There is a variety to choose from, many traditional Sri Lankan styles would include rattan backed, bottomed settees and chairs. It’s not my first choice but is on the drawing board. Given the climate here, traditional upholstered furniture is way down the list. The dining sets we’ve seen include a wood called tri rubber which is a soft wood, C grade as opposed to teak which is a hard wood A grade and about 40% more expensive. Stay tuned…

Given that I’m 60 I can’t remember if I mentioned the staffing in the hotel, stores and restaurants. Most of the housekeeping staff is men. I’d guess 75% or more. A trainee makes 3000 rupees a month, that’s about $30. Men staff the restaurants in the hotel and outside the hotel and the shops are mixed maybe evenly with men and women but by our standards the shops would be overstaffed. Yesterday I went into a craft store and bought some postcards. One person took the cards, took me to a room away from the cashier to write up my purchase. I then went back to the cashier and paid and a third person at another counter handed me my cards.

While I was out yesterday far away from the hotel I got hungry and my tut tuk driver suggested a beach restaurant because we were quite close to the ocean. I asked him to join me but he refused. I have a feeling one never eats with their driver, housekeeper or gardener. I was seated at a table that was under the thatched roof and in the sand. I asked for a menu and a few minutes later the waiter brought out a plate with a raw dead fish, a crab and prawn on top of the fish. There were some raw greens on the side. I pointed to the prawns and he said they would be prepared with garlic butter (what could be bad), rice and vegetables. It took a while but I got about 6-7 large prawns, a huge plate of rice and some lovely sautéed greens. I had ordered bottled water and got a liter sized bottled. My order with taxes and tip was a whopping $7.70! On the beach!!

Another thing I have noticed is that a lot of Sri Lankans do not wear shoes. Not sure if that is for comfort or due to poverty. Many workmen in the hotel remodel are barefooted. The painters and the ones that scare me the most, the guys on the scaffolding which here is 1.5-maybe 2-inch pipe are without shoes. Yesterday there were a number of men (6-7) who were cleaning out the fishponds. They wade into the pond with nets, catch the fish and put them into a pond other than the one they are cleaning. There are lots of fish and some turtles in the ponds. The men were in the foul water (turtle and fish poop and decayed plant matter) and they were barefooted. Yikes! I know Americans are freaks about cleanliness but you could get real sick in that water seems to me.

Being from the NW where it rains all winter, I never thought I would say this but yesterday it rained off and on all day here and the sun never came out. I loved it because it was cool most of the day. It doesn’t get that dark here when it rains and it’s a warm rain so you don’t get chilled. I am anticipating acclimating before we leave at the end of 2006. Keep your fingers for me.