I woke up this morning and there was a small bloodstain on the sheet and right beside the stain was a dead black bug. This has happened before. I’m not sure what part of my upper body he/she chewed on but I’m sure I am delicious-to die for even. HA!

Yesterday when I was walking with Veena, we passed a house that is being constructed on our lane. The owner is a friend of Veena’s and is living in Australia while the house is being built. The ‘living room set’ (we use it on the second floor for viewing West Wing) that we had cushions made for belongs to this woman. Veena is storing some of her furniture while the house is being built. I asked Veena how long it took to build the house we are in and she said three years! I stopped in my tracks. She had said that earlier but I thought she meant from inception to completion with a lot of time for the architects, permits, etc. No, construction took three years. Why you ask? Availability of materials. She would pick out a tile for the bathroom say and it would be out of stock. Then she would have to wait for it. Imagine the expense of a three-year building cycle. Yikes! As I am writing this, two men are wedged between the exterior of our house and the exterior of the neighbor’s house, applying a coat of sealant then they will paint that side of the house. It was never painted before. We think this is the cause of the mildew in our closet as it in on that side of the house.. This is costing her $2,000, which is an incredible amount of money in Sri Lanka. Remember laborers get $5.00 a day here. These men obviously are getting more. They will have to get scaffolding into the tiny space at some point to reach the upper stories of the house. So she is still having numerous expenses with this project. Eventually this will be a great revenue source for her but so far that is not the case.

I can't remember if I said this before or not but Ron took his first train trip to the east coast. This is an overnight trip, leaving Colombo at 7:15 p.m. and arriving in Batticoloa around 4 or 5 in the morning. He bought a first class sleeper ticket which means you share a room with one other person. The cost was $7.00!

Today I actually did some physical work. Knowing how I hate to sweat you should be close to astounded! The balcony on the third floor has a planter that goes the entire width of the house and is about a foot wide. There are two kinds of plants in the planter: one is a trailing plant that I think is called a coral or fountain plant. It cascades over the planter wall down the front side of the house. The other plant I haven’t been able to identify but it has not done well since I have lived here. It is frequently getting fried to a crisp, particularly when we travel and I’m not here to water it daily. So Veena suggested I put some compost in the planter. Today Mr. Kularathna took we to a wonderful plant shop. You need to know that nurseries are almost nonexistent here. Usually people go to the park on the weekend and people bring plants to sell. But an actual shop where you can buy plants is a rare thing indeed. So I resisted buying plants, which I was dying to do because they are all so different here but I did buy 20 kilos of compost. That’s about 44 pounds. Mr. Kularathna asked me how I was going to get it upstairs and I told him a bucket at a time. Remember I’m old! HA! He laughed and toted it up to the third floor for me. You can’t imagine how happy I was as it saved me about fifteen trips going up and down three floors. So I put on my new sleeveless t-shirt I found at Odels’ Warehouse (more about that later) and my short and started spreading the compost. Thank goodness there was a cloud cover today or I would have been fried to a crisp. It took almost the whole bag. I was wringing wet by the time I finished, had compost all over me and the balcony but was so pleased to have nurtured the plants. I cleaned the balcony and me up and had lunch and promptly took a nap, as I couldn’t get to sleep last night until 2:00 when I finally resorted to drugs, Sleepy Time I think it is called.

I got up at 6:00 to walk with Veena who decided not to go today as she was going on a trip. I seriously considered going back to bed but remembered I have gained two pounds and I’m not interested in it going to four pounds so sashayed my hinny out the door and down the lane. My one excursion today so to go see what Odel’s Warehouse was. I keep thinking I am going to be able to find some of those clothes made here for western women and buy another skirt. When I went to the nearby post office recently I spied Odel’s Warehouse. Odel’s is the only department store in the country! I went in and there is always an abundance of clerks so I asked one what the difference between Odel’s and Odel’s Warehouse was. He said, ‘this is where you get bargain prices’. I was careful not to laugh since you can buy great polos and cotton shirts for $3.75-$5.00 at Odel’s! So I got two sleeveless t-shirts (one was a brand name I knew), a good quality rubber spatula, and a tie/belt hanger for my buddy. My bill was $7.50. Like the man said, bargain prices.

That’s it for today from Sri Lanka, paradise in the Indian Ocean.

Ron and I haven’t liked the newspaper we subscribed to because it seems very unbalanced. If anything bad happens in the North or East in SL, this newspaper immediately blames the LTTE. So today I went to a newsstand and bought two papers that Veena reads to check them out. I liked both. I decided to look at the classified for jobs since I have started working with the group of young women just to see what kinds of jobs are advertised. You should know that in SL, they specify age and gender in their ads, like we did years ago. How many has it been? To add insult to injury I saw an ad that read “Office Peon”. Who would want to apply to such a job? Yikes! I kept turning pages until I got to the Marriage Proposals page. Yes that’s right. This is where parents are trolling for mates for their children. I want to give you a taste of this, as it is so unfamiliar to us.

Buddhist parents seek a suitable partner for their only daughter Lecturer 33 years (younger looking) 5’3” and slim, must be a teetotaler. Those who stay abroad also considered. Reply with horoscope specially with Saturn 8 horoscope.

Parent seeks partner for their 34 (yr old) daughter, legally divorced (innocent party) after a paper marriage of 2 weeks, employed in a private organization. Dowry 31/2 lahks in cash ($3,500), jewelry and other things. Reply with horoscope to suit Kuja in 1st house.

Moor brother seeks educated partner below 62 years for sister 5’2” 55 years smart looking. Reply with full details.

Well I find it fascinating. So different from what we experience with all our freedom to pick our partners. Of course, you wonder if our way to so much better with our divorce rate. I believe the divorce rate with arranged marriages is much lower.

I went up to the roof garden last night and tonight to watch the sunset. Tonight it was a big coral orange ball. Last night the sky/cloud were all lit up orange and pink. While I was there tonight I was watering plants. Three children from the house where the maids wave at me yelled to get my attention. They thought it was neat as beans to get my attention and to wave. Me too!

For the past few days I have heard someone using a sledge hammer so today I looked around and saw workmen taking down a building a couple of houses away. All of the houses here are made of concrete. They start with columns of reinforced concrete then fill in between with a low-fire brick (they disintegrate easily) and concrete. They finish the interior and exterior walls with concrete. So this poor man has been hacking away with a sledgehammer for days now. It makes my hands and back hurt just thinking about it.

Veena had mentioned she wanted to join us on our walks as she is trying to take off some weight. She joined me for the first time this morning. What a great opportunity to get to know each other better. We chatted the entire time and made some interesting discoveries about each other. She wants to go back to work and asked if I would meet with her to help her get some direction. She worked as a merchandiser for Macy’s and Liz Clairborne here for 20+ years. She wants to do something different now. So we will start meeting this week. My former boss Mary Cumpston is laughing in heaven I’m sure. She couldn’t believe it when I left career counseling in 1994 and every time she saw me after that she would ask if I missed it. Well here I am in SL with a group of young women and my landlady doing career counseling again. So there you go Mary!

That’s it for today from SL.

Photos at www.rtsla.photofreeway

It’s pretty darn quiet around here with no Ron and no guests. I stayed home today waiting for the cable guy to come and disconnect one of the two cable outlets since we have never used it. He was supposed to here before noon and arrived promptly at 3:30. Any time you call for a cab, you need to build in 15 minutes as they are rarely on time. If you call and ask ‘where is my cab?’ they will always say ‘he’s at your door now’. On Wednesday when Ron left he got that response and the cab showed up 10 minutes later. It is a face saving culture. So you can’t exactly say they are lying when they tell you that ‘he is at your door now’ or ‘he will be there by noon’. You learn to expect it so you aren’t upset when things don’t go according to your plan. Ah island time, there is nothing like it.

The unfortunate thing is I decided to look at the Olympics after discovering they were happening at this time but our cable isn’t functioning. Instead of a TV we use the computer monitor. I think Geetha may have hit the plugs while sweeping and loosened something. There are about twenty wires around the computer and I have no idea what goes where. It’s in a spot that is hard to get to and impossible to see. Even the cable guy couldn’t figure it out. So I have no TV until Ron gets home on Wednesday. It’s funny because we never look at TV but now that I am alone with time on my hands, oh well you get the picture.

I had my second session with the young women who live in the group home. I think I mentioned that we are doing some career development work. Today one of the women read an achievement about her love of learning. She told how her family had to move to a camp because the LTTE had destroyed their village, then her father died. At ten she came to Colombo to the group home so she could continue her education, then her mother died. God, I worked very hard not to burst into tears. All the while telling this story she is smiling and telling how important schooling and learning is to her. She is an incredible young woman. I can’t help but think of how different my life is from hers. Yet she has come through it all a stronger person who is determined succeed. I wasn’t even looking for this yet it landed in my lap. Our language teacher, Chandini, is on the board of the home and asked if I would help out. Today another board member and a staff member sat in on the session. It is a privilege to be working with this group and I think I will learn as much as the participants.

Last night we had one of those wonderful Colombo rainstorms where the sky unzipped and poured rain for 60 minutes or so. There was a bit of thunder which is always fun. It made the evening cool and saved me an hour today, as I didn’t have to water the gardens. I find that if I water daily, the gardens do well but it does take at least an hour and longer when I do the lawn on the roof. It is a pleasant task if I can get out early before 9:00. After that the sun just beats down on me and god knows this ole magnolia blossom does not like to sweat. While watering I spy all manner of critters such very long tailed lizards, birds, bugs, snails and squirrels. In addition, one of the maids in a house about three houses away always claps her hands when she sees me out there. The house where she lives/works is gigantic and it has a second floor balcony where they store many large cooking vessels. That is how she discovered me. When I look up, she gives me a very enthusiastic wave. We have never met. I find it quite touching. There are several people who react in similar ways when we pass them on our walk in the morning. Ron has posted a photo of one woman. She speaks no English but is so warm to us.

Time to go scramble some eggs, my favorite dinner when RB is out of town. That’s it from Sri Lanka where the men are gorgeous, the weather sultry and the Bergmans are having an adventure!

Dick and Pat Parker arrived around 1:30 a.m. on Saturday. I was so excited to see them, I stayed up waiting for their arrival. We have had a great visit. They are easy guests. On Saturday we stayed close to home as Dick spent part of the day chasing down his luggage. He mistakenly pick up someone else’s bag but fortunately the luggage contained the owner’s contact information. On Sunday we were tourists, going to one of the older areas of town, walking along the Galle Face Green by the Indian Ocean, having a lovely al fresco lunch at Barefoot with live jazz, followed by shopping at Barefoot which specializes in hand loomed goods. I found a great book on Sri Lankan flowers and even identified an orange cosmos in our roof top garden. We went to a Chinese seafood restaurant down the street from where we live. Dick was on a mission to rediscover a Sri Lankan crab dish he had many years ago. He ordered crab but it just wasn’t the same as he remembered. On a lark, we all rode home in a tuk tuk. We had taken two to the restaurant. Pat sat on Dick’s lap and we squeezed in. Ron asked me if I was comfortable at which point I started laughing and laughed most of the way home. Let’s just say that is the last time I plan on riding in a tuk tuk with three other adults!

On Monday we went to a Buddhist temple and then to a park. We saw an elephant at each place. A gardener at the park gave us a royal tour, identifying many trees and plants for us. He was quite knowledgeable and of course asked for money after spending time with us. I came home after lunch to work on dinner as Ron had his Washington DC boss here as well as his boss from Thailand and they were coming for dinner. It was so hot that I served three salads for dinner. Only two bedrooms are air-conditioned in our home. The thought of serving a hot meal in a hot dining room just didn’t make sense to me. Tuesday Dick and Pat took off to explore the island. I haven’t decided if Dick is a courageous soul or a complete idiot for deciding to drive a rented car here. Driving here is an experience I would compare to taking LSD. There’s nothing quite like it! I got a call this morning from Pat saying they had survived the first day. I was riding in a tuk tuk at the time of the call so couldn’t hear very well. I tried to call them tonight but couldn’t reach them.

This morning I met with a manager at the SL Inst. of Local Government to get his input on good governance resource centers as apart of my volunteer assignment. I spent the rest of the day running errands. Ron came home around 3:30 to pack for a weeklong trip to the east coast of the island. He took an overnight train, leaving at 7:15 pm and I think arrives around 5:00 a.m. I am staying home to work on my two volunteer projects.

It has been unbearably hot here but cooled off today and it was quite pleasant. I was sorry Dick and Pat weren't here to enjoy the cool. They will return on Friday or Sat, the 3rd or 4th and have a few more days in Colombo before heading home to Japan where Dick lives and Maine where Pat lives when she isn't in Japan with Dick. We envy her being so close to our grandkids. We are delighted to have them here. Always before when we have gotten together there is a lot going on as we usually get together at Christmas. Then there are lots of family members and activities and grandkids to be cared for. So we have never had much opportunity to get to know each other with so many distractions. We are delighted to have this time together now.

That’s it from SL for today.

So to conitue about that dugoba. The king fell ill and asked his brother to complete it. The brother covered it will bamboo reeds and painted it with laquer and imitation gold so the king could see the completion of his 'magnum opus' from his deathbed.

Next we visited a temple/monastery called Isurumuniya Ruwanweli Seye. This was built 250-10 BC. I'm not sure of the exact date but it is built into a huge rock outcropping. If I have my story straight, the man who brought Buddhism from India to SL lived in a cave here. I'm not sure what photos Ron took last night but we will post what we have when we return to Colombo.

Today I sat in on the training. The team is doing a great job and we are all hopeful that they will have a positive impact. The program is designed to measure impact so we will report when that info is available.

The Internet cafe is not air conditioned and it is 3:30 in the hot afternoon so I am signing off for now. We return home tomorrow before the class ends (Ron is not teaching in this one) and are eager to welcome our first house guests: Dick and Pat Parker, our daughter-in-love's parents. As I was leaving home on Sunday I realized I never found matching washcloths but I think they and I will survive!

Photos at www.rtsla.photofreeway.com

We went to a very big Buddhist poya day festival 2/11 and posted photos of the two hour parade on 2/12. Also there were a few new house/furniture shots added. We saw 50-60 elephants in the parade in full dress and over 50 Kandian dance troupes. What a special night!

On Sunday afternoon we left for Chilaw, about two hours north of Colombo. We stay at a resort about 20 minutes south of Chilaw and it wa full of western tourists. Not sur what the occassion was but the resort didn't have our reservatons so we took off for Chilaw to check out the mtg. room while they figured out what to do with us. When we returned they gave Ron and me a suite. My goodness, the shower would hold four adults no problem. Monday the team took off for Chilaw while I decided to be a bum! I took a long walk on the beach, collected seashells, talked to locals, took photos, wrote postacrds and got a massage. Lord, how will I ever adjust after this exerience? Who cares! On my walk, I watched fishermen and their wives unload their nets. There were two kinds of nets for two kinds of fish: tiny little silver fish that looked like large minnows and a bigger flat fish that would require at least two for a serving.

I encountered a lovely woman on the way back to the hotel on the road. Her name is Sahayani. She wanted to show me her new home that is being built. She and her family (husband and two daughter and her father) live in a very small hose right next to the new grand home being built. She asked me to return on Tuesay to photograph her daughters before school which I agreed to do.

I stopped by the two tailors and decided to have each of them make me a skirt to match the one I wear four times a week. They cahrged $12 each. The Travelsmith catalogs retails them for $58! The resort, Club Palm Bay has the largest swimming pool in SL so before we left Colombo I tried to find a swim suit but no score. It's been about 10 yrs. since I have worn one. I decided I still was too heavy to be wearing one but lo and behold, after seeing some of the tourists at the resort I realized there is no such thing as being too heavy to wear a swim suit. There were a significant number of very overweight people in bikinis and swim suits. We are talking a 250 pound woman. So I didn't get into the pool since I didn't have proper attire.

The team returned home around 5:30 just in time to get ready for a 6:00-8:00 meeting/presentation with Commissioners and Asst. commissioners. The brand new projector did not work at the training but fortunately another person was coming up from Colombo so brought another one with her. It had been a long day to say the least. Suba was the main presentor at the training and had worked on it night and day for weeks. He is quite knowledgeable about environmental issues. Solid waste collection and disposal is a very big problem here and consequently this results in diseases such as dengue fever, Japanese encelphalitis, and dysentery. The program is teaching techniques such as separating recyclables from organic matter, composting and having predictable garbage collection days. In Colombo last week my garabage was picked up twice in one week. A first for me in the almost three months we have been in the house. No one here has roll carts or garbage cans. They use plasitc bags so if you set your trash out before the collection time/date, the bag will be torn open by dogs/crows or cattle and distributed by the wind. Gross. You are supposed to wait until you hear the collector yell 'dust bin' and then run out with your garbage. Too bad if you aren't home when they come by. That's probably why a lot of folks just end up tossing their garbage on the side of the road or in your lane. It is a system that doesn't work. We now have a compost bin for food waste and garden waste we bought at the local Fred Meyer equivilent and we now subscribe to a free mixed paper pick up service. They provide a large (2x2x3ft) cardboard box and we call when it is full. It is easy to recycle the newspapers as someone will come down our lane yelling the Sinhala word for paper and I give them the newspapers. I have seen the men stack them four ft high on the back of their bicycles.

You probably think I'm a nut case about solid waste and you'd be right. It is a big problem with some really easy solutions. 'Nuff said.

I don't think I have described schools here in terms of the architecture. Not all of them fit this description but a significant number do. They are a rectangular shaped building with walls at each end to support the roof. The sides have a series of columns that are joined by a low (2-3 ft) wall. The rest is open or has pig wire for windows. It's cheap construction and helps with ventilation I would guess. I see a lot of these in the rural areas. All children wear uniforms with shoes not sandals.

By contrast to the luxurious resort out of Chilaw we are now in Anuradhapura and staying in a place that is shabby but by no mean chic! The sheets are stained or torn, the tablecloths stained, torn and complete with spilled food from the last meal served on them. The shower curtain has mildew/mold on it, the pillows are flat and lumpy and the food while tasty is quite oily. The good news is we are located on a huge wewa-tank-reservoir that has great bird watching capacity. The Nuwarawewa was built in the second century AD and is huge.

Yesteray we went to an Internet cafe and didn't stay long as it was about 120 degrees inside. They charged Suba 30 rupees, me 70 and Ron 80. We left within 5 minutes of each other. I didn't post yesterday because it was too damn hot to keyboard.

Before dinner Ron and I went to the ancient sacred city of Anuradhapurua to see the bo tree again (the tree is from a sapling of the tree where Buddha attained enlightenment). It is the oldest documented living tree in the world. Then we went to the Ruvanwelisiya Dagoba dedicated in 140 BC. It was built by king Dutugemunu and is huge (80 meters in diameter and 53 meters in height. A meter is 39 inches.

I am expereincing technical difficulties at the internet cafe so will post this now before I lose it and continue on another post. Sorry. I know you are hanging on the edge of your seat!! HA!

Photos at www.rtsla.photofreeway.com

We went to a very big Buddhist poya day festival 2/11 and posted photos of the two hour parade on 2/12. Also there were a few new house/furniture shots added. We saw 50-60 elephants in the parade in full dress and over 50 Kandian dance troupes. What a special night!

On Sunday afternoon we left for Chilaw, about two hours north of Colombo. We stay at a resort about 20 minutes south of Chilaw and it wa full of western tourists. Not sur what the occassion wa but the resoRt didn't have our reservatons so we took off for Chilaw to check out the mtg. room while they figured out what to do with us. When we returned they gave Ron and me a suite. My goodness, the shower would hold four adults no problem. Monday the team took off fo Chilaw while I decided to be a bum! I took a long walk on the beach, collected seashells, talked to locals, took photos, wrote postacrds and got a massage. Lord, how will I ever adjust after thius exereince? Who cares! On my walk, I watch fishermen and their wives unload their nets. There were two kinds of nets for two kinds of fish: tiny little silver fih that looked like large minnows and a bigger flat fish that would require at least two for a serving.

I encountered a lovely woman on the way back toi the hotel on the road. Her name is Sahayani. She wanted to show me her new home that is being built. She and her family (husband and two daughter and her father) live in a very small hose right next to the new grand home being built. She asked me to return on Tuesay to photograph her daughters before school whcih I agreed to do.

I satopped by the two tailors and decided to have each of them make me a skirt to match the one I wear four times a week. The resort, Club Palm Bay has the largest swimming pool in SL so before we left Colombo I tried to find a swim suit but no score. It's been about 10 yrs. since I have worn one. I decided I still was to heavy to be wearing one but lo and behold, after seeing some of the tourists at the resort I realized there is no such thing as being too heavy to wear a swim suit. There were a significant number of very overwight people in bikinis and swim suits. We are talking a 250 pound woman. So I didn't get into th pool since I didn't have proper attire.

The team returned home around 5:30 just in time to get ready for a 6-8 meeting/presentation with Commissioners and Asst. commissioners. The brand new projector did not work at the training but fortunately another person was coming up from Colombo so brought another one with her. It had been a long day to say the least. Suba was the main presentor at the training and had worked on it night and day for weeks. He is quite knowledgeable about environmental issues. Solid waste collection and disposal is a very big problem here and consequentlythis results in diseases such as dengue fever, Japanese encelphalitis, and dysentary. The program is teaching techniques such as separating recyclables from organic matter, composting and having predictable garbage collection days. In Colombo last week my garabage wasd icked up twice in one week. A first for me in the almost three months we have been in the house. No one here has roll carts or garbage cans. They use plasitc bags so if you set your trash out before the collection time/date, the bag will be torn open by dogs/crows or cattle and distributed by the wind. Gross. You ar supposed to wait until you hear the collector yell 'dust bin' and then run out with your garbage. Too bad if you aren't home when they come by. That why a lot of folks just end up tossing their garbage on the side of the road or in your lane. It is a system that doesn't work. We now have a compost bin for food waste and garden waste we bought at the local Fred Meyer equivilent and we now subscribe to a free mixed paper pick up service. They provide a large (2x2x3ft) cardboard box and we call when it is full. It is easy to recycle the newspapers as someone will come down our lane yelling the Sinhala word for paper and I give them the newspapers. I have seen the men stack them four ft high on the back of their bicycles.

You probably think I'm a nut case about solid waste and you'd be right. It is a big problem with some really easy solutions. 'Nuff said.

I don't think I have described schools here in terms of the architecture. Not all of them fit this description but a significant number do. They are a rectangular shaped building with walls at enach end to support the roof. The sides have a series of columns that are joined by a low (23 ft) wall. The rest is open or has pig wire for windows. It's cheap construction and helps with ventilation I would guess. I see a lot of these in the rural areas. All children wear uniforms with shoes not sandals.

By contrast to the luxurious resort out of Chilaw we are now in Anuradhapura and staying in a place that is shabby but by no mean chic! The sheets are stained or torn, the tablecloths stained, torn and complete with spilled food from the last meal served on them. The shower curtain has mildew/mold on it, the pillows are flat and lumpy and the food while tasty is quite oily. The good news is we are located on a huge wewa-tank-resevoir that has great bird watching capacity. The Nuwarawewa was built in the second century AD and is huge.

Yesteray we went to an INternet cafe and didn't stay long as it was about 120 degrees inside. They charged Suba 30 ruppe, me 70 and Ron 80. We left within 5 minutes of each other. I didn't post uesterday because it was too damn hot to keyboard.

Before dinner Ron and I went to the ancient sacred city of Anuradhapurua to see the bo tree again (the tree is from a sapling of the tree where Buddha attained enlightenment). It is the oldest documented tree in the world. Then we went to the Ruvanwelisiya Dagoba dedicated in 140 BC. It was built by king Dutugemunu and is huge (80 meters in diameter and 53 meters in height) A meter is 39 inches. The king fell ill so hi brother took over the completionof the dugoba and had it covered with bamboo reeds and painted it with laquer and imitation gold so the king could witness the completion of his 'magnum opus' from his deathbed. Monks from as far away as Alexandria came to the dedication in 140 BC.

Lastly we visited a monastery called Isur

Photos at www.rtsla.photofreeway.com

No snakes since Saturday! Yeah!! Sri Lankan workmen never cease to amaze me. Our landlady is having some concrete work done on the road in front of her and our garage. The lead man asked if we had any Styrofoam so he could do his finish work! I guess I should be impressed that he can do finish work with scraps of Styrofoam but find it hard to believe that he has no tools to do the job. It speaks to two things: poverty and a can do attitude. There is balance in the universe. It looks very nice today. Last evening Mrs. Bakshi was ‘standing guard’ over the completed job to make sure no dogs, kids or cars messed up the finished job. Ron spied her and asked what she was doing. He and I went out and saw that the workmen had put a few bricks around the perimeter of the work to alert people that the concrete was fresh. It would not be visible once the sun set so Ron got some string, Mrs. Bakshi found some plastic pipe and I got some white plastic bags. Ron put the pipe into the holes in the bricks, strung string between pipes and I cut bags into ‘flags’ and tied them every few feet to alert drivers at night. It worked. Only one dog came along and messed up a small area. The rest is in perfect shape. The workmen repaired the ‘dog flaw’ this morning.

We have hot water as of today. Anton, the electrician was supposed to be back today to finish a job he started yesterday but was a no show. He broke a lampshade on the kitchen sconce. All the wall light fixtures have matching glass shades. Mrs. Bakshi told him he would have to replace it. So he went upstairs and took one off the third floor fixture. I think in his mind he has replaced it! I went to the shop where they were purchased and they don’t have any more. Welcome to Sri Lanka!

I don’t know if I mentioned it but Veena went to India for 10 days to a seminar or training in energy work (healing). She came home quite sick with a respiratory infection and is still not up and about. I have been so impressed with Mrs. Bakshi and how she has stepped in and supervised the many workers that have been in and out the past week or so. We have had the ‘plumber/concrete crew’, the metal guy who was building ladders for the rooftop, and the electrician. I don’t know how old she is but she has to be in her seventies as Veena is in her mid fifties.

Today I saw another very large lizard at the ditch at the end of our road. The ditch always has water in it but I’m not so sure of its origin. The lizard may have been a water monitor but was smaller than the original one I spied. This one was about 2.5 feet long.

Sunday we leave for Chilaw and on Wednesday we leave Chilaw for Anuradhapura, returning to Colombo on Friday, Feb 17th. I am pretty sure we will not have Internet access in Chilaw unless I go into town, which I am not planning on doing. The resort we stay in is lovely with a beach, the largest pool I have ever seen and birds everywhere. One of these days I should break down and get a swimsuit. So there won’t be any blogs that week more than likely.

We are eager to welcome our first overnight guests. Dick and Pat Parker, our younger son’s wife’s parents, will arrive Feb 18th at midnight Saturday morning and be with us until Tuesday when they head out to explore the island. They will return for another visit before heading to Japan and Maine. Dick is a professor at a Japanese university and Pat is retired. She spends her time between Japan and our grandkids in Maine. Let me (RB) say some of the same thing in Sinhale just so Ie can show off a little: “Mage puttage nonage amma and taatta nama Dick and Pat. Eyaa professor kenek.” This is all phonetic spelling because Sinhale uses a completely different alphabet, of which we know NOTHING!

Sunday we wanted to go out and be tourists but it turned out that since Saturday was a holiday, everything closed on Sunday! Yes, you heard me, that’s how they do it here. Any chance for another day off. Sri Lanka has more holidays than any other country in the world. So we gave up the idea of going to museums and galleries and went looking for the last of the needed living room furniture. We went to a town about 12 kilometers away where there is a lovely shop where we bought nightstands and a side peace for the living room earlier this year. We found two chairs we liked and got them. Then we saw a couch we really like much better than what we have already purchased. So now we are trying to sell our couch so we can buy the one we saw at Villa Saffron. So it goes.

That’s it for today from Paradise just north of the equator!