Only in Sri Lanka

Sometimes reading the newspaper here is almost like reading the National Enquirer at home. Today would be a good example. I still can’t believe it.
Postal Department warns of severe stamp shortage
(I will paraphrase to make is easier for you and me)
Most post offices in the country have run out of stocks.
The stamp department has not ordered any new stocks
from the Government Press. The government press has
exhausted the paper that is used for printing stamps. In
addition, the printing machines used to print the stamps
were being used to print various books that have been
ordered by powerful in the government.

ALL I CAN SAY IS OY! One of the things I have observed is there seems to be little thinking about consequences and not much in the way of accountability. I however have a stash of stamps! HA!

The war continues in the north and east. An aide worker was shot this week. Now NGOs are threatening to pull their people out of the area. This will be a HUGE loss as the north and east were the worst hit by the tsunami. It is compounded by the 14 years of war that was mostly fought in the north and east. There are many NGOs in the region to address all those problems. Today’s article mentioned 2000 volunteers leaving as a result of the hostilities. This is very serious but I doubt that the LTTE or the government will bat an eye.

You know you are getting old when…today I had Mr. Kularathna take me to the bakery because we are having guests for dinner (yes I managed to cook again). I was getting some bread and dessert. They didn’t have the dessert breads ready yet so I got the dinner bread and ran back out and hopped into the trishaw, telling Mr. K about having to come back later. The driver said something and I looked up and about died with embarrassment because I had gotten into someone else’s trishaw. Then I just laughed my hinny off at my mistake.

We had a lovely first experience tonight. We took our outdoor furniture (we always have it inside since it isn’t weatherproof and rain can come up so quickly) onto the rooftop garden and served drinks and appetizers. There was a lovely cool breeze up there. It was a real treat.

Sunday
Today we got a culture fix. First we went to the National Art Gallery where there was an exhibit of children’s art. There must have been over 500 pieces exhibited. But what a treat. The works were all the same size, probably 18 X 18 inches and the colors and compositions were delightful. Many of the works had a village theme, showing families going about their daily functions: harvesting grain, washing clothes, and carrying water. From there we went to the National Museum and viewed lots of Buddha statues made from carved stone or cast bronze, household items, manuscripts, masks, clothing, etc. It is amazing that we have been here this long and are just now getting around to doing this but when Ron travels we always leave on Sunday and sometimes come home on Saturday so there isn’t a lot for time for such activities. I told Ron I can now leave SL and not feel guilty.

Needless to say we are very excited to be leaving for the US next Sunday. We will first visit Ron’s mom and Bob in Marina del Rey for four days, then head to Texas where Ron has his ICMA conference in San Antonio. We will be there for seven days and head to Washington DC and Centreville VA to meet our new grandson who was due yesterday. Ron also has a meeting with ICMA and we will see Mrs. Bakshi who is in Chevy Chase Maryland and bring back clothes she has had made for her two granddaughters who are here in Colombo. It will work out perfectly as we are bringing two huge suitcases filled with clothes we never wore here and gifts. We will mail everything from southern California to a friend in Vancouver and have two empty suitcases for Mrs. Baski’s 100 pounds of clothes. We will have another suitcase for our traveling needs. This way we won’t be over our limit when we return home in December since we have bought a lot of light weight clothes since being here.

Tonight we are taking Veena out to dinner with our friend Peter Leth. Veena wants to learn more about NGO’s and employment opportunities. Peter works for UNICEF. Last Sunday UNICEF sent Peter to Trincomalee in the northeast of the island. Recently the US Embassy sent out a warning that no Americans should travel to Trincomalee. Oddly enough UNICEF has a rule that their employees cannot travel at night due to increased danger. How strange they would send him to Trinco after the embassy warning. Fact is stranger than fiction…

That’s it from paradise five degree above the equator.