Newspapers / Meredith College Student Newspaper / Jan. 25, 2006, edition 1 / Page 3
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CAMPUS NEWS Junmry 25,2006 5 Journals from Sri Lanka Rebecca Thompson, ‘07 January 4,2006 Walking to an ATM in Co lombo is a little like dodging a parade of elephants, and I should know because I have now done both. Fortunately, our trusty guide Upali seems to navigate even the busiest streets to find us a working ATM so we can buy won derful artifacts for everyone at home. Colombo is a busy city that reflects the juxta position of traditional Sri Lankan culture and Western influences. Traditional Bud dhist and Hindu temples are scattered throughout the city, but Western architecture can be seen in the Colombo Town Hall which resembles the White House. Today we also got to see the mixture of the two cul tures in the home of Nihal and . Shrima Senviratne. They treated us to a wonder ful Mongolian stir fry lunch that ended with a delicious orange mousse with choco late syrup. We spent most of our time in the indoor/out door sitting room talking to the couple. The room was part of the house but contin ued out into a semi-covered patio that was home to some plants, fish, and one very friendly turtle. There was no need for air conditioning be cause the open patio allowed a cool breeze to enter the home. After lunch we enjoyed a wonderful afternoon with the children from the orphan age. The young boys were extremely well behaved and didn’t seem at all apprehen sive about spending an en tire afternoon with intelli gent women. The rain didn’t stop everyone from enjoy ing a rollcrcoaster ride or two. 1 did have a breakdown in communication when I tried to order two scoops of chocolate ice cream, but got two ice cream cones instead. After saying goodbye to the boys we enjoyed a chilly ride back to the hotel, but keep warm by singing old camp songs and anything else we could re member. Unfor tunate ly we couldn’t get our guide and bus drivers to return the fa vor by singing us a Sri Lankan tune, but maybe that will be our goodbye present tomorrow. Lauren Stanfield, ‘07 January 4, 2006 Today was our last full day in Sri Lanka. Wow! The time has gone by really fast, and 1 can’t believe that we are leaving to go home tomor row. We started off the day with a short tour of the city of Co- lumbo. That’s where most of our Sri Lankan friends are from, Upali (the tour guide) and Darshe and Nadee who have helped us understand and love Sri Lankan cul ture all throughout this trip. It was nice to see Columbo and all the surroundings. We stopped at the independence hall, which Sri Lanka got detailed engravements and art on the ceilings. 1 could ponder at it for a long time because there was something new around each column. We were treated to lunch at the house of the Senevi- ratnes, who arc friends of Dr. Webb and John Rose. They so graciously welcomed us into their wonderful home, feeding about 24 of us travel ers. We were able to talk in timately with both Nihal and Shrima from everything to the Tamil/Tiger ethnic issues, to the role of the woman in a Sri Lankan household. They are both intelligent people, but they were very kind and down to earth, often kidding about how Shrima rules the way they want.” She was a lovely woman. Seeing their home was a nice treat, but we had to rush off to see the boys of the orphanage. We spent the rest of the day playing at mini amusement park with about 15 boys from the orphanage. It is an amaz ing story about how one man felt it is his purpose in life to tend to these boys, after he had en countered much suc cess in life, he didn’t feel fulfilled. He was a very kind man. Re becca and I were able to give him lots of Meredith Soccer gear (courtesy of Coach Paul Smith) and we chipped in some of our own personal gifts as well. I can’t wait to see the pictures of them wearing and supporting Meredith College. Although it rained most of the time, that didn’t stop us from riding the mer ry-go-round, as well as rid ing bumper cars. That was so much fun. Those kids can make any situation fun. It was a great feeling to see them smiling and having a good time. They are the most kind-hearted children I have ever met. Tonight was bittersweet. I got to see Darshe and Nadee all dressed up and was able to spend dinner with them one last time. I don’t want to leave Sri Lanka. 1 feel there is so much more to discover. However, I am very blessed to have come on this trip. Not only have 1 learned about a beautiful country, that in a time of disaster has proved to so many that they can over come catastrophe, but I have also made many new friends. There are not enough words or time to say what I have discovered from this trip. It was truly an enlightening ex perience, one I hope to share and keeping sharing with people around me. on February 4, 1948. It was house saying, “men play the a nice monument with very tune, but women dance they Juniors Rebecca Thompson and Laureii Stanfield take a quick nap on the bus before their next stop Caption; From left to write. Erica Oakley, Mary Covington Walker, and Jessie Caudle enjoy a taste from home while briefly escaping the heat.
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