Hey everybody!  Sorry I am unable to write everyday; the only internet access we can find is a hotel 9 km away, so please don't expect an entry everyday.  I will write a journal on a Word document and post it when I can.  So sorry!

Anyway, we left Colombo on Friday and went to Kalutara, where we will be working and living.  We first went to the hospital and were shocked to see the conditions the patients were being treated in.  Rusted operating tables, unsanitary conditions, and open-air rooms were prevalent throughout the hospital.  I was taken aback by how poorly kept the hospital was.  I have grown accustomed to culture shock throughout my many travels, but I have never been so shocked in all my life as when we were walking the grounds of the hospital.  After we met with the doctors there, we met our host family, and they were very glad to have us here.  Their home, while nice and well-kept, is not air conditioned, which makes it quite difficult to live there, especially at night when the mosquito nets keep any air circulation from hitting me when I get hot at night.  The food was not bad, but I don't think I share the same taste as our family.  After we met with them for some time, we decided to go to town and get in the pool to cool off.

Neither Dabbs nor I could sleep through the night.  The combination of bugs and extreme heat coupled with not being able to breathe well in the humid room made it very difficult to live, let alone sleep, in our bedroom that we share.  We passed the night playing cards and eventually went to eat breakfast with the family.  To enjoy the day, we went to the city and shopped, and we also frequented the pool once again since we are not allowed to go to the beach due ...

Goooooooood morning Vietn...er...Sri Lanka!  It's actually 5:50 PM here, but I really wanted to start my blog with that!  Anyway, I have made it safely to Colombo, Sri Lanka, with no real disturbances, other than the man who sat in front of me on the flight from Abu Dhabi to here who complained to the stewardess about not being able to lean his chair back because my legs were so long that they prevented him from reclining.  But besides that, Dabbs and I are here, safe and sound!

When we arrived in Colombo in the early morning hours around 4 AM, we went to the Taxi Drivers' Association counter in the airport, where we were supposed to be picked up by a mysterious "Anura."  The workers at the counter told us, including one other guy from Denmark named Jacob, to go sit somewhere in the terminal.  We had no clue what was going on, but eventually a man, who was not "Anura," came and drove us to our hotel.  Upon hitting my mattress made of stone, I fell asleep and woke to the ringing of my room phone.  The receptionist called to inform me that I was being picked up for lunch, in 10 minutes.  I raced to shower and change, and then met Gishan, our project coordinator, for lunch.

We dined at an upscale restaurant just down the street from our hotel, and I ordered a black pepper chicken curry, which I had been told, was not very spicy.  I have learned my lesson to never trust the judgment of a person who eats tongue-burning hot foods on a regular basis when it comes to the degree of spiciness.  Though it was hot, the chicken curry was delicious.  After lunch, I bought a cell phone (after much "discussion" about pricing) so that I could keep in contact with everyone in Sri Lanka.  I may call home once or twice, but it's ...

Hi all!

If you've made it to this page, and can read this post...you've made it to the right place!  Right now, I am finalizing my preparations before I leave, and my anxiousness is mounting daily.  It's hard for me to focus on studying for my finals with such an exciting trip before me.  Anyway, I will try to post again on here when I make it to Sri Lanka.  Wish me safe travels!

-TF

Last Friday saw a big group of nearly forty of our volunteers get together at the beautiful beach surf resort Hikkaduwa on Sri lanka's West coast! Projects Abroad organised a blow-out beach barbeque with deliciously fresh fish, cuttle-fish curry and local vegetables being grilled on an open fire-wood and coconut shell log fire.

At around 4pm, the surfers headed out to catch the perfect waves, and many of us gathered on the beach to watch them under the setting sun.

On Saturday, we arranged to take a boat trip to the 'Coral Gardens', and although the waves were choppy, the water was crystal clear and we saw a stunning array of coral, parrot fish, sea cucumbers and barracuda, not to mention an enormous sea turtle atleast a metre wide, whom our guide informed us has been a resident of the Hikkaduwa coral for atleast 60 years.

Later that evening having dinner on the beach, our waiter hurried us over to a small patch of sand that appeared to be moving. After around five minutes, the first tiny flipper appeared and pushed through the sand, and it wasnt long before atleast thirty baby turtles had wriggled and jostled their way out of their underground nest to the surface!

Baby hatchlings instinctively find their way to the ocean from the nest, however statistically many die before even reaching the water as they fall prey to other animals and birds. Moreover, they are so small and helpless that the tide pushes them back again and again onto the sand where they remain an easy snack. For this reason, the turtles were gathered up into a bucket of sea water and taken down the beach to a turtle sanctuary conservation, run by environmentalists to try and increase the population. Many of us gladly lent a hand to gather them all up from the sand, and their shells still felt soft as ...

Kandy- Located in the Hill country

Polonnaruwa- An ancient city located in the nothern part of Sri Lanka

Anuradhapura- An ancient city with lot of pagodas

Galle- located in Southern province of the country