A Safe Arrival and New Beginnings

Ok, where to begin? I guess I will begin by describing my actual journey to Sri Lanka. First, I must say thank you to Yi Jang, who not only hosted me for a couple days in Boston before I left, but who also patiently handled my last minute worrying. As the time for my departure neared, I began to think deeply into every tiny detail of my travel arrangements. Those of you familiar with my tendency to worry know that profundity of thought is not always a good thing. However, I proficiently handled all four stages of my journey (3 flights and 1 long, terrifying car ride) and have successfully arrived at my destination!

I was able to print all three boarding passes at the airport and my checked bag was directly routed to Colombo, thank god! It is amazing, given all the other factors of my trip, that my boarding passes and connections were the largest of my concerns. Never mind the new culture, my inability to speak the language, my lack of acquaintances in the country, or the task of completing my project. Thankfully, I ran into no problems (other than walking in on a man using the airplane toilet on the flight in Bahrain) and I arrived pretty much on time to Colombo. Along the way I met a girl named Alex from England. She also works in conservation and regaled me with stories of baboons attacking her and cuddling with cheetahs – pretty solid chick in my opinion. In Bahrain, I met a woman in her upper thirties who lives in NYC, but is originally from Poland. I had just found the gate in Bahrain for my connection to Colombo and sat down, when the Polish woman threw herself down in the chair next to me and began spouting her life story and attempting to fill me with dread. Apparently, she is headed to Colombo for 23 days to enjoy a nice spa hotel and to relax on her own, away from the kids and husband. But I swear relaxing was the furthest thing from her mind. She was worried about tsunamis, kidnappings, bugs, currency exchange, etc. Fortunately, she didn’t sit next to me on the plane!

My travels took me from Boston to London to Bahrain to Colombo. Let me tell you, Bahrain was the strangest place I have ever visited. I have traveled around a bit and have never really suffered from culture shock. I suffered from it in Bahrain. I like to think I pay little attention to skin color, but when you are literally 1 of about 10 white people and about the only white girl in an airport in Bahrain, it is hard not to notice. I found myself walking through a sea of turbans, immersed in a chorus of words completely strange to me, and was attempting to read signs decorated with what appeared to me as flowery squiggles. I had absolutely no idea what was going on or what anyone was saying, but I made it through the long security line and found my gate. The flight into Bahrain itself was also strange. As we began our descent it was about 6:30pm Bahrain time and the sun was still out. About a third of the way into the descent the plane was flying through a thick gray cloud, which we remained in for about 20 mins. Once we broke through the cloud, the city was completely dark, even though it was only 7pm! Not a ray of sunlight could penetrate the immense cloud we had flown through. Sand was swirling around on the ground and bright city lights shimmered in the darkness. It was immediately evident that the tiny Kingdom of Bahrain is quite rich. I felt as though I were on a different planet. I would definitely like to return in the future and have an opportunity to walk around the city.

Alright, enough about the trip. I am sure you all want to hear about Sri Lanka!! It is fantastic! I have to admit, I am a bit overwhelmed by my transition. Currently, I am learning to accept the fact that people drive like maniacs and to eat food with only my right hand. The car ride from Colombo to Uda Walawe was terrifying. I cannot believe I didn’t see a single body strewn along the roadside. The driver told me to sleep for the 4 to 5 hr trip, but that was almost impossible. The roads are just one huge pothole after another. Drivers are constantly driving within inches of pedestrians and larger cars regularly force motorbikes off the road. I felt like I was filming a car chase scene in the Bourne Identity or something – the driver stubbornly refused to slow down and we were constantly weaving in and out of traffic. But I made it in one piece! I left Boston at 8pm (EST) on Tuesday and arrived at the park at 10am Sri Lankan time. Once I arrived at the park, I stayed up the entire day in an effort to diminish my jet lag and to get on the normal schedule. I can hardly believe I succeeded. It helped that in the afternoon Shermin and I took a safari tour of the park with a friend. It was unbelievable!! I came within 2 feet of wild elephants!! They are absolutely magnificent creatures. We drove around the park for two hours and saw wild cows, peacocks, eagles, crocodiles, and kites in addition to the elephants. By the end I was EXHAUSTED. Ashoka, Shermin’s second in command, kindly put up a mosquito net for me when I got back and I passed out.

The house is very nice. It is very open and there are no screens, but the bugs aren’t too bad. I was advised to keep the toilet seat closed because there is a large spider who enjoys that particular spot – I swear, if I ever encounter an arachnid in my toilet, I may never pee again. I have already gotten a couple mosquito bites, but overall they aren't too bad. Geckos are constantly dancing along the wall and according to Lizzie, a PhD researcher from Scotland, there is a toad who enjoys crawling into bed with her. But hey, as long as there are no ticks I am set!

Today I am allowed to just relax and catch up on emails and such. Shermin and I are planning on discussing the project in more detail tomorrow. I had an absolutely lovely, if a bit choppy, conversation with Sameera this morning. He introduced himself as my friend and dedicated assistant who is here to support me in every way with my project. It was such a kind and generous speech, despite his broken English, that I didn't quite known how to respond. I don't think I was as eloquent when I replied, but I think we have a good agreement between the two of us to put our all into the project and to support one another in our research. I am still getting used to the very direct nature of Sri Lankans. They say exactly what is on their minds, and seem to be very open with emotions and feelings. I think as time passes, Sameera and I will be able to communicate better, but for now things are a bit rough. However, I am comforted by Sameera's constant reassurances that he is dedicated to good communication and will be patient throughout our attempts at conversation.

I guess that is all for now. It turned out to be quite a long post. There is more I could talk about, but I can save it for later!