Sri Lanka
I lived in Sri Lanka between June 1998 and June 2000. It was still the days of film cameras and I am saddened to say I didn’t take enough photos. Anyway, I have scanned them into my computer and helped by my old diaries have manage to patch together a few pages which maybe of interest. (Certainly to me!)
Early explorations
8 Jul 1998I arrived in Colombo on 29th May 1998 having just escaped the overthrow of Suharto after two years living in Indonesia. Fortunately I had friends in Sri Lanka and my first escapade in the country was to play golf in Nuwara Eliya and stay in the colonial era hotel, the famous Hill Club. Not a bad introduction to Sri Lanka, certainly different from my recent experiences in Indonesia. But I had to find a job. I had been teaching…
Hill Country and beach escapes
1 Jun 1999I’d been in Sri Lanka for three months and settled in quite nicely. I’d already been on explorations in the hinterland, got a job at the British Council and moved into a house in Rosmead Place in Colombo. My first term at the BC had finished so time for another trip away, this time to the Hill Country. 28 Sep 1998 Up at 7am and soon on the bus to Haputale. I checked into Mr Amarasinghe’s Guest House, where I’d…
Exploring the East coast and beyond
11 Aug 1999June 1999 was a big time for me. I had moved into my new house in Pepiliyana but there was no time to settle in, it was holiday time and this time a trip to the war torn East coast. First stop was Habarama a five hour journey. I stayed at the Village Hotel and was joined by the BC crew who were travelling by van. It looks like an expensive place now but I wasn’t impressed at the time…
New Year 2000
26 Jan 2000The run up to Christmas 1999 wasn’t the best. I had got knocked off my bike, fortunately not sustaining any major injuries but there were also a series of suicide bombings in the city. In one, 38 were killed and the President lost an eye. In the aftermath there was a curfew but surprisingly life pretty much returned to normal. It was a war zone after all. I had some friends over and on Christmas Day we had a fantastic…
Around Colombo and final days
26 Jun 2000I’ve covered most of the trips I made around Sri Lanka on other pages so this is a bit of a mish mash of other short trips and photos of Colombo and the two places I lived in my time there. I think central Colombo was not the most attractive of cities but it’s a shame I didn’t take more photos. Mainly to keep fit and to socialize I played for the Puffins Rugby team. We mainly just played touch…