Colombo, Sri Lanka

While I have been spending most of my time in Sri Lanka in the country areas, yesterday my hosts took me downtown to show me the new Port City now under construction.

At lunch with Cmdr. Ravi, the number 2 officer in the Sri Lankan Navy.

This area is being developed by the Chinese on over 400 acres of mostly dumped up land. It's right across from old Colombo and beside one of the controversial container ports.

According to Dr. Damith, in 10 years this area will be Asia's predominant financial center.

Now, the only section in operation is the small beachfront entertainment area, but many people have started to visit and enjoy it already.

Love of ice cream is international, so this shop is at the entrance.

You can get a good view of the city center from there.

This is the old parliament building. (It's the only place I have seen the Sri Lankan flag, (so far) for it's the Buddhist flag that's predominant elsewhere.)

You can go to the top of this building and get a view of most of Colombo. It's called the "lotus building".

According to Wikipedia: "The lotus flower is a sacred symbol in Buddhism, representing purity, enlightenment, and awakening. Its ability to bloom in murky waters and rise above the surface symbolizes the potential for spiritual growth and transformation, even in the face of difficult circumstances."

(Because of the predominance of Buddhist symbols here one, may get the impression that this could be a theocracy. 

This is not at all so, as every religion is openly practiced here and Buddhism, though powerful in the culture and religion, is not involved in civil government.)

The exercise area is already in use. It includes a jogging lane and a cycling lane.

When we left Port City, we walked a short distance to the Navy Officer's Mess Hall for lunch.

 Only families and friends of senior Navy personnel are allowed there.

The Navy symbol.

Damith's friend Ravi is the head of the civil engineering division of the Sri Lankan Navy and the second highest officer in it's ranks.

That's the emblem outside the dining room. I suspect it's been there from the colonial period.

The mess hall is right across from the lighthouse.

Sections of Colombo near the train depot, remind me of downtown Kingston (Princess Street area) where everything is available in the shops and on the sidewalks.

Reminds me of the Princess Street area in downtown Kingston.

When I looked at the name of the street we were standing on, it was Prince Street.😁

After a lovely day of enjoying the downtown area, it was back home via the local train which was as crowded and rickety as a New York's subway!

Their rail system is one segment of their highly efficient transportation network that seems to facilitate their 22 million population very cheaply and efficiently.

(The population in the capital Colombo, is some 3 million)

For a cost less than $500 Jamaican, I took the train (by myself 😊) on a 7 hour trip to Anuradhapura! 

The criss, brand new coach.

Admittedly, the coach I traveled in going up, was old but at least had reclining seats and foot rests. 

The coach I returned in was brand new and criss, nicer than any I have ever seen in Amtrak, the US 's main train service.

I am really impressed with their cheap, efficient transport system made up of rail service, public buses, (they charge half the price of private buses and give tickets as you pay), private buses, millions of taxis and ride-share vehicles using tuk tuk (aka three wheeler), bikes and cars.

 More on that anon.

More memories in pics.

This is a man made beach!

Little Acts of Kindness

Litte things can really make a big impact in our lives.

Recently my friend Camille and I took an Amtrak train from Hollywood, Florida to Sebring, Florida to visit friends. When we got there, we noticed that a sign on the door of the station declared that it had been temporarily closed by the fire department. When we saw it, the sign did not make an impact us, as our friend was there waiting on us so we did not need a rest room, water or an air conditioned place in which to escape the close to  90 degree weather outside.

However, on our return journey two days later, when we arrived at the station and checked the status of our train, we were informed that it was running an hour late. (Smart people check these things before going to the airport, railway station etc. so I suppose we do not fall into the category of smart)!😖

When you have the boiling midday sun to contend with, an airconditioned waiting room and water are big deals!

A good idea

It was therefore a wonderfully welcome surprise when an African American man in a back truck, started to walk around asking if anyone wanted cold water or cold drinks. My friend Camille got two ice cold bottles of water and on asking how much it was, the smiling reply was "its free."

That's the reason for this title, for I personally had never experienced such an unsolicited act of generosity from a stranger since moving to the USA some six years ago.

At first, I thought he was an Amtrak employee who had come to relieve our misery as the train was late and the waiting room closed. However, it turned out that he was just a kind gentleman who saw many passengers waiting in the sun at the station and decided to help.

He left shortly afterwards, after ensuring that whoever needed a thirst quencher had been supplied.

Amtrak was a disappointment in general.  

I love travelling on trains but the one we took up to Sebring on the 28th of May, 2022,  had a cafeteria that didn't work and at least one ticket agent who didn't care whether the information he gave out was correct or not.

 I didn't know such workers existed, and unfortunately, he was the one I sought to get information about the cafeteria from!

Instructions at the dog bathing station

When we asked him if it was open yet, he said it had opened long ago!                                                                                                                                                                      It never opened during the entire, almost three-hour trip, because of 'technical problems' according to an announcement.                                                                                                                                                                  Unfortunately, we again encountered that lousy ticket agent on the return trip. For we saw his at the door of the train going north which arrived before ours, going south, was due. When we asked how long our train was delayed for, instead of saying he didn't know or checking with his headquarters, he told us 'it was running about "ten minutes late." 

When we checked the Amtrak one eighthundred number, we were informed it was delayed for over an hour!

Amtrak really needs to hire ticket agents on their trains who care about the type of information they give to passengers or others who are more like the agent in their office in Hollywood who was so pleasant and helpful.

Anyway, since the scenery in Florida is so boring, I don't see myself ever again taking their train to go anywhere else in the state.

Despite Amtrak, we had a great time in Sebring with friends.

I even got the opportunity to revisit Lake Placid, aka the town of murals. It is so called, as all available walls in the tiny town seem to have great murals painted on them.

I had first visited the town a few years ago to attend the annual Caladium festival with my Meet Up hiking group. Joan, my views: Caladiums galore (joan-myviews.blogspot.com)

This time I went there with my hosts to bathe their dogs! 

Thats right, for at a farm store, there is a very convenient dog bathing facility which I found very unique.

I had never seen such a public facility in any other pet-loving town and was so impressed with it that I declared that if I were younger, I would set up some 24 hour stand alone stations like that in other cities!😏

So despite the lousy Amtrak experience , we all had a wonderful Memorial Weekend in Sebring in 2022.

I will admit though that although the train for the return trip was an hour late and the waiting room was closed so we had to sit outside, that trip was far more pleasant.

 To begin with, the cafeteria worked and there were agents calling out the upcoming stations and the time it would take to get to each, on this train. 

Nothing like that was done on the trip from Hollywood to Sebring. 

Amtrak Florida needs to not only overall its service, train its staff properly and have its waiting rooms available, but they also need to upgrade their stock. For I have travelled by train in other states, Canada and Europe and this was really the oldest, slowest and creakiest train that I have ever traveled on!

Thank heavens it couldn't spoil the weekend with friends for us though.