Reflections on 80.

 The thing about life is that we never know how long we will retain our memory. That is why I am so happy I started this blog about quarter  century ago and record almost everything. (Wish blogs were invented long before though.)

I was reflecting on becoming 80 which sounded so remote up to a week ago.

 But now I will soon move away from that landmark and end up where I wonder?

This is why I am saving these pics to remind me of all who helped me celeberate, from nearby Plantation and Lauderhill to distant Sebring  all in Florida. 

Last year I had big plans with friends to go on a cruise around sections of Southern Africa from Mauritius to Cape Town in 2026, to celebrate this milestone. However, my heart objected, informing me that I have to stay close my cardiologist.

So,  I will be finishing off the celebration next month with my immediate family, on a cruise in the the nearby Caribbean. (Some have school till June).

It is what it is.

To get the celebrations going, we started started in Plantation where my good friend Carolyn hosted a wonderful dominoes session.

 (https://joan-myviews.blogspot.com/2026/05/dominoes-forever.html)

Horace, Carolyn,  uncle Lesly, uncle Ruddy, Hollden at dominoes on my birthday. 

Then it was off  to lunch with my Trini friend Helena.

Not only was the Trini curry goat delicious,  but I have to thank Helena for reomtroducing me to Indian food. For you see, I was in Sri Lanka exactly a year ago, and while it was a great experience,  there they not only curry almost everything,  but the hot spices nearly killed me!🤢. 

I had never met hotter peppers in my life and thus I swore off curry.

But the Trini version was a delicious, gentle reminder that not all curry is hot and my once favorite roti, bussup shut, was most welcome.

Bussup shut.

Next we finished off the celebrations in Sebring where Camille and I drove to,  to spend the long weekend  with my lifelong, bosom friend  Sunshine and my extended family.

Thr Golden girls aka the scrabble ginigogs😁

The octogenerian.

Today (23rd) is Givannis birthday, but that makes him a Gemini, not a great Taurean😁. 

 He turns 13.

Yep it was great to get out of the city and hang around with more "family."❣️💕

Cardiff is extra special too for athough he was born an Adventist so pork has never touched his mouth, he had no problem seasoning and cooking the most delicious pork shoulder for me.😄.

Big up Cardiff.

It was so well seasoned, soft and delicious that I even had some for breakfast next day!

It's been a great 80th celebration.

On to the next big landmark.😉

Galle/ Dutch Fort.

I thought my last weekend in Sri Lanka would be a total washout, as it started to raining non-stop from Thursday.

 We planned to go to Galle,  in southwest Sri Lanka, about 71 miles from Colombo.

We left Colombo in the pouring rain early Friday morning and it rained all the way to our destination.

Then ta-da, as we arrived, it stopped raining and has been great ever since.😊.

Latsane, Joan, Sharlene, Damith 

My hosts Damith/Sharlene and I all stayed in nice little hotel in town called Blue Heaven. Later we had a grand time hanging out at Galle Fort with their friend Latsane.

This Fort, built by the Portuguese in 1588, is on the Indian Ocean.

In 1649 it was fortified by the Dutch and is today an important architectural heritage site controlled by UNESCO.

The entire town and surroundings are growing rapidly, partly due to the influx of tourists.

However 21 years ago, much of the town was flattened by the tsunami which devasted much of south east Asia.

Thousands of people were swept away and killed, 500 just in the transport center in town alone! 

Naturally the ruins were also damaged but you
wouldn't believe it looking at the surroundings today.

A replica of the original small town.

Most of the archeological site remains in pretty good condition, despite having been badly damaged in 2004.

Miniature, showing the original design of the city.

A huge Mosque near the ruins. As it was Friday, many Muslims were busy in the area.

The very angry Indian Ocean.

Like much of Sri Lanka, this city is home to religious adherents from all the major religions, but the dominance of Buddhism which is so obvious in other areas, was not visible.

A Buddhist temple on the hill quite a distance away. I could also see a huge, old Christian church in town, from the fort.

The roof of the solid ammunition storage building.

A Muslim on her way to the Mosque ahead.

A coconut tree grows out of the large granite rock heap offshore.

These ladies in beautiful saris are teachers at the International School. The saris are their uniform.

A small cafe has been set up in the midst of the ruins.

Tourism is now Sri Lanka's second most important industry, so both local people and visitors flock this area. 

This is a recognized UNESCO world heritage site and every time I visit a place like this, I wonder why we are joking around with our sunken city, Port Royal?

 Such a damn shame.😡

Pic of the very angry Indian Ocean below!

This lovely house on the Ocean was badly damaged by the tsunami, but they fixed it up nicely.
That's where we stayed overnight before heading back to Colombo.

Young people challenging the rough surf on their boards.

There is a statue of Buddha on the hill overlooking the town of Galle.

The Indian Ocean is so rough and sounds so fierce, it's kinda scary.

The sand looks nice though.

Among Damith's friends that we had drinks with on Friday night was Dr Ruwan who served as coroner in Jamaica for 3 years.

Then to my surprise, on returning to Colombo I discovered that my wonderful hosts Sharlene and Damith, had organized a goodbye dinner for me with some of their young friends.

L-r. Charaka, his wife Tara, Dr. Damith, and Ganga.

It's been an overwhelming three weeks as there is so much to see and do in that very big island. And the Sri Lankan people are so warm and generous.

It's really true that time flies when you having fun.

And boy, did I ever have fun😊.

_________________________________________

Update. The rains that started on Thursday night turned into quite a storm with high winds later in the night. It damaged the roof of 
Latsans parents home in Galle. 

He is a contractor though so had already repaired it by midday Saturday when we saw him again. 👏

That same storm however killed a family of seven in another area close by. Their home  collapsed on them.🥺

It's the beginning of the monsoon season in Sri Lanka and the weather seems to be intensifying now.