With friends in Sri Lanka!

Hola,

This time I will blog about my trip to Sri Lanka in August.  I was there for three weeks, the longest time since I left Sri Lanka in 2005.  I had a great time.  Though I didn't travel to many places, I stayed mostly in Colombo, I got the chance to meet many of my friends there and enjoy the daily Sri Lankan life.  The reason to go to Sri Lanka was to facilitate a Training of Trainers for the GNRC Asia region that took place from 13 to 18 August and which I will blog about later.  

Visiting Sri Lanka for me has three main components: 1) Reconnecting with friends, 2) Energizing my soul and 3) Refueling my body with positive energy.  Let me walk you through these three areas by showing you some pictures and telling you a bit of how I experience these in SL. 

Reconnecting with friends

I have wonderful friends in Sri Lanka with whom I share many values, beliefs, dreams and experiences.  Friends who are always there for me, even in the distance, and with whom I have powerful connections.  Friends who make me feel alive, who are genuine and whom I admire a lot.  I believe this is one of the reasons why I love visiting Sri Lanka, to be able to meet my friends, to talk about simple things with them and enjoy listening to their stories! It's a very special experience that I appreciate a lot since most of my friends do not live in Geneva but are dispersed around the world.

Here with Sapu and Sahan, two of my best friends! We had a great evening together, went for dinner, to Galle Face, and then had some dessert! We laughed and laughed!

Organized a reunion in Colombo with more than 20 friends.  Most of them I meet every time I go to Sri Lanka...and here they are!

It was Hiran's birthday the day after, so we got a cake and sang happy birthday to him! Here is Suchith trying to find Hiran to surprise him, but he didn't notice that Hiran was just next to him wondering what was going on!

With Hiran and Yohan, great friends, with whom I worked together for the National Committee of AIESEC in Sri Lanka 2004-2005

Here with most of them - some missing - It was a great chance to see so many of them together, laugh and chat!

Energizing my soul

After a very intense workshop, I went with Suchith - one of my best friends and who organized the workshop-  to the southwest coast to a beautiful beach called Unawatuna, very close to Galle.  It is a magical place. The beach is beautiful and it is just the perfect spot to listen to the waves, relax, walk along the beach, talk to a few locals selling stuff, and feeling the soft sun touching your skin! It is a must do in Sri Lanka!

At the train station, taking the train to Galle!

We took the train with some friends who were in the workshop. We went to Galle and they continued to Matara.

The train we traveled with.

In Galle center. Suchith and I had lunch there and then headed directly to Unawatuna for a well-deserved relaxing weekend!

Mine and Sahan's footprints on the sand

Sahan joined us in the afternoon and we walked together along the beach

Beautiful coconut palm trees

Suchith, Sahan and I went to a very nice spot to watch the sunset! It was very nice, the waves were very strong so they contrasted perfectly with the clouds and the sun hiding behind them.

The view from the balcony of the place where I was staying!

Me, enjoying the view, the sounds and the moment.

Refueling my body with positive energy

This does not mean only with good food but with positive vibes, meditation, visiting places, getting to know new things, enriching the eyes, smelling new things, walking around and discovering myself through simple experiences.

Sahan took me to a nice restaurant where I had my favourite seafood: prawns/shrimps.  These ones were very good, the place was very relaxing and I had great company.

We visited the Gangaramaya Temple in Colombo.  This was the first time for me to visit this beautiful Buddhist temple. I don't know why I never did it before, but it was great! I enjoyed the variety of Buddha statues, the magnificence of some of them, the simplicity of others, the small museum and the beautiful colors.  

Another Buddha statue at the Gangaramaya Temple

Here is Sahan at the Independence square.  This place is now more lively than what it used to be before. You can see more families with their kids, couples or singles doing sports and friends chatting.  It has become a nice place to hang out and enjoy a Sunday afternoon

The architecture at the Independence Square

Here with Suchith! We never take pictures together, that's why he is closing his eyes.

Here Sahan, Dommy, Suchith and Sifaan in a meeting. Actually there were two meetings: Sahan and Dommy were organizing the Youth Fest Sri Lanka that is taking place from 10 to 11 December and then they joined a meeting with Sifaan and Suchith to talk about the creation of an Alumni Sri Lanka Association! A lot of thinking, action and impact going on there!

This was a great time with friends! I am especially thankful to Suchith and Sahan for having spent so much time with me and for taking care of everything to make my stay in Sri Lanka unforgettable.

Big hugs and tons of love,

Malu