It was a very intense visit… Spontaneously I thought to get some sponsors for the kids. But this needs to be worked out exactly as you need to assure the contact between sponsors and children as well as teacher and a person on site who is managing all correspondence.

We left at 9:30 am to one of the biggest bank in Weligama. Dinesh has kindly brought us there by Tuk-Tuk. The traffic is incredible! Regularly, I feel that weird feeling in my stomach. But I’m sure they know what they do. I need to get used to it and trust. …They must have some sort of tactic… : )

Arrived at the bank, we met of a crowd of people. Guess because yesterday was full moon day (Sinhala =  “Pavarana” day) where all Buddhist people attending a ceremony in their temples. Shops, banks and others were closed.

I’m very astonished about how they can work like this. For me it seems extremely chaotic. Mountains of paper, serving several clients at once and always a bunch of people around the desk. Hmmm…

All the time you have the feeling they don’t know what you want but at the end you mostly get everything you came for.

On the way back we wanted to buy some groceries and stopped firstly at a big supermarket. I needed a bucket for my dirty cloths. Afterwards, we stopped at an Ayurvedic pharmacy where I bought some spicery and balm against mosquito bites.

Said done! Yesterday we had a bit rain and the air is a bit more pleasant today so that I’m motivated enough to do something. Karin and I decided to make a bike tour to the neighboring rice fields. They are very beautiful. I felt like in Germany because of the green colors and the paths through the fields. The water buffalos would make our deer’s and so on… I remembered me running in Germany. I wish I have brought my running shoes!

These fields are a wonderful and a quiet place. On the way we met a little boy, he joint us the whole way. We were talking with hands and feets, he gave us some water lilies and we rode back. It was very nice!

In the afternoon Karin and I had an invitation to the pre-school.

Punctually at 3:30 pm we arrived there. Madumala, the pre-school teacher offered us seats in the open school building were she teaches children from 4 to 5 years. Nuwandi, her daughter, who speaks few words English, was there as well. She just passed her O-Level. Two more years and she will be finish school. Afterwards she wants to study to be a doctor. Her older sister, Samindi, is a pre-school teacher like her mother. However, she lost her job because she is poor. That school she worked for decided to take on another teacher, so she stays at home as well. Sometimes she helps out her mother in school but there is no income, money is tight…

Karin handed over a colorful mobile, made from students of her former school, the Waldorf School in Bexbach, Germany. Furthermore, I translated an article of a Waldorf magazine, written from Karin and Willi beginning of the year, from German into English for them. Janaka (a cousin of Dinesh) translated into Sinhala. Article In German Then we discussed the construction of the new pre-school building. After two hours we needed to go back because at 6 pm it is already dark.

…And my head starts to rattle again…

Karin and Willy brought their bikes from Germany and I could get one of their old bikes which they bought to Sri Lanka when they were here the last time.  Albeit it was two numbers too small for me I made it safely to the beach.

During the rides to and from the beach, I could notice apparently how it is just to look a bit different… Weligama is not a tourist place; Sri Lanka is not a typical tourist place. There are not many or non foreign people coming across, so it seems like you are a “rarity” for them.

The whole thing is actually a bit difficult to handle for me. What to do with these upcoming feelings? I’m first of all a human being like they are and don’t like it to be declared as a “tourist” or “fair game”.  I want to be nice but want to make clear that there is a limit. But on the other hand I need to learn to understand as well. It is just logical to be friendly, to greet and smile as well as continuing whatever I’m doing. I’m sure people around will know us sooner or later and everything is fine.

When we came back, my bike had a flat at the front wheel. I needed to shove my bike 1,5 hrs. back in the hot midday sun. Don’t know what temprature we have here but I’m looking very much forward to a heavy shower!!!…

The gardener Maneka was joining us on the dusty little path from our house to the main road which has ca. 1 km length. He was really sweet; he picked flowers and handed them over to us.

During our walk to the pre-school everybody were smiling at us and we were smiling back and said “Ayubowan”. They responded shy and with a bigger smile!

After a nice walk through streets with little kiosks on both sides and shops which seem like they are making just business with recycled items/scrap metal and others, Mrs. Madumala, the pre-school teacher, recognized Karin immediately and greeted us warmly when we reached the building.

It is a very small open building which hosts 15 children from 8:30am till 12:30pm. The pre-school fee is 250 Rupee (ca. 1,50 Euro/2 Dollar) per month. Sometimes some kids are not coming because they have no money or trouble at home, Mrs. Madumala says.

The current building and sanitation facilities, which all children and adults are using, are dilapidated. Karin, a retired Waldorf School teacher, and her husband Willie brought a donation collecting activity into being for helping to build a new building for that lovely pre-school together with the school where Karin once taught. The activity started one year ago. Many years this school is supporting people and projects already by sending their students two days per year to a corporation firms. The money the kids get for working there will paid in the corresponding donation account. Since around 5 years Waldorf School Bexbach carries proudly the title UNESCO School.

I’ve decided to come back there and can imagine to help out and to do some activities with the kids…

The ride from Colombo airport to my destination, which is located in the south of Sri Lanka near Weligama, took around 5 ½ hours. We made a stop for a fresh king coconut, which is – I would say – nowhere good as in Sri Lanka! : ) Somewhere later on, we stopped again to have lunch. I was so tiered I didn’t care for food – I just needed a bed!! But it was actually very nice, a kind of buffet. I had rice and dal (very spicy!) with ginger lemonade.

We continued our trip down the main coast road. I was sitting next to Dinesh and asked him many questions.

He told me about the Tsunami in December 2004. It was horrible. He stayed with his entire family at the beach and he lost his grandmother, aunt as well as 21 cousins. He was floated away and could hold himself at a palm tree, 1 ½ km further into the land. It seems he still works on this dramatic occurrence… I didn’t want to ask more questions at that point.

However, he told me how he met Sabine. They met during helping people after the Tsunami came over to Sri Lanka. This was in January 2005. Both were helping at a Tsunami Camp where Sabine brought regularly food and medicine from her organization named “Weligama Future”.

Sabine actually came in November 2004 with her husband as a tourist on the way to India. Both of them took the country and their people in their hearts and decided to stay in Sri Lanka forever. They always had the dream of healing on a natural basis and soon they were building up houses where they planned to treat people.

In April 2005, her husband unfortunately died suddenly and Sabine joined an Ayurvedic clinic and completed her range of knowledge with Ayurveda.

After 4 years,  Sabine decided that it would be the best time to begin what she once started with her husband and perfectionate her plan of an Ayurvedic clinic. In December 2009, she is expecting her first clients at the River Health Center.

Flyer – River Health Center

Everything was still fine when I was telling her about my situation in Guatemala and that I need to leave. She offered me immediately that I can come to her to Sri Lanka – she would need help a lot with everything. During my trip from Guatemala back to Germany, she got the notice that she is sick. She has breast cancer and two weeks ago, they abutted her left breast. One week ago, she got her first chemo therapy in Colombo. I was thinking if this would be the best decision for me right now but at the end I came to the conclusion that it is alright and maybe a “must” and finally booked the flight.

Yesterday evening, Mr. Lasantha and family came over – 5 persons in a small green car. He is amazing and one of the wonderful Ayurvedic doctors here. I’ve met him when I came here for the first time to make an Ayurvedic Pancakarma cure. I wasn’t sure if he would recognize me after two years. But yes, he definitely did… Surprise! We were sitting together by tea and cookies and were taking about Ayurveda and Western school medicine. It is my opinion that Ayurveda can definitely prevent illnesses and supports your health during e.g. chemo therapy.  But without the Western school medicine – in an advanced stage of an illness – there is almost no other way. …And I think I heard Mr. Lasantha softly saying that he has the same opinion.

It was a really nice being together. Another surprise is that his wife is in the fifth month pregnant – which means “The girl” comes in February.

Today Willie and Karin from Germany arrived. They sold their house and car and want to stay in Sri Lanka for the rest of their life. What a brave decision! They want to build a house next to the River Health Center area.

Around 6 pm Willie was knocking at my door. I thought he wanted to call me for dinner. Instead, he said that Sabine is not feeling well and there wouldn’t be a dinner but I could prepare it myself. I should have to take a look after her. I found her at the bathroom, not able to speak for pain. She has problems with her colon. It was very hard to see her like that. Actually it was the first time I saw somebody in this bad condition. I was thinking about calling a doctor. Mr. Lasanthe! Especially in this case Ayurvedic medicine helps best!

He made some suggestion and I cooked hot water to drink. After a while, she seemed better and felt asleep. I walked over to my room, Karin and Willie are sleeping. I hope she feels better soon…