Today was the big day for both our team and the Hiththatiya community – the opening ceremony of the pre-school we funded. This was the first time we actually saw the school and what a wonderful experience we had! As soon as the minibus pulled up outside the school, we were greeted by what seemed to be the whole of the Hiththatiya community. We piled out of the minibus in style, sporting out stash and were handed leaves and flowers as a welcome gift. It is a tradition in Sri Lanka to present visitors with leaves from the Bodhi tree, the tree which Buddha sat under when he achieved enlightenment. The giving of this leaf is a gesture of wishing good fortune to the visitor. At this point I began to get butterflies. Everything finally seemed real and we felt that this was finally, after months of tireless fundraising, the beginning of our programme.After following the procession of the Sri Lankan dancers, Matt and I were guided down the red carpet towards the front door. Never in my life had I experienced anything similar. All eyes were on us as we cut the ribbon on the front door of the school. We felt like such celebrities. It was really nice to feel so appreciated in the community, however, I don’t think any of us felt worthy of this five star treatment.

The time soon came for Matt and me to give a speech to the community. As we looked around, we could just see a sea of faces staring up at us in awe, some possibly with a look of confusion. We felt really honoured to be doing this and it was topped off by being asked to do a radio recording for the Sarvodaya Organisation.

The wonderful morning was followed by more VIP treatment as we were invited as ‘special guests’ to a Bridal Show which some of the students e the Sarvodaya Organisation apprenticeship scheme organised. We were asked to sit on the front row and even asked to award a prize to one of the dressmakers for ‘Best Designer’. This was yet another fantastic experience and we learnt that in the Buddhist culture the bride actually wears two dresses, one white one for the ceremony and a red dress for the following day. I don’t think any of us experienced anything similar before, especially not the boys!

Today really was possibly the best experience of my life. We all felt that our work and efforts to fund the school are greatly appreciated by everybody involved and we all look forward to formally starting the programme on Monday.