The Sri Lankan experience begins… We arrived in Colombo at 2pm on Sunday 4^th after a shorter flight than expected as we did not have to stop at Male on the way. We were met by a very friendly member of the Sarvodaya organisation named Bandula who took us to the headquarters just outside Colombo. We were warmly greeted by all others members of the Sarvodaya organsiation and given tea before settling into our accommodation for the next couple of days.The following day we met the founder of the organisation and were given a brief history of how the organisation has been set up. We then visited an orphanage for abandoned and malnourished children.  This was a heart wrenching experience but we returned after a trip to the British Council and had the opportunity to get to know some of them better.
On the morning of Tuesday 6^th we departed for the Ratnupura District at 9 am. It was a long journey but made more bearable by frequent stops and the hospitality of the coach driver as well as the Sabaragamuwa University staff, who even stopped on the way to allow us to try some local fruit, ramputan.
Our first morning in the University was welcomed by the breathtaking views that surrounded our house-to-be for the next 6 weeks. As we arrived as dark had fallen the night before we were unable to appreciate our surroundings. We started the day with a typical Sri Lankan cuisine, however today we got to experience our first Sri Lankan mango – it was delicious! Our first adventure of the day involved trekking up the mountainous roads up to the village of Ilhalagamagama, the main village from last year which we will visit once a week. Here we were welcomed by the young children with flower garlands and bouquets, as well as a song and dance. It was very touching how welcoming everyone was of us! We experienced village tea and milk rice before saying our goodbyes and heading to the new village of Puwahaluwela. Again we received an equally special welcoming from the village people and the children, before being fed more delicious food!
We are looking forward to going back to visit the two villages and in particularly leaving our mark on the village of Puwahaluwela. Later that day we headed back to the University where we were introduced to the University staff and the Vice Chancellor, as well as discussing our work for the coming weeks. Despite being warm, we experienced a typical Monsoon rainfall and decided it was the perfect opportunity to take a swim in the amazing pool!