So as we write the final diary we reflect on what has been an amazing six weeks, full of adventures. It has been a truly unforgettable experience for all eight of us, and a trip of a lifetime we will never forget.In the university this week it was not possible to hold a sports day as a final farewell event as the sports science students are now all on study leave and working hard. Instead, we held a small gathering by the pool on Wednesday evening where we provided some food and drink and invited both students and lecturers to come and join us. We chatted, took some photos and got the students to sign our Team Durham Sri Lanka work t-shirts. It was nice opportunity to have some time with the students more informally as opposed to on the field and made us realise what a huge impact we have had on their sports based knowledge and how much they have appreciated us. Likewise we have all made some great friends here and we will miss them loads.
On Thursday in the village we organised and held a sports day which all the pre-school children participated in and the parents, village elders and siblings all watched. We set up a number of different races for the children including ‘balancing a beanbag on your head’ race, hopping races and even races involving crawling under our legs and through hoops. All the children thoroughly enjoyed it and there were shrieks of excitement all round. Additionally, we managed to fix the playground’s swing with some wood we had bought in the nearby town and to see the children’s faces when they were able to use the swing properly for the first time was heart wrenching. It turned out to be an emotional day all round as after the sports day, a ‘meeting’ was held for us to thank us for our efforts and time at the school over the past six weeks. We were all given gifts and the children performed a dance for us in their best dresses. Saying goodbye to both the teacher and the children was very hard after spending so much time with them during our stay and a lot of tears were shed.
This morning we had a final de-brief meeting with the Vice Chancellor and some lecturers we have been liaising with throughout our time at the University. They were full of gratitude as well as being interested in possible improvements for Team Durham’s 2011 group. We were lucky enough to receive some Sabaragamuwa University memorabilia including a t-shirt, a tie and a cap and had some final photos.
This afternoon we are packing up and early tomorrow we travel to Colombo, beginning the journey home.