I decided to spend an extra at Paratha- a decision I am very glad I made. The girls were as warm and as welcoming as ever. We were woken up every day at half 5 for yummy milk tea and then our first meal of rice and curry. The girls have morning prayers soon after which I enjoy joining in with and can now even recite a couple of lines of the prayers with the girls. We teach them informally in the morning and then do informal games and singing and dancing with them after. Though the girls often lack confidence I have noticed that even the Sinhala girls seem to prefer it when I speak to them in Tamil and not English though they do not understand either language.

I am really grateful that there are two Tamils girls in the home because this has meant that we can communicate the girls- often in the form a three way translation of Sinhala- Tamil- English or vice versa. This has made me feel as if I have bonded with them more than I would have if I could not speak the language. I have also enjoyed learning a few Sinhala words and phrases which has proved useful when instructing the girls. Today we split the group into two and did an English and Art activity with them. We did friendship bracelets with one half of the group and an English lesson on Sports with the other half. The girls loved making the friendship bracelets and were also keen on playing the game we did with them in English.

We then went to the temple in the afternoon which was my favourite part of the day. The temple is a small Buddhist temple down the road and I find it very relaxing and calming after the busy days we have at Paratha. All in all it has been another fantastic week and for me Paratha has been the most rewarding and fulfilling thing I have done so far in my time in Sri Lanka.