I’ve been back in England a week now since returning back from Sri Lanka. Even though it was a massive culture shock going to Sri Lanka in the first place, it’s arguably been even more of shock coming back. Stepping out of Heathrow back to the hustle and bustle of London was very weird for me. Obviously it was grey and raining when I arrived back in London, as opposed to the sweltering and humid heat of Negombo. It’s taking a little getting to use to seeing white people everywhere, not to mention also actually travelling on fast trains! When on the train I was trying to look out the window and admire the English scenery like I did when in Sri Lanka staring out the window. However I can’t help but feel it was all so boring – no palm trees, no people sat right by the train tracks waving at you, no sea-view. Essentially being back feels like the past three months has been one big bizarre dream considering how different Sri Lanka was.

This summer has gone so quickly, yet at the same time leaving for Sri Lanka does feel like long time ago. Before leaving I had no idea what to be expecting – what the people would be like? How hot would it be? Would I like the food? Would the accommodation be nice? Well now I’m back and can look back at it all, I can safely say it has been a fantastic experience. I met so many lovely people; from my teammates to the locals we met along the way. Even teaching pre-school children who knew practically no English (it wasn’t exactly easy to explain things) but we manage, and the kids really enjoyed us being there. What I enjoyed the most out of the programme was my football project. I just got the sense that the kids were very grateful for me coming to do the coaching as they did not have anyone to do this for them, especially on a weekly basis. As well as this the after school clubs were a lot of fun, even though I must have played Cat and Mouse about a million times!

Then outside the programme travelling around the island was a fantastic experience. Seeing so much culture and breath-taking scenery was unforgettable. Sri Lanka doesn’t cross your mind straight away when you think about visiting foreign countries, however after my summer there I would highly recommend more people to go and visit as it will be nothing they will have experienced before. To those reading this, thinking about whether to do the project next year, all I can say is do it. Doing it myself I definitely feel like I have grown as a person, and hopefully you will too!