You Must Be My Lucky Star

Reliving glory days
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By Dan

After our short stop in Galle, our friend Maxi the driver arrived to take us north towards Colombo, ending our circuit of Sri Lanka. Christina had been in search of a new pair of sunglasses, and had been advised to visit a shop near the bus station. When we started the morning with news of yet another Tamil Tiger bombing, we decided to play it safe and stay away from such a public place. So, Christina still squints in the sunshine, but we’re alive and happy and healthy.

Passing through the town of Hikkaduwa, about 30 km north of Galle, my traveling companions humored me by letting me stop to pay my respects to Ranjith’s Beach Hut, a bar where my friend Bob and I spent a lot of time on our trip through Sri Lanka in 1986. (Every once in a while it has been fun to play glory days, and reminisce about the things I was doing and the people I was with during prior trips.) The beach and waves in front are still beautiful, and I was glad to see that people were able to rebuild after the 2004 Tsunami. There were a couple patrons back in ’86 who we thought were permanently affixed to their stools at Ranjith’s, but one way or another, they seem to have moved on.

Tsunami damage
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This stretch of Sri Lanka’s coast was hit especially hard, and we have seen signs of its impact everywhere we have driven in the south. Sadly, many people are still living in tents on the sites of their former homes. There are damaged and ruined buildings everywhere, and pieces of boats, trucks, and random equipment stuck in strange places. Apparently, a first powerful wave rolled through, and then 20 minutes later another came. Hundreds were killed when the first wave hit a train that was traveling near Hikkaduwa; local villagers took shelter in and around the train, though, and so hundreds more were killed when the second wave hit and moved the train cars around like toys. Several of the train cars were left at the Hikkaduwa train station as a memorial to the nearly 2000 people that died there.

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We heard many sad stories such as that of the train at Hikkaduwa, and the random luck that kept some people alive. Maxi told us of the tourists he was driving at the time, who were staying at a resort in the south that was on a bluff above the sea. The family had started to head down to the beach, when the 10 year old decided that he needed to go to the bathroom one last time. The five minute delay caused the family to be on the bluff rather than on the beach when the wave hit. That story reminded me of several things: it’s better to be lucky than smart, you really can’t mess with fate, and you had better not complain when one of the kids calls for a potty stop, because there may be bigger forces at work. Let’s hope that the people affected by the tsunami can get back on their feet soon. Selfishly, let’s also hope that our lucky star continues to watch over us.

Baby turtles
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We stopped at two turtle hatcheries along this coast. Of the seven species of sea turtles in the world, five can be found in Sri Lanka. Sea turtles crawl up on the beach to lay their eggs, and when the eggs hatch, the tiny hatchlings work their way down the beach to the sea, dodging hungry birds, dogs, and whatever else may be around. Humans have frequently collected the eggs for eating, which adds to the challenge of maintaining the various turtle species. Now, though, a few groups buy the newly laid eggs from the locals who find them, bury them in the sand in protected areas, and help get the young safely to the sea when they hatch. This improves the reproduction rate dramatically. The tiny new hatchlings are really cute to see and hold, and it seemed to be a good cause. Remember that the next time you think about buying those turtle shell glasses, OK?

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Pressing on, we worked our way through Colombo, which had lots of roads shut down as they prepared for the next day’s Independence Day celebrations. Ultimately, we reached Negombo, a beach town a little north of the airport and well past Colombo. We spent a nice afternoon hanging out and relaxing at the pool and on the beach, and watching a local company’s big 20^th anniversary celebration at our hotel. There’s something about seeing dozens of women in brightly colored saris dancing that really dazzles the eyes. The only downer of the day was hearing about two more bomb blasts set off by the Tamil Tigers in Colombo. As much as we have loved Sri Lanka, we all will breathe a big sigh of relief when our plane leaves Sri Lankan airspace on Feb. 4, headed for India. The situation is getting way too nasty around here, I’m very sad to say. Again, let’s hope that things can get worked out soon.