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Preeti finally arrived in Colombo for her very short visit this morning!
Day 1
As with all the other times that M and I have gone to receive her at the airport, usually at Heathrow, after her many sojourns to her various backpacker destinations and GAP years etc, we were late... her flight arrived on time, and even though M had given her a long list of items to buy from the duty free shop, she was out within half an hour of landing, while we were still on the way there!!! But she said she was kind of expecting us to be late since it was 8am, and I am not really a morning person ;-)...
After much debating between M and I, we took her to the Gallery Cafe for lunch, which I think has pretty decent, if somewhat overpriced food, but a beautiful building and a great setting to just relax and catch up - which is what I wanted. M's reservations were that the service is slow, (in this instance it wasn't too bad), and that in an article a couple of months ago there was some controversy about how the maitre de had been rude to a couple of Indian patrons and said that their-type were not welcome, but I don't necessarily think he meant Indians as such, for why would they have Indian Butter Chicken on their menu? Maybe the guests had been particulary difficult and annoying to deal with???
Its so cool to have the first visitor from my family with us ;-). Preeti was suitably impressed by our new home, and by the fact that we now have food in our fridge unlike London - I think the most telling statement was when she told my mom, yes Ma they actually eat properly now, not like in London - where they survived only on take-outs!!!
We ended the first day with some dinner at the Galle Face Hotel, at the Sea Spray restaurant which is a great way to spend the evening listening to the waves washing in against the walls...
Opposites attract is an often used phrase, however what is it that makes people stay together, after that initial attraction changes into something more long-lasting and permanent? So it makes me wonder what it is that keeps two people together day after day, year after year?
M is definitely the neater/tidier one out of the two of us and is borderline analy-retentive, but I probably have bouts of anal-ness that I think must have rubbed off from him over the years! In any case, the most recent event that has sparked this blog entry is that in an attempt to be caring and helpful (I'm sure the intentions are noble), M decided to draw me up a blank time-table for the week, breaking the day up into 2-4 hour slots, so that I can note down what I'm eating at what time. The idea being, that I can keep track of the portions of fruit and veg intake I get daily! But then this is also the same guy who when he wants to make a point of how I'm not pulling my weight, sends me an Excel spreadsheet listing the things on our joint TO-DO list that he's completed, vs. the ones that I still have pending... But you've got to give it to him for being persistent in his goal to constantly improve me ;-). Most of the time its quite amusing and endearing, but on occasion I think he crosses the line. Even at the moment I think I must have at least 10 emails in my inbox from him with links to on-line calendars/to-do lists, self improvement sites, and exercise sites!!!
Anyway, despite all these foibles, we're still together and I am sure my lack of interest in tidying up and keeping things at right angles must drive him mad too!
At the time it seemed like a good idea to go for an after dinner coffee and dessert so we headed of to our favourite Cinnamon Grand for a post-dinner coffee.
The lobby was buzzing even more than usual, since it happened to be the evening when the South African team was heading back home post their decision to return due to security concerns...
We had a some great desserts and coffees and just as we started to relax, the band decided to start singing, which would be ok if it were background music, but the way hotels like to entertain their guests in Sri Lanka (and much of the sub-continent) is by having live bands in their lobby areas playing blaring music, so its good enough to put an end to all conversations... after a while, if you go to the same place often enough, you tend to hear them sing their same repertoire over and over. So as we were listening to ABBA numbers and some UB40, we were really entertained by some of the hotel guests who decided to get up and dance. I wish I had my camera with me, it was definitely a performance worthy of google videos ;-), not just the dancing, but the attire of a wife-beater and knee-length shorts, amused us to no end.
Just as we were leaving we managed to see the entire South African team, who were being interviewed by the press before they boarded their team bus to leave. Unfortunately, there was some sort of road block, and we were forced to wait over an hour before Galle Road was opened up to vehicles again. The SA team managed to leave after a 45 minute wait once they kicked up a fuss, but following their departure, there was another 30 minute wait before we could finally get home... next time we'll stick to having dessert at home I think ;-)!
...alas the clash between the Lankans and the Indians has been postponed for yet another couple of days. The triangular series has now become a bilateral 3 match series instead. The only silver lining on this cloud is that all 3 matches are to be played at the SSC which is a stones throw away from our house rather than Premadasa which I hear is at quite a distance away...and even if we can't get tickets (which I am certain won't be the case...) we can always go to the members bar and watch the match from the comfort of the a/c and a ready supply of beverages and eats!
If the heavens are kind and the rain is kept at bay, then we are going to watch the first game of the Unitech Cup at the Premadasa Stadium this afternoon, to watch the clash between India and the home team and favourites Sri Lanka.
None other than the Sri Lankan medium paced bowler Chaminda Vaas got our tickets for us - which was pretty cool. I was sent as chaperone to M's cousin Shiv who made friends with Chaminda, Sanath and a few other of the Sri Lankan squad while they were in Holland earlier this year. We decided to have a coffee at the Taj Coffee Shop instead of looking like groupies in the foyer while we waited for Chaminda to get there with the tickets. He joined us shortly, for a tea, and Sanath was also there a few minutes later. The waiter who up until then had been taking his time to bring our order, suddenly perked up and speedily brought our beverages. A short while later the famous Muttiah Muralitharan also appeared and said hello, Sanath calmly introduced him as Murali (as if we wouldn't recognise that toothy grin anywhere!). I guess living in Sri Lanka does have its upsides, since I can't imagine ever having a chat and a coffee with any of the Indian cricket team, what with their iconic status in India, which is quite mad about hero-worshipping their cricket players, who are akin to the bollywood stars! Considering their achievements in their chosen profession, they were all very polite and down-to-earth! However some poor Indian tourists looking for a picture with Sanath were curtly and politely refused by him saying they were in a "meeting", which I guess made Shiv and me feel important for those few seconds, although I felt a bit bad for the little kids who wanted to get a picture, and it was amusing to watch them persist with their desire to take a picture by sneaking photos from the pillar behind where we were sitting.
I also spotted Ajit Agarkar while I was there, but didn't want to go up to chat with him.
The whole experience was a bit surreal and like I was telling Shiv later, I'd love to see the Indian team but I think I'd be too start-struck to actually be able to speak to them! In any case we've both decided to hang out as groupies at the Taj so we can catch some more of the players.
As we left, I wished Chaminda & Sanath luck for the match, obviously pointing out that I would be rooting for the opposition ;-)...
Watch this space for some photos if I get round to it... M told me to play it cool and not take any pictures with them, which looking back at those poor Indian tourists, I'm glad I didn't pull out my camera!
After leading a nomadic life for just under 4 months, we finally moved into our own place!!!
The moving in was pretty much handled by M and his cousin as I wasn't able to help much at all with the heavy lifting etc. In fact we spent the first night sleeping with all the boxes still half unpacked in our rooms... luckily we managed to find some help after the first couple of days, and the place finally looks like home, although I have cheated a little by just putting things into wardrobes without organising them, but I guess that's the next challenge!!! I even managed to cook my first meal here on Saturday!
been a bit lame with the blogging recently, but that's mainly because nothing much has been going on that's new, as well as the fact that we've been away from Sri Lanka for the first time since we got here in May to Bangalore for about 10 days... and despite the fact that it is the supposed Silicon valley equivalent in India, believe it or not, I didn't have access to the net during my entire time there...
Anyway, it was fun, great catching up with my cousins and it also made me realise how much I was missing bihari/indian style cooking. For the less discerning, I know you may think rice and curry all tastes the same, but I beg to differ. So I think I ate more than I have done in a long while, and I totally agree with Appu di that she makes amazing paratha's (well they're definitely the best I've ever tasted ;-)).
As this was my third trip to Bangalore I wasn't much into sight-seeing, so M was sent with one of our cousins to see the sights, I couldn't beleive that the guy who finds some of the most amazing museums in the world boring... (and beleive me I've dragged him to quite a few) actually went to the museum in Bangalore!
The weather in Bangalore was a welcome relief after the heat in Colombo! Highlight of the trip was my niece Aakriti's 14th birthday party - check out the chaat!
