ABDF

Monday, April 27, 2009

Hi Everybody!

I’m writing you from the beautiful garden at the Shangri-La, the guest house in Unawatuna (u-na-WA-toon-ah) owned by my friend Mally. I’ve mentioned both Mally and Unawatuna in previous letters, both this year and last. Unawatuna is just outside the southern city of Galle (gall) which is probably one of the most historically picturesque places in Sri Lanka and one of my personal favorites. But I’m getting ahead of myself, and ought to start where I left off, back in Batticaloa.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Hi Everybody!

Wow! Since I last wrote you a lot has happened. It’s hard to know where to begin.

Well, I might as well begin with the New Year. It started sundown on Monday the 13th and lasted until sundown the 14th. However, shops began closing as early as last Friday, and by Monday almost everything was shut down, except for necessary services such as hospitals and pharmacies. For me that meant a lot of planning ahead; stocking up on bottled water, food, cell phone minutes, and generally trying to anticipate anything I might need for the next five or six days.

• Location: Pavatkodichchenai, Batticaloa, Sri Lanka
• Recipients:1 family (affecting 400 families)
• Objective:Sewing machine for school uniforms
• Final cost:$298 US

Each year Sri Lanka provides each student with enough material to make one school uniform. The parents are expected to either make the uniform themselves, or as what usually happens, take the material to a local seamstress. The cost is paid for by the parents, with a uniform usually costing between 120 and 200 rupees, depending on size.