The teardrop of India, Sri Lanka is also known as the pearl, these poetic euphanisms really don’t do it justice. The country and its people are amazing; it has everything to offer and more. However at the moment sense of danger lurks underneath the surface, trouble is erupting between the LTTE’s (Liberation Tamil Tigers Eelam) and the government. It is a problem that has been alive since the 1970’s, ebbing and flowing in hits and spurts. Before flying to Sri Lanka Ant and I checked the British Foreign offices advise, as long as we weren’t to travel to the North and the East coast we would be safe. However in the same breath staring at the computer screen we read that a bomb had gone off in the capital, Colombo. It was a chance, a small risk but after weighing up the pros and the cons we made the decision to go.
Leaving the airport terminal we were soon confronted by realizations of the true situation. Sand bags formed a wall where a machine gun pointed out fully loaded with a serious young man standing keeping guard behind it. His serious façade was easily broken with a smile and reciprocated; it quickly made him seem less intimidating. This sight was to be the norm in Colombo.
After a couple of days in the city we ventured out and started to explore the country after a well needed rest at the beach. Like Chinese whispers news was passed around recent bombings through the backpacker community. Details were always a little unclear but the feeling always the same and the goose bumps a constant reminder. Independence day was looming (4th Feb) causing anxiety, the fear of attacks was high, friends that I had met who were on there way to the airport choosing to take taxis rather than run the risk of boarding a train or bus. Bomb scares and attacks were becoming more frequent, the injured and death rates rising. Security in turn got higher; check points along the roads clamping down on the buses and trains. Peoples awareness of their surroundings and others. Every one of us travelers eagerly searching and reading about the situation before traveling onwards.
Heading down the coast with Ant and John I felt that we had become a bit blaze about it all. We were still taking trains and buses along with the locals, hoping against hope that the police were being really vigilant and doing their jobs to there full capacities. Boarding one bus fully laydened I did get a fright. After heaving on our bags and managing to acquire a seat we were off bumping and swaying down the road. Five minutes into the journey the ticket man standing near the front began to shout. I have learnt a small amount but this time I didn’t need words, I read through the lines, his body telling me all I needed to know. Shouting he was pointing at what seemed to be an unattended piece of luggage, worst of all no one seemed to be claiming it. My mind was racing; words screaming in my head…whose bag is it? Somebody please claim it! Could it be a bomb?!? I felt an imminent sense of danger; thankfully the panic was only to be short lived as it was claimed. Oh thank you.
Sitting there thankful and immensely relieved I was still safe I looked over to my friends, squished up the same as me they seemed unaware of the commotion that had just taken place. I thought about it as I looked around me, men, women, kids, grandparents and us. I am lucky I know, I have more choices, I can take a taxi, hell I can fly out of here but for the locals they cant. This is something that they have to live with, fear and face everyday. With the war being officially declared its going to be hard on everyone, already prices have shot up to almost double, tourists are thinning out, my heart really does go out to them.
Even with the looming danger Sri Lanka has found a place in my heart.
