MJ and Kandy

"Have you heard the news?"
It is 7am and the endearing owner of the guesthouse approaches us with coffee and an excited grin.
"Have you heard the news?" he repeats

We respond with a pre-caffeinated, "What news?"

"Michael Jackson is dead!!"
The morning serenity of Kandy is interrupted in a New York minute with my alarmed, "What?!?!!?"

"Yes, a heart attack, he was only 50" the owners says with an even bigger smile. The smile is partly the Sri Lankan way and partly his own excitement about being able to share news about an American icon with us.

I sit in shock. Thoughts of singing, "It don't matter if you're black or white" in the mirror rush to mind. I was actually scared of the Thriller video as a child. The album Scream came out when Kate got her lisence and the music brings waves of nostalgia of driving with she and Tracey Michaels around Westchester singing along to, "All I want to say is that they don't really care about us".

While I am flooded with memories of karaoke renditions of Man in the Mirror, Paul grins and says, "The American media is going to go crazy". No doubt he is right.

We spent 4 days in Kandy, Sri Lanka - the city in which Paul spent 6 months studying abroad in 2003. Since then, he has often spoke of Kandy as an idealic kingdom in the mountains with the perfect climate, good-natured people and just the right amount of busyness. So is his love for the city that when we read the Sunday NYTimes I often catch Paul looking up property in the area. Prior to arrival, a slight part of me worried that he had built Kandy up in his head and that the magical land would seem a bit less so after 6 years of living. This is a fair assumption...for someone who has not been to Kandy!

The city is delightful! Complete sidewalks line the streets, pedestrians have rights and drivers assume that the art is dependent on vision, not hearing.
The quiet $.67 bus ride (2 hours) from the airport had us traversing mountains, climbing past tea estates into the clouds where the climate is cool and the clouds hang low before the sun burns them away.

We took the bus straight to Paul's host family's home where we would have dinner. Paul eagerly looked out the window of the bus and I soon realized he had no bloody recollection of where to get off. How would we tell the bus driver where to drop us if nothing looked familiar? One turn of the corner later and he jumped up grabbing me with him. The driver slowed just enough for us to hop off the bus without it coming to a full stop. This is the Sri Lankan way.

One of my favorite joys of the trip so far has been watching people's reaction to Paul's return. The evening unfolded in such a way that is one I hope Paul will never forget. I will certainly do my best to make sure he doesn't.

Deshan, Paul's host brother open the door and beamed, "PAUL!" Seconds later, a delightful, petite Sri Lankan woman flew into the room - arms in the air, dancing - "It's my Paul! It's my Paul!" The joy in the eyes of the Rajagurus made me understand why this felt like such a homecoming to Paul.

And then we were fed. Jewish grandmas and the world over - beware! Nobody can push food on you like a Sri Lankan amma! And once you try the food, you won't want to stop eating! Coconut shavings mixed with lime and chili - lentil curries - egg hoppers and apa - they are all delicious!! The family looked a bit dismayed at the meal when Amma said, "I did not add spice, Debbie can't eat. Not yet." "No spice" in Sri Lankan terms translates to spicy in the rest of the world. The food made the lips tingle just enough to want more. Paul later confirmed that Amma went VERY easy on me!

The next day we headed to the ISLE Center where Paul took most of his classes. There, we were greeted by Rosemary with same warmth as the night before at the Rajagurus. She asked questions about Obama while we asked about the end of the war and the future of the program. THe overwhelming sentiment is that the West is being far too harsh in criticizing Sri Lanka about the human rights of the internally displayed persons, which there are approximately 300,000 of. I kept my mouth shut!


Any return to where one studies abroad would not be complete without a visit to your old stomping grounds -the local pub. In Kandy, those stomping grounds are creatively named, "The Pub". On our walk there, Paul slowed his pace and a smile spread across his face. From the ground I hear, "Paul! My man!" A small, bearded Sri Lankan man, crippled in the legs is smiling warmly at Paul. He is sucking the very end of a cigarette and his smile exposes a toothless grin. Bevis is an artist - sans legs, though we are not sure how. The locals greet him and shake his hand. He clearly remembers Paul well and without prompting asks Paul about his family, guitar playing and his studies.

We arrive at the Pub and the ever-curious wife in me begins asking questions, "Uhmmmm...how do you know him"? Stories unfold from studying abroad about the artist community, weekend trips, the street community, etc. Our respective study abroad experiences - mine in Geneva with the UN, and Paul's in Kandy could not have been more different. Nostalgia overwhelms us as we sip a proper draught beer.

Our time in Kandy also included a visit to an elephant orphanage, making friends with some traveling Slovenians and and a daytrip to Nuwera Eliya.
The average visitor at the elephant orphanage is approximately 7 years old in a white school uniform, accompanied by 70+ classmates. We soon realized we were a far more interesting spectacle to behold than the 90+ elephants milling about. Before long, the questions come, "Hello. How are you? What country?" We are given rambutans (cool looking little fruits) by little girls who scurry away in a fit of giggles and wait until we eat them. The 60 year old ivory tusked elephant touching distance away is ignored by them as we snap away pictures.

Nuwer Eliya is a 3 hour bus-ride up the mountains - in "up country" and is considered to be Sri Lanka's little England given its damp, rainy climate. Hearing this from Kandy I could not imagine being cold, but lo and behold, immediately upon arrival I dawned all three of my long-sleeved layers and my plastic poncho from the Imperial Ming hotel in Thailand. I was about to experience Little England in style!
Little England could not have been a better daytrip! We hiked up a mountain for 90 minutes straight without seeing people, cars and without sweating! Our appreciation of the small town and its quaint gardens was complete when we found a Pub that served dark, chocolatey stout! Our first TV in 3 weeks was CNN News. As expected, news of Michael Jackson consumed the airways . Needless to say, we had missed the stout far more than the news!

Next stop: Arugam Bay