After a good journey we arrived in Colombo, Sri Lanka around 4 o’clock in the morning.
Etihad allowed us to take 2 extra suitcases, free of charge.
We were therefore able to bring along a lot of extra clothing and towels and such for the children.
We were picked up by Sister Michelle with their new van. After a cup of tea, we dove into our bed for a few more hours sleep.
When we woke up, the children had just come home from school.
They were all waiting for us in the dining room.
What a nice, touching reunion with the children.
And what have they grown! |
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After dinner the girls take us to their bedrooms. They want to show us everything. Nice! Four of them sleep together in a room. There is a cabinet with 4 drawers. For each girl one. Great hilarity when we want to look in the drawers!
After the oldest girls have done their homework, we all go to water the plants outside.
In the evening they want to dance for us, and, of course, we also have to dance along. Fun all around!! |
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| After a good night’s sleep, and after breakfast, we walked along the river with sister Michelle and sister Serafie and the children who did not have to go school. We saw the big hole that was slain in the dike by the water, during the floods last May. It is now completely filled up with stones.
When the girls come out of school they quickly take off their uniform (white dress, socks and shoes) and take a shower.
Then it’s time for lunch. They each have a plate of rice with dhal (lentils, coconut milk and spices), beans and chicken curry. After dinner, as dessert, there are delicious small bananas and mangos.
Nice to see that the children are so well taken care of.
We ourselves have to get used to the spicy food. After the meal, the children clean up the dishes and wipe the floor clean. They all have their own task. |
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| On Saturday morning we leave for Katupotha. We are also warmly welcomed here with beautiful garlands. Not all the children are present. Some are at a school music camp. After tea we walk the girls Lanka and Tharashi to their school. We have an umbrella with us for the shade, because it is very hot. They are renovating the school. It is going to be very beautiful. The school is situated in beautiful surroundings, and there is a large field where the children can play and exercise.
When we return to the children’s home, the English teacher has arrived. Tanja asks if he would please write an English letter with the girls for the children of the Beatrisschool in Goes (Holland). In spring we are going to give a PowerPoint presentation to them. We received drawings and maps from the children of the Beatrix for the children in Sri Lanka, who were happy to receive them.
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The children enjoy playing in the garden. On the seesaws and swings. When the sun is low, the plants are watered.
Then there is a celebration party! It is the birthday of one of the girls, Tharashi. Quite nice to experience that too. After we have all sung for her, she receives her presents: a new dress and some body care products. We sing a few Dutch birthday songs. They like that a lot and find it rather funny!
In the evening there is dancing and singing again.
Before we go to sleep, we want to take a shower … but there is no water! |
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On Sunday we went to a church in another village with the children. By bus!
That in itself is quite an experience. In the church a festive service is held dedicated to the holy Saint Sebastian. The service is held outside because there are so many people. We also enjoy lunch there, together with all the other (local) people. We each receive a plate of rice with curries and eat just like all the other people: with our hands!
How nice to be able to share this with the children and the sisters.
In the afternoon we learnt several Singhalese words from the children. We taught them a few Dutch words. It is really great to have so much fun together!! |
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The next morning we get up early so that we can say goodbye to the girls. The children leave for school at a quarter to 7. The oldest girls walk. The youngest are picked up by a tuktuk.
After breakfast we will return to Kelaniya. |
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In the afternoon we went with sister Amatha to take look at a piece of land that has been donated to her.
A beautiful, narrow, long piece of land. Located in Ja Ela. Near Colombo.
This piece of land is just outside the village, next to a church. How great would it be if we could help Sister Amatha to build a new home here ……… |
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Here we meet the English teacher again. We ask if he would please also write English letters here with the girls. This time for the children of the Don Bosco school in ‘s-Heerenhoek. We plan to give a PowerPoint Presentation in March, because they intend to raise money for our foundation. Wonderful!
In the evening we celebrated another enjoyable birthday party. |
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| We have also been to the “Perahera”, a beautiful Buddhist procession. The bishop had arranged tickets for us. We sat in the first row, on the temple square. We really enjoyed the musicians, dancers and the beautiful decorated elephants. What a beautiful, colourful, impressive experience! |
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The next day is “Poya Day” and the girls have a day off from school. The girls from the other homes also come. What a pleasant day! Angela, one of the older girls, gives ballet lessons to the other children. Nice to see and how carefully they listen to her!
In turn, the girls help with the preparation of the food and washing the clothes. That also has to be done.
In the garden there are Jacktrees. Trees with large “Jackfruit” (Nangka) fruits. We see how they clean and cook this fruit. Of course we will also taste the fruit ourselves.
Yasanthi comes to visit during lunch. Yasanthi lived in the home for years. She now lives with her aunt and her 2 nieces. The girls are very happy to see her.
When a girl goes back to a relative, she usually comes back to the home once a month to talk with Sister Amatha. She keeps a close eye on whether things are going well with her. Whether she is well taken care of and whether they go to school. It’s nice to know we keep track!
The government encourages that children move back to a family member, if possible. |
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Of course we also visit the home in Bopitiya (Pamunugama). Here we are also very warmly welcomed by the girls and sister Sara. They have prepared a delicious lunch for us. Aren’t we spoiled? They are so pleased that we come to visit them and that we can see how life is here.
The older girls live here. One is studying for a journalist. Another girl has just done exams for nursery teacher (playgroup / kindergarten teacher). It is important that the girls are well educated, so that they can take care of themselves later on and hopefully therefore look forward to a good future. The girls speak a little English, so we can talk a little with them. At first they do not dare, but after a while they loose their shyness.. |
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On Saturday we were invited to a wedding ceremony. One of the teachers we met last year was getting married. The church service was at 8 o’clock in the morning. After that we joined, for a cup of tea, with the psychologist (she comes to work with the children once a week). Then we went to the wedding party. We were warmly welcomed, they were very pleased that we were there. How wonderful to be able to experience this. |
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Back in the children’s home we are lead to our room ….. they were preparing everything for our farewell party and we were not supposed to see it! We quickly slipped away and went to the store nearby to buy lemonade and chips. When the girls and sisters were done with the preparations, they came to get us and they gave us a beautiful flower. They have hung the Dutch flag and everything is decorated with red, white and blue balloons. It looks so festive! First we are to light the candles and then the party commences. They perform beautiful dances and show their beautiful clothes. It is lovely to see how they all enjoy it. We are also having a great time!
But we also became somewhat melancholy ……. This is nearly the end of our visit…… |
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On Sunday, sister Amatha’s brother arranged a bus and we went to Kandy with all the children. We will visited the beautiful temple “Dalada Maligawa”, also known as the Temple of the Tooth. It was about 110 km, but it took us almost 5 hours. The roads and traffic in Sri Lanka cannot be compared with that of The Netherlands.
The children hardly know where to look in the temple, there is so much to see. Then we drove to the beautiful botanical gardens, a very large park with beautiful flowers, trees and shrubs. We all had a wonderful picnic on the grass.
Of course we also walked through the park.
What a lovely last day together with the children!
Back in the children’s home we all dove into our bed, tired but satisfied. |
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We visited and viewed our three homes. Together with Sister Amatha we discussed what maintenance needed to be carried out and what their needs were. Among others, a new washing machine, 4 new beds and 2 closets.
The gardens are well cared for by the children and the sisters. There is someone who mows the grass regularly. After the floods, various activities were carried out in Kelaniya. Now they are going to paint the walls, but they have to dry properly first. We have talked quite a lot with the sisters. We are really pleased that they are so sweet to the children and take care of them so well. in In all three homes there is a very pleasant, cheerful atmosphere.
It is also nice to see how the oldest girls help the youngest.
It is also very important that the children receive a good education. It is discussed with the girls as to what they would like to do and what they can already do. The aim is to ensure that they all graduate.We actually spent 2 weeks with the children and the sisters in their own environment.
“Tasted” how it feels to live in their conditions. Very special!
We are very happy and grateful that we were able and allowed to do this! |
Hopefully we can continue to do this work, with your help, for a long time to come!
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Therefore, hereby a friendly request to continue to support us.
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