Let's Go Back There
Sri Lanka
Hectares of historic tea plantations, stretches of unspoilt beaches, bellowing surf and swell, a jungle with such density it reflects scenes from Jurassic Park and a proud nation full of overlapping communities, religions and cultures.
My most recent trip to Sri Lanka, April 2019 marked my 9th visit to this island of which, like many others, I call ‘my happy place’. The smell of thick humidity and island freedom sticks to you instantaneously, replenishing ones soul within seconds - raw, real emotion. A country where the sound of motor horns are drowned out but the very visuals you encounter within them, the overpowering beauty of the natural landscape, the people, the carryings on in their way of life. An explosion of sound, smell and sight that fills your mind and body with a magical energy - an energy that the country exudes all by itself.
Somewhere, somehow, someone, made a cruel and devastating decision to disrupt the balance of this land sending shock waves around the world, seven days after returning from my trip. Thrust into turmoil and disarray, one by one I began hearing colleagues, friends and travel writers begin to express their concern for their impending trip to Sri Lanka. The debate of ‘To Go or Not To Go’ became a talking point between worried individuals, not only for their own safety but also wary of the risk to offend anyone by posting about their trip on social media so soon after the catastrophic incidents.
I found this somewhat alarming and I began to ponder these discussions in my already over active mind - I didn’t believe that continuing on your quest to travel should be delayed or cancelled. First and foremost, people who frequent this country and or indeed are well educated about it know that the local communities rely heavily if not wholly, on tourism for their source of income. Why would we decide to talk behind the side lines of how horrendously sad this situation is yet potentially cause more grief, worry and confusion by abandoning them when they need us most? Tuk Tuk Drivers, Taxi drivers, boutique hotels, local restaurants and bars, tea plantation tour guides, surf schools, fishermen. They need us.
Of course, safety is imperative and no one is asking to be reckless - but fear spreads fast, and the less people see active travelling, one cancellation fast becomes 1,000. Let us be vigilant and respective, but lets also stay strong and loyal to a country that by all definitions, needs us.
I found this somewhat alarming and I began to ponder these discussions in my already over active mind - I didn’t believe that continuing on your quest to travel should be delayed or cancelled. First and foremost, people who frequent this country and or indeed are well educated about it know that the local communities rely heavily if not wholly, on tourism for their source of income. Why would we decide to talk behind the side lines of how horrendously sad this situation is yet potentially cause more grief, worry and confusion by abandoning them when they need us most? Tuk Tuk Drivers, Taxi drivers, boutique hotels, local restaurants and bars, tea plantation tour guides, surf schools, fishermen. They need us.
Of course, safety is imperative and no one is asking to be reckless - but fear spreads fast, and the less people see active travelling, one cancellation fast becomes 1,000. Let us be vigilant and respective, but lets also stay strong and loyal to a country that by all definitions, needs us.
Well said clarissa.thank you so much the way you discribing our nation and my mother land.may god bless you. I am nayana
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