Wanderlust - 04.2020

wanderlust.co.uk April 2020 149

DISCOVER

SriLanka’shistoryisturbulent...

I did the national tour guide course in 2006, but

due to the civil war, I didn’t start guiding until

2012. We’ve faced challenges: the civil war
      lasted over 25 years, then the tsunami in 2004
      and last Easter’s terrorist attacks, which badly
      a ected the economy. Hotels went bankrupt.
      Tour guides didn’t have jobs. After a few months,
      things went back to normal, but we still need
      support. Tourists are good for our economy.

...but we’re still a natural paradise.

Wehavemountains,morethan 100 rivers, 100

waterfalls,Sigiriya–therockfortressthatwe

considertheeighthwonderoftheworld–and

themonasterieswhereBuddhistmonkslive.In

thecountryside,thepeoplearesogenerous.

Theyhavelittle,butonfullmoondays,youwill

seeprayerfoodplatesbeingsharedwiththe

people,theirneighboursandBuddhistmonks.

Wildlifenumbersarehigh,too.

MinneriyaNPisthebestplaceintheworldto

seewildelephants,especiallyinJulyorAugust.

Morethan 300 elephantscometothewater

withbabycalves–that’sAsia’slargestwild

elephantgathering.Forslothbearand

leopard,gotoYalaorWilpattuNP,whichis

thecountry’sbiggestpark–andnearmy

hometown,Anuradhapura,too.

.Onetime,

mygroupandIwereonatwo-daymountain

walk.Wewerehavingadrinkwhenthislady

said,“I’vefoundthelocalwordforcheers–

HappyCow!”Everyonesaidit,butIdidn’tknow

it.ShesaidourcaretakerRaj(whodidn’tspeak

anyEnglish)toldher.Iaskedhimandhesaid

thathedidn’tunderstandher.Hethoughtshe

wastalkingaboutcheese–there’sabrand

calledHappyCow!

Brexitiseverywhere.OnceIhadtwo

Britsinagroup;onewantedtoleavetheEU

andtheotherwaskeen to remain. The

‘Remainer’toldmewhy the UK should stay

andaskedmyopinion.I said, “You’ve made

yourpointsonicely,so I think you should.”

Theotherguythendid the same, so I told him,

“Yes,youshouldleave.” At dinner, they spoke

aboutBrexitagain.One said, “Indi also thinks

weshouldstayintheEU.” The other guy looked

atmeandsaid,“Butyou told me we should

leave!”Ijustgowiththe Ÿlow!

Travellersareona pilgrimage.

WhenpeopletravelinSri Lanka, they’re looking

forsomething.Deepdown, they’re searching for

somethingspiritual.I’m trying to add to that.

Alwaystrytomake the world better.

Thegovernmentpaysfor education, but most

peopleleavetoliveelsewhere. I feel responsible

tostayanddosomething good – set up a small

library,helpkids,growsome plants. One of my

favouritequotesisdon’t leave the world how you

foundit.Makeitbetter,a little more beautiful.

I’lldeŸinitelydosomething. I’ve started.

THEKNOWLEDGE

Indika‘Indi’Prasad

Kumara has lived in Sri

Lanka all his life. As our

2019 joint bronze award-

winner, the Intrepid Travel

guide reveals his top tips,

and why he goes with

the fl ow on Brexit...

Lessons from

the road

with Indika Pasad Kumara

Thisishowwesaycheers.O

Deepdown,travellers

aresearchingfor

somethingspiritual.

I’mtryingtoaddtothat

8th wonder

A view from above

Sigiriya or ‘Lion Rock’

in Dambulla, Sri Lanka

Shutterstock

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