Negombo, Kuala Lumpur, Perth

Negombo
On Tuesday, 11 May, I travelled from Kandy to Negombo by regular bus.  It was a hot 4 hour journey sitting next to my luggage on the seat next to me. I bought two seat tickets (one for my luggage). The conductor alerted me to the stop where I wanted to get off, Parakrama Road close to a Nayomi Bakery just about 5km just south of Negombo town. I drank some tea and ate some cakes before taking a 3 wheeler with my 3 pieces of luggage 1km down Parakrama Road to Srilal Fernando’s guest-house. I had booked the room a few days earlier.  I did not wish to go to the Negombo beach which is north of town. Srilal Fernando’s place is relatively close to the Bandaranaike International Airport (Sri Lanka’s international airport). It is very clean, comfortable and economical.

Kuala Lumpur
I flew AirAsia to KL arriving about 2pm, stored my luggage at the airport and rode a shuttle bus into town to visit a Dhamma book distribution centre where I picked up two books and made a donation. I ate roti and dal and drank milk with Mrs Lim from the distribution centre at a nearby restaurant. We chatted about Dhamma and life in KL. Then I went back to the KL airport by shuttle bus and a short while later boarded the flight to Perth.

I arrived in Perth on Saturday, 15 May 2010 before dawn. The air was crisp and cool. Someone told me the temperature of around 2.5 degrees Celsius though the minimum is usually around 6-8 degrees rising to a maximum of around 22. It was a huge contrast with Negombo, Sri Lanka which was very very humid last week and had a temperature range between 31-27 degrees C.  The southern hemisphere is in autumn now. I enjoyed passing through Perth on my way to my mother’s house. There were few vehicles or people to be seen. There is so much space between things. I travelled by shuttle van from the airport to the city and then by light rail and local bus. Everything seems so clean and luxurious. So much space, so few people… I have experienced this many times and yet each time I return to Australia after some time away, I am always delighted.

I’ve caught up with many family members. The adults haven’t changed during the past year or so while the children have noticeably grown taller and one now talks incessantly.  I have already begun looking for employment.