It is our final day in Colombo. Our trip here took an unexpected turn when
Steve took ill with Dengue Fever and we ended up at Durdans Hospital on New
Year’s Eve! Of all the places I have
seen the New Year in – from watching the ball drop in Times Square to watching
the fireworks light up the sky in Sydney Harbour, this was certainly an
experience I had not anticipated or prepared for. We had intended to fly out on the 4th
so it certainly put a spanner in our plans but it taught us too
that life does have a few unexpected twists and turns and it is best that we
accept and deal with them in as positive a manner as possible! Travel has certainly taught me to be flexible
but this one was a curve ball that I did not see coming. After all – we only had 5 days left before an
incredible journey had almost come to
an end…
BMICH - Conference Hall |
I tried not to think it was New Years Eve but if worrying
had not kept me up, then the crackers that seem to go on forever certainly
meant I would not get much sleep that night.
It was a relief though to know Steve was in hospital, getting the right
hydration he needed and was under the watchful eye of the doctors and nursing
staff there. We were in hospital for a
long stressful week and were very thankful when finally we were given the
thumbs up and a discharge card!
We had enjoyed a wonderful year and we are thankful for the
many wonderful blessings and highs of 2013.
I am just in the process of putting together my photo book of our
journey and it is a joy to reflect back on our experiences and to realise what
we achieved. The new friends we made, the communities we
volunteered in, the cities we discovered and everything we learnt about
intentional communities and sustainable living will be recounted in stories
around many dining tables for years to come.
A paper has already been accepted for the Global Planners Conference and
Steve will deliver
Colombo Cathedral |
Our time in Sri Lanka was also precious. I was able to spend Christmas with mum who
now lives alone since my dad passed away almost 5 years ago. I spent time with many friends and family
some of whom were visiting from overseas and I had not seen for many years. We had weekend trips and day trips with my
cousins and escaped to the South for an extended holiday with my mum. I attended my first Old Girls Association
dinner of my high school and we were fortunate to go to many carol services and
concerts in Colombo in the lead up to Christmas. We also visited a couple of eco-villages and
learnt about the challenges of sustainable living in the developing world.
For the first time in my life I also photographed
Colombo! I realised that often we are so
blasé about t
Town Hall |
Finally, it is time to say thank you and goodbye to my mum,
friends and family in Colombo. We have
learnt lots about the value of community during our travels but the value of
community during a crisis we learnt first hand during our stay in Colombo. I was thankful to my cousins who live just
next door and were here in an instant when they heard Steve had Dengue. They advised me what I should do and helped
me stay calm in a crisis. I was thankful
to my friends and family who visited us in hospital to raise my spirits and to let
Steve know he would be OK soon. I was
also thankful to my friend Dushy, a consultant at Durdans who visited us
everyday and reassured us as to what stage of the illness we were at. All in all,
Colombo Museum |
Now we say goodbye to our life on the road and look forward
to 2014. We are very thankful to the
many blessing 2013 brought us and the courage and opportunity we were given to
experience life a little outside our comfort zones. A break from the routine and mundane rituals
of life is a wonderful tonic and one I can never get enough of. We hope 2014 will bring us new opportunities
from which we can learn and grow. We
hope we can make a difference in the world around us, and the network of people
with whom we interact each day. I wish
my family, my new friends and old, a wonderful 2014! Let’s raise our glasses to that…
Happy New Year
everybody! Here’s Nil and Steve signing
off from our travels on the road…
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