Calm before the storm! Before we left the UK we were advised to have a rest day on day 3 of trekking. However, we managed to last until day 5 until we felt over-tired and …
Continue readingAuthor: marcia summers
Blog 5 – from Morawaka to Unawatawa National Park
Today was all about the elephants! We set off early this morning to beat the worst of the day’s heat which reached 34 degrees! We stopped at an amazing roadside cafe with the most fabulous …
Continue readingBlog 4 – trekking from Dampella to Morawaka
The Rambukana tea garden plantation is where we’ve arrived at today. Unbelievably the owner’s brother lives in Kingston-upon-Thames! That feels surreal! We are now encased in a stunningly manicured garden carved out of the rain …
Continue readingBlog 3 – trekking from Ahangama to Makuludola Estate, Dampella
There was a heavy and noisy storm last night and it was still raining this morning when we woke but even still the air remained thick and humid. We managed to trek another 14km today …
Continue readingBlog Number 2 – SETTING OFF!
After a day in and around Galle visiting Their Future Today (TFT) projects as detailed in yesterday’s blog, we began our trek towards Kandy from Galle Cricket ground at 7am this morning. We received a …
Continue readingBlog Number 1 – Galle to Kandy – in and around Galle
Heathrow to Colombo and then to Galle could not have been smoother even though we had prepared for the worst as we had been warned of shortages in many things. In fact it was probably …
Continue readingFINAL PRE-TREK UPDATE …… AND WE’RE OFF…
Send off supper Last weekend Their Future Today (TFT) organised a ’send off’ supper for Gill and me at Indian Zest in Sunbury and we had a fab evening. Lots of amazing friends and TFT …
Continue reading10 days to go! Sri Lanka trek update
Fundraising update 74% of my target now raised – that’s a whopping £7,400 – refer to blog of 1st March for the detail and how it’s being used. Gill’s and my travel documents are now …
Continue readingSri Lanka Trek update – 1 March 2022
Sri Lanka Trek update – 1 March 2022 March is here! It’s THIS month I begin Part 1 of my 10 week trek across Sri Lanka. I’m raising funds to support vulnerable women and children …
Continue readingSri Lanka trek update & urgent call for volunteers
Whilst it was disappointing I couldn’t go to Sri Lanka last November as planned, I’ve decided to go this Easter 2022 and begin my charity trek across the island. Instead of trekking across Sri Lanka …
Continue readingTrek challenge update, Ebay accumulator & next steps
Well Covid has wrecked the trek – for this November as planned. Whilst Sri Lanka is in a national lockdown, Covid cases and hospitalisations there deeply concerning, it makes no sense for me to attempt …
Continue readingKirimetiya gets connected in more ways than one
Two weeks’ ago electricity connection arrived at Kirimetiya pre-school. The school is set in a village in a remote ex-tea plantation area high in the hills of central Sri Lanka. I wrote in detail about …
Continue readingThe magic multiplier – educate a woman, educate a community and a generation – from an almost forgotten village in the tea plantation hills
Kirimetiyawatte, abbreviated to Kirimetiya, and even further and affectionately so to Kiri, is a remote village high in the mountains of the central province of Sri Lanka. Whilst only about an hour’s drive from the …
Continue readingLooms and zooms – how well the girls at the refuge have learnt to weave and what happens next
Last week we had a 90 minute zoom call with the girls in the refuge all about their weaving. With translation support from the house mother and Women’s Development Centre Director, Sashi Stephen, the girls …
Continue readingSri Lankan Buddhist Chanting
There are so many things I love about Sri Lanka and one of them is a particular aspect of their Buddhist tradition i.e. chanting. I first heard this community chanting when volunteering at the Women’s …
Continue readingBeating the Covid blues with something golden!
Turmeric The flowering spice plant, turmeric, the roots of which are used for cooking, dying and as a herbal medicine, has been used for thousands of years in the East. I wanted to find out …
Continue readingDharshani’s spicy Sri Lankan chicken curry!
To break up the travel planning, I’m including a Sri Lankan recipe this week. Whilst we can’t travel, we can create a bit of Sri Lanka wherever we’re locked down. This is a delicious and …
Continue readingLockdown Weaving
The looms The seven looms sent out to Kandy, Sri Lanka during the first lockdown in April last year are now in full use. The survivors of gender-based violence living in the refuge are using …
Continue readingMy overall trekking route and a request of you!
Below is my final draft of the route showing my planned trek across Sri Lanka later this year to raise funds to support: girls/women who are survivors of gender-based violence children’s education equipment for schools …
Continue readingLeg 10 (Final leg) – Mihintale to Colombo airport via Kurunegala (200km)
Nearing the end If all’s gone to plan it should be early Feb 2022 by now and I need to be back at work for the 7th. I’ll have travelled from Galle on the south …
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