All Good Things

Last week I was on my way to the Sri Lanka Department of Immigration in Colombo to extend my visa. Everything seemed to conspire against it: the ungodly heat, noise on the congested streets, tuktuk drivers trying to overcharge me, buses I could not figure out — even before I made it to the Department address I wanted to curl up in a quiet corner somewhere and have a good cry. Once I was there I began to reconsider.

Did I really want to stay longer? As I waited for the friend of a friend who worked at the Department I realized my nerves were frayed. It has been nearly three months of travel after all and most days continue to present a variety of ever changing challenges awaiting my clumsy mastery. Even crossing the street cannot be done by rote because people drive on the left side of the road here; I cannot get it straight which way to look so I have taken to looking wildly in both directions and hoping for the best. ha.

The friend eventually appeared but after filing out a little paperwork I told him I would think about it and come back another time to finish it. At $100 for the extension I wanted to be sure I really would stay.

I was still feeling pretty raw when I left, only to learn I was stuck on the streets another five hours until my couchsurfing host returned from work. It was at that point I stopped resisting. I said to myself, “why resist? I cannot change the facts, my host cannot come home earlier and I cannot stop the traffic or noise or heat, it just is what is.” So I opened up to whatever I was feeling. I immediately felt better. Everything softened and I knew I could make it through this day and time did in fact pass pretty quickly until 8 pm.

the lake at sunset

Thushara my Sri Lankan friend texted me recently reminding me to be like a feather, life is like a river, he wrote, and we should let it go as it will and not block it. Everything is easier when I do this; the visa day was simply a stark reminder, a proverbial whack on the head to let go. The other message from the day was that maybe it was a good time to go back to the USA. I bought a ticket.

Two days later as the sun was dropping in the early evening sky I found myself in a small fishing boat being rowed by two athletic fisherwomen in Polonnaruwa, a town five hours northwest of Colombo known for its ancient ruins. As we glided across the enormous lake in search of wild elephants I listened to the water lapping, felt its coolness trickle through my fingers and admired the magnificence of the landscape.  I felt like it was god telling me I was headed in the right direction.

Now that I had only 2 weeks left before my flight back to the USA I picked up speed. I began to rack up tourist sites: the ruins at Polannaruwa, the lake at Polonnaruwa, more ruins on a mountain called Ritigara and at the great rock called Sigiriya, the Golden Temple and Rock Temple, and finally the one thing I had been dreaming of: wild elephants.

I was bouncing along in an old rickety jeep driven by Kapulla, a local safari guide when the first elephants appeared around the bend. I yelped for joy and did a dance, then I just sat there with my jaw open for a few minutes.

Slowly a whole herd of wild elephants came out of the jungle, about thirty elephants. We sat there in the jeep while they moseyed across the plain swinging their trunks and kicking up dust as they pulled grass out of the ground to eat. At least 10 or more of them were babies, some quite tiny, the rest were females and one large male. When we got as close as Kapulla dared he turned off the engine. For a while all I do is snap pictures. But finally I stop and just watch.

Elephants!

It is then I began to cry. Feelings with no words pass through my mind like: Am I really here? Is this really my life? And there is this profound sense of beauty in the scene in front of my eyes. And also I cannot help but be reminded of all the wildlife TV documentaries I have seen about how wild elephants are threatened.

At that moment, as the herd slowly makes their way towards the lake for an afternoon swim I am in awe of them, their size, their gentle gait, and their life here protected and free. I feel like an intruder — me and the other 3-5 jeeps surrounding them — breaking into their privacy because the plain is clearly their home. The elephants are surreal; watching them is like being in another dimension, a time before cities or cell phones or cars, even as I ride in a jeep and take pictures on my cell phone.

I will never forget those moments.  We watched the first herd and followed them on their travels for about 30 minutes. Later we drove on and found two more herds, close to 100 wild elephants! As much as I think the true journey in life is the inner one seeing wild elephants convinces me to have a wider angle.  Between the elephants, all the people I’ve met, cultures experienced, and friends I made, one thing is for sure: my travels are not over.

Next stop: Boston. 🙂

View of Mt Ritiga

Stairway on Ritigala

Walking between the walking meditation posts from ancient ruins on Ritigala

Ritigala, with Kapalla my guide

On Ritigala

On Ritigala

Elephants!

Kaudulla National Park

My safari pose 🙂

Elephants, another herd

Ancient ruins at Polonnaruwa

Polonnaruwa

Polonnaruwa

Polonnaruwa

One of the fishewoman rowing our little boat

the giant golden buddha

inside the rock temple

Golden Temple, at bottom of the rock temple

inside the Rock Temp[le

Inside the Rock Temple, one of many buddhas

Inside the rock temple

inside the rock temple

in the rock temple

me in front of the golden temple