It was a Thursday where we had our regular club meetings. After the meeting adjourned, I got to know that we were going to have dinner with some people from Hong Kong. Then I remembered about the exchange program which was mentioned by Hamdhan few days ago. I was so caught up with my work and I totally forgot about that . I was free that night so I thought of attending to the dinner.
We went to dinner at Thalappakatti, a new place in Bambalapitiya. I was sitting with my club members and while we observed the Hong Kong people we realized that they seemed to be a fun set of people from the way they were enjoying their time here. When we were having dinner, I realised how spicy they found our food. Even I agree to the fact that Sri Lankan food is a bit spicier than most other countries. I never really talked to any of them on that day except for a few goodbyes when I left after dinner.
After a couple of days, we were announced that they were visiting a Children’s home to paint the hallway. I decided to attend this project as well. With the help of my fellow club members, the club members from Hong Kong began work by moving the cupboards, dusting off the cobwebs and sweeping the floor. Then they painted the walls. After the painting was over, they had a very interactive session with the kids, teaching them how to speak in Cantonese and introducing the kids to some small Chinese artwork. My favourite part of that project was the interactive session. The kids had a lot of fun.
The next time I met them was when they visited Vidyaraja Maha Vidyalaya in Hokandara. The session started off with the Hong Kong club members sharing some of their local culture with the students. They performed a puppet show called “The Emperor’s New Clothes” and also sang a Cantonese song called “Beyond the Sky.” The students in turn performed a number of traditional dances and songs. The foreigners were treated with some Manioc and tea which they heavily enjoyed. The club members from Hong Kong taught the students about Chinese calligraphy and painting. Afterwards they painted a few buildings in the school as well.
After the proceedings at school, they came to Rtr. Navin’s house where a cultural dinner was organized by our club members. The visitors were served with hoppers and kottu which they enjoyed thoroughly. After dinner, both them and us engaged in a session of singing and dancing which was a very memorable moment. We all danced for a like an hour to various songs requested by the Hong Kong people. It was great to forget our work and enjoy a session like that. Afterwards, they prepared a Hong Kong desert called Black Sesame Soup which turned out to be very delicious. The proceedings of the day were wrapped up by a photograph featuring the members of both clubs.
This happened to be the last time I met them before they left Sri Lanka. I believe it was a very exciting project organized by our club which turned out to be a one of a kind experience for all of us.
Rtr. Thisura Ramanayake
Editor