Diary 2011
Aththudawa Diary 2011
Closing Ceremony Diary by Hannah G
The closing ceremony for Project Sri Lanka 2011 seemed to appear out of nowhere! The trip has gone so quickly; I had no idea that we would end up at this day so soon!
(6 Sep 2011) » More about Closing Ceremony Diary by Hannah G
Closing Ceremony Diary by Hayley and Hannah W
7:30 am and the morning alarm went off. The day had finally arrived. People were showering, doing make up and hair(and that was just the boys), all waiting to be dressed. It was like going to a very important wedding!
(6 Sep 2011) » More about Closing Ceremony Diary by Hayley and Hannah W
30th August (Ed)
We went today to the village of Hithathiya, having been invited by the teacher for a ceremony of tree planting in memory of Ashera Sheik and a meal afterwards.
(30 Aug 2011) » More about 30th August
29th August (Laura)
With the Project Sri Lanka 2011 programme drawing to a close, the resident Monk at Gandarawatte invited the whole team for a farewell meal...
(29 Aug 2011) » More about 29th August
22nd-26th August (Emma)
Aththudawa this week has been wonderful. After being out of action last week I really enjoyed getting back into the classroom.
(26 Aug 2011) » More about 22nd-26th August
22nd-26th August (Hannah)
I spent this week staying with Primitha and Jayalath in their home at Moreketiara. I had a fantastic week and it was really good to experience Sri Lankan life in a Sri Lankan home!
(26 Aug 2011) » More about 22nd-26th August
26th August (Georgette)
This week Hannah W, Chris, Sabina and I were placed at Siddhartha College to run the afterschool club.
(26 Aug 2011) » More about 26th August
22nd August (Charlotte)
Today Sarah Phil and I went to the Gandarawatte Preschool, which was built by the project in 2008.
(22 Aug 2011) » More about 22nd August
15th - 19th August at Moraketiara (Ed)
Although at first unprepossessing, Moreketiara is housed next to a beautiful bay dotted with fishing boats. The school itself is one of the 25 built by the Sri Lankan Rotary Club in the wake of the Tsunami. As such, it is modern and provides a functional teaching environment. Although we arrived during the middle of the holidays, the local children turned out in force to take advance of our presence.
(20 Aug 2011) » More about 15th - 19th August at Moraketiara (Ed)
15th -19th August (Abi)
I decided to spend an extra at Paratha- a decision I am very glad I made. The girls were as warm and as welcoming as ever. We were woken up every day at half 5 for yummy milk tea and then our first meal of rice and curry.
(19 Aug 2011) » More about 15th -19th August (Abi)
19th August (Sabina)
When Georgette, Hannah W and I first arrived at Kirelawela this morning, we were greeted by only two children in the preschool. We were unsure what to expect for the rest of the day but it soon became clear that our lesson plan might not stretch as far as we'd hoped when being applied to two boys. One boy, Dilshan, loved drawing, and we had a wonderful morning drawing pictures of fish and under the sea themes in chalk. My personal favourite was Dilshan's giant pink dolphin.
(19 Aug 2011) » More about 19th August (Sabina)
16th August (Alex)
Today we travelled to Weligama to teach the young boys of Siddhartha College, as part of a holiday program we set up. The classes cannot be held at the college itself, owing to exams being taken by the older students at the moment. Instead, we are in some well-equipped spare classrooms not far away.
(16 Aug 2011) » More about 16th August (Alex)
15th August (Helen)
Today I returned to our Pre-school in Aththudawa for the first time since the opening ceremony. As we were driven through the paddy fields, towards the village, I was reminded of the warm welcome we had received on our first visit and became very excited to be finally teaching there.
(15 Aug 2011) » More about 15th August (Helen)
12th August (Laura)
Today, I returned to Gandarawatte after nearly a year. I was very excited to see Dhammissara, the resident Monk...
(12 Aug 2011) » More about 12th August (Laura)
11th August (Hannah)
Thursday was my fourth day working at Siddhartha College this week. Due to the exams we had to move to a different school down the road as on previous days we had been told off by the school's principle for making too much noise!
(11 Aug 2011) » More about 11th August (Hannah)
10th August (Charlotte)
This week Helen, Abi and I have been in Paratha, a rehabilitation facility for teenage girls that have suffered in their homes...
(10 Aug 2011) » More about 10th August (Charlotte)
9th August (Sarah)
This week Phil, Emma and I set off to Moreketiara. I was very excited to live with Primitha and her family for the week, to immerse ourselves in the community and that we most certainly did...
(9 Aug 2011) » More about 9th August (Sarah)
8th August (Georgette)
Today Hannah Williams, Alex, Ed and I all went to Aththudawa, where we shall remain for the rest of the week...
(8 Aug 2011) » More about 8th August (Georgette)
5th August (Phil)
Visiting the villages this week was consistently surprising. Ed and I encountered four new villages and countless children and teachers in the space of just five days.
(5 Aug 2011) » More about 5th August (Phil)
4th August (Phil)
This week I've been in Aththudawa with Charlotte and Alice. We were especially looking forward to teaching there because it's the school we helped to create.
(4 Aug 2011) » More about 4th August (Phil)
3rd August (Abi)
Today was another fun and exciting day at Siddhartha College. Georgette and I are teaching the Grade 3s this week. We both find their enthusiasm and eagerness to learn contagious, if not a little hard to control at times!
(3 Aug 2011) » More about 3rd August (Abi)
2nd August (Emma)
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time so far at the temple school. Yesterday Hannah and I attempted to gage the level of the Year 7s and 8s we taught, which was difficult because of the range of English they have...
(2 Aug 2011) » More about 2nd August (Emma)
1st August (Laura)
This week, Hannah W, Sabina and I came to work in Moreketiara. I'm excited about this aspect of the programme on several accounts...
(1 Aug 2011) » More about 1st August (Laura)
Summary Diary for the month of July
Well so far, our journey has taken us to new heights, a new climate, new landscapes and new extremes. The journey has definitely not always been easy, what with such a long flight and the infamous Sri Lankan roads, but every day makes the time we spent fundraising worth it.
(30 Jul 2011) » More about Summary Diary
29th July: Kirelawela/Villages
I set off today for the seaside village of Kirelawela by myself this morning, my partner feeling unwell and thus having to take the day off.
(29 Jul 2011) » More about 29th July
28th July: Moreketiara
Today was mine, Helen and Georgette's fourth day teaching in Moreketiara.
(28 Jul 2011) » More about 28th July
27th July: Pre-school
This week Hannah, Sarah and I are working in Project Sri Lanka's newest preschool, Aththudawa.
(27 Jul 2011) » More about 27th July
26th July: 'Place of dreams'
Siddhartha. Place of dreams. The children here are just charming: I was greeted with a screwed up piece of paper to the temple.
(26 Jul 2011) » More about 26th July
25th July: Anura Vidyalaya
Monday morning again the weeks here are going so fast. Today I was off on a brand new adventure for both myself and the team.
(25 Jul 2011) » More about 25th July
22nd July: 'Birthday fun'
This week Georgette and I have been teaching at pre-schools and running after school programmes in four different villages - Gandarawatte, Hiththatiya, Palena and Kirelawela.
(22 Jul 2011) » More about 22nd July
21st July: 'Busy Days at College'
Today was the penultimate day at Siddhartha College for my group. This week we had planned all our lessons around the theme of animals.
(21 Jul 2011) » More about 21st July
19th July (Laura)
Due to nationwide strikes by University lecturers in Sri Lanka, it has not been possible for this year's team to visit Colombo Universities Sri Palee campus as originally planned.
(19 Jul 2011) » More about 19th July
19th July (Sabina)
The journey to Aththudawa can be awkward (two buses and a tuk-tuk) but my favourite part is the tuk-tuk ride.
(19 Jul 2011) » More about 19th July
16th-18th July: “The end of the world and a climb to the heavens”
This weekend we travelled to Nuwara Eliya in the Hill country on Saturday. The journey was long but the views were beautiful of the mountains, tea plantations and waterfalls.
(18 Jul 2011) » More about 16th-18th July
18th July: Moreketiara
On this day, we took the bus from Matara to Moreketiara in the morning, to teach a grade 2 class in the afternoon.
(18 Jul 2011) » More about 18th July
15th July (Abi)
I always enjoy going into the preschool but today was an especially good day...
(16 Jul 2011) » More about 15th July (Abi)
15th July (Hayley)
Today was our last trip to our village for the week; it is safe to say we had become a custom to the bus rides!
(15 Jul 2011) » More about 15th July (Hayley)
14th July (Georgette)
Today was 'Poya' day in Sri Lanka which is a religious day in which all the schools are closed for the day to allow the locals to attend the local temple, so today we had no plans within the schools to teach...
(14 Jul 2011) » More about 14th July (Georgette)
13th July (Alice)
This was our 3rd day at Kirelawela pre-school so well felt much more prepared and knew what to expect when we arrived. We were welcomed warmly by the children and teachers into the preschool...
(13 Jul 2011) » More about 13th July (Alice)
12th July (Helen)
Today was our first day teaching in a village called Gandarawatte. We were greeted on arrival by the local monk who invited us into his house to look at photos of previous Durham students visiting Gandarawatte.
(12 Jul 2011) » More about 12th July (Helen)
11th July (Phil)
We first went into Siddhartha College on Friday the 8th. It's a large school, with about 2000 students from grades 1 to 11 crammed into a small area...
(11 Jul 2011) » More about 11th July (Phil)
'Opening celebrations' - 7th July 2011 (Hannah)
This morning was the opening ceremony of our school in Aththudawa. This was very exciting day for the whole team...
(7 Jul 2011) » More about 7th July 2011 (Hannah)
'The opening ceremony' - 7th July 2011 (Ed)
So, big day today. I was pretty nervous waking up, but Alex soon assuaged my stress...
(7 Jul 2011) » More about 7th July 2011 (Ed)
'A sunny weekend' - 3rd-5th June 2011 (Sabina)
The first day of the away weekend was hot and sunny, and the afternoon was spent enjoying the weather in the garden...
(5 Jun 2011) » More about 3rd-5th June 2011
'Away weekend adventure' - 3rd-5th June 2011 (Chris)
On Friday, just after lunch, we began our 'away weekend' adventure: three days sequestered in Northumberland's picturesque countryside...
(5 Jun 2011) » More about 3rd-5th June 2011 (Chris)
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