OceanStars :: Thursday 23rd October 2025 :: Latest Blog Posts
Today was packed with Sri Lankan experiences - from a string hopper and sambal sauce to the amazing preschool in Yatiyanthota Inst Peter's church.
When we arrived, the parents were cooking lunch for the kids - rice, green beans, curried fish and slices of guava. It looked delicious, and we were most impressed by how the two parents on the rota prepared and cooked this huge meal for 60 kids in a tiny alcove. It puts our tendency to remodel our kitchens into larger and more lavish configurations to shame!
Dilanee then gave a model session, reading the very hungry caterpillar in an interactive fashion and then, after the kids' lunch/brunch, which for many of them would be the only meal of the day, the kids coloured in their butterfly hats and then Dilanee led some singing and dancing and capped it off with bubbles. It was a joyous affair.
It was also amazing to learn from the parents that their children had put on weight - 3 kilos in one instance - even though the programme only started in July - 4 months ago and it was having such benefit to their learning, their mood and their interest in food.
We then visited a child's home by tuk tuk (I love the tuk tuk ) and we agreed that the UK could do with some tuk tuks! When we got there, the butterfly hat was already on show. The house was tiny (by our lavish UK standards) and it was lovely to meet the family.
Lastly we had a very long drive to Batti but Sudha is a great driver and his van is so so comfortable and we had our first sights of elephant (in a temple's grounds (I thought it was a statue at first), monkeys leaping through the trees like they were on running tracks and buffalo on the road at sundown - how beautifully their dark skins shone in the setting sun in this photogenic jewel of a country.
