Tuesday 3rd December 2024

Today marked the 60th and final day of our amazing 2-months visit to Sri Lanka. We had a rather rushed breakfast, as we were being picked up at 09:00 by a friend of Ragu's to take us to the airport. Everything went very smoothly, with the quickest check-in I have experienced there (in the past I have had to endure long queues). The flight took off almost an hour late, but that's not unusual, and it actually made up the time, as we landed back at Heathrow just before 19:30.

We had decided to get a transfer home to Bath, and our friend Ahmed, who is a taxi driver, was there to meet us. After such a long journey to Heathrow, it made sense not to wait for another 2-3 hours to get a coach back from the Heathrow Coach Station (which I have done previously, and is a bit of a killer in terms of exhaustion). We had a very relaxed ride home with Ahmed, and got back to our flat a mere 18.5 hours after leaving Colombo Swimming Club this morning!

It seems strange writing my final blog entry today, but also very different, as I have travelled to Sri Lanka on 5 occasions now, and in total have spent a year of my life out there, but this is the first time that Valerie has come with me, so it has actually been the best visit so far - and for so many reasons! We have done so much, met so many lovely people, and had so many wonderful experiences that will stay with us for the rest of our lives, so we feel enormously grateful for that.

I remain very grateful, too, to every one of you who has followed my blog, which most of you have sporadically, but there are a few stalwarts out there, who have read every entry, and my very good friend Charles gets the prize for his valiant effort to leave me so many encouraging comments, most of which I haven't had time to respond to on an individual basis (but we will catch up very soon, Charles!). I wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Today's photographs are unusual, as they are a tribute to 9 amazing women and 2 little girls, who have been so influential during this 2-month visit to Sri Lanka, and my life in general. They appear below, with a brief explanation for each of them.

Unsurprisingly, Valerie, my wife of 41 years, is top of the list. She partly made this trip possible because she encouraged me to make the 4 previous trips to Sri Lanka (and the 6th one next January and February 2025) on my own. This fifth trip was so much more fun, having her to share it with me, and she now understands why Sri Lanka has become such an integral part of my life.

My wife's mother Hilary, pictured here sitting in a wheelchair, with her grandchildren, and great grand children, during a walk which was part of the celebrations for her 85th birthday in April. Usually, Valerie goes to stay with her on my solo trips to Sri Lanka, but Hilary was happy for her to accompany me on this trip, and she has been fascinated with all Valerie's accounts of what she did in Sri Lanka.

My daughter, Hannah, who now owns her own home in Ratho, on the outskirts of Edinburgh, and who is a constant source of encouragement to me, and brings so much joy into my life. Having two sons is also wonderful, but these photographs are celebrating women, and having a daughter is very special, and she is one of the most important women in my life, of course!

I only have two grandchildren, and they are both girls! Isabella, 11 in January, and Esther, 6 in February, have brought so much joy into my life. It's hard to explain what an awesome gift grandchildren are, but if you are a grandparent, you will completely understand! My life took on a different course when Isabella was born on 12th January 2014, as grandparenthood brought so many lovely new experiences.

Jasmene Shah is next here, as the co-founder of Tea Leaf Trust with her husband Tim Pare. I only met her in person for the first time this year, and she is a true inspiration. She is such a lovely woman, providing incredible support to her husband and her family, and without her (and her husband, Tim, of course) Tea Leaf Trust would not exist, and I would not be playing my own unique role in it.

Yadharhsi Selveraj, pictured here working at her desk, with her faithful dog Ranger at her side, is the countrywide Director of Tea Leaf Trust, and now one of its two CEOs. She is a remarkable woman, and it has been such a privilege to work with her and get to know her over the past 5 years that I have been supporting Tea Leaf Trust, both on my trips to the country, and back home in the UK.

Jesmin Arumugam, a member of Tea Leaf Trust's Management Team, is one of two women with whom I work most closely in Tea Leaf Trust. Again, someone I have known since I first volunteered with Tea Leaf Trust in 2019, I have been fortunate to share responsibility with her for the Volunteers Programme, with me supporting them prior to them getting out to Sri Lanka, where she then takes over.

Kavinirosha Ponnusamy (I just call her Kavi) is the other brilliant lady with whom I work most closely in Tea Leaf Trust. She now runs the 6-month English Programme for Sri Lankan government teachers, which I support through organising a native English-speakers' weekly conversation initiative. She is absolutely great at doing her job, and she is just such a pleasure to work with.

This photograph of Tharika Perera says it all. One of the funniest, loveliest women I have worked with at Tea Leaf Trust, she was a member of their Central Management Team, before moving on to work at the Royal International School in Kurunegala. She invited me to visit her and to see her in her new role, and I ended up coming out to the school for this 2-months trip to support them.

Last, but not least, is Sandra Wanduragala, who I only met in February of this year, but who has already had a profound impact on my life. She is one of the most capable, remarkable women I have ever met, and an extraordinary entrepreneur, who has achieved astonishing things in her life. It is my privilege to count her as a friend now, and to, hopefully, enjoy working with her for many more years to come.

Where would we be without all these amazing women in our lives? If you are a guy reading today's blog entry, think about all the amazing women who have contributed to your life, and if you are a woman, think about all the other women in your life who have encouraged your growth and development as a woman, something I believe Tea Leaf Trust excels at doing.