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TODAY IS T + 17 (T for tsunami). |
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This is Tiddy, a most excellent fellow, a waiter, a Malay. He posed for
the camera and his smile is for my wife Vivien, who he remembers very
fondly and asked to be remembered. But, despite the camera smile, Tiddy is not happy. "Sri Lanka is finished!" he says sadly, and points to the fact the once-booming hotel is nearly empty. The Hilton remains full, with Diplomatic hot-shots and the media parasites who turn up on a junket wherever there is tragedy. But the tourist hotels, which are the life-blood of Sri Lanka's new economy, are the real monitor of what is happening. The devastation of the tsunami will reach far beyond the physical and reach into every home on the island, if tourist confidence collapses - and who would want to come on vacation, to get away from it all, relax and unwind, to a disaster zone? It seems inevitable. The question is: will the crowds stay away for months? Years? Forever? Who knows. |
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Here's me with a local celebrity, for want of a better word. Pandit Lord Sir Professor Doctor Anton Jayasuriya is an institution. His list of accolades and titles runs to dozens. All of them he assures me, are genuine and well-earned. He founded Medicina Alternativa many years ago and teaches acupuncture to many international students (including scores Chinese doctors!). I've seen pictures of him with the Pope, Royalty, lamas, Christian Barnard and numerous other famous people. He has written over sixty books and his text "Clinical Acupuncture" has sold millions and made him very rich (he likes to boast that he has over 20 cars, including 4 Rolls-Royces). But here's a thing: Anton (I can't be bothered with all the pomp) has treated hundreds of thousands of people, millions if you take into account the activities of his pupils and he has not charged them one penny (rupee). He is adored by the poor of Sri Lanka, many is the time when I have been with him and seen a grateful patient fall to their knees and kiss the hem of his garment. That's adoration.
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| This is a supper on the beach at Anton's
Dehiwala restaurant (oh yes, did I mention he owns 3 hotels and several
restaurants?). These are some of the local intelligentia and this is the
first time they have ventured on the beach. If you refer to page 2 you
will recall many people were swept away from here - also Anton's
restaurant, which he has had rebuilt in just 10 days!. A couple of boffins were discussing, quite seriously, that the tectonic plate had fractured out to sea and now there would be earthquakes every few weeks or months (totally untrue). Another thought that this was the first time the tectonic plates had moved and it would now be happening frequently (also not true; they move constantly. It's when they don't move you worry. Because sooner or later, they will jerk free and all hell breaks loose). As I said yesterday, fear has really taken over. These people have more sophisticated explanations for their dread - but it's the same post-traumatic anxiety in the end. |
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