Elephants and Poya

Saturday, we took a trip to Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage. Although some of the elephants were born in the orphanage, many were rescued after having been orphaned or injured, often as a result of the war. There’s not a lot to say about the trip except that the elephants were adorable, especially when they were bathing in the river.

Cooling off in the river

Playing on the rocks near the water

Today was a Poya (full moon) day, making it a Buddhist holy day and a public holiday. Although I had class in the afternoon, my morning classes were cancelled. No one else in my family had school or work, so I spent the morning at home with them. In the evening ISLE took us on a fieldtrip to a Buddhist temple, where we lit candles and incense and gave flowers as an offering to the Buddha.

Lighting a candle

To correct my explanation of who I live with, it’s true that my amma’s younger brother and his wife don’t live next door (although their daughter does), but they only live about 45 minutes away. I’m pretty sure that the brother in London is actually a brother-in-law, who is from London but now lives in Sweden with my amma’s sister (his wife), my amma’s daughter, and my amma’s younger brother’s elder daughter.