We put the ‘Serendip’ in ‘Serendipity’.
The Persians called us “Serendib”; the British called us “Ceylon” and now we are formally known as “Sri Lanka”. Even though our rightful name is lost in translation most other things are not. If anything, Sri Lankans are best described as hospitable people who always wear a smile on their face (I see this time and time again in almost every foreign-made travel video online). The world doesn’t know what to think of us, so it’s natural for them to assume that we are a lot like our neighbors up north. Yes, we do look alike but only to a certain degree, I’d like to think that our similarities end there.
I remember when I studied in Canada almost every time I told someone that I was from Sri Lanka they would say “Aw I’m happy you are here now” (which didn’t make sense to me). It’s ok, It’s not really their fault to be genuinely ignorant about the outside world. It’s just a by-product of comfort. But that assumption is far from the truth. Yes, a civil war waged in our country for over 30 years, but we got through it, we overcame the pain and suffering by hoping that there is more to our little country than racism, now racism is limited to a few (a very few with ulterior motives).
We are resilient and will never accept defeat. It's in our blood to represent the lion in our flag. We don't really know-know why there's a lion in our flag but we live to prove that we earned the right to flaunt 'Simba' as our rightful mascot. We bounced back faster than most countries, It's hard to keep us down. Even the recent devastating floods didn't phase us. We just dusted ourselves and got back to being the happy islanders we have always been. But people outside our shores don’t know this until they see it for themselves.
Sri Lanka is now a whole new world. Our country is beautiful in every aspect, and our people are tired of negativity. We have evolved far beyond petty differences and racist rhetoric. All we now want is to sit back and enjoy the sights, the sounds, the food, other cultures, arrack, tody, baila, each other and Cricket. We are not proud of our past, but we are happy with where we are currently in spite of it.
Recently I stumbled upon a YouTube video that described our people as ‘suck ups!’. Apparently, most of us suck up to white people. This is true, wouldn’t you be extra polite to a client or a customer? That’s exactly how most Sri Lankans see white people, foreigners who are a good source of lucrative milk waiting to be squeezed out of every cash cow utter. It’s not because of our past experiences with their superiority complex. It is because being polite sends them the right message; “Please enjoy our country, come again and don’t forget to spread the word, oh and your pockets”. After all this is a Tropical country, we thrive on sunbathing tourists, you scratch my back (cha-ching) I tan yours in return **Sri Lankan head nod**. No hard feeling, business is business and you will enjoy every moment of your Sunkist transaction.
“So distinct from India, so different from what I expected” –Anthony Bourdain- (No Reservations, 2008, Season 5, Episode 9). Anthony Bourdain (God bless his soul), that beautiful swaged out human being couldn’t have been more accurate. We are not like India. I don’t mean to seem patriotic or defensive but it’s true. Come see for yourself. We will always welcome you on arrival and wave you through the departure gates with a smile. You will always have a place in our country provided you come back as a friend. If you learn to look passed our shortcomings you will find that our smiles have nothing to hide except for a true heartfelt need to help you make the most of your tropical holiday. With love, all Sri Lankans **Sri Lankan head nod**. Written by: Gerard the Copywriter. #srilanka #srilankan #srilankantourism #serendib #ceylon
