Postcards From Sri Lanka: Lexiconic

So it’s been awhile since I arrived in Colombo, and this is the first essai that I have made at writing something up for the blog. The truth is, it’s almost impossible to get a chance to sit down and type out anything coherent that anyone would be remotely interested in reading. It’s so hot here the last thing I want to do is wilt away in front of a computer screen. Fortunately I’ve been able to catch a few minutes to myself here at my aunt’s place. (securely placed underneath a rather powerful ceiling fan might I add.) So before I give you a little rundown of what I’ve been up to, here’s a lexicon of important terms that are a part of my every day life here in Colombo.

Amresh (Blackie): Ravi and Dhilumni’s youngest son (14)
Athula: Aiya’s bad ass fish machete
Aunty Dhilumni: Ravi Bappa’s wife
Aunty Dushy: Niranjan Bappa’s wife
Chandra: Mamma and Pappa’s cleaning lady
Dhinushka (Bola): Niranjan and Dushy’s youngest daughter (16)
Kiara: Nirjanjan Bappa’s fat Labrador retreiver (3)
Lucky Bappa (Percy): Thathi’s second brother, the one who came and lived with us in Canada for 6 months
Mamma: Thathi’s mother
Manika: Niranjan Bappa’s cook
Nilanga: Niranjan and Dushy’s oldest daughter (18)
Niranjan (Johnny) Bappa: Thathi’s third brother, the one who comes to Toronto once a year on business
Pappa: Thathi’s father
Rani: Nirjanan Bappa’s cleaning lady
Ravi (Chutti) Bappa: Thathi’s baby brother, the only one who's never been to Canada
Shanga (Lucy, Josephine, Jos): Ravi and Dhilumni’s oldest daughter (15)
Sunil: Niranjan Bappa’s driver
Susantha: our trishaw driver, we want to give him a gift of a GPS, his sense of direction is worse than mine, and that’s me being kind
Trishaw: the three-wheeled mosquito looking vehicle that we travel in every day due to a lack of a car. Since it’s open, and there’s no such thing as ‘emmissions testing’ here there is a good chance I will develop lung cancer before I come back home
Vimala: Mamma and Pappa’s cook