I thought I'd jump wholeheartedly onto the already overladen bandwagon. Here are my additions:
Every meal includes rice and toothpicks
The distance between your big toe and your little toe is greater than the length of your foot.
You have a relative in most countries in the world.
You think it's perfectly okay for two first cousins to marry
Your surname has more than three syllables
You always need to weigh your luggage before check in
Sri Lanka’s Ingenuity paradox
4 weeks ago
10 comments:
LOL! Then I am most certainly Sri Lankan (except for the cousin thingy)
So true. And not only do you have to weigh your luggage multiple times because you are carrying many a "small parcel" for relatives...they also insist on crowding your house by dropping in to see you off. The concept of throwing your things in a bag and taking a cab alone to the airport is so lost on SL people. Sigh.
I would like to add:
You can't wait patiently in line.
You have a death wish every time you step on to the road.
You drive like a retard on crack to get some place and yet everyone is always late to everything.
No lunch/dinner/coffee/drinks meetup is complete without gossip.
You complain loudly about how hot/humid/dusty/dry it is, never sparing a thought for those freezing in places like, say, New York.
vice a versa:
And if you are visiting from abroad, however the many times you visit, family will insist on coming to the Katunayake airport to meet and greet you.
You will always carry back gifts, even for the domestics sons kid you have never even seen.
So many people will invite you for a meal that you suddenly realise the holiday has flown by and you had no time for yourself.
If you are from Colombo you will visit Barefoot to pose and have a Kollu meal at the cafe.
Even if it's available where you live, take back Shyam's and David's books with you. Muller no longer the hip and happening book of topic. This purchase must be made at the Barefoot bookshop and no place else.
On Sunday, buy some painting from 'Kala Pola' and take them on the SriLankan flight with you as hand luggage!
Shall stop now before RD gets annoyed with my long comment.
I'm glad that now you are really making sense of "what is being a Sri Lankan like" :-) Points you'velisted here, and what Sam has pointed are not only just hilarious. But it shows the true meaning of "what is it like, to be a Sri Lankan". Why you are listing these things as characteristics of being Sri Lankan? Because, these things are not shared by people of other nations. And that was the point I was trying to make in my post (of course I couldn't do it with a humor, like you and Sam did). It's all about your "Identity". If identity is a dress; there are American dresses, English dresses, Indian dresses and Sri Lankan dresses. You have to select the most fitting dress as your "national identity". You might have character in other identities. But it's a matter of, to which "dress" you are mostly fitting in. Pick that dress, and admit it as your identity. Let go other dresses!
DD - I'd never get annoyed with a comment from you, however long. But, forgetting to say "good morning" is a very serious matter indeed. Good morning.
VIC - I think the big difference between the things that have been posted by me, Sam and other versus your post, is that we're actually joking!
Good morning! Rushed earlier as for once the kid was faster than I at morning ritual. Must be all the Bombay mixture I ate last night while watching the last dregs of Obama's inauguration on telly!!
One more pls re: Sri Lankan;
All of us collect shopping bags and invariably take our lunch to office in them. Especially those Bodyshop small bags. My wife has a huge collection of shopping bags and the broom cupboard over flows with grocery bags!
I enjoyed the humour in this post and Sam’s post re: national identity. I even found myself agreeing with a couple of VIC’s points on this subject.
But looking at the big picture, I am a little depressed that Sri Lankan identity is being categorised as being a culmination of all the worst traits (admittedly for a laugh but that doesn’t make them untrue) or the marginalising of those who do not subscribe to the rural cultural hegemony.
Sometimes being ‘Sri Lankan’ just means sitting on the Mount Lavinia beach having a Lion Lager, some HBC and knowing in your heart that you’re home…
Toes thing is so true
If you are a Sri Lankan,
1. you will always have catious conversations with your parents,taking care never to mention the affairs of the siblings but will stick to three topics- Sri Lankan politics, transportation system and the cricket team.
2. You will know the names of your parents neighbours and their ailments.
3. Will never answer the question how are you with a "splendid, doing great"
4. Your are expected to visit/call your never seen cousin /relative when they arrrive in your country of residence even if the point of arrival is 600kms away.
Post a Comment