Mr Jam still on the run

Urban kids given a taste of jungle life

YOUR HUMBLE NARRATOR is still on the road and hiding from various newspaper and magazine editors. Don’t tell them where I am!

But thanks to the magic of the internet, I can share a few pics without them tracking me down and setting me back to work.

Above is a pic of urban kids from concrete and steel Hong Kong encountering a whole different type of environment.

Many members of this gang met in Hong Kong earlier this year to celebrate Fardel’s visit. Perhaps these pics may tempt us to meet next year or the year after in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka’s coast line


Our family’s hired limousine

 
The road into the jungle, which is not really jungle at all, but savannah

 
Luxurious interior of our limousine

Neighbors on the road in Sri Lanka

 
Olympic swimming pool

 
Jungle home

 
Meeting some sea turtle rescuers


The local hypermarket


Everyone’s seen pictures of the beach in Sri Lanka, but even more amazing is the area known as the Misty Mountains


This is a random picture of walking down the street in the Misty Mountains – it’s like living in a Chinese water color painting
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Are you tempted? Fancy meeting up in Sri Lanka some time? 

Would you like to share ideas about other marvellous places to meet? What the world’s best holiday destinations?

Oh, and before I disappear again, I guess I ought to share the downside of life in Sri Lanka as well.

You may get unexpected visitors in your hotel room—as this warning, given to all guests, reveals:

 

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Illustrations: All pix by my kids Kelci and Jem

Technorati Tags: sri lanka,nury vittachi,yala,turtle rescue

Comments

[Paul]

It sounds like you are having a great vacation Uncle N. :)

I myself am only just back to Hong Kong after a short hiatus in the US visiting relatives, where I was able to get reintroduced to something known as clean air.

A back yard view in North Carolina

My lungs are now violently protesting my return to the S.A.R. but such is life. ;-)

[Chamin AKA Maria Chaminda Veneracion DeJesus III]

Brings back the memories of the college days, where I traveled with friends to these places. Had a tight budget, but loads of fun!

We have many more places to meet up at. Let's see when I can hop in next time.

Have fun, Nury!

[QE]

wow, that beach looks amazing nury! your kids remind me of my childhood and in fact, if i remember correctly you had visited our school once - shatin college - ring any bells?

so what's your next destination? - still sri lanka or another place? definitely looking forward to your entries especially since you're not with any mag/paper anymore =P

hope the heat's not too unbearable btw

[Ellie]

Wow, these pics really make me want to abandon my office and head out on holiday. we should one year go to the caribbean and have fardel show us around too. and then Tokyo with Chamin and Singapore with Angela and Australia with TS (is that right)? where does lift lurker live.

[Jason]

How many people ever get to go places and experience things like that. When I worked in the US 10 yrs ago, I had coworkers that had never left their own state. Not that they could have found it on a map anyways, but that's another story!

[TS]

Ellie,
Yup you are right, I'm in Australia.

Following excerpt from one of Lift Lurker's comments might give us a hint of where he's from:

Without Uncle Jam we are like the elves without Santa, like the pirates without Captin Hook, like SATC without Carrie, like an airport without plane.

Captin??? I would guess that he's a Kiwi...

[Angela]

ROTFL...TS you just made my Friday!

Captin indeed, he must be in your neighborhood down under.

Which reminds me that I need to get fresh juicy Australian Oranges for the weekend.

[grandpa aka faye Libad aka Fardel]

Whow
Nice pictures
look at these City kids!
Please, somebody tell them that what is a their feet is called sea, It is not an acid od some sort .It does not bite
aaaargh
city kids

Look at this beach
I can imagine myself walking there with grandma, like if we were the first ones on this planet....

I can se that multinationals are sponsoring the local bush market
Aargh

Uncle
You are exaggerating , calling that a limousine.

We call that a tin can

Why did not you comment on its comfort or the lack of it ( shock absorbers, or the lack of it)
Riding one of those tin can is like riding a camel, or sailing in rough seas ......

I can see that you have met the gang in Sri Lanka already;
I can recognize grandma, myself , but who are the others?
Why is the house so high?
Is it to protect you from becoming a jungle snack?

I like the idea of meeting in another interesting place.
I plan to visit in SG in 2012, unless i move in there before(°_°)
We could go to a quick jungle trek any where ( right across the Straits , for example)
Or Kiwi country

Or Bengladesh ????

Before the end of the year I should be traveling the Caribbean on a two seater aircraft, with a young stewardess:pilot as my captain.

I shall definitely send you tongue -orgasmic pictures.

The Caribbean is Beautiful but very expensive.
I just discovered a place which look like here: VANUATU

Tempting, isn't it ?

[P. Rajendra]

Hi Nury
I am a huge fan of your webpage. So I was pleasantly surprised to see you and your beautiful family at the Kollupitya Methodist Church about two Sundays ago. In fact I nearly fell off the organ stool. Hope you are having a great time in SL. Thank you so much for your column. I read it every day as I am an accountant and need all the laughs I can get. :) Take care & have a great holiday.

[Lenny Vittachi]

Nury, great pictures..... pity you did not get some of our walk in the rain and the snazzy T'shirts we were decked in later.

It was great fun having you, Mary and kids around..... lets play crocodile again sometime soon.

[Kim]

Oh yes, definitely tempted - any excuse to go back to Sri Lanka. And
Australia.

Another place you could all meet up is at my place in Denmark. It could do with being brightened up by the Vittachi gang!

[Lift Lurker]

Arrr TS matey, I mean to type Captin Ook. Ya hav seen me typoo and mistake me as spelling-illiterate Kiwi. Aye ha not set foot down yunder.

I live in happy land called Liftuania where people are civilized and prudeness is national virtue and preemptive corporal punishment for making faces is law #1.

[Lift Lurker]

Wondreful photos of Sri Lanka! 1 observation, 1 prediction:

- Photo of store say Manjula Stores (plural). This is not just hypermart but also chain hypermart

- Prediction: base on limousine photo, in 2 year time, Uncle Nury Jam will be shortest member of his family (and therfore cutest).

[Chamin]

I will happily become a tour guide if any of you come to Japan :o)

[Vernette]

@Chamin

that's very tempting, hontoni nihon ni modoritai!!

[Christyn Rana]

seriously Uncle Nury, I think I saw a tall driver, a beautiful woman and her lovely blessed children and a tour guide in bright hawaiian flower shirt. Assuming you were the photographer. I have a highly intelligent set of brains I must warn you. But being a britney-loving human, mistakes occur. I realized (after dinner), that's you. I'm loving the misty mountains! My favorite in Darjeeling, the only place I experienced misty mountains.

[fardel]

@Lenny
Ah

this is you on the 7 th picture?!

[Christy]

An-nyeong-ha-sae-yo gang! :)

I miss Uncle Nury's daily dose of humour

The above is Korean for hello -- I've been in Seoul for almost a month now (summer exchange programme).

Saw this at the demilitarized zone yesterday and it reminded me of everyone here :D

http://www.4shared.com/photo/l4-ub1El/IMG_1145.html

Korea: The World's Only Divided Nation

I can't believe they're actually using this as a marketing tool :P

[fardel]

@christy
I would like to kindly remind you that, as a regular commentator here , you are not allowed to disappear for so long....
It is already painful to deal with uncle's vacation.

Welcome back.
We missed you

[Munsonmike]

Hi Nury, great photos I am glad you are sharing with your family the life experiences of travel and the opportunities to make family connections.

[Lenny Vittachi]

@ Fardel

I wish I was that good looking !!! - :)

[Lift Lurker]

@christy welcome back.

Why do you surprised? This is country that call itself "Democratic People's..."

[fardel]

@Uncle
I see that your limousine is open:
Is it a mobile animal feeder?

[Minkha]

great photos! Have a lovely time!

[Ram]

@Nury...

oh! The title "Mr Jam still on the run" tells a lot. Really nice pics... Nice to know about this beautiful country near to us atleast through pics...

and those misty mountains.. No words to say!!! Have a nice vacation!!!

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@Fardel: "Uncle, You are exaggerating , calling that a limousine.We call that a tin can"

I still think its fine to call it a limousine. Just the early 1900 model, I would say.
http://www.remarkablecars.com/ppads/data/457/1915-winton-0011.jpg

[grandpa aka Faye Libad aka Fardel]

@ram
have you ever tried to ride one.
It is like going through heavy turbulence in an airplane.

[Mahjuja]

@ fardel we ride rustier ones all the time with maniac drivers to boot and only three wheels!

[Ram]

@Fardel...

I havent tried the one as shown in Nury's pic... But, come to India and try the government taxi service (Cars painted black and yellow or complete yellow) ... Thats really a unique experience...
http://www.taxisoftheworld.com/Images/Cars/Car%20India-taxi.jpg

Taking an auto-rickshaw is even more interesting
http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/05/images/2008030559170401.jpg

[grandpa aka Faye Libad aka Fardel]

I can imagine,
But , in term of discomfort nothing beats a Land Rover in out country,
I experienced worse of course;it was storms at sea.

[Chamin]

Lift Lurker,

Traditionally, even a shop that is not bigger than a square meter is called "Stores." May be Sri Lankans created the concept of chain hypermarkets.

[TS]

People's enterprising in Asia is fascinating. If a brick falls out of a wall, it will only take about five minutes before someone occupies it with a plastic crate full of ice and cans of soda.

[Chamin]

Vernette,

So you have been here before! Mata kite ne!!

[godiva]

I missed my daily NURY dose from the Standard which said (in bold letters): NURY VITTACHI IS ON HOLIDAY. I had to make sure he really was and not kicked out of HK/Standard. So i visited this site (which I haven't done for the longest time for reasons I don't remember now), and thank God, he really is on a a holiday.
Incidentally, i was watching just now season 1 of The West Wing and there was the actor in one of the episodes that looked suspiciously a lot like Nury (with hair).... hey Nury, you are indeed a man of many talents... and why did you never mention that you are / were an actor too?

[Sabrina]

Wow, cool pictures! :D