Day 2: Waterfall Showers at Borderlands for the French School

 The evening brought more ferocious rain however, morning stretches and games are rarely delayed. So whilst the children were awake at the crack of dawn, the Borderlands guides took it a bit easy and were ready for the day ahead by 6:50am!

 

 

For us, it was a real joy to see some new games, inspired by our guide Kiki, and seeing all the games being figured out and contemplated in French.

 

Today was a day we anticipated quite a lot of potential leeches being attached, however a wonderful preparation ahead of our hike to Belilena Cave by Karine meant that the kids had a chance to observe, touch and to some extent overcome any fears the students would naturally have about the possibility of encountering them on the hike. 

The journey to Belilena Cave is beautiful, climbing up through local tea and rubber estates, before finally reaching a local tea picker village and hiking the final couple kilometers through rainforest and up steep steps to the cave complex. 

The highlight I'm sure, especially for the girls, was the amazing waterfall which cascades down the face of Belilena Cave, and which must have, 16,000 years ago, provided excellent protection for the inhabitants. 

However today, in 2013, it simply provided an excellent chance for the most exciting natural shower the kids had ever had. 

  

A visit to a local rubber factory was very insightful - a 150 year structure still operating almost entirely the same as they did when the factory was first built - the main difference only being that the turbine is now operated by water and not by an old ship's engine, which means the factory is run on completely pollution-free energy. The structure itself is almost like some haunted house - and it was decided would make an excellent set for a horror movie (or a fabulous party venue!).

The rain put a dampner on any real hiking today, the weather has really been very unfortunate, and whilst it is the monsoon season, everyone is in agreement that Sri Lanka hasn't seen a monsoon quite like this for a very, very long time.

So considering everything, the French School students have been absolutely amazing in getting enthusiastic about everything that's come their way! 

Whilst it's our last night with them this evening, we still have a morning of adventure to look forward to tomorrow with a Treasure Hunt organised by Miss Karine.

We hope for clear weather, and in the meantime thanks to all the kids for another great day!