Love Around the World 19: Sri Lanka

A/N - Sri Lanka is one of those countries that I've never visited before, but it does appear interesting enough that I might end up popping over to visit it one day in the future.

Previous stories in this series:

Love Around the World - Andorra (Mature)

Love Around the World - Bangkok, Thailand (Interracial)

Love Around the World - Colombia (Transgender)

Love Around the World - Dresden, Germany (Romance)

Love Around the World - Estonia (Group Sex)

Love Around the World - France (Anal)

Love Around the World - Guangzhou, China (Interracial)

Love Around the World - Hungary (Incest)

Love Around the World - India (Interracial)

Love Around the World - Japan (Mature)

Love Around the World - København, Denmark (Transgender)

Love Around the World - London, England (Transgender)

Love Around the World - Montenegro (Mature)

Love Around the World - Nepal (Romance)

Love Around the World - Oviedo, Spain (Incest)

Love Around the World - Phnom Penh, Cambodia (Incest)

Love Around the World - Quezon City, Philippines (Transgender)

Love Around the World - Reykjavik, Iceland (Incest)

Australian / British standard English. There is a good chance of reading the following: lots of profanity, characters drinking, typos, and bad grammar at times.

Proofreading and editing suggestions provided by OhDave1. Any mistakes are still mine.

Comments are appreciated as always.

Feedback by email is always welcome. Enjoy chatting with anyone who likes my work.

*****

A man meets a local girl and a romance blossoms.

*****

The border guard behind the counter was prettier than I would have imagined. I'd never met too many Sri Lankans growing up in Sydney. She had long, dark hair in a ponytail. Gorgeous brown eyes. And the whitest teeth though I guess against her dark skin, the whites of her eyes and her pearly white teeth would stand out a little more. And the uniform she was wearing did highlight certain assets on her chest as the button-down shirt was quite tight.

"And the purpose of your visit to Sri Lanka?" she asked in only slightly accented English.

"Would you like the real response or the flirty response?"

Thankfully, she smiled at me again as I relaxed against the counter. "Given you have an Australian passport, I can only imagine that you're here for the cricket?"

"Guilty as charged. Three tests around the country. Having never been here, I figured I'd mix some sightseeing with a little cricket. Might even meet a beautiful local woman or two."

That did earn a chuckle as she slid my passport back to me. "Your visa is valid for thirty days, Mr Thomson. To extend it, you will need to visit the Department of Immigration."

"Thanks. The three tests happen within three weeks, but if I find myself falling in love with the place..."

With a last smile, she wished me a good time as I collected my documents and walked through to collect my luggage. I might have been mid-thirties, but I still travelled like a backpacker. A large one on my back, a smaller one across my chest. The airport was rather chaotic as I expected, weaving my way through the crowds and walking towards the taxi desk. The lady behind the counter was friendly and helpful, providing me with a ticket that would get me a seat in an air-conditioned van. I was thankful for that as I knew my entire time in Sri Lanka would be in very warm and humid weather.

Considering this was my first trip away from Australia since I was a kid, I'd gone all out. My flight had been in economy, but I'd splurged on accommodation and would be travelling by train around the country. My taxi dropped me at the doorstep of my hotel, thanking the driver and paying him before I headed inside and checked in for the week and a bit that I would be staying in Colombo.

I'd arrived with a guidebook and a vague idea of everything I wanted to see while I was in the country. I had no real plans to visit anywhere else except the cities where the test matches were being held though I knew day trips would be possible. I'd arrived late in the day so didn't venture out of the hotel for dinner, and stuck to the bar, ending up chatting away with a couple of Australians who had arrived on the same flight as I did.

With the first test match of three starting a couple of days after my arrival, I spent my first two days in Colombo playing tourist, amused that I did see plenty of Australians out and about. I wasn't sure how many I would meet in Sri Lanka. What I realised very quickly is that all the locals were welcoming and friendly, surprised that nearly everyone seemed to speak relatively good English.

And being your typical single bloke, I was checking out the local women from time to time. And many of them were, putting it bluntly, absolutely gorgeous. I also thoroughly enjoyed the food as it was tasty, and the Sri Lankans seemed to really enjoy spices. Hot spices. Alcohol was sold in most places so I could at least cool my mouth by drinking more than a few beers. Being a former Portuguese, Dutch and then British colony, there were plenty of old buildings to check out, with a mixture of churches, temples and mosques.

Finding myself in a pub the night before the test, I ended up chatting with a couple of Australians, surprised they were there with their wives as, being honest, cricket tours were usually full of blokes wanting to watch cricket in the sun while consuming enormous amounts of beer. Their wives were definitely not Anglo-Saxon, Dave's wife being of Indian extraction, Matthew's wife being of Sri Lankan origin, while the wife of Chris was Indonesian. The fact she was there with him was a surprise as Indians and Sri Lankans were mad about cricket. Indonesians? Not so much.

Lining up the next morning at the Singhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground, I think a lot of the locals would have been wondering why I was lining up with them instead of with a whole bunch of Australians. Whenever I watched a test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, I'd always want to meet those who'd travelled over from the opponent's country. Spending a day exchanging banter with the English Barmy Army was always a brilliant time.

The first ball was to be delivered at 10:30am and I made sure I was at my seat with at least two beers, any exposed skin covered in sunscreen, a hat on my head, sunglasses over my eyes, and zinc across my nose. I also had an air-pod in my ear to listen in to the commentary.

Being surrounded by Sri Lankans was rather amusing as I'm sure many of them were wondering what the hell I was doing in amongst them. Australia had won the toss and had chosen to bat, the two opening batsmen heading out to the middle of the field while eleven Sri Lankan players joined them.

Sipping at my beers, test match cricket takes place over five days. The pace can be slow at times. The fielding side will take its time ensuring the field is set correctly to take wickets but also prevent runs. Batsmen focus on building their total and not giving their wicket away cheaply. Patience is usually rewarded, the batsman hoping to put the ball through gaps in the field, bowlers focusing on their line and length to prevent the batsman from scoring and perhaps drawing them into a bad shot. Spin bowlers will cause all manner of problems by using the pitch and the condition of the ball to their advantage.

Though I was surrounded, I was seated by myself at the end of the row for the first hour or so until I felt a soft tap on the shoulder. I glanced up to see three women looking at me.

"Can we pass, please?" one of them asked.

"Sure," I replied, standing up and providing space for them to pass. Each of them returned a shy grin as they passed by and to my amusement were seated in the three spaces next to me.

Sipping at my beer, they were immediately chatting away next to me as I concentrated on the commentary in my ear and what I could see in the middle of the ground. Australia had a poor record on the sub-continent in India, rarely winning any test series there, and we found Sri Lanka a far tougher nut to crack nowadays than we had twenty or thirty years ago.

What had me smiling was that the three women next to me were soon cheering whenever one of the Sri Lankan bowlers delivered a cracking delivery, making them chuckle whenever I would applaud an Australian boundary (that means the batsman scored four runs for those who know nothing about cricket.)

Consuming my two beers rather quickly as it was already rather warm at 11:30am, I grabbed myself another two and returned to my seat, glancing left to see the three women returning my glance and smiling at me in return.

"G'day," I stated, no doubt sounding like your typical bogan Australian, but at least it made the three of them giggle again, "I'm Mark, and I'm guessing you're wondering why I'm sitting here and not with all the other Aussies?"

"I'm Kalani," the woman next to me stated. She was gorgeous. That wonderful dark, flawless brown skin that I'm sure many women covet in her homeland. She wore a wide-brim hat so wasn't wearing sunglasses, her brown eyes incredibly expressive. Her black hair flowed down past her shoulders. She wore a light-coloured top and a skirt that showed off enough leg to gain interest, "This is Chandrika, and to her left is Asanka."

"Lovely to meet you," I replied.

"First time to Sri Lanka?" Kalani asked.

"First time outside of Australia in a long time." There was a thwack that we could just about hear, and we glanced to see an Australian batsman had scored a boundary. After I applauded, I returned my attention to Kalani. "Big cricket fans?"

"I am though I immediately blame my father and brother for that. Growing up in a household obsessed with cricket where even my mother loved to sit down and watch it for hours on end, I didn't stand a chance."

"And your friends?"

"They just love a day out in the sun."

"Got a ticket for all five days?"

That earned a smirk. "You think it'll make five days, Mark?"

"Because Australia is going to win by an innings within three?"

She chuckled, playfully slapping my shoulder. "Behave. Sri Lanka will win but it'll be a close-run thing. Yes, I have a ticket for all five days. I'll be joining my dad for the third test in Kandy. Are you going to all three tests?"

"I am."

That made her smile. "So am I. I live here in Colombo nowadays, but I travel home to Kandy as often as I can. Good thing they organised this series for the holidays."

"Holidays?"

"I'm a teacher. Primary school. We have wet and dry seasons, obviously... Well, obvious to us, but it's the time of year when school is out for six or so weeks. What do you do?"

"Construction. Own part of the company with my father. The only reason I could get away for this whole series is I can do some work over here."

"How can you construct things all the way over here?" she teased.

"Well, I'm an engineer for a construction company. A lot of my work is done on a laptop nowadays though I still like to get my hands dirty as often as possible. Dad is happy for me to be a digital nomad as he knows I've always wanted to go travelling but, you know, things change."

There was a large cheer around us as the Sri Lankan players were making an appeal for an LBW (Leg Before Wicket). The umpire had said no, the players asked for a review. All eyes were on the big screen as replays were shown and it didn't look good for the Australian batsman. After a couple of minutes, the umpire changed his original decision and raised his finger. The three women next to me all rose to their feet and cheered, joining everyone around us as Sri Lanka took their first wicket of the day.

"Our batting runs deep," I stated once they sat down, "And we've made a good start."

"Let's just see how things stand at lunch, hmmm?" Kalani teased.

We continued to make small talk over the next couple of hours as we kept our eyes on the play. During drinks for the players, I disappeared to the bar again, asking if they wanted anything to drink. That earned grateful smiles as I returned with drinks for the four of us. When all the players trudged off the field for lunch a couple of hours later, Kalani asked if I wanted to join them in grabbing a bite to eat as there were plenty of places dotted around where we could get something to nibble on.

While we were eating, I took another look at her now that we were standing up. I was around six feet and was broad enough. Kalani wasn't very tall at all. None of them were. Maybe five-two, five-three at most. The clothing the three women wore would be considered more 'Western' than anything else. And there was no missing the three were gorgeous.

Kalani didn't wear a ring on her left hand. Neither did I. Not after what happened. Chandrika and Asanka did wear a ring. The fact I was checking that out didn't go unobserved by them as Chandrika whispered something to Asanka, which definitely embarrassed Kalani, glancing in my direction for a second though I didn't understand a word.

"Are you with someone?" Chandrika finally asked once we were back in our seats, not missing how we were now sitting with Kalani to my left, Chandrika to my right, and Asanka to the left of Kalani.

"I travelled here by myself," I replied.

Chandrika chuckled, shaking her head. "I mean do you have a wife or a girlfriend back in Australia?"

"I'm divorced," I muttered.

Kalani immediately had her hand on my knee as the three would have heard my tone. "What happened?"

"She said we'd grown apart over the years. I think the issue is that we met backpacking around Europe, kept our relationship going once we returned to Australia. Yet while I focused on settling down and starting my career, I always felt she didn't want the same things I wanted though paid lip service. I've always wanted kids, and she told me all the time that she wanted them too."

"She was lying?"

Nodding, I needed a sip of beer before I replied. "It was a whopper of a lie and it's why we ended up divorcing. I said I didn't want to be a new father approaching my forties. I'm thirty-four now and would have hoped we would have started a couple of years ago, even in my late twenties if possible. When she was twenty-eight, she went into hospital for a couple of days for what I was told was a simple procedure. What she was actually doing was being sterilised so she can't have kids."

The silence around me suggested they were shocked at the revelation. "I'm guessing that led to the divorce?" Kalani asked.

"I moved out of our home the day after she told me. I've barely talked to her since. The divorce was handled by my lawyer."

"You still want children?" Chandrika wondered.

"I'd like the chance though that would mean meeting a woman. And being honest with you, having the woman you love lie to your face for so long, it ends up leaving me not exactly trusting people." Clearing my throat, I managed a smile as I glanced left and right. "What about you three? Happily married with kids?"

Chandrika was happily married and had two little ones, a boy and a girl. Asanka was married with a daughter. Kalani returned a shy smile, curling some hair behind her ear and murmured she was single and had been for quite a while as her last relationship had ended badly.

"She's also twenty-six years old," Chandrika stated, "And you're thirty-four, Mark?"

"Bingo," I stated.

Chandrika said something in the local lingo that had Asanka giggling and Kalani unable to look in my direction before she said something to Chandrika which had the three of them giggling. Just thinking about it all had soured my mood a little, something not missed by my new friends. Kalani shuffled a little closer and took my hand in hers, smiling at how soft her skin was.

"Sorry if we upset you," she said softly.

"It's okay. I haven't exactly talked about it with a lot of people."

Returning to our seats for the next session of play, the thing with test matches is that for quite a while, nothing will really happen. A batsman might hit the occasional boundary. A bowler might deliver a ball that'll come close to an edge. There might be the occasional appeal for LBW or caught behind. To be honest, you could miss an hour of play and not miss all that much except the number of runs might have gone up a little bit and a wicket might have been taken.

By the time the players were departing the field for tea, Australia had a slight advantage, but I'd spent most of my time talking to the three girls. Kalani seemed somewhat interested in me though I simply took her interest as being friendly to a visitor to her country. We left our seats during the tea interval to grab a snack and another drink.

The last session of the day was fairly even, the day ending with Australia having scored quite a few runs but having also lost a couple of wickets. But our best player would still be at the crease the next morning so I was hopeful that the team would put up a big score before putting the Sri Lankans into bat.

"What are your plans for this evening?" Kalani asked as we applauded the players off the field.

"To be honest, I was just going to take it easy. A long day in the sun, had a few drinks, stuffed my face..."

"Well, I'll be here by myself the next four days. Maybe you'd like to join us for dinner on another night?"

"Um... Sure..."

Kalani asked for my phone, and she keyed her phone number into it. Sending her a message, she smiled when her phone beeped, and she saved my number in return. "It was lovely to meet you, Mark. Hope to see you bright and early tomorrow," she stated, surprising me slightly when she stepped into me and hugged me. Returning the gesture, I felt her head rest against my chest for a couple of seconds before she let me go. "Have a good night. But is it the heat and humidity that got to you?"

"I'll make sure I drink more water tomorrow. Sydney can get hot and humid in summer, but this is something else."

"Wear a white t-shirt or something too. That'll help."

"Thanks for the advice," I stated with a grin, making her return an absolutely gorgeous smile, "Might send you a text later."

"I hope you do."

Returning to my hotel, the first thing I wanted was a cold shower to wash away all the sweat. Feeling rather tired, the idea of heading out to eat and then perhaps spending the night drinking didn't appeal. Instead, I ordered a snack downstairs in the bar and sipped my way through only a couple of beers while watching some television.

Lying back in bed at a reasonable time, I thought about Kalani and found myself wondering what she was doing. We'd spent hours talking. There was no doubt she was an attractive young woman. Intelligent. Charming. I loved her laugh. And there was no missing her heart of gold. I learned all of that rather quickly.

I sent her a quick message, just stating that I enjoyed meeting her and looked forward to the next four days, she must have been delighted to hear from me and rather eagerly replied as I received it within a couple of minutes.

I'll be honest in that you're the first Australian I've ever met, Mark. And I enjoyed spending the day talking to you. I'm looking forward to the next four days and maybe we can sit together in Galle and Kandy too?

I shot her a text the next morning after I had breakfast at the hotel, we met up not far from the ground, making me smile when she didn't hesitate to hug me when meeting me. Holding her in my arms in return, there was no missing she was a tiny thing and I doubt she weighed all that much. When she stepped back and smiled a little shyly, I felt my grin broaden as she eventually met my eyes and suggested we should head into the ground.