Tour Diary

You’ll have read the occasional passing reference to tuk-tuks in this diary already, but the three-wheeled vehicles have become such a part of my everyday life around Colombo that I felt they deserved an entry of their own. The question is really, where do I start? Is it the hair-raising cornering? The total disregard for the rules of the road? Or the confrontations with traffic many times bigger and stronger?

25-Feb-2013

Well, there are no two tuk-tuks, or trishaws as they are also known, that are alike. Some are fairly bland, just there to do a job, while others are lavishly decorated with loving care and attention. Some drivers have family pictures in their cab and brightly coloured fabrics covering the seats. Some are kept in top-notch condition, others, you think, must be about to fall apart around you.

One thing I learnt early on is that negotiating the price for a ride is very much like buying a house, you never accept the first offer. Once you have done a journey a few times you have a bit of bargaining power and it is often possible to force the driver down a few notches. One thing they aren’t so good at is having change, so when you offer a 1000 rupee note it begins a drawn out process over who is going to sort out some smaller notes.

Ruins in fantasy land

Taxilla

Taxilla. It's a name that evoked memories of one's history books, of King Ambhi, of education. It's an ancient city that rose to prominence as one of the eminent seats of learning in the sub-continent, before being ravaged by invaders from Central Asia.

25-Feb-2013

Museums help - one gets a feel of the weaponry, the utensils, the currency, the script, the architecture, the clothes and the jewellery. The sight of imposing Buddhist stupas and the repeated mention of Asoka makes one realise the religious influence in these parts. But it's the ruins that are tough to unravel.

You see rows and rows of stone colonies, planned drainage systems, water faucets, and innovative ventilation. You are shown enclosures and told about this being a marriage hall and that being a courtroom. But nothing is concrete, everything is left to the imagination. At a certain level, it's fantasy. It's wonderful.

Lego-land

Driving from Peshawar to Rawalpindi to Islamabad is like going from a rustic barber's shop to a run-of-the-mill hair-dresser to a posh hair-styling saloon

Driving from Peshawar to Rawalpindi to Islamabad is like going from a rustic barber's shop to a run-of-the-mill hair-dresser to a posh hair-styling saloon. The contrast is far too stark to miss. One a city that still retains an old-world charm, another a rather crowded hub and the third a manicured, organised capital.

25-Feb-2013

Islamabad is like an enlarged lego set - similar sized houses lining the well-planned colonies; wide several-laned roads infested with trendy automobiles; picturesque set of trees overlooking avenues; recreation parks straight out of suburbs in England. In many ways it's an enlarged Chandigarh, another of those cities planned like clockwork and one that looks the same whichever way you look at it.

It's no doubt impressive but somehow it felt too good, too artificial, too chocolaty. It was a sudden shift coming from pastoral Peshawar, a land that opened up infinite possibilities, one where old blended beautifully with new, one that had a distinct soul. Someday I would love to go back and soak in a bit more of its character.

Now to the posh hair-stylist.

Anyone seen the score?

After two matches at the SSC, Colombo’s second biggest ground following the Premadasa Stadium, it was time to take a look at another of the town’s multitude if venues

After two matches at the SSC, Colombo’s second biggest ground following the Premadasa Stadium, it was time to take a look at another of the town’s multitude if venues. Like Antigua is said to have a beach for every day of the year, I’m sure this place can match that for cricket grounds. They are everywhere, of all shapes and sizes, and very conveniently three of them (and, as if by magic, three of four for this tournament) are within about 100 yards of each other.

25-Feb-2013

So when I say I went to another ground, it certainly doesn’t mean I had to venture into the unknown – more like turn left instead of the right this morning. Colombo Cricket Club is typical of smaller grounds; one main pavilion building, a small open stand, the groundstaff's shed, the scoreboard and the press box. Now, I don't like to quibble about little issues that crop up during the day – and there haven’t been any so far this tournament – but the CCC threw up a tricky proposition.

As I wandered into the ground, trying to avoid the two team buses that were attempting, what seemed to be, logistically impossible reversing into incredibly tight spaces, I asked for directions to the media area. Sent across to the other side of the ground I meandered over the outfield, dodging the occasional stray practice ball, and admired the large traditional scoreboard. I think manual scoreboards add to the character of a ground; The Oval had the fastest operators in the west, Adelaide’s is stunning, while Sydney’s is heritage listed.

Nepal aim to climb their Everest

In many ways, the World Cup is bigger news in the lesser-known cricketing nations

In many ways, the World Cup is bigger news in the lesser-known cricketing nations. This was well demonstrated today with two journalists from Nepal covering the clash against England, while there are also journalists from Uganda, Ireland and Scotland covering their countries. And they are only the ones I know about.

25-Feb-2013

My knowledge of the Nepalese players was somewhat lacking at the start of the match – and it wasn’t helped by first names appearing on the backs of some shirts, compared to surnames on the scoreboard. So I bent the ear of the reporter from the Kathmandu Post, and enjoyed an enlightening conversation about the rise of their cricket.

It has now become the No. 2 sport in the country, still trailing football by some distance but rapidly gaining ground. During the Afro-Asia Cup qualifying tournament, which Nepal won to earn themselves a place in this World Cup, between 15,000 and 20,000 fans turned up for the final. This was at a ground with no seating and little crowd control. Apparently the awards ceremony at the end was held up by a crowd invasion as the coach was lifted into the air in triumph.

The recent rapid rise of cricket in Nepal is emphasised by the story of their opening bowling Amrit Bhattarai. He is just 15-years-old, so has the chance of emulating Kanishka Chaugai, his captain, by playing in three World Cups. But the more amazing fact is that he has only been playing cricket for 18 months – now he is opening the bowling for his country. Talk about fast-tracking. A number of the U-19 squad have also already represented the full Nepal side, and their problem is creating a large enough pool of players to pick from.

A law unto itself

It’s been exactly a month since I landed in Pakistan and only now do I get the feeling of being in a foreign country

It’s been exactly a month since I landed in Pakistan and only now do I get the feeling of being in a foreign country. For once, I am clueless about the language and for once, I look and dress totally differently from the locals.

25-Feb-2013

We experienced some overwhelming hospitality when we landed in Lahore but the Peshawari warmth is cut from a different cloth. At Lahore, most people transformed their outlook from acting normal to being numbingly hospitable. At Peshawar, the initial reaction was more dead-faced but the final action just as stunning. One taxi driver didn’t want any money; another, Naeyk Alam Khan, insisted that he paid for all the items we bought and finally refused to charge us for the whole trip.

Khan took it up as a mission to show us around the city. After a failed visit to the museum (closed on Sunday), he offered to take us to Karkhana Market, a place he termed unique. Cruising through the smooth roads, with digital clocks at every traffic signal, we enjoyed the sun sinking under the imposing mountain range, a refreshing breeze blowing, and a quaint sight of donkeys pulling carts and zooming past.

Karkhana Market is known for several things, least of all for a place where one can buy, hold your breath, guns. It’s a truly astonishing sight with rows of pistols, rifles, air guns, machine guns, Kaleshnikovs and zillion varieties of firearms lining the walls.

Younger team, bigger win

In their current form there are not many sides that could outdo the full Australian side when it comes to a crushing one-day win

In their current form there are not many sides that could outdo the full Australian side when it comes to a crushing one-day win. So, it comes as no surprise, that when it does happen it is another Australian team that manages it. While South Africa suffered a 57-run drubbing at Sydney, the Under-19 version were crushed by 175 runs in Colombo.

25-Feb-2013

Not bad for a team that had lost its two warm-up matches. But Matthew Mott, the assistant coach, said to me before the match that “they had learned some lessons,” and South Africa felt the result.

The star of the Colombo show was Tom Cooper, a tall and correct opening batsman from New South Wales, who watched two partners fall in the space of three balls before guiding his side towards their massive total. Today was not one of Colombo’s warmest, but batting for nearly 40 overs was still hard work, so there is certainly one person who will have enjoyed the Supersub rule, as Cooper was given the second innings off and could put his feet up in the dressing room.

Serious, dead serious

In 1275, when Marco Polo visited the Peshawar area, he found a place where "people have peculiar language, worship idols and have an evil disposition"

In 1275, when Marco Polo visited the Peshawar area, he found a place where "people have peculiar language, worship idols and have an evil disposition". The first part isn't too far off the mark, the second, I haven't yet observed and the third, I really hope not.

25-Feb-2013

Peshawar appears more Central Asia than Pakistan. It's an old city, one of the oldest in the sub-continent, and was the site of several bloodbaths in history. Yet, it survived them all and is currently a city where the old blends beautifully with the new. You have trendy malls, you also have Chapli kebabs and gigantic naans being cooked outdoors.

The men are big, bigger, biggest and have a medevial, serious look that can have an intimidating effect. Many look more Russian then sub-continental - fair and well-built, crunching your palms during a handshake.

Even light-hearted humour is often accompanied with a stone-faced countanance. When you're way over six feet tall, wearing a flowing shalwar-kameez, and walking as if you are on a warpath somebody is bound to think that you may have an evil disposition.

It never rains, but it pours

Here, with my finest weather-presenting impression is the forecast for Colombo