Team Mama's Boys

Negombo, Sri Lanka It was 4:30 am and pitch black outside when Kim, Michael, and Kyle met outside of the hotel. It was so early that even the peacocks weren't awake, and the morning was still, dark, and silent. Sleepily, the driver who we had arranged to meet us helped us load our luggage into the back of his car, and we set off along the empty roads towards Matara. One of Sri Lanka's highlights is its rail system, and we had wanted to take a train at some point during our travels on the island, since every guidebook, blog, and person we spoke with recommended it. The views from the train on the Coastal Line to Colombo were supposed to be especially nice. The only problem is that the 8059 train we needed to take is scheduled to depart daily at 6:05am and Matara, where the train departs from, was an hour away by road.

Tangalle, Sri Lanka We've done it! Team Mama's Boys has made it to the Rickshaw Run's finish line in Tangalle! With the click and hiss of three tall ice-cold cans of Lion Lager, we toasted to our successful adventure as we stood on the tropical golden sands of the beach of southernmost Sri Lanka. But let's back up to this morning...

Tangalle, Sri Lanka Michael and Kyle woke before the dawn to have an early cup of coffee on the balcony, watch the sun rise over the dark, misty hills of the Sri Lankan mountain resort town of Ella , and plan out the route for the day. Today was going to be another long day of driving, and after studying the map and a lot of discussion, we decided to try and make the final push to the south coast of Sri Lanka. The finish line is just two days away, and we calculated that with one long day of driving south, we just might be able to make it to Tangalle a day early to give ourselves one final day of relaxation on the beach.  

Ella, Sri Lanka It was a cold misty morning in the highlands of Sri Lanka.  After an early breakfast complete with more than a few cups of strong, hot, BOP-grade Ceylon Tea  to fortify them against the cold mountain wind, Kyle and Michael headed out to the carpark to fire up the tuk-tuk.

Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka Team Mama's Boys is together again! Whilst Michael and Kyle were rattling their way across the island from Negombo, Kim has been convalescing at the Heritance Tea Factory Hotel - complete with a house call visit at the hotel by the local doctor, a course of antibiotics, and a spa treatment.  Michael and Kyle were sad that Kim had to miss the first part of the adventure across Sri Lanka, but we are all excited to be finish the Rickshaw Run as a team.

Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka The morning began in Kandy before the dawn as Michael and Kyle headed downstairs to have an early breakfast. The hotel we were staying at was situated in a beautiful garden with the Sri Lankan mountains all around. The hotel owners also kept a home on the property, and breakfast was to be served at their dining room table. As we ate our eggs on toast and drank our orange juice and coffee, the hotel owner Mr. Upul sat down with us for a chat. It turns out that his daughter is currently studying her PhD at Harvard, so he and Kyle (who also lives in Boston) exchanged contact information with the promise that he would look Kyle up the next time he and his wife make their annual visit to Beantown.

Kandy, Sri Lanka Michael and Kyle awoke in Kandy, the last royal capital of the ancient kings of Sri Lanka. The country's second-largest city is located in the center of the country on the Kandy Plateau and is surrounded by rolling hills and misty green mountains. Today the capital of the Central Province, Kandy is both an administrative center as well as an important Buddhist holy city and pilgrimage site.

Kandy, Sri Lanka Top o' the morning! Today is not only the official Rickshaw Run launch day, but also St. Patrick's Day and we are hoping for a little luck of the Irish to see us through our first day on the road.

Negombo, Sri Lanka We had to have a difficult conversation and make a hard decision this morning. Over breakfast, Kim told Michael and Kyle that she was feeling even worse than the day before and had come down with a bad sinus infection. Even with the antibiotics from the pharmacy, she was feeling very poorly and was running a fever. Sadly, Kim had to make the decision not to join Michael and Kyle from the launch, but instead to hire a driver to carry her on to a hotel in Nuwara Eliya where she could rest, convalesce, and meet them several days later to finish the second half of the Run. We are all incredibly disappointed, as we had been so excited to do this adventure as a family. With heavy hearts, Kyle and Michael said goodbye to Kim for a few days and saw her off before heading to the Kumudu Valley Resort for their second morning of test driving. It's just not the same without Mom, and we are really hoping for a victorious finish together. For now, we are just... Team Boys, but