#like that's my lankan king right there

[tonycries]

who in jjk is desi

TO be honest, iDk whO-

[generalzar0ff]

Most of this was drawn in September of last year, but I decided to finally complete it!

So, here are the penguins of Madagascar and their lemur friends as humans!

I know this has been done to death already, but I wanted to provide my own interpretation. I’ll provide my design choices for each character under the cut, if anybody’s interested!

Skipper: I do not want to throw shade to anyone, but most of the human Skippers I’ve seen are either too young, too skinny, or too muscular. This guy may present himself as an authority figure, but let’s face it: this guy is your average middle-aged man with a fascination for cool spy stuff and repressed bisexuality. Trust me, my dad knows all about it. Anyway, I gave him a tacky nautical flag shirt, mostly because i couldn’t find any high-quality “hawaiian shirt with wwii planes” patterns. If it weren’t for King Julien’s design, I would’ve given Skipper aviators.

Kowalski: Typical nerdy guy. When I was showing a work in progress of the penguins, a friend of mine suggested that Kowalski’s hairline should be extra receded, and they were right. I know that this is the simplest design, but that’s because this guy just doesn’t seem the type for style. More of a practicality and formality guy. I suppose now’s a good time to mention that each of the brothers has an element of orange around their feet, cuz, well, the penguins have orange feet.

Rico: I really hope you guys get the energy that this guy listens to nu-metal. Since human beings not infused with cartoon animal wackiness cannot regurgitate convenient items, I decided to give human Rico a bunch of pockets from which cartoon HUMAN wackiness can occur. His outfit is also a bit more military-like than the others, what with the bomber jacket, cargo shorts, and combat boots. I also gave him what is essentially the boss floss from Splatoon 3’s amiibo gear.

Private: According to Penguin Lore™️, they’re all brothers, but Private is adopted, hence why he’s a bit younger [but not a child!] and I gave him a different hair texture and skin tone. His shirt has an icon from his favorite show, a Lunacorn. I also made his blue nail polish match its eyes. I take honor in the fact that a friend told me “I have several transmasc friends who look like this”.

Maurice: A lot of people who draw TPOM gijinkas don’t even draw him, which is a shame, because I love Maurice. Even more offensive is that some people don’t even depict him as an old black man, which goes against everything I know to be true in my heart. Anyway, he seems like the type to enjoy autumn/winter gear, so I gave him a big ol’ trench coat, as well as a scarf that looks like his fur puff. And the newsie cap just felt right.

King Julien: Here’s where all the flashiness went! According to an actor whom I have a personal vendetta against and thus will not name, Julien’s accent is Sri Lankan, so I took inspiration from their traditional clothing for his outfit, albeit more “cunty”, as today’s kids call it. It was imperative that this man has his toes out for obvious reasons, so I gave him sandals. I honestly have no good explanation for the leopard print leggings other than it came to me in a divine vision. Or something. The sunglasses mimic the color of his eyes!

Mort: Look, it was really hard for me not to just draw Molière from Atlantis: The Lost Empire, since his design is already kind of what I imagine this fellow looking like as a “human”. Admittedly, I’m not too proud of this design, but i think it gets the job done. His outfit purposely clashes: a matching hat and sweater, but with sweatpants, and he’s not even wearing shoes! I know the original Mort doesn’t have any purple in his design, but I felt like its inclusion made him look a little weirder. And then there’s his eyes. Yeah.

Hope this wasn’t too long, and thank you to anyone who read this portion of the post!

[crowns-of-violets-and-roses]

Hugo Awards best novel ranking

Did not Read: Starter Villain

I was never a huge Scalzi fan and much of his recent work doesn't even seem to be attempting to be anything substantial and from what I've seen even people who like his recent stuff were cool on this. All that combined made this an easy skip.

5 Witch King (review)

I didn't enjoy reading this one and my opinion hasn't changed since finishing it. I kind of feel like this was testing the waters for a series and failed to do much interesting instead of just setting things up. Probably on the borderline of no award tbh.

4 Translation State (review)

Starts strong and gradually peters out. Outside of our protagonists most background characters feel like caricatures and the world often feels simplistic. It's still a good book and I've softened a little on it since writing the linked post.

3 The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi (review)

A brilliantly realized historical setting of the 12th Century in the Indian Ocean with some magic added in. Given the attention to historical detail the characters all feel disappointingly modern though they're fun enough archetypes with Raksh and Amina herself standing out.

2 The Saint of Bright Doors (review)

Excellent book that I probably lacked the background to fully appreciate. I read some discussion after suggesting some of it was addressing Sri Lankan politics which I'll admit I didn't catch. While I could identify some of the Buddhist parallels I could only really notice them not tell what the book was doing with them.

Thoroughly enjoyed it - a unique world, enjoyable prose, interesting characters - and I'd be happy to see it win. I even considered flipping it with my first place choice.

1 Some Desperate Glory (review)

This is I expect the one that's going to stick in my head the longest. Kyr is a protagonist of all time (I am rotating her in my mind as I write this). Avi, Cleo, Magnus and Yiso are all great and so many of them have interesting relationships with Kyr and each other. Someone needs to make a hit adaptation so I can read bad fanfic about them (I'd prefer good fic obviously but beggars can't be choosers).

It deals with some interesting ideas that it addresses with wildly varying quality. The last section is the weakest and even though the ending doesn't stick the landing most of the rest of the book is great enough to make up for it.

There's a big gap between my top two and everything else and smaller but still substantial gaps from Amina al-Sirafi to Translation State and Translation State to Witch King.

Overall a decently strong set of finalists. I think any year Amina al-Sirafi was at the bottom of my list would be an exceptionally strong year and any year it was at number one would be a weak one so it being at the halfway point means it's an average year right?

[farb3yond]

Two Sri Lankas

For as long as I have been looking I have seen two Sri Lankas

There is the larger Sri Lanka, made up of most of the people. And there is the other Sri Lanka, the one that consists of a fraction of the country.

The first Sri Lanka is like a kite. It is blown by the wind to the west, or the east, or the North or the South. It buys into dreams about 'vistas of prosperity and splendour'. And I don't mean that it believes such things will come true, I mean it wishes that such things might come true.

That we might be the 'next Dubai' or the 'next Singapore'. It dreams that we might be an urban monument to success measured in the rate of consumerism. It believes in the nuclear middle class, the car it is rushing to buy while it says things like 'oh you have never even taken a bus', the house, the corporate ladder, the capitalist mantras, the dog with a breed you can name. Most of its members don't have this of course, but they believe in it.

It believes in things it calls culture, or heritage. It is not clear what these things are, if you try to find out it will insist it is you who don't know what they are. It is vaguely buddhist, but mostly it concerns kings; mythology posing as history.  It believes that our value is in our past, it believes that the past is always under threat.

It believes that a Sri Lankan is a second class citizen everywhere else in the world. It believes that a Sri Lankan is not a second class citizen in Sri Lanka.

It lives on bravado, even as it allows itself to be led by fear.

Its greatest fear is fear of the other. Who the other is always changes, but they are always trying to drive it to the sea.

There is no doubt in its mind that it is the true Sri Lanka. In fact the question has never even occurred to it.

The other Sri Lanka's members have their own visions for what this place is supposed to be. In that sense it isn't a monolith but an overlapping multitude, but it has no problem with this because the other Sri Lanka believes in pluralism.

It is still trying to understand what Sri Lankan identity is, but it knows it is Tamil, and Muslim and Sinhalese, and Burgher and Sindi, and Kaffir and Vaddha, and first generation Sri Lankan, and cosmopolitan. It knows that a whole can be its swirling sum, it knows that identities are never fixed.

It knows that peace is harder won than war. For war is made in the jungles, and cities and streets of our land but peace is made in the privacy of our hearts, in our willingness to forgive, in our desire to be whole again. It isn't afraid of words like 'reconciliation'. It mourns all the dead.

It believes in things unseen but felt. And it knows that the nature of this land is at the source of it, even as it fails to explain it. Sometimes it is buddhist, and sometimes it is hindu and sometimes it is daoist, and sometimes it is vipassana or ayurveda but it is always the trees, and the rivers and the mountains and the rainforest, the wetlands, the dry zone, the sea. It believes in a tourism that works with this, and does not require its destruction. It believes that neighborhoods like slave island can be preserved, developed rejuvenated like Sienna, or Prague, or Venice or any city in the world whose people are in love with its uniqueness, and dream of doing more with it than paving it over with a mall.

I am afraid you will think there is pretension in this, I am afraid that your guilt will call this privilege. If it is privilege, then it is the privilege of perspective, of time to think, and time to dream, and time to do nothing, and to do nothing here. Right here. In the long sigh of the world.

My family comes from a desert flanked by the sea. When the tide is low they say that you can walk to India from here. They say this is how we came to this place. I came to this place from my mother, my father is the final memory of my youth. In my adolescence, they told me stories of the man I would never meet. I keep the stories of the father they never knew to myself. I keep all my secrets like this, I don't speak of the things that cannot be heard.

I know that I can point to a place on a map. I know I can show you pictures of a mountain. But there is no record of what happened inside of me when I was there.

This is the true political struggle of my people: Between the seen and unseen. We cannot give you a handful of everything that has changed within us, we cannot point to everything we are afraid we are already losing.

Every time I see you all I have a compulsion to tell you I love you. I want to tell you that I see the fragile thing you are carrying behind your eyes. I want to tell you I know that you are falling. I want to tell you I too am afraid of disappearing. _____________________ 2022, Probably August. 

[nishitha-mga2021mi6021]

Beliefs and appearance #2

When considering Sri Lanka despite the Cobras in the Buddhist Statues you may find a vast number of Naga images in the guard stones

in the evaluation of the guard stone in Sri Lankan imagery you may find the Naga image came at the second stage and is mostly associated with protection

With that we can understand that the Locals here always considered the Nagas and COBRA imagery as guardians or protectors because of this reason I am using the Naga Concept with respect to guardian or protector to suit my commercial which is about security

Left -a guard stone found in Jethvanaramaya monastery Anuradhapura era

Middle-Modern Logo of Mahavali Cooperation (irrigational department of Sri Lanka)

Right - A guard stone found in Mihintala stupa Wahalkada Anuradhapura era

Mihintala Naga pond

Nagathambarani Monastery

You can also find Naga Imagery in Local gods like the god Suniyan / suniyan ykshaya(Demon) gamabara god is mostly represented with many Nagas or Cobras by his side which act as his guardian.

The most beautiful guard stone in Sri Lanka is considered as the Guard stone in Anuradhapura Rathnaprasadya in here too you can find a Naga imagery as a Naga king (Naraju)

the one and only Nagin representation can be found in a korawakgala (staircase supporter) in Lankathilaka Polonnaruwa

[evilminji]

Oh god, The Playground would be THE WORST. Like... viscerally. In that distinct "when you grow out of Barney The Dinosaur" sorta way?

It's THE single GREATEST place EVER... right up until you hate it. Never speak of that accursed place to me again, Mother. That is the land of BABIES! I? Am a GROWN UP.

I get the Vibe? That the Zone is leaking. Slowly and relentlessly into Amity. Like a massive ocean funneling into a tiny cup, yet somehow never spilling. They are getting? SO MUCH power? Drowning in it. Literally going from "I am comfortably wealthy in Ectoplasm" to "I am the first Ectoplasm zagajillionaire."

Like? Sure! Why NOT waste massive amounts of Ecto setting up all these new habitats! Ya'll HEATHENS keep popping by and taking pot shots at the king, so having my squishy babies NOT OUT IN THE STREETS is actually quite nice!

And at first? Everyone's like "oh yeah, the Amity's Hard To Find Thing! Been there for Aaaaaages! Oh? It developed into something MORE? .....meh. That tracks." And "well... at least the kids are entertained and not glued to their phones! Lots of exercise!"

But then? Well... the Arcade over on Stewart? Yeah, the out of business one. Folded when the owner died? Yeah, it's somehow both THERE and GONE. Inside is HUGE. Perfect for teens.

There are... a LOT of Weirdly Specific Places popping up? Like this one old grocery store. MILES of products. No, I do mean that literally. Yeah, Sandra bought this fancy Sri Lankan sauce there and like three baskets of fruit she had to look up.

And just? There are people in the streets. People living in the homes, going about their days... but Amity feels? Eerily EMPTY to outsiders? Like most of the population that SHOULD be there... isn't.

People appearing and disappearing throughout the day into what is basicly pockets of Space. A literal Ghost Town giving off the impression OF a Ghost Town. Yet? Things have never been better! The communities, never tighter.

You can literally plop your kiddo down at the park and have the PARK watch them for an hour or two! Complete with snacks and possible nap time! Countless SUPERVISED hang out spots? Places to explore your passions? It's great!

It would be so, SO horror movie. Because why would they tell YOU anything? You're just passing through. Mind your business. What're a cop? Lol

God the Playground would be SO Happy To See You~✨️✨️✨️ :D and I still it would set off an Adults fight or flight reflex. It doesn't do that for kids, mind you, that's condescension and kids don't like it. But The Playground is a SASSY and PETTY mofo that WILL kick you out!

You must be --- This! Short! Too! Play! BEGONE, Adulticus!

Having seen it several times... I Wonder (<.< )

Amity Lore has a protective barrier/timeout zone for Bad And Naughty invaders called The Suburbs.

Short little street. Nice-ish houses, fully stocked with food and electricity. Quiet. Alone...

*sweats in introvert*

O-Okay but listen. Here me out! *twitch*

Fffffuck capitalism, man! That sounds SOOTHING! Let me in! LET ME IIIIIIIN!!!

How do I convince the arguably sentient City I would like to go to The Quiet Street?

Is this a monumentally bad idea? Probably! NEVER give the sentient-non-human and Probably Eldritch city control of your life! It loves you but is incapable of understanding your human intricacies! I GET that!

....but it would be so soothing. My autistic ass would have to be DRAGGED out.

TEXTBOOK "jokes on you! I'm in to this shit!" Material. Endless, soothing, repetition broken only by what I create? No messes I have to keep track off? Don't have to keep track of paperwork or scheduling things?

If I can negotiate being able to come a go? I fuckin LIVE there now.

I'll just politely ask Amity to let the internet through. Keep MY corner or the repetitious hell barrier away from the part that has Dirty, Dirty Crimial Crime People's in it.

I haunt the walls now ( 👁 👁)

Hmmm? (👁 👁 )

Oh! HIIIII DAAAANNYYYYYYYY (👁 👁 )/ I haunt the walls now! Yeah, Amity says it's "rent" I just gotta stand on my front walk and Stare(tm) at The Feds when they drive in.

Yeah. In a bathrobe. Really creepy like. I think my bathrobes too nice. I need a really ratty one. Any tips? Gotta pull that real "horror movie" vibe, ya know?

@hdgnj @stealingyourbones

[a-world-of-whimsy-5]

Tales of the Four Kings - Part 2 Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown

ʚ Pairing:   Male character inspired by the King of Pentacles x Fem. Reader

ʚ Word count: 1944 words

ʚ Themes: Slow Burn | Fluff | Soft | Smut  

ʚ Warnings: Explicit content of a sexual nature |  Kissing | Foreplay | Penetrative sex

Minors DNI  

Tarot tit-bits of the King of Pentacles

Positive: Tenacious, Trustworthy, Stable

Negative: Excessive, Hedonistic, Disdainful

*source - Servant of the fates

ʚ Author’s notes: This story takes place in Sri Lanka, my country. 

Translations / Titles: 

Appachchi: Sinhalese for father

Mahesi: A title given to ancient sri lankan queen consorts. (Pali, if I’m not mistaken.)

The world outside was still a smoking ruin. "My father’s cruelty," the king muttered before rejoining the council. "Would have spread like an infectious disease had we not raised an army and finished him."

The wise men and monks nodded sagely. "And what are your plans now, my lord?"

Abhaya turned to the chief prelate. "Rebuild. First, start with the reservoirs and the farms. We need to get food production up and running. And call in our best hunters. The prohibition on fishing and hunting around the reservoirs is to be lifted.” Food was a necessity, as was gold. "Send emissaries as far off as Egypt, Greece, and Rome if necessary. We need to restart trading." 

"With what, my lord?"

"Something they need. Something only we can provide." Abhaya held a cinnamon stick in one hand, and a deep blue stone in the other. "And since we're no longer trying to hack each other to pieces," the others chuckled. "Safety will be guaranteed to any and all traders."

"Understood, my lord." The chief prelate agreed. The island's spices and jewels were some of the best that could be found, and it was high time they capitalised on them. "I'll speak to the others in our order and vet the best possible candidates myself. A list will be sent to you before the fortnight is out."

"Good." Abhaya looked at the others. "We will meet two weeks from today to discuss initial plans for the rebuilding of this kingdom."

While the rest filed out, Abhaya went in a completely different direction. There was someone he needed to visit.

                                                               ♕ ♕ ♕

Abhaya walked into the mausoleum. It was silent, save for the sound of his own breathing. With a bunch of blue water lilies in hand, he walked to a raised tomb and placed them on the cool granite.  

No expense was spared for his stepmother's funeral, and even the frugal monks believed it was the right thing to do. They rightly believed that the people would have expected no less. Abhaya may have led the army, but it was his stepmother’s financial and political support that made it all possible. 

"Purple water lilies, your favourite." He murmured and studied the engravings. Tissa had done some fine work with the lettering. “I hope it’ll please you.”

"I think you putting the kingdom back together will please her more."

He managed a smile for you. "I thought you had gone for a walk with your ladies."

You pull your wrap closer to you and shiver. The mausoleum was beautiful but so cold, even in the hottest weather. "I did. Then I saw you skulk off with those flowers in hand. I followed you."

"You know, my generals would be alarmed at you being able to sneak up on me like this." He smirked and asked you to sit by him on a little bench.

"And is that my fault Abhey, that I'm so light of foot?" You said archly.

"No," Abhaya chuckled and kissed your hand. "It's a testament to your parents and how well they taught you."

He studied your palms, callused and hardened after years of hunting and riding. "Hands forged out of iron, my stepmother would say.” He wished his stepmother had a chance to meet you, his new queen. “She would have liked you."

"And I hope I could live up to her reputation." Your eyes go over the tomb. Made out of granite, with stone water lilies as its only adornment. Knowing it held the remains of one of the most respected queens in the kingdom's history filled you with awe and fear.

What if I can't live up to that standard?

"You will. I'm sure of it." Abhaya mumbled. “Just take one step at a time, and you’ll get there.”

He looked troubled. Worn down. "Abhey? What is it?" you ask when a jaw clenched.

"Father's mess." He muttered. "It would take years to undo the damage he caused, and gold. So much gold. It's coin we cannot afford to waste." 

"Have faith in the emissaries," you say and cup his cheek. "They'll come through when the time is right."

Abhaya looked exhausted. Just over two and twenty, he was young and inexperienced. The crown had already weighed down on him. Your husband needed a diversion of some kind. Or rest. Anything to get his mind off the catastrophe his father had left for him to clean up. "Come with me," you stand up and extend a hand. 

He looked at you, completely confused at first, then dusted himself off and took your hand to his. "Where are we going?"

You call out to the guards, asking that they open the mausoleum doors. "Bath, and then bed. You need to rest." 

                                                     ♕ ♕ ♕

 The air smelled of the jasmine and frangipani flowers that floated in the water.

Abhaya closed his eyes as warm water was carefully poured over the scars that had finally started to heal. He felt the cares of the day wash away with the dirt on his skin. "This is nice," he sighed. "I can see why you like the bathhouse so much."

You put the bowl to one side and pick up a soft cloth. "There's nothing like a good soak to make you forget the cares of this world, even for a few brief moments."

Abhaya found himself agreeing with you. "No one to worry you, no supplicants or politicians or generals. Just blissful peace."

You smile and dip the cloth in a bowl of herbal water before running it over his shoulders. "It wasn't always bad," Abhaya found himself thinking of the past. "You know. Father wasn't always cruel or vindictive. He was a kind man. A good man."

"What happened?" You already know the story, but hearing it from the lips of the person who witnessed the events firsthand made it special somehow.

Abhaya sighed when he thought about what could have been. "It wasn't my mother's passing. That was over two and twenty years ago. No. It was him falling in league with that twisted soothsayer that did it. We warned him, you know," Abhaya turned back to face you. "The monks, the generals, my stepmother, even wet behind the ear me. We all saw him for the trouble-maker that he was, but father refused to listen." 

That twisted soothsayer was Nadadeva, a charlatan who had shown up at the palace doors one windy night, begging for an audience. The fact that he had appeared on the eve of the worst storm ever to hit the kingdom was seen as a bad omen. The man's head was now rotting on a spike. 

"My stepmother tried to rein father in, but she couldn't." He continued. "When we realised what would happen if father was allowed to go on unchecked, we both went and secretly met with the generals, found training sites no one knew about. She sent out orders for recruits, even paying for everything with her own inheritance. By that time, father's outrages were at their peak, and men just flooded in, wanting to put an end to him. Such a waste," he said, his voice tinged with bitterness. "So many lives were lost, and all because he listened to the wrong man."

He grabbed onto your hands, his black eyes staring into yours. "Promise me. Promise me you'll stop me if I turn into my father. Even if it means killing me."

"You're not your father," you protest. "Abhey--"

"Promise me!"

"Listen to me, Abhaya of House Moriya," You shot back. "You may be your father's son, but you're not your father. I've seen enough to know the difference. Besides," You tilt your head to a side and grin. "Do you think my father would have allowed me to marry you if he thought you'd end up like the old king?"

"No." Abhaya smiled again, this time from the heart. "But he made it perfectly plain that he planned to live for as long as possible, in the off chance he had to save you from me."

"Just like appachchi to vow something like that," you snicker. "And are you satisfied now?"

"Maybe," He grinned back. "But perhaps I should grumble more. Having you fuss over me like a mother hen is like balm to the soul."

You narrow your eyes and let out a string of choice expletives that disturbed the quiet of the bathhouse and made him cackle. "Y/n. My love," Abhaya made a sound of mock outrage. "Do you talk to your parents with that mouth?"

"No." You playfully throw the washcloth at him. "I only talk to you with that mouth." 

"Mmm." He closed his eyes as if deeply wounded. "Talking back to the king. I'll have to do something about it."

"Really?" You narrow your eyes to goad him. "Like what?" 

"This." He pulled you into the sunken tub and kissed you. 

"Abhey," you whispered between kisses. "Someone could walk in on us."

"Which is why I closed the door," he mumbled. 

"You leave nothing to chance, do you?" You said when he scooped you up and carried you out. 

"No." He laid you on a large lectus, a gift from a Roman emissary that came calling just as the last king gave into Nandadeva's manipulations. Such a pity, you thought, that the man's offer for trade went unanswered. "I don't."

Droplets of water glistened against coppery skin. Unable to help yourself, you reach out and run your hand over his chest, not wanting to miss even an inch. The feeling of your palms gliding against his skin heated his blood and made him shudder. "Y/n," he murmured and nuzzled his cheek against yours. "Do you have any idea of the hold on me?"

"I don't," You lift a lock of curly black hair and run your lips over it. "Maybe you could tell me." 

The sight of you playing with his hair made Abhaya weak. "The first time I saw you, I thought I had ridden into a beautiful dream."

"I remember you grumbling at the fact you lost to me and my horse," you let his fingers lace through yours. "Poor form, sir."

Abhaya's chuckle was soft and breathy. "Indeed. But that's not the only reason." He playfully nipped your cheek. "Your touch is enough to make my cares melt away into nothingness. No matter how bad the day is, just coming to you and listening to you is enough to make me forget my worries. You were the light in the darkness that was my life. It made me all the more determined to be a better man because you deserved nothing less from me."

This was the first time he said something like this so openly, and it moved you. "Does your skin always smell like this?" He leaned in and asked.

You closed your eyes when you felt his lips against your ear. "Of what?"

"Jasmine," Abhaya took another deep breath and shuddered. "Your skin smells of night-blooming jasmine. I can't get enough of it."

"Abhey," You had been nuzzling your cheek against his like you were feeling him for the first time. Your breath came out in shallow spurts. "I... I don't know."

He pulled away and brushed your hair back, his eyes drowning in yours. "Well, it does," Abhaya whispered as he lifted a hand and placed his lips over your palm. When he ran his tongue over it, you shivered and moaned. His tongue going higher, over your arm, made your bones melt and your knees go weak. It felt so good, and you could already feel the trickles of heat between your thighs. "And I'd like to feel more." 

You preempted him by rearing up and kissing him, drowning out his surprise as you did so. His kisses went from soft and gentle to hungry and needy, his lips devouring, trying to take as much as you could give. When his tongue pushed past your lips and flicked against yours, you purr and circled your arms around his shoulders.

Hardened muscles clenched and jerked wherever your fingers touched. Your bodies pressed against each other heatedly, as if they had been starved of each other. When a hand cups your breast, you look up into questioning eyes. "Yes?" That was all he asked.

Your jacket ended up on the floor. Abhaya wanted to feel all of you and he dipped lower, his kisses leaving no spot of you ignored. His breath had been choppy and he relished feeling your belly tremble whenever he ran his tongue over it, licking up the tiny beads of sweat that formed over your skin. "You taste so good," he murmured as he caressed the soft swell of your breasts. "I can't even begin to describe how good you taste to me."

Your words were drowned when his lips sought yours and his arms wrapped around you in a vice-like grip. It felt like a dam had burst and you kissed him back with equal fire, with every breath you took filling you with the scent of him, all clean skin and subtly of the scented oil he liked so much. He could make your body burn just by his scent and you pulled him closer so you could get more of it. 

The skirt you had draped around your waist came undone to his hands. "Looks like that has to go as well," you grin, locking eyes with him. "It does," He grinned back and let the fabric float to the ground. Feeling him hard and heavy against your hip made you ache to have him inside you. When he lowered his head to kiss you again, your legs go around his hips, drawing out a strangled moan in return. Abhaya propped himself on his hands, his breath coming out in pants. "Eager," he mumbled.

"Is it wrong for a wife to be eager for her husband?" you smirk and lift an eyebrow.

"No," The way Abhaya shook his head made you giggle. "It isn't wrong. It isn't wrong at all." 

When he entered you, it was slow and deliberate. "My mahesi," He whispered against your ear every time he heard you whimper. "My beautiful mahesi." 

The first thrust drew from you a moan that felt fevered and guttural. Abhaya fucked you slowly, opening his eyes sometimes just so that he could watch you. Seeing your lips parted in ecstasy, your eyes fluttering every time when he pulled out and pushed inside, you drove him over the edge. When he hit a certain spot, it made you see stars and arch your back. "There," you cried. "Right there."

It felt like both of you were moving in tandem, his moans matching yours in intensity and longing, as if in sync.  Abhaya growled and lifted your hips, going as deep and as hard as he could this time."Ready?" He asked when your fingers dug into his back.

You only nod frantically, letting go of him and grabbing onto the cushions, your fingers clawing at the fabric as your breath grew erratic and your muscles tightened.  On instinct, you push back into him, and then it felt like an explosion ripped through you and time came to a screeching halt. When Abhaya orgasmed with a deep, satisfying grunt, his fingers gripped your chin and his lips smothered yous.  When he lowered himself onto you, you sigh dreamily. 

"My mahesi," he whispered. 

"My king," you whisper back to him. 

[thereisnowarinbasingsee]

south asian and hindu influences in avatar: the last airbender

as a south asian hindu myself, something that’s always interested me is the huge influence of south asian culture and religion on the a: tla universe. hope you learn something new!

disclaimer: most of this information is just what i know about my culture and i’ve also used the a: tla wiki as a source of different elements to comment on. feel free to add anything or correct me!

the concept of the avatar itself

the whole idea of the “avatar” itself is directly from hinduism itself. the wordcomes from the sanskrit “avātarah”, meaning “descent”. in hindu scriptures, the deities come down onto the earth in times of great evil to restore balance to the world. sounds familiar, right?

“My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days, a time of peace when the Avatar kept balance between the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads.”

one example of is the lord vishnu, who in hindu scriptures comes down onto earth multiple times: most notably as krishna, and as rama, who features in the ramayana. ( which is the story behind why hindus celebrate diwali, basically. )

chakras 

chakras in both hinduism and buddhism are very important. guru pathik teaches aang about the importance of chakras, and in hindu and buddhist teachings are centres of energy that affect our wellbeing. which makes sense that aang needs to ‘unlock’ his chakras to get access to the avatar state once again.

“The water flows through this creek much like the energy flows through your body.”

elements 

even the elements in a:tla are influenced by hinduism. there are five elements: air, fire, water, earth and space- or aether- which is close to the concept of energy bending.

katara’s clothing 

katara and yue’s clothing both closely resemble vietnamese ao dai, but when i first saw katara’s clothing i was instantly reminded of the south asian kurta. both men and women wear kurtas: women usually tend to wear them more casually from personal experience. i practice a type of indian dance, and oftentimes i’ll wear a kurti to practice because it’s quite comfortable to dance in well. 

king bumi

in the language in which i speak with my parents- and quite a few indian languages, actually- “bhumi” means “earth”. as well as that, the hindu goddess bhudevi, also known as bhūmi and bhūmi devi, is representative of mother earth.

agni kai 

the agni kai is essentially an honour duel, which is prevalent in south indian and sri lankan warrior cultures. ( something i really think you should watch if you’re interested in indian martial art are videos of kalaripayattu, which is a martial art originating in kerala, a southern state of india. it’s believed to be the oldest surviving martial art in india, and - fun fact- legend has it that parashurama was the creator of kalari, who is actually one of the avatars of lord vishnu. ) 

the word “agni” itself is derived from the sanskrit for fire, and agni is the god of fire in hinduism.

“Just you and me, brother. The showdown that was always meant to be. Agni Kai!”

the old masters 

the creators confirmed that the part in sozin’s comet, part 2: the old masters where aang talks to his past lives is influenced by the bhagavad gita. the gita is a dialogue between the prince arjuna and the god krishna who is his charioteer during the battle of kurukshetra, where the pandavas ( the side which arjuna and lord krishna are on ) are fighting against the kauravas, who are actually their relatives. arjuna is reluctant to fight- there are mutual friends and family on either side- and the two discuss what constitutes fighting and arjuna’s duty. 

“Only justice will bring peace.“

combustion man and p’li 

the third eye on combustion man and p’li that they use to firebend closely resembles the third eye of lord shiva, god of destruction. i think it’s interesting that both combustion man and p’li’s third eyes cause destruction just like lord shiva’s. 

[loudlytransparenttrash]

Check your privilege. You are not on the side of Asians, only the whites who have been supposedly the most affected by this. Says a lot that THAT is what you're worried about.

Yes, I’m sorry, the media, politicians and activists widely condemning an entire race and pinning the racist attacks on them is no big deal and should not be discussed, you are right. You may have a point. In my last post, I did not bring enough attention to the severity and often savagery of these recent attacks against Asian Americans, usually elderly. The victims deserve to be heard and their violent, racist attackers condemned to the fullest. So let’s do that.

On January 28th, 84-year-old Vicha Ratanapakdee was walking in his driveway in San Francisco. A 19-year-old male barreled into him, knocking him to the ground. The male, Antoine Watson, was accompanied by a 20-year-old female. Two days later, Ratanapakdee died of his injuries. In March, an elderly woman was beaten during a robbery in broad daylight in Daly City. The attacker stripped her of her belongings and started to leave, before returning to club her again. In San Jose, on February 5th, a 64-year-old Vietnamese grandmother was getting into her car after withdrawing $1000 in cash in advance of the Lunar New Year. Two males yanked open the car door, grabbed the woman’s purse, keys, and phone and fled.

On January 31st, a 91-year-old man was walking along an Oakland sidewalk when a young male came up behind and pushed him to the ground. As the man’s head hung over the curb into the street, the assailant calmly continued walking off. A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman were attacked in Oakland’s Chinatown by the same assailant. Seventy-five-year-old Pak Ho was robbed and killed while taking his morning walk near Oakland’s Lake Merritt in March. He hit his head on the sidewalk and was taken off life support for brain trauma shortly after. On February 3rd, a 71-year-old grandmother was walking across an Oakland sidewalk towards her apartment when a young man dashed up and knocked her to the ground. A second male ran up and danced around as the first pulled the woman’s purse from her body, breaking the strap. Both males then ran off with the purse.

On February 23rd, two 19-year-olds and a 20-year-old walked into a San Francisco laundromat where a 67-year-old man was sitting. They kicked him to the ground, dangled him upside down by his legs, twisted him back and forth and beat him while they rifled through his pockets. Finally, they found his wallet and walked out the door. An 88-year-old great-grandmother, Yik Oi Huang, went missing. When her son searched the park next to her home, he saw what he thought was a pile of old clothes next to a recycling bin. It was his mother, beaten so brutally as to be unrecognizable and choking on her own blood. Her pants were down and her belly exposed. The 18-year-old suspect had gone on to burglarize her home, stealing jewelry and house keys before fleeing the area. Huang died. On March 18th, a man yelled “you motherf**king Asian!” as he knocked a 68-year-old Sri Lankan unconscious on a New York subway. The man remains in a critical condition. On March 21st, a 37-year-old woman attending a rally in lower Manhattan against anti-Asian violence was punched twice in the face by a man who took her protest sign and stuffed it in a trash can. In March 2020, four teenage girls assaulted a 51-year-old woman on a bus in the Bronx, hitting her with an umbrella and accusing her of spreading the coronavirus.

On March 30th, a man assaulted a mother on a train heading to Times Square, New York, and began yelling anti-Asian slurs at her and her three children. He then knocked the woman’s phone to the floor and kicked it off the train. On March 27th, a man beat and choked an Asian man unconscious aboard a Manhattan-bound train. The attacker repeatedly punched the man down to the subway seat, he then wrapped his arm around the other man’s neck, putting him in a chokehold for nearly 15 seconds, before the victim’s body falls to the train floor, his head flopping back unconsciously. Also on March 27th, a 37-year-old woman was at a NYC station when she was approached by a man who struck the woman in the face and made anti-Asian statements to her. On March 24th, a 35-year-old woman was riding on a NYC train when a man on board started making racist slurs her. When the victim started recording him on her cellphone, police say he smacked it out of her hand, picked it up, and smashed it on the ground. 

On April 3rd, an elderly couple were attacked in Tacoma, Washington by a 15-year-old male, who ran up to them, swinging punches at the man as the woman cries out while others record it and cheer. Another video shows the victim being further verbally abused and assaulted. On April 7th, a 25-year-old female was sitting, talking to a friend, when an individual made anti-Asian statements and slapped her in the face. On April 11th, a 57-year-old man was brutally assaulted on an Oakland street. The perpetrator sat on top of the victim, holding him down physically and landed blows to his face and chest as the victim struggled, screaming for help. On April 13th, a man was walking through the streets of the Upper East Side, ranting about Asians and white people, when he followed after a man who walked into the street to get away before the suspect followed him and body slammed him into a glass storefront. The victim tried to run away, but the suspect chased him until someone intervened. On April 14th, a convicted sex offender was arrested after following a woman into her garage, shouting race-based insults at her and spitting in her face.

How do I show I’m on “Asian’s side”? I’m allowed to condemn these violent, racist attacks, but I can’t condemn the violent, racist attackers because every single one of them is also black, and I can’t condemn the media and politicians for not only hiding the truth about these violent, racist attacks, but putting all blame and condemnation on an entire unrelated race in order to advance a radical agenda? Since I apparently can’t be “on Asians side” while at the same time condemning the corrupt and distorted reporting and narrative of these attacks, I will not pay attention at all to those who are committing the attacks or those who are using them for profit and gain. That’s how this works, right? Thank you for making me woke like you xx 

[kurisu-morgenstern-schuyler]

Why are there no (or few?) Asian people in His Dark Materials?

Ok so maybe there are and I just didn’t notice, but it stood out to me because otherwise it’s a pretty ethnically diverse cast. I also haven’t finished the season, though as it stands the absence of Asian-looking faces is feeling increasingly glaring. 

Let me just say I’m enjoying the show and I really love the show’s approach to casting otherwise.I think most of the actors I’ve seen are great in their roles. I think it’s awesome how (imo) the diversity does not feel forced or tokenized - for example, that the Master of Jordan College, Lord Boreal, and the Gyptian king (John?) are all black men is really cool because they’re all very different but important and interesting characters. 

While I could wonder why none of the main (or supporting) cast seems to be of obvious Asian descent, that’s a conversation that you could technically have about most media and I do really like all the actors they chose so I wouldn’t exactly wish that they were played by someone else. But in the background at least - why not? Especially given that this is fantasy Britain, even if there aren’t a lot of east Asian people (though I know they do exist in Britain), what about Pakistani, Indian, Sri Lankan, or Bangladeshi British people? Maybe Magisterial colonialism was different and there wasn’t the same type of influx of immigrants but also, this is a fantasy world. 

What makes me most frustrated is that I actually think the ethnic diversity of the Gyptians works really well on-screen, of people who look different but all belong to a shared culture of this world. It felt right. But then I tried to think, what is it that would make someone with a Chinese face - like mine - seem like such an outsider in my imagination? 

Maybe it doesn’t matter, you might say. They made a good effort and a cohesive world and what matters is actor’s talents more than their racial or ethnic background or their appearance and clearly they were able to choose other actors of color to play important parts so what’s the big deal?

Maybe I’m the only one who feels that way, but when a show encompasses a relatively large swath of different looking people in various in-world cultures, the fact that not a single person in the background seems to look even vaguely like me, ethnically, makes it hard for me to imagine myself in the world at all. Obviously I could use my imagination. I am Chinese American and up until I was about thirteen, I saw myself in pretty much any female character with straight dark hair, regardless if she were Asian or not (and she rarely was). In many ways I still do, and I don’t believe that you can’t identify with people who don’t look like you. 

His Dark Materials is British and not American, and I know there are differences in our cultures when it comes to perceptions of race and class etc. But tropes of Asian people as somehow perpetually foreign or other or different* is something that I’ve become a lot more aware of, and I’ve found the relative lack of Asian characters in main, supporting, and background roles in western visual media to perpetuate that greatly.

I’m not trying to write an op-ed or academic piece or anything (hence the strong reliance on how I feel about things with little other supporting evidence) and I hope this didn’t come off too much like a rant. I’m not trying to say the show is bad for being the way it is, it was just something that I noticed and wanted to think about.

--

*I’m not saying Asian/Asian-Americans (or Asian people in Britain) are the only group that faces this because others do too

[ruminativerabbi]

Sri Lanka, Paris

Passover and Easter are unrelated festivals that derive from different traditions, but that’s not how it seems to many in the Christian world. That most of the world calls Easter by a name related to Pesach (cf. French “Pâques” or Danish “Påske”) is part of it. As surely also is the assumption, widely believed yet almost definitely not historically correct, that the Last Supper described in the Gospels was a Passover seder or some version of a seder. (For an exhaustive consideration of every aspect of that issue, which apparently remains a delicate one even today in some circles, click here.) Even the use of the word “passion” to describe the suffering of Jesus provided some fuel for this particular fire, at least in antiquity, since the Greek word for “to suffer,” pascho, is phonically almost identical to Pascha, the name for Passover in the spoken Aramaic of ancient Jewish times.

Given the proximity of the festivals this year and in light of the above, I would like to write this week specifically about two events that have befallen the Christian world just recently and explain how they appear to someone reading the news through Jewish eyeglasses.

First, Sri Lanka. The numbers keep rising. First, “more than 100” dead, then “more than 200,” now, as I write on Wednesday, a minimal figure of 321—minimal in the sense that many of those hurt in the explosions—more than 500 in their own right—are not expected to survive and only haven’t succumbed to their wounds yet. It’s far away. It’s not a country Americans think of daily. No one on the radio, including the BBC World Service, seems to know whether the first word in the country’s name is pronounced “shree,” or “sree.”  (In all fairness to the Brits, when they seized the place and unilaterally made it part of their empire, they called it Ceylon, which name everybody knew how to pronounce.) And yet…the sense of familiarity and shared humanity that incidents like this bring in their terrible wake seemed to overwhelm the rest of the details. Most Americans, I’m sure, couldn’t even say easily what language they speak in Sri Lanka or what the capital city is, let alone whether a majority of the citizens are Buddhist, Hindu, or something else entirely. Indeed, it felt at first like a terribly bad thing that had happened to other people. But then, just as the extent of the carnage was becoming known came the even more startling detail that the attacks on the three churches and four hotels were apparently planned as a kind of response to the assault on the two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, in the course of which fifty Muslim worshipers were murdered. And with that single detail everything changed.

The single ideational concept that justifies terrorism in the mind of the terrorist is the ultimate fungibility of human life. Since I’ve been dealing in SAT words these last few weeks, I’ll add another: fungibility is the principle according to which things are deemed solely to have ascribed, not intrinsic, value. Paper money is the easiest example to seize: if I lend you five dollars on Monday and you come back on Tuesday to return the five dollars to me, I can’t sue you in court because the five-dollar bill you returned to me is not the same five-dollar bill I lent to you. But this is not so because it would make no sense to borrow money you were not planning to spend. It’s true because money in our culture is deemed fully fungible and, as a result, the paper bills we use as currency are supposed to have as their sole value the sum they represent, the sum ascribed to them by law. As a result every single five-dollar bill is deemed the equivalent of every other one and you can’t complain if you deposit a fiver in the bank one day and then receive a different bill from the bank the next day when you show up to withdraw your money.

This principle also applies to the eggs you borrow from a neighbor or the cup of sugar, but ethical people would never apply it to human life. To justify terror, however, is to do exactly that and willingly to ignore the fact that none of those people in church on Easter morning in Sri Lanka was responsible for the massacre in New Zealand and thus to feel justified in opening fire because you consider Christians to be as fungible as five-dollar bills and the shooter in Christchurch was presumed at least in some sense to have been a Christian. And that underlying notion makes it a humanitarian issue, not a Sri Lankan one or even a Christian one. This perverse line of logic is not unknown to Americans and it is certainly not unknown to Israelis: when someone is irritated by some or another Israeli policy and chooses to express that pique by blowing up a discotheque despite the fact that none of the young people on the dance floor was responsible for the policy in question—that too is an example of treating human life fungibly.

As a result, attempting to wave away events like this weekend’s horror in Sri Lanka as nothing more than the violent crime of an insane person is to miss the point: if the government is right to consider credible the statement by the Islamic State’s Amaq News Agency tying the Sri Lankan bombings to the shooting in Christchurch, then the principled effort to eradicate terrorist groups and to banish their nation-state sponsors from the forum of nations is not only a practical response, but a deeply moral one. There are, of course, crazy people in the world who do crazy things. We Americans have had lots of examples of that in these last several decades! But terror is not craziness at all: by resting on the ideational foundation that considers all human life truly to be fungible and thus devoid of intrinsic value, terrorism comes to represent the ultimate devaluation of God’s greatest gift. As we approach the end of Passover and prepare to commemorate the destruction of Pharaoh’s armies in the sea, we should all take a moment to reflect on a deep, if unsettling, scriptural truth: violence undertaken to dominate or to oppress is wrong and fully sinful, but acting forcefully to combat evil is both ethically justifiable and, speaking morally, wholly right. Americans know this. Israelis certainly know it and so do New Zealanders. And now Sri Lankans have had the same lesson brutally brought to their own doorstep.

I brought a whole different set of emotions to my contemplation of the fire that destroyed such a significant part of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. It is, arguably, one of the most stunning pieces of Gothic architecture in the world and is surely one of the world’s truly great cathedrals. It took a hundred years to build. (Work was undertaken in 1160, but the project only drew to its conclusion a full century later in 1260.) There’s no reason for that specific detail to confound—work on St. John the Divine on Amsterdam Avenue began in 1892 and the project still isn’t anywhere near finished—yet it somehow feels challenging nevertheless to think of a project spanning that much time and involving that many people. And all of it happening so long ago, and in an age without power tools, bulldozers, or electricity! For Jewish onlookers, on the other hand, the cathedral shimmers in a slightly different light.

For the Jews of France, the twelfth century was a terrible time. When work on the cathedral was still in its third decade, King Philip II expelled the Jews of France from his territory, apparently without the slightest interest in knowing or caring where they went once they left. When work on the cathedral was about halfway done, a council convened by Pope Innocent III—called the Third Lateran Council because it met at Rome’s Lateran Palace—disqualified Jews across Europe from holding public office, required Jews (and Muslims too) to wear distinctive dress so that they could not be mistaken in the street for Christians, and banned Jews from almost every profitable profession except pawnbroking and the sale of old clothes. But it wasn’t solely their economic lives that were under attack, but their intellectual lives as well: on March 3, 1240, when Notre Dame was a mere twenty years away from completion, church officials burst into synagogues across France—March 3 was a Shabbat in 1240—and carted off entire Jewish libraries. Eventually the king of France, Louis IX—who is recognized as a saint both in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches, and who is the St. Louis after whom the city in Missouri is named—insisted that the Talmud itself be put on trial. The ancient work was defended by a quartet of able rabbis, but the verdict was a foregone conclusion and then, on a day that lives on in infamy as one of the pre-Shoah world’s most outrageous acts of violent anti-Semitism, twenty-four cartloads of books—some 10,000 volumes, including irreplaceable works that would be considered of inestimable value today—all twenty-four cartloads of books were burnt in public on the Place de Grève, now called the Place de l’Hôtel de Ville, just across the river from…Notre Dame de Paris.

Notre Dame itself features one of the most hateful of all anti-Semitic symbols on its front façade, where are depicted Synagoga and Ecclesia (“Church”) as a pair of very different women, the one (Synagoga, of course) dressed in rags, a snake covering her eyes, a broken scepter in her hand, and the tablets of the law slipping from her grasp, and the other, Ecclesia, depicted as a proud, attractive woman standing fully erect while carrying a wine chalice in one hand and a staff with a cross at its top in the other. The insult couldn’t be more clearly put. Nor has it lost its punch over the centuries: even though the statues were destroyed during the Revolution, they were both were restored and replaced during the nineteenth century. They’re still there too, inviting any eagle-eyed visitor to learn the lesson they were set in place to teach: that Judaism is defunct, dead, and disgraced, whereas Christianity is triumphantly and gloriously dominant.

So when I look at Notre Dame and feel the same pang of regret all civilized people surely do when a world-class work of architecture is damaged, I also recall the world that gave birth to Notre Dame and its harshness, its cruelty, its violence and its deeply engrained prejudice against Jews and against Judaism. And I think of poor Synagoga as well, and wonder what she would have to say if she were somehow able to shove the serpent aside and open her stony eyes onto the world. Would the fact that she’s still on display all these centuries later surprise her? And what would she have to say to the thirteen million visitors who walk by her on their way into France’s most famous cathedral? Would the resurgence of anti-Semitism in France surprise her? Would the existence of an independent Israel? Would anything? Those are the questions that the fire at Notre Dame prompts me to ponder on these coming final days of Pesach. 

[topfygad]

Checking In to the Atlantis The Palm

Ever since rising up watching the Mary-Kate and Ashley journey movies, I’ve longed for the day I may keep at The Atlantis. Granted, the movie was made on the first Atlantis (within the Bahamas), however nonetheless my check-in to The Atlantis Dubai felt lengthy overdue.

On earlier stopovers to Dubai I’ve gone out of my solution to go to the Atlantis. My first time in Dubai I made a particular journey over to expertise the Aquaventure Waterpark (circa 2013) and only a couple of years in the past in 2017 revisited the property with my little brother in tow to discover the Misplaced Chambers Aquarium. For sure that is an attraction in itself when visiting Dubai, however to remain on the Atlantis the Palm was a wholly totally different expertise.

What’s Included in your Keep

One of many largest draw playing cards to staying on the Atlantis the Palm is the exclusivity provided to in-house visitors. There are a selection of areas on the Atlantis for in-house visitors solely, together with the spectacular foyer and personal seaside entry. On prime of this, daily we awoke on the Atlantis we might make our manner across the lodge early earlier than non-guests arrived and have your complete aquarium to ourselves, in addition to empty seashores and swimming pools to discover.

Visitors are given limitless entry to Aquaventure Waterpark subsequent door, in addition to a go to to the Misplaced Chambers Aquarium. Breakfast isn’t included within the base value however with a breakfast buffet that’s overflowing (with the likes of pancakes, waffles, banana bread, Sri Lankan curries and a lot extra), you’d be kidding your self to say no!

Exploring the Atlantis

Exploring the lodge was considered one of our favorite components of staying right here. There may be a lot to find that it virtually feels countless, with each flip taking you on a distinct journey for the day.

A few of my favorite highlights of staying on the lodge had been “The Wave”, a brand new eatery that includes ten pin bowling, reside music and a wave pool (yup!) I additionally actually loved the health centre which had all the pieces you might ever want and extra to remain match while on trip. The membership lounge was an amazing addition to our keep and have become our favorite place to drink cocktails because the solar was setting.

Rooms at The Atlantis Dubai

I’m certain you’ve seen photos of these beautiful underwater rooms that includes an aquarium in the lounge and sure – they exist on the Atlantis! There are just a few of them so they’re troublesome to e-book and far more costly, so for almost all of the Atlantis rooms they’re king dimension with two choices: ocean dealing with or palm dealing with.

The rooms have all the pieces you might must take pleasure in your keep however to be sincere, you gained’t spend a lot time right here with all of the temptations of the resort. You should definitely indulge within the welcome goodies (they had been so memorable the deserved their very own point out) and keep in mind if you’re palm dealing with – the upper the ground, the higher the view!

Yoga at Atlantis the Palm

On our final morning waking up on the Atlantis, we booked the 9:00am underwater yoga class. The category takes place contained in the lodge’s spectacular aquarium outdoors of opening hours. To have this place virtually totally to your self (our class had simply six fellow yogis) is price whereas in itself!

Is Atlantis the Palm Value It?

When deciding whether or not the Atlantis the Palm Dubai is the best lodge for you, there are a number of key concerns. This resort caters largely to households, particularly throughout UK and European college holidays. This implies you could anticipate an virtually full resort over busy intervals and with virtually 1500 rooms, this may be fairly chaotic!

That mentioned, the Atlantis the Palm is extremely enjoyable and if you would like countless choices for actions, eating choices and to “by no means depart the resort”, you’ve hit the jackpot. The Atlantis isn’t situated close to any of the most important points of interest in Dubai as a lot as it’s an attraction itself. Situated on the tip of the palm, you possibly can anticipate to journey 20-30 minutes to anyplace close by. This features a 30 minute cab journey to the Burj Khalifa and Dubai Mall.

In case you do e-book the Atlantis an amazing concept is to improve your room to incorporate membership entry. This may help you take pleasure in day by day afternoon tea (14:00-16:00) and cocktails + canapes from 17:00-19:00. Making use of the membership amenities will help you lower prices by having fun with a hearty buffet breakfast adopted by snacks through the day and only one paid meal within the night.

Room charges begin at $650 AUD for an ocean king room, per evening. Breakfast is an extra $70 AUD per room, per evening. Room charges embody limitless entry to Aquaventure waterpark and the misplaced chambers aquarium.

E book your stick with The Atlantis.

source http://cheaprtravels.com/checking-in-to-the-atlantis-the-palm/

[altughuner-blog]

Trincomalee is one of the many ancient living cities of Sri Lanka. It is not as famous as Anuradhapura or Polonnaruwa with the tourists, but it is no less fascinating than them. Read more about the places to visit in Trincomalee.

During my recent trip to Sri Lanka, I traveled through some of the ancient cities of Sri Lanka in its northern Tamil dominated belt. I discovered the wealth of ancient temples, ancient ports, salt panes, lagoons, islands, and lovely little villages. The fact that I could get south Indian food in most places made me feel at home. Only when someone asked for my passport, I realized I am out of India.

In colloquial lingo, the city is called Trinco.

Places to visit in Trincomalee

Kanniya Hot Springs

Kanniya Hot Springs are the natural wonders of the area. These are 7 square wells close to each other with hot water at different temperatures. They are located quite close to each other and are quite shallow – just about 3-4 feet deep. You can see the bottom right there when you stand next to them. It looks like an ocean bed with lots of coins thrown by visitors.

Kanniya Hot Springs or 7 wells

It is said that they have water at 7 different temperature levels, from lukewarm to very hot. I did touch the water in all the wells and it was hot. I could not figure out the difference in temperature between the wells. Not to forget that I was there when the sun was at its peak and any water would be hot water at that time of the day.

I saw people taking buckets of water and pouring it on themselves.

Do read – Manikaran Hot Springs 

The story says that Ravana dug up these hot springs to do the last rites of his mother. Since then, Kanniya Hot Springs are used for performing last rights in Sri Lanka. Apparently, Ramayana mentions it as a part of Gokarna Tirth – another name of Trincomalee Bay.

Buddhist Monastery at Kanniya Hot Springs

There is a Buddhist monastery and a Shiva temple next to the Kanniya Hot Springs. In front of it are the ruins of an old Brick Stupa, the kinds you see in the Anuradhapura area.

Ticket for Sri Lankans – LKR 10/- Ticket for Foreigners – LKR 50/-

Obviously, it is one of the places to visit in Trincomalee during your visit.

Trincomalee War Cemetery

War Cemetery 1939-1945

A beautifully maintained cemetery announces its name on its iron gate along with the dates 1939-1945. The years indicate that it belongs to the World War II era. You see the cemetery as in the image above, I do not think it opens more than this for visitors.

Orr’s Hill Army Museum

This is the most basic but very well-presented museum I have seen. To a layperson, it is a great introduction to the wide range of weapons used by the Army, where they were invented and when were they procured by Sri Lanka. A room introduces to the army uniform, its ranks, insignias of various regiments, etc. Another room has a display of defense communications.

The interesting part of this museum is the display of items captured from terrorists and that includes suicide bombers.

Weapons display at Orr’s Hill Army Museum

You need 30-60 mins depending on your interest to see this museum. Located right next to the ocean, it is a pleasure to walk through this well-maintained museum. An army person will guide you, though the language may be a challenge.

You can practice shooting at a combat setup and get an experience of being an army person for a fee. I think it is a great idea to acquaint citizens about the life of army men in the country.

Ticket – Sri Lankans – LKR 20/-, Foreigners – LKR 250/-

Temples of Trincomalee

It is an ancient port city. It is also a pilgrimage site for Tamil Hindus. One of the Panch Ishwarams or the 5 prominent Shiva Temples is located at the edge of Swami rock here. There are many other temples that continue to live in the city. Let’s look at some of them:

Thirukoneswaram Temple

Thiru Koneswaram Temple

Thirukoneswaram or Koneswaram temple is the most important temple in the city – one of the 5 Shiva temples in the country. The temple dates back to the time of Ramayana at least, as we hear many tales associated with Ravana and this temple.

Koneswaram Temple Entrance

The story goes that Parvati wanted a home like a normal woman and this is the place that she chose for her home. Ravana was called to perform the rituals for the new home, but he was so enticed by the grandeur of the palace that he asked it in Dakshina for performing the rituals. As soon as he got what he wanted, he realized his mistake and did severe penance to convince the Devi to stay here. Devi relented and stayed here as Shankari Devi. Shiva stays with here as Koneswara or lord of the hill. Some accounts also interpret the name as Trikon + Ishwara meaning the lord of three mountains.

Dakshin Kailasa

Artistic impression of Koneswaram Temple

Another story says Trincomalee is located on the piece of Kailasa Parvat, that was brought here by Ravana. In fact, Koneswaram temple shares the same longitude with Kailasa Parvat, earning it the name of Dakshin Kailasa. It finds mention in Dakshin Kailasa Mahatyam in Skanda Puran.

Do read – Ramayana Places to See in Sri Lanka

It is described as the 1000 pillared temple with many small shrines surrounding it. Like most other major temples in the region was destroyed by the Portuguese army. Fort Fredrick stands at the place that was once the temple premises. This means it was a huge temple complex. The chronicles say that they used to canons to demolish the temple. Some of the Murtis were buried underground by the fleeing priests. Some of these have been recovered and are now part of the temple complex.

Ancient Lakshmi Narayana Murtis

At the Vasant Mandapa, you can see some recovered Bronze idols. In another small shrine, you see a large Lakshmi & Narayana sculpture in black stone. An old Nandi finds itself in another niche around the temple.

The present temple is a small temple located right at the far end of the rock from where you can see the ocean all around you. The main temple houses a Shivalinga and the Devi temple next door houses a standing image of the goddess.

Giant Shiva Murti at Koneswaram Temple

The temple walls inside the temple tell the story of the temple. The original temple covered the whole hill as per the description here. Outside walls tell the stories of the temple from the Puranas.

A huge Shiva Murti welcomes you as you approach the temple from the parking, passing by the small temple shops.

Ravana Abyss

Ravana Cut or Ravana Abyss on Swami Rock

The Ravana Abyss or Vetta refers to the cut in the Swami Rock on which the Koneswaram temple stands. It is believed that this cut was made by the Ravana with his sword.

Ravana with folded hands and his Veena – Places to visit in Trincomalee

Ravana standing with his folded hands, with his Veena next to him, on a platform hanging out of the Swami rock is an interesting sculpture. It commemorates the moment when Ravana created a veena from one of his own heads to please Shiva and Parvati.

It seems ironic that the king of the golden Lanka stands on a hanging platform with folded hands. People offer him coins and you see his feet surrounded by coins.

Cradles

Cradles tied all around the temple

At the back wall of Thirukoneswaram temple is a series of miniature wooden cradles tied to the railings. It is believed that couples who want children tie a cradle to this temple wall. I also saw coins wrapped in clothes tied to the cradles.

The sunrise is just beautiful from the temple ramparts.

Deer around Koneswaram Temple

Interestingly, you see deer roaming around the temple premises.

Shankari Devi Shakti Peeth

Shankari Devi Temple is located within the premises of Koneswara temple. It has Adi Shakti as Shankari or the consort of Shankar. The Murti is in standing position with four arms. A two-dimensional Sri Chakra on copper stands next to her legs. Another 3 dimensional Sri Chakra stands in front of her image.

It is believed that the leg of Sati fell here when Shiva was taking her body around.

This is the first Shakti Peeth mentioned by Adi Shankaracharya in his Stotra describing the 18 Shakti Peethas in Indian Subcontinent. This makes it a very important site for the followers of both the Shiva and Shakti.

Bhadrakali or Pathirakali Amman temple

Ancient Pathirakali Temple – Places to visit in Trincomalee

This temple is located in the middle of the city. From a distance, it looks like any other south Indian temple in Dravidian architecture with colorful Gopurams full of storytelling sculptures.

Stories of Devi – Bhadrakali Temple

However, as soon as I entered the temple from a side door, I was stunned to see the three-dimensional sculptures all around. The sculptures were calling from the ceiling, from the brackets surrounding the pillars and from the walls. They had a million stories of the different manifestations of the Devi to tell. The loud colors and powerful images in larger than life sizes are overwhelming.

Three Dimensional Wall Murals

The presiding deity of this temple is Mahakali as Bhadrakali or the benevolent form of Kali. Along with her, there are Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati.

Pathirakali Amman Temple

An inscription at the temple tells us that this temple predates Chola period, which means it existed in 11th CE, making it more than 1000 years old at least.

Salli Muthumariamman Kovil

Salli Muthumariamman Kovil

Located right next to the Uppuveli beach where a small stream joins the ocean, this is one of the oldest temples in the city. This is the third important temple dedicated to Devi in the region.

Temple standing on the narrow land between backwaters and the sea has rugged rocks for company. There is a natural barrier created between the sea and the temple by the rocks. When I visited, the temple was closed but I could see that it a very venerated temple and visited by many from the signs of worship all around. The temple gives a lovely view of the Indian ocean.

Yantra at Salli Muthumariamman Temple Uppuvelli Beach

I saw a strange yantra standing in front of the temple in Copper. Any idea what this is?

Did you know Trincomalee Bay is also known as Gokarna?

Laxmi Narayan Temple

Lakshmi Narayana Temple Photo – Temple Website

This is a giant temple in blue and gold color. You can see it from a distance. It was closed when I visited and the thick moat around it prevented me from taking a good picture of it. I am told this temple is very popular with travelers to Trincomalee.

This is a fairly new temple dedicated to Vishnu as Lakshmi Narayana. I guess the blue and yellow colors were chosen for the temple also denote the blue color of Vishnu who always wears golden yellow clothes.

Buddhist Viharas

Buddhist Vihara

Here and there you see Buddhist Viharas, usually identifiable with their white stupas. I stopped a couple of them and mostly found a school like an environment there with young students roaming around.

Do read – Anuradhapura – the ancient capital of Sri Lanka

Beaches of Trincomalee

Coming from Goa, beaches in Sri Lanka were at the bottom of my list to explore. However, in the evenings, they are the best option to explore the place. Beaches can also help you relax after a tiring day exploring the destination.

Uppuveli Beach

Uppuveli Beach

I visited Uppuveli beach twice during my stay. First was when I visited the temple. I stood on the rocks jutting out of the sea as the sun went down, soaking the tree-lined beach in its twilight.

Second, I visited on the backwater ride from my hotel. It was a nice 40 minutes slow boat ride from the hotel to the beach and back. I saw the trees standing in the middle of salt water, birds flying here and there and a vast landscape full of silence. This is one of the important places to visit in Trincomalee that I would definitely recommend anyone visiting.

Nilaveli Beach

Located to the North of Uppuveli beach, this is a quieter beach, away from the city.

Pigeon Island

This island can be reached by boat from Nilaveli beach. It is most popular who whale and dolphin watching, snorkeling and diving.

It gets its name from the rock pigeon breeding grounds it has.

Marble Beach

This beach is supposed to have the clearest water. I missed visiting this beach this time.

Fort Fredrick

Fort Fredrick

This fort was built by destroying the temple and using its stone by the Portuguese in the April of 1622 CE on the Tamil New year day by deceit. The soldiers dressed as priests as the main Murti was taken to town in a procession and bombed the temple into the sea.

Their reign was short lived and the Dutch destroyed what they had built and rebuilt the fort in 1665 CE.

Do read – Galle Fort – the Colonial Past of Sri Lanka

As of now, you can only see the arch leading to the temple here. Being an army installation, tourists are not encouraged here but it is accessible.

Places to visit near Trincomalee

Aathi Koneswaram Temple

Athi Koneswaram Temple

This is a simple but large temple located in a village called Tamapalakamam, about 25 km from the city. This was built in 1632 CE and houses the original idols of the Koneswarar temple.

It is one of the most peaceful temples I visited in Sri Lanka. Its huge corridors with almost no crowd let you walk and admire the temple peacefully. As per the priest, the Utsav Murti in Bronze is the only ancient idol. However, my limitation with language was a barrier. He was kind enough to allow me to take the picture of this ancient idol.

Like most temples, this temple also lay abandoned during the Sri Lankan civil war.

Elephant Pass Memorial

Elephant Pass Memorial Sri Lanka

The Elephant Pass Memorial is a memorial built to commemorate the end of civil war in Sri Lanka. Through its two semi-circles, it signifies the coming together of North and South Sri Lanka and free flow of people across the country. Hands hold up the Map of Sri Lanka. It was inaugurated by Mahinda Rajapaksa in 2009.

It is lovely little sculpture, that allows you to walk up on the ramp that goes around it. Walls around the memorial show the stressful scenes of war days. You can probably see it in a few minutes but the meaning and symbolism of it will stay with you.

From the top of Elephant Pass memorial so get to see the Elephant Pass Salterns. Shining white lines of salt glitter in the sun, left on the shore why visiting waves of the ocean.

Trincomalee Backwaters Boat Ride Video

Watch the video clip in HD mode for the best view.

Travel Tips

Seascape

The city is well connected to Colombo by train and bus.

Cinnamon Air also connects the city by Air Taxi.

Tuk Tuk or private car is the best way to get around the city.

There are kinds of hotels, from basic to boutique ones. I stayed at Amaranthe Bay, which is close to Uppuveli beach.

Photography is not allowed inside the temples, but most other places it is allowed.

You need 2-3 days for the places to visit in Trincomalee comfortably. However, if you are rushed, you can do it in a day also.

Do not forget to drink King Coconuts available anywhere in the city and the country.

The post Places To Visit In Trincomalee – The Eastern Edge Of Sri Lanka appeared first on Inditales.

[jarclave13-blog]

Fill Her Up! Lankan Filling Station, East Sydney

The new Sri Lankan eatery Lankan Filling Station is located on Riley Street in East Sydney. There you'll find a range of Sri Lankan goodies on offer. Start with egg hoppers or string hoppers and dip them into a curry, season with a sambol or snack.

I arrive at Lankan Filling Station at 12:15pm on a Friday and easily nab a table. Girl Next Door arrives a few minutes later and come 1pm most tables will be taken with some room at the bar.

Lankan Filling Station is by chef O Tama Carey formerly of Berta who is in the kitchen. Service is really lovely and personable from the all female floor team. You can fill in the form with what you would like and they cross it off when it comes to the table or you can just give your order verbally.

King coconut water $6 and tamarind iced tea $8

We start with some drinks. The drinks are either dry/unsweetened drinks or super sweet drinks like Falooda. We order a King Coconut drink which is unlike the Thai coconuts in that it isn't sweet at all (although it perfectly counters the heat from the chilli) and a tamarind iced tea which is also unsweetened. Alas we're both not huge fans of the tamarind iced tea and it does seem a bit pricey too. "I told you not to order it," says Girl Next Door.

Plain $4 and egg hopper $6 and raita $5

The bowl shaped hoppers arrive piled high on a basket. The egg hopper is nice with a runny yolked egg in the centre with a crispy edge while the plain is the same base without the egg. They tell us that we can break it off and dip it into the curry. I almost wish we had stomach space to try a plain, egg and a string hoppers (the latter which you can order with extra strings).

Hot Butter Cuttlefish $18

Hands down my favourite dish of the meal is the hot butter cuttlefish with tender cuttlefish and large, chunky vegetables. The cuttlefish is coated in a very light turmeric batter and melts in the mouth. This is especially good with the raita and the Seeni Sambol which has an appealing sweetness to it.

Potato Curry $14

There is quite a bit of choice and normally I would have gone for the prawn curry or the mutton one but we were recommended the potato curry which they describe as a "white curry". Although there is turmeric listed, it is white in colour and is flavoured with green chill and Lankan mustard. The mustard flavour in this creamy curry is quite strong coming in right at the end but it is quite a mild tasting curry and I wish I had gone with a meat curry instead.

Fish curry $18

The fish is a line caught ling from Ulladulla, sliced thinly and cooked with a lightly roasted curry powder. It looks not dissimilar to the potato curry but this is much creamier and I prefer this to the potato curry.

Mixed Sambol plate $18

I love sambols as I like the ability to season a dish to how you like it and I ummed and aahed about the sambol plate because it is quite pricey for seasonings. There are four sambols on the mixed plate: a green pol sambol with coconut, ginger and coriander; a hotter pol sambol with coconut, Maldive fish chilli and lime; a seeni sambol which is jaggery sugar caramelised onions with tamarind and a katta sambol with onion, chilli and lime. On the side are some delicious white chillies which are deep fried whey soaked chillies that are crisp and full of flavour-they are a bit on the hot side and Girl Next Door suffers a little after she nibbles on these.

Eggplant $12

The eggplant dish comes out last and the eggplant is soft and stir fried with plenty of onion, chilli, turmeric, tomato and yellow and black mustard seeds for punch.

The reason why Girl Next Door and I get on so well (she used to be a food writer at a magazine and we met on a media trip many years ago) is because we are not shy about ordering a lot. And the dessert menu here has many options. There are 7 options staring us in the face and we really want to eat 4 of them so Girl Next Door says "Well if we have to eat four desserts we have to," with a casual shrug of her shoulders. And so we do. Four desserts, two girls. And our lovely waitress just lets out a "F^(^ yeah!" and we like her even more.

Nan's Love Cake $8

Nan's Love Cake is a bar cake, dense and slightly dry made with cashews, semolina, sweet spices and rose. We both agree that it would be great with a cup of tea or coffee in the afternoon.

Curd and Kithul $10

This was an interesting dessert that really grew on us. The first couple of bites we were really getting used to it-it's a buffalo curd that has a slight graininess to it with palm treacle sauce and crunchy buckwheat for texture. But by the third spoonful Girl Next Door is smitten.

Strawberries and Cream $10

The strawberries and cream have a nice boost of rose syrup and a little ground long black pepper before being covered in a big dollop of whipped coconut cream. It's a nice summertime dessert and I can imagine making something similar for a simple dessert.

Watalappam $12

But my favourite dessert is the Watalappam, a baked jaggery custard topped with toffee, cashews and sesame seeds. It's sweet but not overly so and taken back from the brink of it with the burnt toffee shards on top. In the end, the bill isn't inexpensive but our dessert gluttony is partly to blame for that.

So tell me Dear Reader, do you ever order double the desserts to people? Who are your favourite people to eat out with and why are they your favourite to eat out with?

This meal was independently paid for.

58 Riley St, East Sydney NSW 2010 Monday Closed Tuesday to Friday 12–10pm Saturday 10am–10pm Sunday 10am–4pm Phone: (02) 8542 9936 lankanfillingstation.com.au Dog friendly: one outside table

Source: http://www.notquitenigella.com/2018/10/05/lankan-filling-station/

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Princess Principal 3 | Saiyuki Reload Blast 4 | Boku no Hero Academia 30 | Katsugeki 5 | Reflection 2

I’ve been kinda busy lately and there’s been minimal Boueibu news as we gear up for the OVA, but the “Chesarka watches ________” tags are now on this post and should be rolled out to other posts.

Princess Principal 3

Gah? Is this a yuri? Or is it just two girls talking as spies?

I thought we didn’t need this commentary. We had it in ep 1.

Nuwara Eliya appears to be a Sri Lankan tea type.

Okay, there’s a dude dressed like a sailor but wearing goggles. What is this, a flying fishmobile??? (reference to Galilei Donna, which I’ve never seen but I’ve heard of the fish airship)

I’m…not sure what Kalinga tea is. It could be some made-up name for a tea brand or something.

I bet Beatrice’s mechanism will save her…Nope, turns out I was wrong…

Saiyuki 4

The OP blood splatter effect is still fairly tasteless…

The “salmon” joke does kind of work in both English and Japanese, as “salmon” in Japanese is sake.

I think the kon bit of Konzen’s name has something to do with gold, or else his hair colour is an aesthetic choice by Minekura. (Oh? You’re asking me why I know Kazuya Minekura’s name? Well, for one, it’s in the OP, and the second thing is I found an old manga magazine preserved online that talked about her (Animefringe), dated about 2004 at last issue. That’s why it’s interesting to take on Saiyuki Reload Blast from a rookie perspective.)

Well, at least now we understand why Goku can deal with Gojyo and Genzo so much.

I’m not sure if Nataku has been mentioned previously in this series, but hey. Diamond head is probably him.

Well, I guessed right. It really was Nataku.

Can’t throw around the name Son Goku (Sun Wukong) lightly now, kiddo. Saiyuki is based off Journey to the West, and of course Son Goku is the monkey king in that. I’m not completely up to scratch on my Journey to the West mythology though, so here…a link which should detail Goku’s history roughly as it should be. *sighs exasperatedly* I thought I was done with my Chinese studies…

Is it just me, or is this pan starting and stopping?

I’m always one for the bishie fests with a small teasing of yaoi, but no real yaoi. Of course, Saiyuki is perfect for me, ain’t it?

“I’m rowdy down there too.” – Hehehe, LOL.

Otayori? The word these days is tegami, or otegami if you want to be polite, so otayori must be an old term.

…yeah, I don’t get the Urasai.

Boku no Hero Academia 30

Ah, having to live up to expectations. Now there’s something I know well.

Interesting to note Iida’s now taken on a more Midoriya approach to things, including and up to “throwing away his arm”.

Hey wait, the Iida/Stain eyecatch combo happened last ep too. Dangit, recycling.

Shouto’s outfit looks a lot like Endeavour’s. maybe someday I should analyse how Shouto’s becoming more comfortable with being in his father’s shadow…but I guess someone’s already done it, eh?

I guess I should say Endeavour’s blue flame was a type of “boom, headshot!” thing, but…yeah, it doesn’t quite qualify.

Deku talking to Native is just so adorable! It completely sets off my version of the moe radar!

“…if he gets too high…”

So…wow. The hero killer gets done in by his own bones. That’s kinda anticlimactic…

Katsugeki 5

Nobunaga no Shinobi said oodachis can be about 2 metres long…eesh. I’d hate to be on the end of an enemy oodachi…

Ufotable’s visuals look really lifelike, it’s crazy…

Oh…my gosh. Tonbokiri!

Okay, okay. Seriously, are there any Mutsu/Kane-san shippers out there? I thought Horikawa/Kane-san shippers were more common.

Eyyyyyyy! It’s Jiji (Mikazuki)! Jiji’s any Touken Ranbu player’s dream sword, in regards to sword rarity. Dangit, Saniwa, you’re making me jealous.

I’m so worried for Tonbokiri…

Reflection 2

Well, they do call New York “the city that never sleeps”…

Masda (sic) is on one of the boards...chyrons…oh whatever. I don’t really know what to call the electronic screens, aside from that very name.

That cop looks kinda sleepy…(sarcastic->) not.

Okay, if I got this straight…Stan Lee is a psychic bad guy! Hahaha, that’s great!

Uh, hey. This guy with the power of Itsuka Kendou (BnHA)? Isn’t he basically a racist stereotype, if not a cliche? Stan Lee, what are you doing to my anime?

Stan Lee does kabedons. Never thought I’d see the day where that happened.

Here’s Spider-X-on again, LOL. Spider-dude, spider-dude, does whatever a spider-dude can…haha.

I think I saw I-Guy pass a Hard Rock Café as he flew. Stan Lee, please stop infringing on other people’s copyrights.

O-Oh, I never thought this, but if you can get air sickness from planes, why can’t you get it from mechanised suits too? I guess that’s what Stan Lee wants us to think.

So basically Tiger and Bunny: Stan Lee version? Hmph. I’ve read 6 volumes of the T & B manga, so I know most of the drift, but actually getting to see even a cheap version of it feels great.

Ah, I didn’t think they’d control the screens from LA. No wonder I-Guy had the perfect backgrounds.

Seriously, Ian? What’s your power???

Of course the Reflected become criminals. If you had a power you didn’t understand and people didn’t understand you, you’d turn evil too.

I never saw what was so good about tomato juice. Then again, I dislike tomatoes for absolutely no reason at all, so…yeah.

Seriously, what was so good about that little old blob, Eleanor? The footage was taken too far to discern whether that was Wraith or not.

[notifychill4-blog]

Fill Her Up! Lankan Filling Station, East Sydney

The new Sri Lankan eatery Lankan Filling Station is located on Riley Street in East Sydney. There you'll find a range of Sri Lankan goodies on offer. Start with egg hoppers or string hoppers and dip them into a curry, season with a sambol or snack.

I arrive at Lankan Filling Station at 12:15pm on a Friday and easily nab a table. Girl Next Door arrives a few minutes later and come 1pm most tables will be taken with some room at the bar.

Lankan Filling Station is by chef O Tama Carey formerly of Berta who is in the kitchen. Service is really lovely and personable from the all female floor team. You can fill in the form with what you would like and they cross it off when it comes to the table or you can just give your order verbally.

King coconut water $6 and tamarind iced tea $8

We start with some drinks. The drinks are either dry/unsweetened drinks or super sweet drinks like Falooda. We order a King Coconut drink which is unlike the Thai coconuts in that it isn't sweet at all (although it perfectly counters the heat from the chilli) and a tamarind iced tea which is also unsweetened. Alas we're both not huge fans of the tamarind iced tea and it does seem a bit pricey too. "I told you not to order it," says Girl Next Door.

Plain $4 and egg hopper $6 and raita $5

The bowl shaped hoppers arrive piled high on a basket. The egg hopper is nice with a runny yolked egg in the centre with a crispy edge while the plain is the same base without the egg. They tell us that we can break it off and dip it into the curry. I almost wish we had stomach space to try a plain, egg and a string hoppers (the latter which you can order with extra strings).

Hot Butter Cuttlefish $18

Hands down my favourite dish of the meal is the hot butter cuttlefish with tender cuttlefish and large, chunky vegetables. The cuttlefish is coated in a very light turmeric batter and melts in the mouth. This is especially good with the raita and the Seeni Sambol which has an appealing sweetness to it.

Potato Curry $14

There is quite a bit of choice and normally I would have gone for the prawn curry or the mutton one but we were recommended the potato curry which they describe as a "white curry". Although there is turmeric listed, it is white in colour and is flavoured with green chill and Lankan mustard. The mustard flavour in this creamy curry is quite strong coming in right at the end but it is quite a mild tasting curry and I wish I had gone with a meat curry instead.

Fish curry $18

The fish is a line caught ling from Ulladulla, sliced thinly and cooked with a lightly roasted curry powder. It looks not dissimilar to the potato curry but this is much creamier and I prefer this to the potato curry.

Mixed Sambol plate $18

I love sambols as I like the ability to season a dish to how you like it and I ummed and aahed about the sambol plate because it is quite pricey for seasonings. There are four sambols on the mixed plate: a green pol sambol with coconut, ginger and coriander; a hotter pol sambol with coconut, Maldive fish chilli and lime; a seeni sambol which is jaggery sugar caramelised onions with tamarind and a katta sambol with onion, chilli and lime. On the side are some delicious white chillies which are deep fried whey soaked chillies that are crisp and full of flavour-they are a bit on the hot side and Girl Next Door suffers a little after she nibbles on these.

Eggplant $12

The eggplant dish comes out last and the eggplant is soft and stir fried with plenty of onion, chilli, turmeric, tomato and yellow and black mustard seeds for punch.

The reason why Girl Next Door and I get on so well (she used to be a food writer at a magazine and we met on a media trip many years ago) is because we are not shy about ordering a lot. And the dessert menu here has many options. There are 7 options staring us in the face and we really want to eat 4 of them so Girl Next Door says "Well if we have to eat four desserts we have to," with a casual shrug of her shoulders. And so we do. Four desserts, two girls. And our lovely waitress just lets out a "F^(^ yeah!" and we like her even more.

Nan's Love Cake $8

Nan's Love Cake is a bar cake, dense and slightly dry made with cashews, semolina, sweet spices and rose. We both agree that it would be great with a cup of tea or coffee in the afternoon.

Curd and Kithul $10

This was an interesting dessert that really grew on us. The first couple of bites we were really getting used to it-it's a buffalo curd that has a slight graininess to it with palm treacle sauce and crunchy buckwheat for texture. But by the third spoonful Girl Next Door is smitten.

Strawberries and Cream $10

The strawberries and cream have a nice boost of rose syrup and a little ground long black pepper before being covered in a big dollop of whipped coconut cream. It's a nice summertime dessert and I can imagine making something similar for a simple dessert.

Watalappam $12

But my favourite dessert is the Watalappam, a baked jaggery custard topped with toffee, cashews and sesame seeds. It's sweet but not overly so and taken back from the brink of it with the burnt toffee shards on top. In the end, the bill isn't inexpensive but our dessert gluttony is partly to blame for that.

So tell me Dear Reader, do you ever order double the desserts to people? Who are your favourite people to eat out with and why are they your favourite to eat out with?

This meal was independently paid for.

58 Riley St, East Sydney NSW 2010 Monday Closed Tuesday to Friday 12–10pm Saturday 10am–10pm Sunday 10am–4pm Phone: (02) 8542 9936 lankanfillingstation.com.au Dog friendly: one outside table

Source: http://www.notquitenigella.com/2018/10/05/lankan-filling-station/