Maybe a move to Sri Lanka

[Whatsitlike]

Hi all, have NC for this thread as its not fully finalised yet.

So a move for work maybe on the cards for Sri Lanka, is there anyone here living or has lived there and can pass on some words of advice?

Things such as, what kind of stock is in the supermarkets, what would I really need in the way of say toiletries to bring, is the clothing in the stores suitable for a western build and so on.

I have lived abroad before but I have never visited Sri Lanka, any thoughts would be much appreciated, thanks !

I have been to Sri Lanka on holiday. I did but some clothes there from local shops (a bit short but I’m 5’11). In Colombo there was a shopping centre with outlet items from Zara for example. I also loved the food there (my favourite cuisine of any country visited). The thing that did bother me was how very poor the place is and the poverty staring at you from everywhere.

Thanks JoJo, Sri Lanka is not as poor as the country I have just left, its heartbreaking at times to see. Thanks for the info about Zara.

But living and holidaying in a country are very different, just found out Amazon have no presence there which is a blow for an ex-pat getting items that are not available in the shops, thats why insight to the supermarkets is important.

Glad you enjoy the food!

I lived and worked in Sri Lanka a couple of times, once in Colombo and once down in the south near Galle.
As a adult with experience living abroad you can surivive no problem shopping in the local shops. Especially if you can regularly visit Colombo.
In terms of food, you can get pretty much everything, if not always, supplies fluctuate, and at a price. Most imported goods seems to be from Oz rather than the EU, but I can't remember anything food related being absolutely unobtainable. You have to give up on finding decent hard cheese, and UK style bread but thats about it.
Imported toiletries are expensive, and again mostly Ozzie brands. If you have any really fixed prefferences I'd stock up on those. BUt you can always get international brands that are produced/sold in India.
Clothes can be an issue, unless you are happy to wear local styles. There are a limited number of western brands with locations in Colombo: I ended up getting all my work wear in Mango. But again it's possible!

I can really recommend it. If you plan on living in Colombo, think about the traffic when picking where to live. Do a few dry runs at peak times, and think about where to pick up tuk-tuks. If you are going to live in the city, don't live within a block or two of the sea front. The salt is hell on your stuff, and if you have a balcony/terrace it can be really windy.

And if you like Indian food, go to the Mango Tree in Colombo! Its one of the best Indian places I have been to anywhere. And I can recommend the prosseco brunch at the Cinnamon Grand, if and when it reopens.

Good luck!

Sajacas, many thanks for your information there, much appropriated.

As I thought it sounds very much like the area I have just left, same type of brands, fluctuation in supply of some items and clothing not so readily available other than local clothes.

I bought a lot of local styles and will take them all with me if it all happens, but currently wearing them all in this heat in the UK!

Thanks for the tip about not being near the beach, its something I had not thought about, will have a driver but will need to use the auto rickshaws or are they called tuk tuks in Sri Lanka, shall look that up!

I was ok shopping in the local markets after a while, rather spend my money that way rather than the supermarkets, and food tended to be fresher and better value.

Im trying to see what kind of ex-pat clubs etc there are but only found a couple, handy to know others in the same position.

Thanks also for the tip re the Indian food.......

Glad you enjoyed your time living there, but Im not looking forward to coping with the humidity again!!!!

My ds lived in Sri Lanka for a couple of years. She struggled with corruption, endless needless paperwork and prices automatically getting a large hike because she was white ( she was a volunteer on a local salary) There were some issues with sexism and for some of her colleagues racism was an issue. The behavior of some NGO staff was very embarrassing to her, she has never felt the same way about such organizations since.
She very much enjoyed her experience overall though. We used to send her parcels of toiletries that she liked from time to time.

dreichhighlands, thanks for your reply, but sadly all the things you mentioned are more common than people imagine in other countries.

I met a few years ago in another SE Asian country I lived in a NGO worker who at that time was also working in Sri Lanka and she was telling me the same thing, as a woman she experience lots of discrimination and faced many problems on a day to day basis.

But at least your ds enjoyed her time there even with the problems and frustrations, I will be packing plenty of my favourite toiletries!

I worked up in the north (Jaffna / Kilinochchi) a few years ago which is very different to Colombo. Pretty much no access to Western luxuries, but amazing local food and people. I really liked Sri Lanka. It sounds as though you're a seasoned traveller and would have no issues there!

I used to work in Sri Lanka. I love it there. One of my happy places is Kandy and in Colombo pre-dinner drinks at the Galle Face.