Trawler to gondola - rocky voyage to smooth sailing ?

I am heading to Puttalam, my eyes trail the familiar sight of coconut trees gracing the landscape passing many of the coastal towns along the Western Coast, not unusual you would say, except that coconut trees and catholic churches in abundance. As Marawila, Chilaw appears there seem to be a change that has crept in, More of an Italian essence coupled with the Lankan flavour. Cloth banners hang at the entrance of bare plots of land calling them ‘Naples Valley’ ‘Little Rome’ ‘Sicilian villa’ ? am I seeing right ? Passing the lands up for grabs, I stop to marvel at the Italian style villa peeping through the coconut trees that seem to spoil the Italian ambience intended to be given by the owners. An immediate splurge of curiosity creeps in to my head, I am trying to figure out the reason for this transformation. More villas begin to show up and many Euro money exchange centres in the busy town. I spot a couple of signboards screaming out ‘Spoken Italian classes’….. Bingo ! yes of course this is where the Lankans in Italy flush their earnings back home for a more comfortable tomorrow. Perhaps in appreciation for a better chance in life, the lands, houses were named after Italian towns, provinces ? I had read and heard how many youth in sheer desperation to succeed and make it big in life, spend enormous money and embrace risk to go in trawlers, in the rough seas to Italy looking for work with decent pay. A pay that they could never dream of getting back at home. Quite recently the local daily said that there was a youth who simply hung around for 10 years waiting to go to Italy. He still hasn’t made it but he did make it big in a different way through his musical talents. The rest who do make it, take up any kind of …… that would make them save enough to build a Italian style villa, or something closer, educate the children in a private or international school, a nice comfortable vehicle and all the rest of the never ending list of things that make one’s life. Not only a hand up in life, but both legs, feet and arms all of it. I am somewhat fascinated, somewhat amused at the thought of realizing how Sri Lankan can quickly embrace and adopt to a new culture. I begin to wonder what it must be like at the other end, when these youth land, not knowing the dialect, not fully understanding the culture lost in a total alien land. My brain is busy recalling the many success stories I read in several newspapers. Somewhere down the memory maze, I recall the Sinhala dailies talking of musical shows, February 4th celebrations and Avurudhu games in Italy. A sampling of Sri Lankan fun in the land of Pisa and Pizzas ! Sadly not all make it through to gigantic boot shaped land in Europe, but despite the struggle and agony endured, many others continue to take the plunge not knowing if the trawler they are cramped in, would throw them into the sea or shove them in to a Gondola. Santa Maria ! God help them.