http://dailymirror.lk/top-story/9930-colombo-amongst-worst-livable-cities-.html

This morning the daily mirror, an English language newspaper published an article originally published by The Economist. Colombo is described as one of the least livable cities in the world. I find this fascinating considering all my ravings about how lovely my life has been since arriving here.

Now please consider I am no Holly Golitely, just arrived in the big city. I have lived in Yonkers and Mt. Vernon, New York; Orlando; Miami; San Diego; Portland, Oregon; Seattle; Oxford, UK; Oahu, Hawaii; Nogales, Arizona; San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.....to name a few. I have fallen for Sri Lanka hook, line and sinker, since arriving here a mere three weeks ago, and after spending most of my time in Colombo, the reviled unlivable city.

So this makes me really ponder the living conditions of people who have the resources to live well and to live high, versus the standard of life of everybody else.

In the American cities where I have lived I belong to the solidly middle class (in the American sense of the term, not the English). In the UK I make up the student population, a fairly elite population, but also generally cash-strapped. But in Sri Lanka, I am a part of the moneyed elite. And life is generally very comfortable for us. Even as I hang off the footpad of an overcrowded bus, I
1) am only here for a brief time
2) can jump off and hail a rickshaw whenever I feel
3) work in the nicest neighborhood in the city
4) live in one of the nicer neighborhoods in the city
5) can join my expat friends in the beautiful hotels, clubs, restaurants etc. whenever I take a fancy.

So while the research institute where I work is circulating this article commenting on the issues of urban poverty and effective transportation, access to health care, and clean air, we are all writing from our beautiful office building in a beautiful neighborhood, enjoying the luxuries of a completely different city.

This is something to be aware of as residents of whichever city in which we live, but especially for those of us engaged in the development sector. The experiences we will have in the developing world are still far from those of the people for whom we hope to provide assistance. For those of us living in the developed world, I suppose we have to recognize that a lot of others are experiencing our cities in completely different light, be it darker or brighter.

Perhaps my next entry will shed some direct light on just how different life can be for the elite.