SRI LANKA AND THE UNDERWEAR

So once again we are back at Sea traveling the Indian Ocean for 2 days to Sri Lanka. I have to say Sri Lanka was never on my bucket list of “need to see” countries but since we will be here for a couple of days I’m interested to find out what I don’t know. To start with, I guess I thought Sri Lanka was a city rather than a a country … it turns out it is actually a country referred to as an “Island Nation.”

I never thought much about Sri Lanka but Tom reminded me that his underwear came from there … And that reminded me of a quick side story I need to mention … The other morning Tom went to get coffee … I was still asleep so the cabin was dark … he threw on his old clothes from the day before and went downstairs around 6 am. As he heads back up the stairs some woman mentioned to him that there was a pair of mens’ underwear in the staircase of the ship which sounded preposterous … ( This is a ship full of old people that go to bed at 9 pm ). So out of curiosity he went to check them out and it turns out they were his. 😂😂😂 … when he threw his shorts on in the dark the old underwear was stuck in his pants leg which he did not realize … so as he went to get coffee they must have fallen out … I hope they were clean but at least he got them before they announced on the PA system that someone lost their underwear.

… it turns out Sri Lanka produces 5% of the world’s under garments. They export bras, women and men’s underwear and woman’s nightwear. ( Move over Fruit of the Loom )

They are the second largest exporter of undergarments to the US and Europe … producing for Victoria Secrets, H&M, Tommy Hilfinger, Ralph Lauren and the Gap.

The Sri Lankan apparel industry is 100% “ethical manufacturing” ( meaning no child labor etc ) making it a trusted source for the fashion industry. (No brand wants the Kathy Lee Gifford fiasco … she was sourcing a clothing line from Honduras using child labor. )

Sri Lanka is known in the industry for providing high quality, comfortable goods that are better than their Asian counterparts. The workforce is known as being highly skilled … with some of the best seamstresses in the world.

Today they are the primary provider to speciality retailers that carry higher end brands and even with global competition they have been able to retain their customer base since the 1990’s. So next time you go shopping for underwear … look for a label from Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka was known as Ceylon prior to 1972. It is located in the Indian Ocean, off the southeast coast of India. It is referred to as the “Pearl of the Indian Ocean” or the “Teardrop of India” … known for its natural beauty, white beaches, turquoise waters, lush rainforests and mountain ranges.

The population is basically flat … around 20 million and relatively young … almost half the population is under the age of 30. The majority are orthodox Buddhist … most are poor, living in rural areas and depend on agriculture for their livelihood. ( Not Underwear )

Sri Lanka goes back to 5000BC. The “Sinhalese” were the native population … known as “Sinhala” for short or the “lion People” ( they were thought to be brave like a lion ). There national flag today has the symbol of the lion … though there were no know actual lions in the country.

Today Sri Laken’s have three ethnic groups, the Sinhala’s making up 75% of the population, Indian Tamils who were brought in for farming and Muslims located in the eastern side of the country. The primary language is Sinhala ( Only spoken in Sri Lanka ) Tamil ( A popular language in India ) and some English. ( Though “some” might be an execration based on our experience ) Sri Lanka historically operated on a caste system/ social classes ( the “haves” and “have nots” ) … but today that is changing .. the government provides free education and services to everyone … giving all classes the ability to compete for jobs that were not available in the past.

Today along with underwater and “intimate” apparel ( I don’t tend to think of underwear as “intimate“ ) they also export rubber and rubber goods, gems and jewelry. It turns out Sri Lanka is one of the top producers of gems in the world. ( When we got off the boat some family was selling gem stones out of the back of their car …. All six of them were trying to get me to buy and of course they did not speak English. I do like to buy and I guess there is a sucker in every port … but I was not going for this one ). Sri Lanka is also a major supplier of seafood to the US and Europe … so you are likely to be wearing their underwear and eating their tuna.

Agriculture has always played a big part in Sri Lanka … as producers of tea, fruits, spices and rice. Back to the first century they developed some of the most sophisticated irrigation systems of its time. Nobility saw an opportunity to increase their wealth by improving agricultural production. Over several centuries they built massive dams, created reservoirs that funneled water through canals to fields in drier areas. By the 3’rd century the construction of storage tanks were everywhere … this system is still in use today.

Sri Lanka is best known for producing some of the finest tea in the world. Tea was introduced in the 1800’s by the Brits who brought it from China and ruled Sri Lanka for 150 years until 1948. Today Sri Lanka is the 3’rd largest exporter of tea in the world and the number one exporter of Ceylon tea.

Ceylon Tea is available as green, white and black tea. It is rich in antioxidants and known to be particularly effective at insulin regulation, maintaining proper blood sugar levels and weight loss.

But agriculture … in Sri Lanka does not pay well and today they still have about 1/3 of the population living in poverty. In 2019 the country was hit with the worst currency crisis in the history of the central bank. ( basically too much debt and not enough funds ) By 2021 the government declared an economic emergency resulting in 70% inflation in 2022 … ( and we thought our inflation was bad )

… by July a citizen uprising caused the President and Premier to resign and leave the country. A new president was elected by Parliament in July 2022 … today inflation is at 6% and the economy is stabilizing with some modest growth.

Apparel continues to be Sri Lanka’s largest industrial export which helped them weather the financial crisis of 2019 including the impact of COVID. ( You still need underwear in a pandemic …especially with less toilet paper ). Apparel continues to be one of the key sectors of Sri Lanka’s economy … having seen substantial grown over the past 4 decades ( $6B in 2022 ) … it is expected to continue to grow between now and 2028.

Sri Lanka for me will always translate to underwear … and at least for now most of us till wear them and plan to continue to wear them. ( Except my friend Diane 😜 ) … and womans’ nightwear is more popular than ever … girls wear pajamas to school, Starbucks, wherever. So not a bad business to be in.

And I was able to get my Sri Lanka souvenir … a pair of underwear.

Next Stop … INDIA DAYS 125 to 131