at the death of the last man to kevin folks hail mary in the ninety second minute snatching a three two victory for the visitors that is with six goals in all competitions the season. already that is all for us here at the bundesliga on d.w. thanks for watching and i'll be doesn't it. rationalists are on the rise with morning whining to make your contract great again that is their slogan their focus put your nation first i am taking you know the answer is to highlights different shades of nationalism and to find out what the nation mean to you. to share your story and join the conversation here on to w. on twitter i'm on facebook. the

. main line right away is that supposed to be a good morning beautiful line in the very read. it's a hike in such

a scenic beauty you cannot get this type of beauty anywhere in the. be it the pearl of the indian ocean or the teardrop in the sea both are true on sri lanka. the entire island nation including its capital colombo is caught up in an atmosphere of change. the civil war that lasted more than a quarter of a century ended in two thousand and nine and at the beginning of two thousand and

fifteen the people of sri lanka voted for more democracy in the form of a new president. the island formerly known as ceylon is an idyllic holiday destination for tourists it's best explored by train. a train journey here is always also a journey into the country's colonial past that much becomes clear before we start our journey at the central station in colombo fort in the heart of the city. we buy our tickets at a counter that has a nostalgic air they can then be checked by a friendly conductor. the station building was modeled on victoria station in manchester the traces of the british colonial rulers are everywhere.

the british ruled between seventeen ninety six and nine hundred forty eight things were different back then. the many problems we have. and problems there in time they are not into that for their jobs. and there is no workshop people saw not marking time not there doing the problem. we are in luck our train bound for is waiting already. we set off a tough past eight. we're about to go on a train journey that's been described as one of the most picturesque in asia.

they will take us from colombo to ella in the highlands via candy a journey of around two hundred and seventy kilometers. a special trip on special trucks it was the island's first railway routes and it's still known as main line. in. the first fifty four kilometer stretch to amber is celebrating its hundred fiftieth birthday this year maybe that's where this train journey gets its charm and atmosphere it's a train journey that's always been significant to the people of sri lanka originally it was transport of goods. there had been many months past and yet

carried years as really very few by then just terrible but of course if they're feeling a very less very many in our country and yes they all live later got my dream because the going to see the c c beach question time in life for them to go and see the sea beach get out of my pain group. we crossed the colony. one of sri lanka's largest rivers and leave colombo behind. the entire trip costs between one euro fifty and third class and eight euros in first class. sri lankans a very proud of the railway. so i think that she didn't think it was ok this morning. at that time you know no one it's quite safe.

i've taken the train ever since i was little it feels good you can breathe fresh air and see many things out the window such as mountains rivers and lakes i like that. the train is better than the best you feel freer. and the bus cost around twice as much there's even a television in first class. those who don't like that can travel in third class for less money and with a little bit of luck experience some live music. or the. news. that. the musician the shanta is actually

a teacher but it's often the case in sri lanka that young well educated people don't find a suitable job. please help me please here's our five big guys our own free fourth but as a country where. you. extend the night you stand. i mean. this tends to be a lot about on that day at the meeting of the song. sir lanka is classed as a developing country. but many people live by agriculture often fifty euros a month must suffice for an entire family that's not a lot here either twenty percent of the children on malnourished. the gaps

between town and country rich and poor a huge third class is correspondingly crowded some passengers aren't happy about the status quo at all. and i guess we want to know what it's like in first class with the television. we want out the same services and third class. we want improved comfort and greater security. that. the people are dissatisfied with their economic situation that caused president rajapaksa to be voted out at the last election. we're stopping in rumble comma it's just a few minutes by took took to sri lanka's biggest tourist attraction.

the pineau well an elephant orphanage. the daily bath in the my or your river is a sensation. baby elephants and injured adults are nursed back to health here in pin a well known. this is a needle out on the far founder member this piece now about sixty years old was brought . in one thousand nine hundred seventy five so in nineteen seventy five. it started off with five baby elephants and he was brought here as

a baby now he is a very big one and he has fathered about five babies for us. right now a housing about seventy seven a difference all together. there are four baby elephants making the tourists happy here at the moment they are bottle fed six times a day getting up to seven liters of milk the animals. clearly happy. some of them have been brought from the jungle some of them have been born in kenya . separated their have become sick because of accidents like train accidents and sometimes fight in the jungle so we keep them here treat them and give them a good life. we start to sending the plateau an ox cart takes

twelve days to this laborious journey by train it's around nine hours. building the railway line took place under severe conditions many of the three thousand workers died of malaria and color and. man line go through very rough country might go through the remains and georges and cuts cutting cutting than a feeling them a man then. tunneling that afforded old are known from the number to buy the look. at other career tedious work in the back of the day more construction and the labor was not to cover a deal and we had no mckenna station home or an iraq no i'm not an owner of modern a moderate equipment for drilling. or name the director or by human labor. utah devika. however the soil that proved

so tiresome during the construction of the railway line harbors treasures to. there are lots of different gemstones in the ground. they adorn the crowns of monex and the jewelry of adored women as a result sri lanka has a long and lucrative tradition of goldsmith three these days it's mostly for tourists that brings him good money but goldsmith earns around two hundred euros a month then skin into the limelight of human life because every game carries. a follow through here a certain disease this was in many cases many medications at the beginning even though now it does we've done a fashionable thing or in this day. saw fires in many different

colors the design is also made in sri lanka. we're about to reach candy we've traveled a hundred and thirty kilometers in three and a half hours. the climate is significantly more pleasant at five hundred meters. candy was once the capital of the single ladies kings and the epitome of single e.'s culture. the kings were able to defend their independence from the colonial powers for centuries here. the station was opened as far back as eight hundred sixty seven.

the blue water lily sri lanka's national flower is sold here it's often used as a sacrificial gifted buddhist temples. one of the most significant in the whole of sri lanka is sri dollar dhamaal igawa the temple of the sacred tooth. the most important buddhist relic in sri lanka is kept here the buddha's upper left coast bid a significant symbol of national pride. people come from all around the world to attend the daily services they donate and they pray.

the ninety minute puja starts at half past nine the word means something like worship and is an important ritual in every day buddhist life. according to legend the sacred tooth is said to store the buddhist spiritual strength this belief also turned this religious relic into a political instrument of power for the single these pills. by danny how that sri lanka was ruled by king. with the and there were seven royal ruling period was thing going to go and landed on your knees in the in eighteen fifteen the british conquered candy and with it the temple of the sacred tooth was

he as an important symbol of power and straight lanka with on. budget you've been a city. patiently waiting outside the chamber where the relic is housed. visitors only get to see a container the tooth isn't on display it's said to be housed in an ivory capsule which is in turn encased in six further containers. it's thanks to the temple that candy is on unesco's list of world heritage sites. as a further spectacle worth watching right next to the temple in the late afternoon serato new batters box otherwise known as flying foxes are getting comfortable. with the law and. order. candy is also known

for its dance performances these men and women are just getting ready for one the tradition dates back to the time of the last kings of candy. i miss. this dance troupe has performed since one nine hundred thirty two in the past the dance was for the entertainment of the king. if the king was sick the dance was used to cure him. we even had healing festivals. today the dances a mostly for the tourists. why do ya watch he comes from a long line of dances the dancing tradition is passed on from generation to generation. the training is

tough and starts every day of five in the morning performances take place all year round with very little time off. the performances consist of up to eleven different items. balancing these discs is called the rub on don it's. this. performance last spring about an hour. we've left candy behind. the mountain landscape has some visual treats in store for us all the treats away toes on the train. may sell small snacks in the carriages.

and he's done this for many years it provides a living for his family and. he has three children. so i guess what i'd prepare the food at home and bring into the training and i'll do something and let him live. on about often doing this for twenty years to get the knowledge that he got vod it is a small snack oh my god you take two or three pieces when i make a living doing this but i let my regulars like mine feel bad about it and that's why i always bring freshly baked goods you know i have a permit and i'm allowed to sell it on the train that's going on the side of the house like. the passengers like it to we're gradually getting used to the gentle

rocking of the train the women's colorful clothes strikers again and again. the main line snakes its way higher and higher up the plateau. the working population up here mainly the women are employed in the many textile companies their goods sri lanka's most important industrial export. with wages at just fifty euros

a month manual labor is no luxury and it's cheap compared to purchasing a loom the women get to pick the colors. so that's no overhead anything we tend to use strong bright colors in a day you can relieve a serang that's around two metres long. the thread is spun on the spindle they've made themselves. the thin yarn of the sarong is very water absorbent it's made of cotton and very pleasant on the skin silk is less practical in the mountains when it rains a lot a cotton sarong is better. we are apparently really lucky with the weather today we're told on the train that

there hasn't been a single day without rain up here in two and a half years. the british originally built the railway line to transport tea from the mountains to the port of colombo but first tea was merely a substitute. for coffee which had been affected by a fungus coffee rust. the british recruited highland tunnels from southern india as cheap labor.

to this day tea is harvested on the unimaginably large area of two thousand two hundred and ten square kilometers a safe job for many. of the work on the plantation picking tea leaves. we thank our president for that and it's good work. and. the income from the tea plantation made the fullness alone the favorite colony of the british in those days the tea pickers only got rice as wages today they get a bit more than three euros a day working from sunrise to sunset but that's not something they like to talk about. this is where the famous comes from we're in one of the countless tea factories and

wear proudly told what makes it special. young tend to live maybe the better portion of the leaf and the gold stocks and that make you at least can be the substandard materials where you have this chemical compound bad the young. they have the better quality and the flavor by the way of chemical the caffeine any less in the north and some aromatics and that's very rich when they leave. one hundred p. . to work in the helper t. factory which is around one hundred years old after the tea leaves a dried they're broken up by being rolled in shaken. after that they ferment it and dried.

the next step is to sort the tea by size. sri lanka is one of the world's biggest exporters during the founding years the construction of the railway line how to keep up with the opening of new tea plantations in the highlands. the railway has long since lost the significance it had in those days. the best bang for the man land was. during the time of the british endeavor. transporting the produce and that is being produced over there with that in your drawer grounds board knocked up oh no he had been transported by graham goody.

these days only around one percent of goods are transported by rail. mr yarmulke has made sure for the past thirty three years that everything runs smoothly. i find out that i'm the senior conduct on the train during the whole trip . which makes me responsible for the lines of the passengers i thought and for the railway property management alex out for everything that happens on the way out i'm. on the back like. a token is just being handed over it's in this brass ring covered in leather it ensure safety on the single track route and has done since nine hundred one. is

making the love when i pass on the token the train driver has the permission to travel to the next station. i have to ring four times to get this token. and that's how they know when the next station that a train is coming. that. they ring four times in response and that token. that unlocks my token i can get it out and give it to the next train which can then travel safely to the next station. yes. the token is unlocked and given to the train driver on the next train up.

unfortunately there are no longer any train tracks from the new oil station to the famous hill station of new water. the writer herman hesse of steppenwolf fame had an enjoyable stay here in one thousand nine hundred eleven it's pleasantly fresh at a height of one thousand eight hundred metres. the british called the small town little england and indeed we can picture miss marple posting a letter here time seems to have stood still since eight hundred seventy six in the time honored hill club in those days the plantation owners relaxed here over a game of billiards. the laundry might be drawing that today but in those days that's where the colonial rulers watched horse races everything was to be like a home away from home it's rare for horse races to take place here these days.

and. things follow a slower pace on the race tracks these days. another relic from the british period treeline because most sophisticated golf club. actually this was started by the british planters. and they kept on looking after it very very easy it was not mainly for commercial activity if you just mean the leg of a mere members club because the because it was maintained like a member of the club it was not so much really oriented people started leaving this place so it's more than the tourists is actually the members who used to come to

the baby and also to play golf and he's also the surveyor i mean images and also the people around this place they start living this place. visitors need temporary club membership to play the eighteen hole course the club has shaped the life the sri lanka's highest town for the past one hundred and twenty five years entire families used to live here even children were born on club premises. and working at the many white gentleman lived on the plantations back then. they came here to pass their time. when i was between ten and fifteen i worked for them as a captain and was allowed to play. that's how i started in one thousand nine hundred eighty one i became free golf champion of sri lanka.

we're back at nano station we listened to the music of clarence of a governor the sri lankan king of pop now long dead. a change of vehicle we participate in an inspection on a trolley. of course the token is a must on this trip to maintaining the railway is quite elaborate work in sri lanka particularly up here in the mountains. and. i generally help the senior railway staff in their monitoring work. rather than.

the trolley is used for maintenance. and if there's been a direct helmand or a landslide it takes railway staff to the city. the heavy rainfall during the wet season causes a lot of damage to the track then it has to be fixed. we visit a british manor house at a slightly higher altitude it houses a monastery these days sent benedict's father michael has run it for twenty two years he runs the school for the novices and takes care of the property to.

the fruit being chopped up here ready to make jam it's called an elephant apple or wood apple. we started this dusty for the maintenance of the house in the beginning we started with the mamma did and strawberry jam or jelly so this. started in the beginning but later we developed into deeper. and still continuing what we started in the beginning. for almost fifty years now a longstanding tradition. lunches being prepared at the same time the fruits are also used as medicine before they

rifle. sixty year old chandra is a master of his field he has stirred and stirred and stirred ever since he was thirteen. but if i take the jam off the fire at the right time it will last for years you can keep it for up to six years there's a big demand for it despite the large quantity i make there's nothing left over. there what do you do anything again morning. it's the germs consistency that determines the right time here to everything's done by hand chandra produces up to a thousand jars every season. cook.

the train heads into the mountains on the main line twice a day. unfortunately the weather is becoming increasingly british. and. the total length of sri lanka's rail network is around fifteen hundred kilometers the gauge is wider than the regular standard gauge. he said your good creamy. it is three thousand six hundred seventy six and me to the gauge all five feet six inches in feet any you know one of the broad gauge today if i said that the idea

if you can park around a quarter would be the broadest gauge because they can't preen morning. so that they had delayed that particular. rod good hearing your last young india time bangladesh. it's ideal for transporting t. . the token is ready. the next station is pati pola. at one thousand eight hundred ninety one meets has its rely on cars highest station time has a different dimension. they

were game of the employees have to expect a number of difficulties of the roads can wash away it can rain but there was a good hour at the water sometimes we have jus frost in the morning and saw animals get in the way of the train such as the sri lankan time go wild boar or did somebody else was there and at the not they can cause problems that. we haven't seen any animals and it's no surprise in this weather but at last we reach the highlights of our trip quite literally. there is thousand eight hundred eighty one me tonight here at that airless i mean but people are really supposed to be a guinness world records you do you want to join modules book. records.

facts and figures of really read you did you are now the house point reached on a broad gauge raillery. it's also quite inhospitable. with two hundred and twenty four kilometers from colombo now. the further away we are from the island's capital the fewer passengers there are on the train. towards the afternoon our limbs become tired we notice the altitude. we deserve a bit of relaxation. the region around ella is known for its facilities the

hardworking tea pickers can only dream of visiting them. you have to bring some time with you when you come here a relaxing ayurvedic takes eighty minutes. it's a special massage all one hundred and seven vital spots are treated you know that i ever got on. me that improves blood flow. which influences the organs. when started and i go. it gives you a lot of energy. but then i share my blood circulation and. the indian art of healing has

a long standing tradition on sri lanka to. the holistic approach of io veda and a calming view of nature. the steam bath with healing herb's is also good for relaxation it reduces cholesterol levels cuts weight and cleanses the skin. it's paradise. we are completely relaxed on our final leg to.

this stretch is definitely one of the most attractive in the whole of asia that's why it's best to think about its future. in line for the better known as a great great way. as you can be and by the way it might be handed over to the u.s. . as a day to day and day and then again as if you want history even. though i know i say i don't say that it should be for the. just look i think it could be me and dan rather than as. they might develop his quad it was a good idea because that would secure the continued existence of the mainline allowing travel as from all over to discover a new world in just nine hours stuck. to

. the. stories that move people the world over d.w. on facebook and twitter update and in touch. follow us. meet the germans new and surprising aspects of noise and culture in germany. us american

good news it takes a look at germany it is increasing at their traditions every day lives and language doesn't just come out of my life. so i'm young good. looking guy r t w dot com the germans. she's long been a symbol of hope in syria trying to help people. assad does she stand for change for the false facade of her husband's rule of terror. she believes in my projection that that they are saving syria. the beautiful face of the dictatorship starting october first on d w.

this is d.w. news coming to you live from berlin german chancellor angela merkel says she's ready to join talks to resolve the north korea crisis and she says donald trump is doing it all wrong. sanctions and enforcing the sanctions are the right answer but anything else with regard to north korea i think is wrong.