German teacher a ‘brand ambassador’ for Sri Lanka

Monday, 20 June 2011 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sri Lanka Tourism extended a very warm welcome to Manfred Moller, a teacher and Coordinating Director of Gymnasium Isernhagen (GI), who arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport yesterday via UL 558, from Frankfurt, Germany, accompanied by 17 students and another teacher, Ingo Boehlert.

Moller has been a consistent ambassador for Sri Lanka tourism throughout the period of civil strife in Sri Lanka and has been travelling to the country since 1995, without being influenced by the international travel advisory warnings imposed upon travelling to Sri Lanka during the time of conflict.

The group was warmly welcomed by the officials of Sri Lanka Tourism at the Bandaranaike International Airport upon their arrival as a mark of respect to the steady contribution Moller has paid to the development of tourism industry of Sri Lanka.

This visit is his 11th since he launched a special project to take groups of students to Sri Lanka in the summer of 1995. Thus, Moller has been playing the role of a tourism ambassador to Sri Lanka in his own way, especially at a time when sections of international community warned their citizens not to travel to Sri Lanka due to possible LTTE attacks in the south.

“I never hesitated to organise visits even at the height of the war in Sri Lanka. Over the past 16 years, I have brought over 100 girls and boys who returned home with fond memories of this beautiful island and a wish to return once again,” said Moller, upon arrival at the airport.

His first trip in 1995 had not received the consent of the school authorities and therefore had been done as a private trip. The programme was carried out every second year after that and the next trip was planned in 1997. It had the consent of the school authorities as the positive feedback of the first trip had been phenomenal.

During their visit this time in 2011, Moller and his group will be taking part in a sightseeing tour that will feature prominent tourist attractions of the island and engage in many community development activities serving less privileged people in various parts of Sri Lanka.