D. T. KAPUSTIN Candidate of Historical Sciences A heavy tropical rainstorm did not prevent residents of the capital of Sri Lanka from coming to the Russian Cultural Center on November 24, 2010, to take part in a" literary ceremony "(as it appeared in the programs) dedicated to the memory of the" great Russian " - Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. This date was not chosen at all by chance: exactly 120 years ago, day after day, 30-year-old Anton Chekhov, returning by sea from Sakhalin to Odessa, left the "paradise" - as he called the island of Ceylon, after spending three days and two nights here*. In addition, it was on this day that the writer (in his own words) "conceived" his little masterpiece - the poignant story "Gusev", which casually tells about death on the road, in the midst of the beauty of the endless tropical ocean of an "indefinite private" who completed the term of "five years of service in the Far East". The Russian Cultural Center, under the leadership of its director, A. A. Akhmetov, an employee of Rossotrudnichestvo, which has become one of the" centers of attraction " in the intellectual life of Colombo, and the Sri Lankan Society of Lovers of Russian Literature at the Russian Center, under the leadership of an authoritative literary figure, Dr. V. A. Abeisinghe, organized not only a solemn celebration of the 150th anniversary of A. P. Chekhov, but and a fruitful scientific seminar on the writer's work with the participation of leading literary critics of Sri Lanka. The celebrations began with a beautiful local ritual - lighting lamps. On the stage - a sculptural image of Chekhov sitting. It was sculpted by a 16-year-old Sri Lankan youth, Rosita Vijendratunga, from Sri Rahul College in Alauwwa, in the Northwestern Province, famous for its rubber plantations. Students of the last 12-13 grades can study Russian at this college if they wish, and back in March 2010, an evening dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Russian writer was held there ... Читать далее