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The Sri Lankan traditional gesture of welcome with fingers of both hands touching each other &

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May You be Blessed with Long Life...

10 | ASL 11 | ASL

The flag of Sri Lanka, also called the Lion Flag, consists of a gold lion, holding a kastane sword in its right fore paw, in front of a dark red background with four golden Bo leaves, one in each corner. Around the background is a yellow bor-der, and to its left are two vertical stripes of equal size in green and saffron, with the saffron stripe closest to the lion. The lion represents the Sinhalese ethnicity and the bravery of the Sri Lankan nation while the four Bo leaves represent Mettā, Karuna, Mudita and Upekkha. The orange stripe rep-resents the Sri Lankan Tamils, the green stripe represents Sri Lankan Moors, and the maroon background represents the majority of Sinhalese, like the lion, this is the colour used in early flags of Sri Lanka by kings.

It was adopted in 1950 following the recommendations of a committee appointed by the 1st Prime Minister of Ceylon, The Rt Hon D.S. Senanayake.

The national emblem of Sri Lanka is used by the Sri Lankan government in connection with the administration and gov-ernment of the country. The current emblem has been in use since 1972.

The emblem features a gold lion passant, holding a sword in its right fore paw (the same lion from the flag of Sri Lanka) in the centre on a maroon background surrounded by gold-en petals of a Blue Lotus the national flower of the country. This is placed on top of a traditional grain vase that sprouts sheaves of rice grains that circle the border reflecting pros-perity.

The crest is the Dharmacakra, symbolising the country’s foremost place for Buddhism and just rule. Traditional Sin-halese heraldic symbols for the sun and the moon form the supporters.

The National Flag The National Emblem

Ceylon ironwood (Mesua ferrea) was declared the Nation-al Tree on 26 February 1986. It was chosen as the National Tree for the reasons of tree origin in Sri Lanka, utility, histor-ic & cultural importance, exterior posture, wide distribution, colour & nature and ability to draw & sketch it easily.

Ceylon ironwood is a species in the family Calophyllaceae. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber.

It is widely cultivated as an ornamental due to its graceful shape, greyish-green foliage with a beautiful pink to red flush of drooping young leaves, and large, fragrant white flowers.

Its flower is also used in herbal medicine and preparation of perfumes, cosmetics and soaps.

The Sri Lankan Birdwing (Troides darsius) is a species of birdwing butterfly found in Sri Lanka. It is the largest Sri Lankan butterfly with a wingspan spreading 165–180 mm. The declaration of a national butterfly is aimed at raising public concern on butterfly conservation.

Sri Lankan Birdwing is the great black and yellow butter-fly (Ornithoptera darsius, Gray); the upper wings, of which measure six inches across, are of deep velvet black, the low-er, ornamented by large particles of satiny yellow, through which the sunlight passes, and few insects can compare with it in beauty, as it hovers over the flowers of the heliotrope, which furnish the favourite food of the perfect fly, although the caterpillar feeds on the aristolochia and the betel leaf and suspends its chrysalis from its drooping tendrils.

The National Tree The National Butterfly

A traveller’s guide toGENERAL FRACTS

OFFICIAL NAME: Democratic So-cialist Republic of Sri Lanka.

AREA: 65,525 sq km

LOCATION: The island of Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean, to the southwest of the Bay of Bengal.It is separated from the Indian sub-continent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait.

POPULATION: 21,128,773 (Esti-mated)

ETHNIC GROUPS: Sinhalese 74.5%, Sri Lankan Tamils 11.9%, Indian Tamils 4.6%, Moors 7.2%, other 1.8%.

LITERACY RATE: 92%

TIME ZONE: GMT+5 ½. Daylight saving times not observed.

CLIMATE: Sri Lanka has no marked seasons. There are two monsoons. The Northeast Monsoon occurs from December to March and the Southwest Monsoon from June to October. A tropical climate exists throughout the country. The hill country is cooler and more temper-ate.

LANGUAGES: Sinhala, Tamil and English are widely spoken through-out Sri Lanka.

COASTLINE: 1,340km

CAPITAL: Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte

COMMERCIAL CAPITAL: ColomboADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS: Nine Provinces: Central, North Central, North, North Western, Sabaragamu-wa, Southern, Uva, Western and Eastern Province.

RELIGIONS: Predominantly Bud-dhism. Hinduism, Christianity and Islam are also practised.

INDEPENDENCE DAY: February 4

GENERAL HOLIDAYS: Saturdays and Sundays are usually non–work-ing days. The day of the full moon, Poya Day, is a religious holiday in the Buddhist calendar. It is a public, bank and mercantile holiday and most independent places are also closed. The selling of alcohol, even to tourists, is banned on a Poya Day.

MAJOR EXPORTS: Tea, textiles, gems, rubber and coconut products.

HIGHEST PEAK: Pidurutalagala (Mount Pedro) at 2,524m

NATIONAL BIRD: Jungle Fowl

NATIONAL TREE: Ironwood: the Na Tree (Mesua ferrea)

NATIONAL FLOWER: Blue Water Lilly (Nymphaea stellata)

VOLTAGE REQUIREMETNS: 230/240 volts AC, 50 Hz (Round three pin plugs are common, with bayonet lamp fittings).

INTERNATIONAL DIALLING: ++ 94 (followed by the area code, without 0, and the number).

AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS: Rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber and coconut.

INDUSTRIES: Processing of rubber, tea, coconut, tobacco, and other agricultural commodities; tourism, telecommunications, insurance, banking, garment manufacturing, textiles, cement, petroleum refining.

CURRENCY: Sri Lanka Rupee (Rs)

KEEP IN MIND

TRAVELLER’S CHEQUES: Wide-ly accepted at banks and money exchangers. A 1% stamp duty plus a small commission is charged.

CREDIT CARDS: Accepted in major establishments islandwide.ATM: Available throughout the country where there are banks and commercial areas.

MONEY: The exchange of foreign currency should only be done at reputable outlets such as banks or licensed money changers. A receipt should be obtained so re-exchange of rupees to foreign currency can be done at airport banks on departure.

MEDICIAL FACILITIES: The medical standards are excellent. Qualified doctors and surgeons are available in government and private hospitals for emergencies.

TIPPING: A service change of 10% is included in restaurant and hotel bills. A tip above this (say half of the service charge in cash to the server) is appreciated. There will also be an additional percentage (up to 17%) added to restaurant and hotel bills for government and provincial tax-es. It’s not compulsory to tip drivers but customary.

SHOPS AND RESTAURANTS: Shops and restaurants are open daily.

STAY UP-TO-DATEFor tourist information: Call 1912

11 | ASL

Contents

KALUTARAVacation with tradition

RICH IN DIVERSITY32

SRI LANKA’S UNIQUE RIVER & CANAL CRUISE

22

40LET’S MEET54

70

Volume 06

Elégance Chic Mini

www.balmainwatches.com

Crescat Boulevard, 89 Galle Road, Colombo-3 | 243-80853-43 Majestic City, Colombo-4 | 255-5225

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THE MYSTIQUE

OFTEA

ContentsTHE BRIEF ON BRIEF

F L A S H B A C K S

100

Volume 06

Amazing Sri Lanka - All rights reserved © Amazing Sri Lanka 2013

Published by the Western Province Tourist Board.

No. 204, Dencil Kobbekaduwa Mawatha, Battaramulla, Sri Lanka.

General: +94 (0) 11 7631705 | E-mail: sales@wptb.lk

Advertising: +94 (0) 11 3094440-1 | Web: www.wptb.lk The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or part in any form without the written consent of the publisher.

Opinions expressed in this magazine are those of the writers and not necessarily endorsed by the publisher.

SOME TIPS FOR TOURISTS88

96

80

The Western Province Helps Service Providers

16 | ASL

Claude ThomaszChairman

Western Province Tourist Board

Royston EllisEditorial Consultant

A warm welcome to all visitors to Sri Lanka as 2014 begins. As we at the Western Province Tourist Board look back on our achievements during 2013, we feel justly proud. Amazing Sri Lanka has become a regular quarterly magazine circulated not just throughout Sri Lanka but overseas as well, with copies also available on SriLankanAirline flights.

It is thanks to the support andencouragement from the TourismMinister for the Western Province, the Hon Nimal A Lanza, together with the cooperation from the generalmanager and all members of the WesternProvince Tourist Board (WPTB) and theinvaluable assistance from the WPTB staff, combined with the expertassistance of our Editorial Consultant, British resident travel writer andeditor, Royston Ellis, that we have come this far. However, none of this could be achieved without the support of our advertisers, the enthusiasm of our readers and the cooperation of the Hoteliers’ Associations of the Western Province and the stakeholders in the tourist industry. We look forward to continued support from the Sri Lanka Tourist Development Authority and

the Sri Lanka Tourism PromotionBureau to see that Amazing Sri Lanka not only reflects the attractions and charm of Sri Lanka but also reaches a wide readership. Now we have successfully geared up for the production of this magazine we are planning to extend our reach and contribution to tourism promotion even further. To this end, soon we hope to announce the publication of a new, sister magazine about Sri Lankaentirely in the German language. To all visitors to Sri Lanka, we arehappy that you have chosen thisblessed country for a holiday, and in theSinhala greeting, we wish you Ayubowan – may you have long life.

A WARM WELCOME

It’s not just Christmas, with 25thDecember being a public, bank and mercantile holiday, and the New Year celebrations (both international on 31st December and Sri Lankan on 14th April) that make December to April the holiday season in Sri Lanka, it’svisitors too. These months havetraditionally been the time when visitors from the chilly winter climate of the West, descend on Sri Lanka for fun in the sun. Sri Lanka is undergoing ametamorphosis as the country develops with new highways and upgraded roads, beautified towns, new hotels and restaurants, and is marketed to appeal to mass market as well as niche

tourism. The mainstream hotels have been spruced up to attract more guests and also to compete with newly built competitors. Meanwhile guesthouses and small boutique hotels favoured by the independent traveller areconcentrating on providing a holiday experience that will attract repeatvisitors. There is so much to do in Sri Lanka during the season, as the articles in this issue of Amazing Sri Lanka show. The Western Province, the landfall of most tourists being the location of the main international airport, has an amazing array of attractions for visitors, from the beaches of the west coastsouthwards from Negombo to Kalutara and Alutgama; to the museums, parks, boulevards, lakes and sophisticated bars and restaurants of Colombo. The new Expressway linking theairport with the northern suburbs of Colombo has proved a boon to travellers, while the Southern Expressway makes getting to the south so much easier. The diversity of Sri Lanka is at its best at this season, whether for viewing wildlife (whales and dolphins as well as leopards and elephants), trekking

in the hill country tea gardens andwilderness, or being inspired by the Cultural Triangle. With trains having special carriages for visitors and serving most of theplaces of interest to tourists, as well as anetwork of improved highways for travelling by hired car, Sri Lanka is open for discovery, either for peo-ple travelling independently or inorganised groups. Amazing Sri Lanka is produced under the auspices of The Hon Nimal Lanza, the Minister of Tourism for the Western Province and Claude Thomasz, the Chairman of the Western Province Tourist Board, with the hope that you will keep this magazine as a guide and as a souvenir of your stay this season in amazing Sri Lanka. Royston Ellis is the author of the 5th edition of The Bradt Guide To Sri Lanka published in January 2014 by Bradt Travel Guides, UK. He writes a weekly newsletterabout Sri Lanka available free bysubscribing at www.roystonellis.com.

ThE hOLidAy SEASOnNimal A. Lanza

Hon. Minister of Road Development,

Animal Production & Development,

Housing & Construction, Fisheries

andTourism - Western Province

As a Minister of the Western Province I am responsible for many matters that affect not only our citizens but also visitors to this country. I regard it as an honour to be able to influence the improvement of the lifestyle of our citizens through successfuldevelopment of infrastructure throughout the Western Province and in encouraging tourism.

The success of the organising of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) held in Colombo in November 2013 in which my ministry played a big part, under directions from the Minister of Economic Development, the Hon Basil Rajapaksa, proves the ability of Sri Lanka to host international guests and conferences. It was a stimulating experience and encourages us to do even more for the people of theWestern Province and our tourist visitors.

In this connection, we are reaching the conclusion of a survey conducted by the Tourist Board under the enthusiastic leadership of the Board’s Chairman, Claude Thomasz. The survey covers all the service providers to the industry in the Western Province, whether formal or informal, and will list statistics on all the hotels, guesthouses, restaurants and individuals, such as tour guides, drivers, boatmen, souvenir sellers, who are also stakeholders in the industry.

We are doing this in keeping with the vision of the President of Sri Lanka, His Excellency Mahinda Rajapaksa, so we can achieve the target of 2.5 million visitors to Sri Lanka in 2016. We would like to see everyone involved in tourism in the Western Province to feel they have the support of my Ministry and the Tourist Board to ensure that every visitor has such a good time in Sri Lanka, they will want to return, again and again.

As we begin a New Year, I extend my greetings to all visitors for an enjoyable stay in Sri Lanka, and hope you will come back again soon.

SUPPORTinG TOURiSM

Board of Directors

(Mr. Palitha Abeywardhana - Director, Mr. W.M.R. Roy Tissera - Deputy Chairman,Mr. Claude A. Thomasz - Chairman, Mr. S.G. Wijayabandu - Director, Mr. F.R. Karunanayake - Director)

(From left to right)

Seated: Chamara Samarasinghe - Training Coordinator, Irosh Ratnayake - General Manager, Claude Thomasz - Chairman, Royston Ellis - Editorial Consultant, Nadun Egodage - I.T. Officer

Standing: Shashika Rajapaksha, Krishanthini Devendran, Rosalie Perera, Navodi Ranasinghe, Palitha Abeysekara, Uditha Munasinghe, Ralston Gerreyn, Chandika Dias, Nirosha Gamage,

Chamodi Wickramage, Thanuja Rayigama, Dilani Athapaththu

General Operations: Claude Thomasz & I.G.I.T. Ratnayake Marketing: Krishanthini Devendran, Ralston Gerreyn Sales & Distribution: Rosalie Perera, Uditha Munasinghe, Chamodi Wickramage, Dilani Athapaththu Layout & Designing: Nadun Egodage Sanjaya Jayasinghe @ Feather Pen Visual Studios Coordination: Chamara Samarasinghe, Navodi Ranasinghe, Shashika Rajapaksha

Printed by: Aitken Spence Printing & Packaging (Pvt) Ltd

Negombo

Mathugama

Kalugala Monastry

Ambegoda Falls

Pahala Hewessa

Omantha Totupola

Horawala Totupola

Yagirala Forest Reserve

Paurukanda

Moragalla Beach

Beruwala Lighthouse

Beruwala Beach

Polkotuwa Beach

Maggona Bay

Ihala Hewessa

Beruwala

Wadduwa

Panadura

Moratuwa

Dehiwala

Hendala

Ragama

Kadawata

Kandana

Ja - Ela

Katunayaka

Avissawella

GAMPAHA

COLOMBO

KALUTHARA

Attanagalla

Kotte

Maharagama

Kalido Beach

Talpitiya Beach

Mahabellana Totupola

Kahapola Totupola

Ellakanda

Kurugaka Kanda

Asmadala

Kurugaka Viharaya

Kumari Ella

Boralugoda Walauwa

Church Of Lady Of Shorrow

Hanwella Church

Kelani Ganga

Nawagamuwa Dewalaya

KandubodaMeditation Centre Maniyamgama Viharaya

Brandi Mosque

Nachchimale Madakada Monastry

Bolgoda Ganga

Bolgoda Lake

Birds Sanctury

Neelammahara Viharaya

Gammanpila Wewa

Mambulgoda Viharaya

LenagalaRajamaha Viharaya

KoratotaRajamaha Viharaya

SapugaskandaRajamaha Viharaya

VaranaRajamaha Viharaya

AttanagallaRajamaha Viharaya

DadagamuwaRajamaha Viharaya

AsgiriyaRajamaha Viharaya

MadabawitaRajamaha Viharaya

LindaraRajamaha Viharaya

TalagamaRajamaha Viharaya

AtupandeniyaRajamaha

Viharaya

KahandawaRajamaha Viharaya

MaladeniyaRajamaha ViharayaErabadda

Rajamaha Viharaya

AluthapolaRajamaha Viharaya

AngurukaramullaTemple

Botale Walauwa

Ganegoda Dewalaya

PattiniDewalaya

GodigomuwaDewalaya

Mottunna Rajamaha Viharaya

Gaspe Rajamaha Viharaya

Horagolla National Park

Botanical Garden

WeediyawattaDevalaya

RambutanVendors

Pasgama

Kadjugama AntiqueReplica Centre

Kadjugama

Wewaldeniya Cane Crast

Yakbendi Ella

KossinnaRajamaha Viharaya Amunugoda

Rajamaha Viharaya

Basilica Church

Gampaha Pineapple

Wewakele Forest

Tudella Junction

Kepungoda Beach

Eththukkala Beach

Doowa

Rankoth Viharaya Pokunuwita

Rajamaha Viharaya

Lenawara Rajamaha ViharayaPathahawatta

Rajamaha Viharaya

Bodhiya

Richmond Castle

Galpatha

UduwaraNartupana

Pahiyangala

Makeli Ella

Panadura Beach

Scenic

L E G E N D

Scale - 1 : 200,000

Negombo Fort

Talahena Beach

Designed by Feather Pen : 011 2 799 733

(From left to right)Western Province Tourist Board

Western ProvinceTouring

Sri Lanka

Volume I Volume II

Volume III

Volume IV Volume V

The Staff of the Western Province Tourist Board would like to thank all our advertisers and contributors for their support and we welcome all our readers to this issue of Amazing Sri Lanka.

Sare

es b

y Ga

nesh

Tex

tiles

22 | ASL 23 | ASL

The restoration of the

Hamilton Canal has added another tourist attraction to

Sri Lanka’s many fascinating sights to see and things to do.

Royston Ellis goes on a boat cruise along the Hamilton Canal and

the Kelani River.

Photographs Nadun Egodage

SRI LANKA’S UNIQUE

RIVER & CANAL

CRUISE

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The introduction of a commer-cial and competently run boat service based on the northern

bank of the Hamilton Canal and also serving the Kelani River, is a fitting complement to the newly restored canal with its cute suspension foot-bridge. The footbridge is located at Hekitta Junction, Hendala, Wattala and is easily reached on the way to

or from the airport on the old route. (The new Airport Expressway by-passes it). The bridge marks a tri-umphant entrance to the Hamilton Canal from the sea and from Kelani River. The bridge’s buttress of granite on the southern bank bears letters in brass stating: Hamilton Ca-nal. The Gateway to the Aquarina in the north of Colombo. An attraction with diversity. A polished granite plaque below it records the names of dignitaries who attended the open-ing in August 2013, and give thanks to the funding provided by the Gov-ernment of Japan for the canal’s res-toration.

Hamilton Canal originally opened in 1802 at the instigation of a British government agent, Garvin Hamilton. It was built to link with a canal that had been construct-ed previously by the Dutch; hence it is sometimes referred to as the Dutch Canal. It extends 22km from the mouth of the Kelani River to the Maha Oya, north of Negombo. The history of the canal as a link to the sea for villagers living along its banks is easy to imagine by journeying on it in a hired motor-boat. On the trip that I made recently, we joined the small motorboat with outboard engine by the steps of the bridge.

The boatman, and skipper, Samira, had the confidence and con-cern for passengers of a navy man and, indeed, he has been trained by a former Sri Lankan Navy commander. But, Samira said modestly, he was a fisherman before joining Hamilton Leisure Crafts & Sports (Pvt) Ltd as a boatman. He instructed all of us, his passengers, to don the lifejackets provided and then the boat set out to putter down the canal to join the river. As the Kelani River flows to the sea, it passes through industrial and residential complexes, all of which

seem to have been built to ignore the river, their backs facing the beautiful sweep of the majestic waterway. So the first part of the river cruise is unexciting unless you are interested in Victorian warehouses with porthole windows, sand miners in flat bottomed boats dredging the river bed, river houses on stilts and the occasional ungainly pelican lum-bering skywards. Flights of concrete steps along the river banks lead down to the river, enabling house-wives to do their laundry, and there is even a commercial river laundry complex to gaze at.

After passing under a rail-way bridge, the scenery changes dramatically, with bamboo and palm trees leaning towards the water and the river banks on both sides cov-ered in lush, and seemingly impen-etrable, greenery. A pleasant stop would have been the shack on stilts made out of bamboo, which offered cups of tea, but we continued our journey. The old hand-pulled ferry that was the only means of crossing the river remains, although a road bridge has been built to replace it. It is a round trip of 24km from the canal to Kelani Temple, and

The entrance to Hamilton Canal

26 | ASL 27 | ASL

the approach by river sets a mood of serenity for visiting this venerat-ed place. It’s also possible to go by boat for the 40km round trip cruise along the canal to the Negombo La-goon. If that’s too long, Hamilton Lei-sure Craft Boats also operate shorter jaunts along the canal. The canal trip is interest-ing for what it reveals of village life. While the seaside bank is covered in lush tropical foliage where king-fishers dart and cormorants bask on branches in the sun, the eastern

bank is residential. Fishing boats are tied up by the bank, having returned from overnight sea fishing trips. On the decks of some them, fishermen are emptying their nets to the delight of housewives waiting to buy fish for lunch. There is a small fish market on the bank and, a sur-prise; branches of the country’s two main supermarkets are also there. In the canal itself, we saw a woman paddling herself along in the broken hull of a fishing boat, pulling up her crab pots seeing what

the day’s catch was. A man sat in the glare of the hot sun, patiently fishing with a rod and line. There are gullies off the canal that lead to lagoons hemmed in by the beach; that’s where boats are repaired and fishermen rest. We puttered slowly down another offshoot to find ourselves in a ro-mantic lagoon; deep shadows were cast on the water by the leaves and straggling roots of mangroves. It was a tranquil and perfect place to com-mune with nature.

As we motored back down the canal to the bridge, we saw an el-egant new vessel proceeding grace-fully towards the river. This is a new-ly introduced floating restaurant. We boarded it for lunch, which we enjoyed under the shade of the vege-tation on the river bank. The vessel has been clev-erly designed; it has a single 45hp outboard motor with chrome tables and chairs fixed to the deck. There are glass panels at the side that can be opened to let the breeze flow through, and a high roof. There are lights on board so the boat can be hired for an evening cocktail cruise, as well as for daytime picnics. The boat has been added to his fleet of four outboard motor launches by Camilus Fernando and is operated by his company, Hamilton Leisure Crafts. He is confident that cruising along the canal to Negombo or up the Kelani River will become a popular excursion for tourists. With fees starting at Rs1,000 for a group of five, it represents remarkable val-ue for doing something pleasantly different, and seeing another side of Sri Lanka.

q

Featuring a private balcony, air-conditioned rooms are fitted with classic wood furnishings. Heated showers and

a fan are also provided.

Providing concierge service, staff can also attend to travel and laundry needs. Free internet access is provided in all

areas.

The restaurant offers Eastern, Chinese, Italian, German and Western dishes in both indoor and outdoor settings. After-meal drinks and alcoholic beverages are served at

the bar.

Overlooking the scenic Negombo Lagoon, Hotel Lagoon Paradise offers relaxing stays amidst tropical greenery.

Offering free parking, it boasts an outdoor pool, a restaurant with garden views and bicycle rental.

A 5-minute walk from the beach, Hotel Lagoon Paradise is about 30 minutes’ drive from the historic Dutch Canal.

It is 15 km from Bandaranaike International Airport.

Goldi Sands HotelGoldi Sands Hotel offers a host of amenities, facilities and levels of com-fort and maintains the meticulous standards required by the discerning guest. Accommodation at Goldi Sands Hotel comprises a stunning array of seventy air-conditioned double rooms.

At Goldi Sands Hotel, the combination of Sun, beach and the ever at-tentive staff is guaranteed to rejuvenate your body, mind and soul. Take a stroll down the sandy beach and enjoy the invigorating sea breeze or simply relax in rooms which benchmark elegance and luxury… truly an abode of serendipity…

Goldi Sands Hotel, Ethukala, Negombo, Sri Lanka.T: +94 31 22 79227 | F: +94 31 22 78019 | W: www.goldisands.com | E: goldi@eureka.lk

For more details & reservations:Mobile: 0094 (0) 71 4200881 | E-mail: naslin@rainforest-ecolodge.org

Web: www.rainforest-ecolodge.org

Protect Rainforests... Don’t destroy it....!!!Experience the Rainforest

32 | ASL 33 | ASL

RICH IN DIVERSIT Y A Brief Guide to the Highlights of Amazing Sri Lanka

ADAM’S PEAK is a mountain with a sacred footprint at its summit, and it’s aUNESCO world Heritage Site. Its summit is 2,243m above sea level. Pilgrims climb it from December to March.

ANURADHAPURA is one of the country’s key religious and cultural sites dating back to the 3rd Century BC. It centres around the Sri Maha Bodhiya (Sacred Bo tree).

AUKANA bears the Sri Lanka’s 12m-tallelegant Buddha Statue carved out of single rock. It was built around 459-477 AD.

DAMBULLA is a cave temple dating back to the 12th Century that was once refuge to King Valagamba. To-day, it bears intricately carved stat-ues of Lord Buddha and various Hin-du Gods.

JAFFNA is a colourful mix of customs and festivals and consists of Valliga-mam, Thenmaradchi, Vadamarach-chi and the Jaffna Islands.

KANDY is the hill capital and hous-es the Sacred Tooth Relic of Lord Buddha in the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple) situated amidst panoramic mountain views. The annual pageant of the Esala Perahera is held there in July or August.

POLONNARUWA is a ruined city of historic splendour, once a flour-ishing capital of ancient Sri Lanka where ruins, parks and still function-ing water tanks can be seen.

SIGIRIYA is a natural rock formation on which a citadel was built by King Kashyapa dating back to around 447-495 AD. It is a World Heritage Site renowned for its beautiful Sigiri-ya frescoes, baths and pools.

Culture

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Hill Country Away from the sun, sea and sand, the hill country with its blue green moun-tains, sprawling tea gardens and waterfalls beckons the curious traveller.

BANDARAWELA is located in the hill country and is known for its breathtaking scenery, cool climate and wide variety of flowers.

HAPUTALE is a small town with a rich biodiversity of flora and fauna, nature trails, and the neighbouring colonial manor, Adisham, now a novitiate.

KNUCKLES RANGE with its striking landscape is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

NUWARA ELIYA known as “Little England” features some of the finest tea plantations in the world, the Hak-gala Botanical Gardens, and the adjacent Hakgala Nature reserve. The fashionable season for visitors from Colom-bo starts in April.

ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDEN with a rich history dating back to 1371, holds a collection of more than 300 varieties of orchids, spices, medicinal plants and palms. It is located in Peradeniya approximately 4km from Kandy.

Nature & Wild Life The national parks in Sri Lanka are home to elephants, leopards, deer and bear as well as many species of birds, reptiles, flora and fauna that are endemic to the island.

BUNDALA situated between Kirin-da and Hambantota is characterised by its lagoons, wetlands, jungles and wildlife.

GAL OYA is a national park where herds of elephants can be observed throughout the year. It lays claim to the island’s largest reservoir.

HORTON PLAINS is for the adven-turous to go trekking, hiking or camping. It boasts of a picturesque landscape, cool climate and aston-ishing biodiversity.

KUMANA is a national park consid-ered as an important bird nesting and breeding ground, hosting a mul-titude of birds. During April to July, thousands of birds can be seen mi-grating to Kumana.

PINNAWALA is a government-spon-sored elephant orphanage situated between Colombo and Kandy. It has almost 100 elephants, both young and adult, providing irresistible pho-to opportunities of baby elephants quaffing milk and one of the largest elephant bathing spectacles in the world.

RANDENIGALA is a wildlife sanctu-ary where herds of elephant, deer, sambur, wild boar and flocks of rare birds can be spotted.

SINHARAJA is a UNESCO World Her-itage Site and one of the world’s few surviving rainforests

WILPATTU National Park is located north of Puttalam. Leopard, spot-ted deer, elephants, wild boar, sloth bears and crocodiles can be found in this fairly thick dry zone jungle area.

YALA is the most popular national park in the country with a wide vari-ety of wild animals as well as one of the highest leopard densities in the world.

The view from Lipton’s Seat, near Haputale

Nuwara Eliya’s popular golf course

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ARUGAM BAY is a favour-ite surfing bay where in-ternational competitions are held annually.

BATTICALOA is a coastal paradise of lagoons and a busy town.

BENTOTA consists of a popular wide arc of sandy beaches with several up-market hotels in the Na-tional Tourist Resort com-plex, and guesthouses and restaurants on its periph-ery.

BERUWALA has gorgeous beaches, a turtle farm and the Kechchimalai mosque. Boat trips are available along Beruwala’s river to view woodland wildlife.

CHILAW is famous for the Munneswaram Temple, St Mary’s Cathedral and a fine variety of prawns, crabs and coconuts.

DONDRA is the south-ernmost tip of Sri Lan-ka marked by a tower-ing lighthouse and the Tondeswaram Kovil.

GREAT BASSES are off shore islands full of strange sandstone reefs carved by the strong tides and is popular with snor-kellers and scuba divers. The lighthouse there, built in the 1800s, is an iconic monument.HAMBANTOTA has crisp, white salt flats spread out over scenic lagoons. As well as unspoilt beaches and some wildlife sanctu-aries, Hambantota is close to a new international cricket stadium, a new in-ternational airport, and a new inland deep water harbour.KALPITIYA is famed as a whale and dolphin watch-ing hot spot and is under development with new hotels.

KIRINDA is popular for its beautiful Buddhist temple and shrine overlooking the ocean.

KUCHCHAVELI is a shim-mering coastal town sit-uated to the northwest of Trincomalee and ideal for a tranquil dip in the sea.

MIRISSA is famous for its cinnamon cultiva-tions, rolling surf and its whale-watching boat tours.

MOUNT LAVINIA in the nation’s ‘city beach’ lined with lively beach restau-rants.

NEGOMBO is near the airport and a popular beach town sparkling with hotels and guest houses.

PASSEKUDAH has an immaculate beach and shallow sea, according to the tides, and is rapidly developing into an upmarket resort.

PUTTALAM is known for its lagoons, salterns and sea fishing expeditions.

TRINCOMALEE has a long beach to the north of the town up to Nilava-li and the attractions of Konne-swaram, Hindu Kovil, Fort Frederick and Pigeon Island.

UNAWATUNA is a bay protected by coral reefs but sometimes suf-fers erosion. It was declared one of the top ten best beaches in the world several years ago by Discov-ery TV, not just because of its sun, sea and sand but also because of its after-beach life with informal beach-side restaurants and hotels.

WELIGAMA BAY contains the fa-mous Taprobane Island where guests can stay. The island can be reached only during low tide by wading through the surf.

Exploring the Coast Here you will be spoiled for choice, whether on the west coast from October to April, or the east coast from April to October

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Bentota Beach

Negombo Beach

Floating Catamarans at Negombo

Arugam Bay Beach

Moragalla Beach, near Beruwela

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Most visitors and Sri Lankans who drive along the double carriageway cutting through the west coast town of Kalutara miss the attractions of the area.

Royston Ellis a takes longer look.

Photographs Feather Pen Visual Studios

KalutaraVacation with Tradition

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Kalutara, after being bypassed for years by both tourists and developers for beaches fur-

ther south, is about to enjoy a renais-sance. Drive northwards from the bridge over the Kalutara River (Kalu Ganga; Black River) along the Calido beach road running parallel to the main Galle Road, and you will see a dozen new hotels under construc-tion. Of course, there are several well-established hotels already in operation in the area but now Kalut-ara has been recognised as a tourist zone, new developers are moving in. The beach is the attraction but all the hotels have swimming pools so guests can happily spend their days there lazing in the sun.

On their periphery, local-ly-run restaurants, built simply with bamboo and breezy verandas have opened to cater for tourists who oc-casionally want to eat outside their hotels. Some of these beachside cafés specialise in lobster and sea-food and Sri Lankans could be forgiv-en for thinking they have somehow strayed into Russia as every restau-rant advertises itself in Russian. This reflects the area’s new popularity with Russian guests; just as Bentota, further south, has signs in German. Kalutara’s attractions rival Bentota’s. It is a bustling, thriving town (with a population of 39,700, it’s the third largest urban area in the Western Province after Colombo and Negombo) with shops and su-

permarkets serving its residents and not created especially for tourists. There is also the formidable, huge white stupa (the Kalutara Bodhiya), glinting in the sunlight that domi-nates the broad Kalu Ganga. The stupa, built in the 1960s, is actually hollow inside with an elaborately painted interior. On the roadside are several collecting boxes (“tills”) in which passing mo-torists drop coins as a token offering for a safe drive. Kalutara is 42km from Co-lombo and easily reached by train from Colombo Fort or by the South-ern Expressway or by the Galle Road via Mount Lavinia, Moratuwa, Pana-dura and Wadduwa. Located on both sides of the Kalutara River, along

which boats and rafts used to float from Ratnapura, it was once a popular resort for Colombo’s colonial resi-dents and the earned the sobriquet “Richmond of Cey-lon” because of its supposed similarity to the London Thames-side suburb.

Kalutara is rich in history, which its modern development has somewhat overshadowed. It was tem-porarily the capital of King Wickrama Pandu (1042-43) ruling from the Ruhunu region. In 1655 it was captured by the Dutch, who built a fort on the site of a small Por-

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tuguese one. That had actually been built on the original Gangatilka Viha-ra that the Portuguese had demol-ished. In 1797, the fort was ceded to the British. The river, along which boat trips are organised for tourists, was known to Arab traders and sailors centuries before the Portuguese ar-rived. They would shelter in its vast river mouth during the southwest monsoon. On the southern bank, be-tween the road and the railway line,

is a Buddhist shrine under a vener-able Bo tree. Flower sellers line the approach to the shrine so that wor-shippers can buy flowers to take as offerings. Although Kalutara is a thriv-ing town with several branches of local banks and supermarkets and a private hospital as well as an ancient rest house and a busy railway station at Kalutara South, it is close to rural plantations. Rubber is a major crop and plantations that have tall trees

with coconut cups strapped to their trunks to collect the liquid rubber line the country roads. There are coconut groves aplenty, as well as smallholdings producing low grown tea. Tours are available into the interior by three wheeler and ho-tel minivan taxis for easy discovery of the surrounding countryside. A unique – yet little known – site that welcomes visitors is Richmond Cas-tle (Rs100 entrance fee; open 08.30-

Kalutara Beach

Calido Beach, Kalutara

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16.30, weekdays). Restored in 2011 the building was neglected for years, after being abandoned by its owner and turned over to the Public Trus-tee Department, to be an orphanage. It still functions as an or-phanage for 45 boys of all religions from six to sixteen in age, who attend schools in Kalutara and live in an adjoining outbuilding, formerly the servants’ quarters. However, visitors can now take a guided tour of Rich-mond Castle under the watchful eye of a charming lady guide who recites details about this fascinating build-ing. It was constructed on the lines of an Indian Maharaja’s palace and opened in 1910 for the wedding of the owner, Don Arthur de Silva Wijesinha Siriwardene. He was the son of a wealthy landowner who was educated in England, where he saw the grandeur of the residences of the wealthy. Photographs of the wedding, including the special steam train that brought guests from Co-lombo to Kalutara, line the walls, as do paintings of the owner and his parents.

To tour this building is to gain a fascinating in-sight into the way of life of the Sri Lankan aristocracy in the early 20th century. Of course there was no air con-ditioning then but a system of strategically placed holes and tunnels channelled cool air from its riverside location into the ballroom, distinguished by its ornately carved teak pillars. A winding wrought iron staircase reaches a minstrels’ gallery above it, while the main staircase with two wings and sturdy pillars is a solid creation of Bur-ma teak. The windows are of imported stained glass, the floors of marble. The guide tells visitors the garden is 42 acres in area and from the balconies of the house there are views of the river and shining Kalutara Bodhiya, through the groves of coconuts and mango trees. The house itself spreads over one acre but has only 16 rooms, with 99

doors and 38 windows. The garden is studded with stat-ues and both house and garden have become popular for wedding celebrations. The guide regales visitors with the life story (and family connections) of the house’s owner and his wife and their eventual disillusionment with both the house and each other since they weren’t blessed with children. As a result, Don Arthur de Silva turned over the property to the Public Trustee and moved into a room at the Queens Hotel, Kandy, where he died a lonely eccen-tric in 1947. It’s a profound story that brings a sense of tradi-tion and ancient values to Kalutara, formerly Sri Lanka’s Richmond and now set to become Sri Lanka’s Riviera, the country’s new hotspot for international tourists.

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Interior of the Kalutara Bodhiya

Richmond Castle

Entrance to the Kalutara Bodihiya

The Kalutara rail and road bridges

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“We are inimitable and distinctively Sri Lankan,” says Anushi Jayasekara

– Entrepreneur/CEO.

Chamathka Holidays & Travels is an expertise-driven inbound tour company comprising a team of pro-fessionally qualified local travel experts with more

than 15 years experience in the industry. It is a one-stop travel company focusing on luxury markets and in provid-ing high quality service to clients plus access to a range of travel services, resources and updated information, de-livering great value for clients’ travel investments. The success of Chamathka Holidays & Travels in bringing the personal touch to professional destination arrangements has resulted in the company opening new offices in the centre of the busy west coast town of Kalu-tara. The company began in 2009, with Sri Lanka tourist board recognition granted in 2011. The name of the company, Chamathka, means miracle – a reference not just to Sri Lanka as the wonder of Asia but also a tribute to Chamathka, the elder daugh-ter of Anushi Jayasekara, the company’s Entrepreneur/Chief Operating Officer. Anushi has travelled extensively in Europe and Asia and seen from personal experience the kind of ser-vice and attention a tourist requires, whether visiting a country on business, for a conference, a wedding or on holiday. She realised that a “one stop shop” travel agency with the friendly personal contact that a major tour op-erator can’t provide, could be a successful enterprise. She chose Kalutara as the centre of her opera-tions as she sees Kalutara as a booming holiday resort town, with many hotels and restaurants opening along the beach. In addition, Kalutara is convenient for all the attractions of Sri Lanka, whether it’s to go to Colombo for a day’s shopping, down south to Bentota, Galle and Yala or to the interior, thanks to its accessibility to the South-

ern Expressway and the network of good roads to the hill country and the cultural triangle. She also realised that the south west coast hotels offer much more than beach hotels in oth-er countries (and at a lower rate) with first-rate, well-furnished rooms, charming service and ex-tensive buffets. As her business grew, Anushi found her niche market – destination weddings. Anushi says her vision is to be one of Sri Lan-ka’s most progressive locally-owned travel agencies. The company’s success is attributable to its responsiveness to agents and individual traveller’s requirements. She never loses the personal touch and is focused on deliver-ing the finest quality customer service. Her team is young, dynamic and knowledgeable and is geared to handle every aspect of a luxury holiday from arrival to departure, offering a choice of tours such as Round Trip Excursions, Relaxation, Honeymoon, Fam-ily Reunions, Cultural, Nature, Eco, Adventure, Ramayana Spiritual Tours, Incentives, Meetings, Conferences, Busi-ness Visits, Weddings and Beach Stays as well as all-in-clusive programmes. The experience gained in organising weddings has enabled the company to branch out to cater for the MICE market (Meetings, Incentives, Conference and Ex-hibitions). The company can recommend venues and co-ordinate events according any client’s requirements, for two to 500 participants. Anushi Jayasekara’s enthusiasm for Sri Lanka as a destination for holiday, wedding, or MICE visitors, is genuine, enabling her and her staff to bring professional-ism, charm and the personal touch to welcoming guests and ensuring them a hassle free stay in Sri Lanka.

Chamathka holidays Destination WeDDings & events

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Hot Stone Therapy‘Amber Spa’ the latest Balinese Spa opens in Colombo

Director Abeer Thapar says that the therapists they have engaged are well trained and experienced in the art of Balinese treatment therapy, which involves the manipulation of superficial and deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue that aid in the healing and rejuvenating process. The Amber Spa menu offers a number of other holistic bodytreatments such as Thai, Swedish, and Herbal therapies as well as Aesthetic Beauty treatments such as facials, manicures andpedicures. However their signature Hot Stone treatment is the unique ‘Amber’ experience that not only relaxes but is noted for its special healing characteristics. The therapists claim that the warm gliding sensation of the hot stones fire up the lymphatic system,allowing every cell in the body to receive more nutrients andoxygen while removing waste. It is recommended for the support of the immune system, increased Blood circulation, countering against flu symptoms, alleviating stress, rheumatic and arthritic conditions, muscle aches, fatigue, and even depression. Combined with the expert therapy, the Amber Spa’s locationoverlooking the hotel’s swimming pool, shaded by bamboo trees, adds to the feeling of serenity and calm, creating the ideal setting for a relaxing body treatment. Colombo Courtyard, which has become the happening boutique hotel in the city with its jazz theme nights and a variety of entertainment throughout the week, offers a number of outlets for in-house and outdoor guests. The Hotel’s Italian Restaurant, Scarlet Room, offers exquisitely prepared Italian food whilst the Loft Lounge Bar – a modernIndustrial style setup, the Cloud Café – an open air roof top café, Grape Expectations - the wine lounge, are all designed to create the best leisure experience for the man or woman about town.

Colombo Courtyard, the city’s award winning Luxury Business boutique hotel has launched their ‘Amber Spa’, which specialises in authentic Balinese treatment therapy.

Armed with trained therapists from Indonesia, the spa specialises in ‘Hot Stone’ therapy, which Bali is famed for. Balinese techniques are known for their gentleness, which aims at keeping patientsrelaxed and calm throughout. The techniques include skin folding; kneading, stroking, body scrubs and other methods used along with different aromatherapy oils. Administered by expert thera-pists, the spa’s signature hot stone treatment helps to improve a patient’s blood, oxygen and energy flow, which is said to increase through the treatment. Hot Stone Massage is an age-old therapy dating back about 5000 years to India, a legacy carried on by several countries in the region and developed to a nicety by the Balinese. The technique involves the application of water-heated volcanic stones to central points of the body, giving a deep tissue treatment that creates a sensation of comfort and warmth. The penetrating heat from the hot stones is said to “draw out” pain and discomfort, relaxing the musclesdeeper than the regular techniques. Arun Thapar, Managing Director of the Colombo Courtyard, says that the ‘Amber Spa’ is another feather in the cap of the luxuryboutique hotel, which has already won several international awards for its service and quality. “As a boutique hotel located in a central part of Colombo we want to offer our in house guests as well as our day to day patrons a better choice in terms of entertainment,indulgence and things to do in the city. We have already been awarded the best Luxury Business Hotel by World Luxury Hotel Awards. And our mission is to continue to innovate, bring in new services that complement our image and benefit our guests; ‘Amber Spa’ is another step in that direction.”

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LSri Lanka’s popularity as a destination for

meetings, incentive holidays, conventions and exhibitions is growing annually.

Our business correspondent looks at the advantages of holding meetings

in Sri Lanka.

ET’S MEET!

Photo Courtesy President’s Media Unit & Nelum Pokuna Management

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The tourism sector known by the ridiculous acronym of MICE (Meetings, Incentives,

Conventions & Exhibitions) was prophesied at a meeting of key part-ners in the MICE niche market held in October 2013, to be on course to increase its share of tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka by five to 10 per cent an-nually. Since the government’s declared target for tourist arrivals

within the next two years (2016) is 2.5 million, that represents a lot of MICE delegates. Why should Sri Lan-ka be such a popular destination for international participants to fly here for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions? According to Jeffrey Xu pro-ject manager of Reed Travel Exhibi-tions, “Sri Lanka is fast emerging as

a sought after, exotic and affordable destination for Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions due its central location in the Indian Ocean which allows easy access from any part of the world. As well as its leg-endary beaches, sunny climate and diverse attractions… the internation-al and local hotels offer star-class ac-commodation, modern conference facilities and competitive packages for the meetings sector.”

That aptly sums up Sri Lan-ka’s attraction because of its loca-tion. The national airline, Sri Lanka, has a lively MICE-promotion depart-ment (mice@srilankan.com) which states proudly: “Celebrated as an exciting and diverse holiday destina-tion. Sri Lanka is Asia’s most sought after venue for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions. This is-

land paradise, perfectly placed at the centre of the Indian Ocean, makes a strategic gateway to Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia and the Far East. An ideal meeting point for dele-gates from any part of the world.” SriLankan Airlines is ac-tive in supporting the setting up of MICE events. The airline undertakes to educate prospective delegates on Sri Lanka through productive semi-nars; to introduce organisers to Pro-

fessional Conference Organiser and Destination Management Compa-nies who could undertake all ground arrangements for the event; and to make pre-conference sales calls to prospective delegates by SriLankan sales personnel. Special airfares are also available for MICE delegates. Further encouragement is provided by coverage of the event

in the airline’s in-flight magazine, Serendib, and links to conference and exhibition websites through the SriLan-kan website. At the airport, special group baggage tags are supplied as well as airport assistance for delegates. In flight, there are special announcements by the Cap-tain welcoming delegates aboard, group seating arrange-ments and catering to special meal requests. At the conference venue a SriLankan service representative is on hand to assist delegates with their travel arrangements, including visits to other SriLankan

destinations with special add-on fares. Given that, via the Middle East or Europe, Sri Lanka is only one-plane change away from North and South America or, via the Far East, one plane change from Australia and New Zealand, Sri Lanka is indeed ideally positioned to host the world. The attractions of Sri Lanka for tourists is emphasised for delegates to MICE events because

Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (B.M.I.C.H)

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MICE events as they all have ban-quet, ballroom or conference facil-ities. But other hotels, on the coast and in the hill country, can also cope with dozens of delegates, either as resident guests or visitors, taking part in events in privacy of their ven-ue rooms. There are also large, pub-lic venues available, such as the 1,700-seater Bandaranaike Memo-rial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo with six com-

mittee rooms, a library, a cinema, special suites with dining facilities and interpreter services. (www.bmich.gov.lk). The future of Sri Lanka as a major MICE destination is assured through the new infrastructure, not only in Colombo, particularly with the new express link between air-port and city, but also in the deep south of the country. At Hambantota, where a new international airport and a new sea port have opened, the

newly built Hambantota Interna-tional Convention Centre has seats for 1,500 delegates. Whether you, as an organ-iser or a participant, fly to Sri Lanka for a MICE event by the national car-rier or by any other airline serving the country, the occasion is guaran-teed to be memorable at this unique destination. The suggestion: “Let’s meet… in Sri Lanka,” will be wel-comed by all.

and associations for information, advice and expertise when organ-ising events in Sri Lanka.” It boasts: “We match the diversity of Sri Lanka to the needs of today’s meeting plan-ners.” (The Sri Lanka Convention Bureau is at http://med.gov.lk/eng-lish/?page_id=25). As well as the SLCB there are several privately run agencies that make it a business of organis-ing successful MICE events, quoting all-in package prices that include the event, hotel accommodation and even meals, as well as airport transfers, tours and events for those accompanying delegates (such as spouses) not actually taking part in the event. All the major hotels in Sri Lanka can be used as venues for

MICE participants. The SLCB states that its mission is: “To position Sri Lanka internationally as a value for money destination for MICE activi-ties and to receive optimum revenue from MICE tourism in order to make a positive contribution to Sri Lanka’s economy in creating employment thereby uplifting the standards of those engaged directly in the ‘Meet-ings Industry’ in Sri Lanka.” It’s understandable that the SLCB’s motive isn’t altruistic and concentrates on the profit motive to benefit the country. However, it is a non-profit marketing and promo-tional organisation and functions under the Ministry of Economic De-velopment. It is the “primary con-tact point for meeting planners, in-centive operators, corporate houses

everything is organised for them. Every event includes hotels, meals and sightseeing; ideal for independ-ent delegates (and spouses) who don’t want the trouble of having to arrange everything for themselves. The headache of organising a visit is taken care of by the event organisers, the price is at the lowest negotiable rate (as group rates apply) and, with like-minded fellow-delegates, the ex-perience is full of fellowship and fun, as well as the social, commercial and status benefits to be gained from at-tending the event itself. Being aware of the potential of Sri Lanka for successful meetings, incentive visits, conference and ex-hibitions, the government has set up the Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB) to assist in the hosting of

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New Convention Centre at Hambantota

The new Nelum Pokuna Theatre is available for MICE events.

Head Office: “Upula”, Bolgoda, Bandaragama, Sri Lanka.T: (+94) 11 3 152252, (+94) 71 6 461284, (+94) 77 1 828576

E: chamara@srilankantravelline.com, srilankantravelline@gmail.comW: www.srilankantravelline.com

Kandy Office: #61, Hospital Road, Kotaligoda, Menikdiwela, Kandy.T: (+94) 11 3 152252

E: chamarakh@gmail.com

S r i L a n k a n T r a v e l L i n eY o u r U l t i m a t e T r a v e l P a r t n e r

HOTEL ALAKAMANDANO. 11/1 NAGASENA MAWATHA, ANURADHAPURA,SRI LANKA.

Tel: (+94) 25 5620277 | Fax: (+94) 25 2234878 Email: info@hotelalakamanda.com | Web: www.hotelalakamanda.com

Reservation Hot Line: (+94) 777 790 511 & (+94) 777 793 138

DISCREET LUXURY & ORIENTAL HARMONY

Niwaththakachethiya Road, Anuradhapura.Tel: +94 25 492 9600 / Fax: +94 25 492 9600Web: www.avastaresort.com / Email: info@avastaresort.com

No. 246, Ahangamakanda (Galle-Matara Road), Ahangama 80650, Sri Lanka.Tel: +94 91 2283541, +94 77 3229221, +94 71 8502577

E-mail: info@indischsrilanka.com | Website: www.indischsrilanka.com

The Best Villa on The South Beach

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Gemstones from Sri Lanka have cachet. King Solomon wooed Queen Sheba with gems from Sri

Lanka. Almost three thousand years lat-er, Prince Charles gave Lady Diana an engagement ring with a royal blue sap-phire from Sri Lanka. This became the heirloom that Prince William presented to Catherine Middleton.

The National Gem & Jewellery Author-ity licenses gem dealers and exercis-es quality control so that tourists who purchase gems and jewellery from a licensed jeweller can be assured they are buying genuine gemstones. There are many top quality, licensed jewellers in Sri Lanka and among the best is Aida Gems & Jewellery.

Aida Gems & Jewellery was originally established in the west coast holiday resort of Bentota in 1975 under the personal direction of master goldsmith “Aida” (Nissanka Weerasena).

Aida, as he is known affectionately by all his clients, started his jewellery workshop to cater for the growing tour-ist market. He specialised in jewellery

GEMS & JEWELLERYFROM

A MASTER GOLDSMITHA gift to treasure that will last forever

created to customers’ own designs, with gems he himself selected as rough stones and cut and polished to perfec-tion.

His genius at hand-picking exquisite gems, and skill at crafting the right set-ting in gold or silver to complement them, soon won him customers from around the world. He expanded his sim-ple workshop and now has branches in the resort districts of Galle, Waskaduwa and Marawila as well as his main show-room at Bentota.

Although Aida now employs more than 100 people he takes a personal interest in every piece of jewellery hand-crafted in his workshop, and still fashions pre-cious pieces of jewellery himself. His at-tention to detail is unmatched by most jewellery retailers and has earned him an enviable reputation.

Aida sources and selects only the best quality precious and semi-precious stones from Sri Lanka to offer custom-ers. A gemstone in its raw state seems like a pretty piece of rock or pebble to the uninitiated. Only an expert like Aida

knows the potential of every raw stone that will be revealed when it is cut and polished.

The craftsmen at Aida Gems & Jewellery work to established patterns or to a cli-ent’s own designs to fashion pieces of exquisite perfection from gold or silver. When each piece is completed, Aida, or one of his experienced quality control-lers, inspects it carefully to ensure it is the best possible quality and flawless in design.

Every gemstone and piece of jewellery purchased from Aida Gems & Jewel-lery carries Aida’s personal guarantee as well as a certificate of authenticity. Since Aida is involved from source to finished piece of cut and polished stone or jewellery, he offers unbelievably good value unrivalled anywhere.

Aida regards all the gems and jewel-lery in his showrooms as eventual heir-looms to be treasured by generations. He makes sure they are worthy of pos-terity -- as well as being a unique me-mento of Sri Lanka.

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HOTELWHITE HAVEN

T: +94 (0) 38 22 40519-21, +94 (0) 38 22 40290W: www.whitehavenhotel.lk

E: whitehav@sol.lk

The resort has 32 deluxe rooms with luxurious furniture, design and style.

Address: Bathalegoda Lake Road, Ibbagamuwa, Sri Lanka.Telephone: +94 372 258 620-3 / +94 777 468 879

Fax: +94 372 258 624Mobile: +94 710513618

Email: aline.harithaniwahana@live.comWeb: www.harithaniwahana.com

White Haven Hotel,Thalpitiya North - Panadura,

Sri Lanka.

Acupuncture is an ancient meth-od of treatment numbering to more than 3000 years and this

was started in China. Most of the west-ern countries use Acupuncture due to the success of this which is recognized by the World Health Organization. To get more details about this we met Doc-tor Prasad Deshapriya the well known Acupuncture practitioner Director of Kalubowila Acupuncture Clinic.

Q: How is obesity treated through acu-puncture?

A: Acupuncture is answer to a perfect figure. Obesity causes individuals to mentally and physically suffer, it also lowers your level of self-esteem and prevents you from achieving your goals in life. Obesity causes a protruding stomach, causes your arms, thighs and face muscles to sag and increases your bust size. Most people think they only become fat the older they get but it is a myth. You may have seen even those who are young also become fat. The cause of the fat maybe unnecessary medicine, food containing Oil, choco-late, pudding, toffees and sweets. And also lack of exercise also may be the reason for fat. Diabetic and Asthma sometime maybe the result of fat. This could be reduced if you eat fresh fruit and vegetable and also drink water reg-ularly.

Obesity can be treated through acupunc-ture by stimulating certain pressure points combined with electric stimula-

tions. Acupuncture treatments for obe-sity include acupoints to be stimulated. Acupuncture Aricular Obesity Point and Local Point. Obesity also causes your skin to stretch leaving marks. This can be treated through a method referred to as colour therapy which is used in acu-puncture treatments

Q: Can you increase your height through acupuncture?

A: Yes, this can be done for men as well as women,. Increasing one’s height through acupuncture can be done with-out any side effects, where your height can be increased up to 2 or 3 inches. This can be done by successfully com-bining acupuncture with a special treat-ment developed for this purpose.

Q: How is Hair loss Treated?

A: Hair is one of the most important parts of our Life unnecessary treatment for Hair gel and tint may cause for hair loss. Acupuncture treatments for hair loss include acupoints to be stimulated.

Q: What other diseases can be treated through acupuncture?

A: Acupuncture is an effective method of treating a variety of diseases and medical complications such a skin and medical disorders, asthma, hair loss, pre-mature graying, arthritis, sexual disorders, Kidney problems, diabetes, headaches, pimples, back pain, gastri-tis, height problems, spider veins, drum addiction etc.

AcupuncturePerfect for natural Beauty

Dr. Prasad Deshapriya - Director Kalubowila Acupunture Clinic,

De Silva Road, Kalubovila. M: +94 (0) 714 299 777

E: vpdeshapriya@gmail.com W: www.kalubovilaacupunture.com

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ana

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Tissamaharama Road, Weerawila, Sri Lanka. +94 (0)47 22 39 980 +94 (0) 777 910 575

www.flowergardenlakeresort.com

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THE MYSTIQUE OF

Photographs Feather Pen Visual Studios

TEA

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Pure Ceylon Tea is grown only in Sri Lanka where hills carpeted with tea bushes are a scenic marvel of any trip to the country’s central highlands. Our food & beverage correspondent reveals some of the secrets behind

the mystique of tea.

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To enjoy pure Ceylon tea from Sri Lanka is to discover a bev-erage as exciting, but as not as

intoxicating, as the best single malt whiskies. Whether you drink tea with lashings of milk and sugar from a tin mug or daintily sip it neat from a porcelain cup, tea is in a class of its own. It revives the tired, stimulates conversation, creates reassurance, and is a totally natural beverage.

Basically tea, the drink, re-sults when loose, cut-and-dried tea leaves are steeped for a short peri-od in hot water. (I accept that now-adays many people use tea bags for convenience but the result, if not the taste, is the same: a cup of tea to drink and enjoy.) In Sri Lanka, where the world’s best tea comes from, tea can be made simply by pouring boil-ing hot water through tea in a strain-

er. The secret of that is to use very strong tea, unfortunately known as Dust, or perhaps Broken Orange Pe-koe Fannings. That brings us to one of the troubling aspects of tea. What grade of tea to buy for that perfect cup? That depends on whether you want a light tea with a subtle flavour or a strong tea that knocks your socks off. If the latter’s the case, perhaps you

should stick to a good quality tea bag and let it soak in hot water until it has reached the right density. For the best cup of tea, you will need leaf tea and, in Sri Lanka, this can be bought everywhere al-though, unfortunately, catering es-tablishments tend to rely on poor quality leaf tea or tea bags. Look for tea packets that state the grade of tea on the label. Orange Pekoe (abbreviated as OP) contains the long, very wiry leaf and is chiefly made up of the juicy stalks and centre ribs of the leaf, and there is very little whole leaf to be seen on infusion. A Flowery Orange Pekoe (FOP) is a fancy grade with a lot of bold tip in the leaf. Con-noisseurs favour it as the champagne of tea, especially if it is high grown, where the flavours imparted by alti-tude, soil and wind are more intense.

Tea tasting samplesStalk extractor at a tea factory

CCC Rotary Filter

74 | ASL 75 | ASLTea Bar at the Heritance Tea Factory Hotel

The Pekoe grade (P) is the large leaf that is too loosely twisted or other-wise unsuitable for inclusion in OP. A small, shot shaped type of leaf, sifted out from the bulk of Pekoe contains a little tip and is sometimes packed under the name of Flowery Pekoe (FP) and is usually more expensive than simple Pekoe. Broken Orange Pekoe (BOP) is re-nowned for its colour and flavour, with Broken Orange Pekoe Fannings being composed of even smaller par-ticles. This is the tea to have with milk (and sugar) as it is bold in char-acter. Dust is the lowest of the regu-lar grades of tea and of small parti-cles that pack a punch when brewed.

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To taste tea the way the experts do is to discov-er subtleties the average tea drinker might never have thought about. This is where tea can be compared to the various grades of whisky, and single estate teas (that is tea that is unblended and comes from a single tea gar-den) can have the nuance of a single malt whisky. The water for liquoring the tea must be fresh, and immediately it boils it must be poured onto the tea. If the water over boils, the resulting brew will lack vivac-ity. The loose leaf tea should be infused for five minutes. Then you’re ready to begin. The skill of professional tea tasters (who taste tea to decide how to blend it) is only acquired after years of practice. Look and smell the infused tea first. The liquor should be a bright amber colour. The most common de-fects that are easily identifiable by the palate are when it is burnt, minty, smoky, oily, sour, earthy or spicy. Minti-ness is caused by the presence of gum leaf in the tea, and is not the desirable flavour of mint tea. Smokiness or oil-iness reveals a defect in the tea’s manufacture, although some teas, such as Chinese brands, emphasise the smoky, oily flavour. If a tea seems spicy it may have had contact dur-ing manufacture with cardamoms or other spice getting into the leaf; yet some teas are deliberately created to yield a spicy brew. The professional tea taster in a tea factory ap-proaches his work with the seriousness of a wine taster. He has a spittoon too. The tea taster takes the pure tea in his mouth with a loud sucking noise, swilling the liquor around the tongue and gums, drawing up the aroma to the back of the mouth and up to the olfactory nerve in the nose. The taster thereby tastes, feels and smells the liquid. Taste is experienced mainly on the tongue and other surfaces of the mouth. There are four kinds of taste:

salt, sour, sweet and bitter. Sweetness is tasted about the tip of the tongue and bitterness at the back. Saltiness is tasted at the tip and sides of the front of the tongue, and sourness at the back edges. Taste, analyse, consider; then spit it out. A glossary of tea taster’s terms runs to over a hundred expressions. It starts with a description of the appearance of the tea. This ranges from brownish to flaky to well twisted. Then there are terms to describe the infused leaf, such as bright or coppery, while the liq-uor can be variously brisk (having a lively characteris-tic), fruity or thin. There are also terms describing the brew’s general personality, such as flavoury, malty (a desirable quality) and tainted (when the tea has picked up an un-pleasant aroma such as from onions or kerosene). The professional tasting of tea is done to ensure that the tea which consumers buy in packets is what they expect. While English Breakfast Tea is a blend that should always taste the same, it might not; due to the quality of the water being used. Thus it is always better to use boiled mineral water to make the perfect cuppa as mains water will have been treated with chlorine. Whether you favour blended teas with brand names from mainstream manufacturers or boutique blends and single estate teas, will depend on your taste buds. While in Sri Lanka, it is fun to visit the various tea centres and suppliers to taste as much tea as you can. Since it is so fresh and hasn’t waited three months or more to get to your local supermarket shelves, you will find it a zesty revelation. As a tourist, you can take up to 10kg of tea home without paying Sri Lanka export duty. It’s an opportunity not to be missed so that, when at home, you can invite friends and tell them about Sri Lanka, saying as you hap-pily sip your favourite brew: “Ah, that’s my cup of tea!”

Tea tasting event at Heritance Tea Factory Hotel

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Kabukkadanwala, Dambulla, Sri Lanka.Tel: +94 662286300-4, +94 11 5880167 | Fax: +94 662286447 | Mobile: +94 770109966/+94 770109975

E-mail: info@greenparadise.net/reservation@greenparadise.net

First Agro Eco Hotel in Sri Lanka

The Treasure House

Dealers in works of arts & collectables,all furniture & other items undertaken for repairs, polishing & reproduction.

The Treasure House 133, Dr. N.M. Perera Avenue, Borella, Colombo 08.

Tel: +94 (0) 112 696 757Mobile: +94 (0) 714 860 170

E-mail: kumarie_d@hotmail.com

The Treasure House

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It takes only 30 minutes from Colom-bo along the Southern Expressway to reach the Welipenna Intersection

on the way to Brief, an extraordinary garden of Eden. Drive for a further 15 minutes along the road bound for Alut-gama then slow down at the approach to Dharga Town and look for a Bo Tree and shrine marking the differently named Ambagaha Handiya (Mango Tree Junction).

Turn right there (or left if you are com-ing from Alutgama) and follow the road with its neatly painted white lines along its borders until a dignified sign board with lettering like the writing on a legal brief, directs drivers to the right.

The road disintegrates to a country trail until a retired fountain marks a crossroads. The extreme left fork leads through carefully manicured bushes to Brief. And a trip to Brief is a must for any visitor to Sri Lanka.

Brief is a privately owned garden creat-ed in the raggedness of tired plains that proves nature can benefit from man’s help. The transforming of this former – and failed - rubber plantation by Bevis Bawa and its subsequent maintenance

T h E B R i E F O n B R i E F

Brief Garden,Kalawila Village,Beruwala 12070,

Sri Lanka.

Tel: +94 (0) 34 227 4462

Mobile: +94 (0) 77 301 9159

by its current owner Dooland de Silva, is a man-made miracle. It demonstrates that with passion, experiment and ‘blood, sweat and tears,’ nature can be moulded to man’s dreams.

The dream in this case was of Bevis Bawa (1909-1992) who was given the approximately 200-acres rubber estate (acquired by his lawyer father through funds earned from legal briefs) by his mother when he was 20. He took poor-ly to plantation management, prefer-ring the camaraderie of army life where he distinguished himself by becoming ADC to a succession of British gover-nors of Ceylon.

Gradually Bawa sold off acres of rub-ber-growing land, ploughing the funds into the creation of his dream garden; a dream based on gardens he had seen in Europe fused with the grand trees, plants and bewitching foliage of the tropics. Now there are five acres of over 120 varieties of trees, but no flowers. The only ornaments are lyrical statues peering through the undergrowth like elves, and ancient urns.

Brief is open every day from 8am to 5pm and admission costs Rs1,000. Visi-

tors are left to enjoy the gardens, as one flows into another, by themselves. These are gardens that don’t need a guide, only a chance to contemplate nature’s glory (and the gardeners’ painstaking work) in solitude.

After enjoying the gardens, visitors can tour the house, which has been pre-served by Dooland de Silva who inher-ited it, as it was when Bevis Bawa died. It is an amazing example of a simple, tropical colonial life style that has visi-tors gasping in admiration at its quirks and beauty, including a priceless mural by the famous Australian artist, Donald Friend.

Bevis Bawa claimed he had never planned his garden; it was, he said, “a happening.” Dooland de Silva shares his former employer’s passion as he uses his skills to create and landscape gardens throughout Sri Lanka. Thanks to him the genius of one man and his harnessing of nature is still available to beautify the countryside.

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DUTCH BAY RESORTS: A VISION REALISED

Dutch Bay Resorts, the new-est tourism development in northwestern Sri Lanka, is the

outcome of an inspired vision by a Sri Lankan, Neil D’Silva, who -- after starting his career as a receptionist at Triton Hotel and graduating from Taj International Hotels -- emigrated to Bahrain and became a very suc-cessful hotelier, realtor and prop-erty writer. His regular real estate columns and articles were featured throughout Bahrain, Doha and the UAE.

Wanting to create his own tourist en-terprise he searched sites in Spain, Italy and Indonesia before discover-ing an opportunity in his homeland. Proposing his concept to four Euro-pean friends he secured and bought 184 acres of freehold land on Dutch Bay Island, near Kalpitiya, at a time when the area was riddled by war.

It took nine years for his dream to come true with the opening in 2013 of Dutch Bay Resorts, 16 solid white-painted clay brick chalets like Dutch-style Lagoon Lodges, deep in a mangrove jungle where the lagoon laps the shore. A huge glass door on the wooden deck of each Lodge swings open to re-veal a room of startling white-paint-ed, unplastered brick (manufactured in clay works in Kalpitiya and Anam-aduwa of Puttalam district). The bed, at seven feet by seven feet built of solid mahogany and raised to waist height for easy sliding under the lux-

Dutch Bay Resorts, Dutch Bay Island, Kalpitiya. | Web: www.dutchbayresorts.com

ury linen duvet, has a mattress that promises guests a great night’s sleep. The Lodge’s interior is sensibly de-signed with television and DVD play-er at the foot of the bed, a dressing alcove with plenty of shelves, draw-ers and hanging space, with a full length mirror. There is a minibar, a safe, free Wi-fi and satellite channels. The customised cosmetic line, bath-robes and carpet slippers accentuate the luxury within the Island hidea-way concept that Neil and his team want guests to experience. The bathroom is as brilliantly white as the rest of the Lodge with an in-dividual solar power heating unit, a rain shower, two wash basins, and super soft white towels, each with the Dutch Bay logo in gold of a shield with ponies rampant topped with a crown. The ponies acknowledge the wild ones that roam the island, while the crown commemorates the ancient kings of Kandy and the Por-tuguese, then the Dutch, who settled the island, built churches (there’s a ruined one to be seen) and forts. There is a recreation complex front-ed by a saltwater swimming pool and with a restaurant serving delicious fusion seafood (no pork or beef). In spite of the difficulties of con-struction (with everything having to be ferried in by tractor when the tide was low as only a sand bar provid-ed vehicular access from Kalpitiya), Neil D’Silva is keen to get on with the

development of Dutch Bay Island. Phase Two is for 100 signature vil-las complemented by a magnificent town centre, a reproduction Dutch Fort as a reminder of the past, a golf course and club house. The final phase will see the addition of a Ma-rina and a Yacht Club. Of prime importance in the devel-opment will not only be the preser-vation of the area’s rich biodiversity but also the bringing of prosperity to the rural area, supporting local in-dustry and creating not just jobs but career opportunities as well. It’s not awards from Trip Advisor that Neil D’Silva deserves for mak-ing Dutch Bay Resorts a reality; he merits an award for Social Empow-erment. Through realising his dream he has changed for the better the lives of the neglected people of the area. His idea of sustainable tourism is giving them, and generations to come, a future.

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CHINESE GIFT PALACEFor Sri Lankan and Chinese Arts & Crafts, Feng Shui symbols, Gift Items and More

No. 78, Galle Road, Colombo 06, Sri Lanka.Tel: +94 11 2594931

E-mail: cgpalace@hotmail.com

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The Sinhalese traditional way of greeting is by saying ‘Ayubowan!’ It means much more than “Welcome” since it translates into a fervent wish: “May you have long life!” Someone saying “Ayubowan” does so with the palms of

both hands touching together at chest height as if in prayer. The same gesture accompanies the word “Vanakkam” which is the equivalent greeting in Tamil.

W E LC O M E T O S R I L A N K A

SOME TIPS FOR TOURISTSPEOPLE

Some one once described Sri Lankans as being like “tropical Ital-ians.” Sri Lankans are generous with their smiles and their eyes express genuine emotion. The majority of Sri Lankans are Buddhist, with Tamils, Muslims and Burghers (descendants of Sri Lankans and Europeans) making up the rest. Sri Lankans welcome strangers and are keen to see that visitors are happy to be here.

MONEY

The Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs) is made up of 100 cents but you’ll rarely see cents as most coins are of Rs10, 5, 2 and 1 in value. Currency notes in circulation are in denomi-nations of Rs5000, 2000, 1000, 500, 100, 50, 20, and 10. As new notes are being phased in replacing two older versions, you will find some notes of the same denom-ination come in three different colours. Watch careful-ly when you are handling currency to see that you don’t mistake a high denomination note for a lower one. Even Sri Lankans make that mistake.

Visitors bringing into Sri Lanka an excess of $10,000 in any foreign currency should declare the amount to cus-toms on arrival, to allow that much to be taken out again. Keep exchange receipts so you can easily exchange ex-cess rupees back into foreign currency on departure.

Banking hours: All banks in the country open for the public from 0900hrs to 1300hrs from Monday to Friday, but some banks have extended their opening hours until 15.00hrs and are also open on Saturday. There are ATMs for obtaining cash with credit or debit cards in every town; look for the sign equivalent to the one on your card. Some ATMs do not return the card until after the transaction is completed, so don’t pocket the cash and leave without collecting your card.

CuSTomS DuTy-FREE ALLowANCES

Import on arrival: visitors to Sri Lanka are officially re-quired to declare all currencies, valuable equipment, jewellery and gems etc., so they can be taken back on departure. Visitors are not allowed to bring in goods in commercial quantities, or prohibited/restricted goods such as dangerous drugs, weapons, explosive devices or gold. Drug trafficking or possession leads to severe pun-ishments up to the death penalty.

A tourist is allowed to bring in duty free: 1.5 litres of spirits, 2 bottles of wine, a small quantity of perfume and 250ml of toilet water. The duty free importation of cigarettes, cigars or tobacco is not permitted. However, locally manufactured brands of international cigarettes are readily available.

Tourists are allowed to export without paying export tax up to 10kg of tea grown and packed in Sri Lanka. The ex-port of Sri Lankan antiques (defined as an item over 100 years old) is not allowed.

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CONDUCT

Cleanliness and modesty are appreciated even in infor-mal situations. Nudity and topless bathing are prohibit-ed and subject to heavy fines. Display of intimacy is not suitable in public and will probably draw unwanted at-tention.

HANDS AND EATING

Use your right hand for giving, taking, eating or shaking hands as the left hand is considered to be unclean. Do not shake hands with a Buddhist Monk or a Hindu Swa-mi. Greet them with your hands clasped together as if a prayer and raising them to your forehead bending slight-ly forward. When handing objects to another person, us-ing right hand or both hands would be appreciated by the receiver.

VISITING PLACES OF WORSHIP

Visitors to Buddhist and Hindu temples are welcome though the shrines of Hindu temples are sometime closed to non-Hindus. Visitors to temples are expected to be respectably clad, bare footed and with heads un-covered.

Do not attempt to shake hands or be photographed with Buddhist monks or to pose for photos with statues of the Buddha or other deities and paintings.

WOMEN

To avoid causing offence or inviting harassment, there are simple precautions that women should take, since what a woman might wear in her home country could be regarded as provocative in Sri Lanka. Thus loose–fit-ting, non-see-through clothes covering the shoulders, and skirts, dresses or shorts that are at least knee length should be worn, and are sensible for protection from the sun too.

SMOKING

Smoking is prohibited in public places. Please observe non-smoking rules. Smoking is permitted in some en-closed spaces (like bars) but if in doubt, ask before light-ing up.

IN CONVERSATION

In conversation Sri Lankans may ask questions that a for-eigner would regard as being too personal. This is simply reflects the emphasis Sri Lankans place on family life.

PHOTOGRAPHY

Sri Lankans are happy to pose for photographs but it is polite to ask for permission first. Street entertainers like snake charmers would expect a fee for posing.

SAFETY

As in any country, theft can occur, especially when travel-ling by train or in a crowded bus. It is sensible to secure valuables, passport and credit cards out of sight, such as in a money belt or buttoned pockets, and not to leave bags, computers, cameras, etc., unattended when travel-ling.

Keep a record of vital documents, including your pass-port number, credit card numbers etc., separate from those documents in case they do get stolen. If items are stolen, report the theft to the nearest police station and, if you need proof for an insurance claim, obtain a copy of your report. The paper work is involved in reporting losses can be time consuming and irritating. Tourists should not assume that if procedures move slowly they are expected to offer a bribe. If you face really serious problems, e.g. in case of a driving accident, you should contact your consular office as quickly as possible.

UNWRITTEN RULES OF THE ROAD

The rule of ‘might is right’ applies. Flashing headlights mean ‘get out of the way, I’m not stopping’. In these cir-cumstances it is advisable to give the oncoming vehicle adequate space, since they usually approach at high speed. Roundabouts are generally a free-for-all, so take your chance cautiously.

DRIVING PERMIT

Foreigners intending to drive in Sri Lanka are required to obtain a ‘recognition permit’ that is issued up to the expiry date of your International Driving Permit. This is a simple process. Just call at the Automobile Association of Sri Lanka at 40, Sir M.M. Markar Mawatha, Galle Face, Colombo 3, open 08.30-16.30, Monday-Friday except on public holidays.

If you do not have an International Driving Permit but have your national licence, you must apply for a tempo-rary Sri Lankan Driving Licence from the Registrar of Mo-tor Vehicles, Department of Motor Traffic at 341, Elviti-gala Mawatha, Colombo5. Tel:0112694331. Temporary driving licences are issued on payment of Rs 2500+VAT per month up to a maximum period of one year. (Rates are subject to change)

MAINS ELECTRICITY

Mains power in Sri Lanka is 230 V @ 50 Hz AC. Some hotels have transformers/converters enabling visitors to use non-compatible appliances. There may be pro-nounced variations in the voltage and occasional power cuts. As socket types vary, it is advisable to carry a uni-versal adapter.

BUSINESS HOURS

Government Offices: Open 09.30-1700, Monday-Friday.Restaurants and Bars: Permitted hours for alcohol ser-vice are 11.00-14.00 and 17.00-2300; however some restaurants/bars have different licences and do not close in the afternoon. No alcohol is served on Poya (Full Moon) Days.

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USEFUL TELEPHONENUMBERS

Airport (B.I.A.) 011-2264444, 011-2252861-5Flight Information (All Airlines) 011-2263047, 091 – 7335555Srilankan Airlines – General Lines 019-733-5555, 0197332677Baggage Service 019-7333366Brief Garden, Open Hours – 08.00a.m – 05.00p.m 034-2274462Buddhist Cultural Centre (Anderson Road) 011-2734256, 011-2726234Ceylon Hotel Corporation – Hotline 011-5585858Sri Lanka Customs 011-2470945 – 48Customs Biodiversity Protection Unit (Artifacts) 011-2472179Dept. of Archaeology 011-2692840/1Cultural Triangle Office (CCF) 011-2500733/2

Dept . of Wildlife Conservation 011-2888585Eth Athuru Sevena 047-2232147Government Information Centre 1919ICRC- Red Cross 011-2503346Immigration & Emigration Department 011-5329000The National Museum – Colombo 011-2694767National Zoological Gardens 011-271271-3Sri Lanka Tourism 011-2437059-60 Travel Information Centre 011-2426906, 011-2437952Tourist Police 011-2421451 Fax: 011-2382209Child Line Sri Lanka (Report any child abuse) 1929

Immigration & Emigration 011-5329000National Botanic Gardens Department 081-2388654National Museums Department 011-2694767National Zoological Gardens Department 011-2712752Postal Department 011-2328301-03Sri Lanka Railways Department 011-2421280-89Archeological Department 011-2692840-41Buddhist Affairs Department 011-2337315

Motor Traffic Department 011-2694331-36Government Information Department 011-2512758Sri Lanka Customs Department 011-2470945-48Wildlife Conservation Department 011-2888585Forest Department 011-2866631-32Coast Conservation Department 011-2449754Cultural Affairs Department 011-2872031Excise Department 011-2300166

Departments

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The hotel “East Lagoon” is located by the stunning lagoon that drift through the middle of the Batticaloa town and ends up the estuary seen from the “Hotel East Lagoon”. Easy access from

the highway.

Most Convenient

DiscoverBatticaloa’s

Hotelw w w . h o t e l e a s t l a g o o n . l k

Munai Lane, Uppodai Lake RoadSinna Uppodai,Batticaloa-30000.

Reservations: +94 65 222 9222Reservation Fax: +94 65 222 9221Email: info@hoteleastlagoon.lk

Nice Place Restaurant & BungalowsI n a m a l u w a J u n c t i o n , B e l l a n n e o y a , D a m b u l l a , S r i L a n k a .

H o t l i n e : 0 0 9 4 7 7 3 0 6 5 4 9 2 , 0 0 9 4 7 7 1 4 0 9 2 9 2T e l e p h o n e : 0 0 9 4 6 6 2 2 8 6 0 5 0 , 0 0 9 4 7 7 2 4 0 8 2 8 2

F a x : 0 0 9 4 6 6 2 2 8 6 0 5 0 E M a i l : i n f o @ n i c e p l a c e b u n g a l o w s . c o m

W e b : w w w . n i c e p l a c e b u n g a l o w s . c o m

Lower Blackwood, Beragala, Haputhale, Sri Lanka.

T: +94 (0) 57 5675969 (Hotel)

+94 (0) 5850227 (Reservations)

+94 (0) 757913460E: info@melheimresort.comW: www.melheimresort.com

Dambulla Road, Habarana.Hotlines: +94 (0) 773 648 653 | +94 (0) 662 270106

Elephant Rides, Jeep SafarisMinneriya National Park, Kaudulla National Park

Village Tour - Hiriwadunagama, Habarana

Cart Ride & Catamaran Ride with Sri Lankan Village Lunch

The Elephant Voyage Safari

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Club 99 is an established group of professionals from Germany in-volved in business and investment, retailing, and in tourism promotion and development. In October 2013, 56 mem-bers of Club 99 visited Sri Lanka on a whirlwind tour, basing themselves in Negombo and attending functions hosted by the Western Province Tourist Board. They were addressed by the Minister of Commerce & Indus-

CLUB 99

The new Airport Express Highway was opened by The President of Sri Lanka, HE Mahinda Rajapaksa on Sun-day 27 October, 2013. The President drove himself and the First Lady on a ceremonial drive along the highway bringing to a climax the opening celebrations. The three day programme to mark the opening of the road was launched under the guidance of Eco-nomic Development Minister, the Hon Basil Rajapaksa on the advice of President Rajapaksa. Project Minister Hon Nirmala Kotalawam, Western Province Highways and Tourism Minister, Hon Nimal Lanza, Deputy Minister Hon Lasantha Alagiyawanna and Western Province Chief Minister, Hon Prasanna Ranatunga joined in the festivi-ties. In the days before the opening local residents were allowed to walk along and inspect the new high-way. On 24 October tourists were invited with transport from their hotels in the Western Province provided for them to witness a grand parade along the highway of elephants, and some bullock cart races. The event was organised under the patronage of the Western Province Minister of Tourism, the Hon Nimal Lanza and with the support of the Western Province Tourist Board Chair-man, Claude Thomasz, tourist board staff, and local ho-teliers and stakeholders. It is estimated that 25,000 people visited the Expressway within the first 12 hours of it being opened for public viewing with nearly 300,000 people visiting during the three open days. There were track and field events, a bicycle race, art competitions, marching by school musical bands as well as tug of war contests , three wheeler races, and boat races in the Negombo la-goon.

Opening of the new Airport Express Highway

FLASHBACKSDuring October and November, Sri Lanka was privileged to receive visitors from around the world, not only through

CHOGM, the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, but also as members of delegations and groups. The period also saw the opening of a key highway spearheading development and investment in Sri Lanka.

try, the Hon Rishad Bathiudeen, at a function promoting the attractions of Sri Lanka for investment and de-velopment. The delegation thanked The Hon Nimal Lanza, Minister of Tourism for the Western Province, for the efforts he has shown towards expanding Sri Lankan/German busi-ness to business relations and for encouraging the group to stay in and enjoy the Western Province. Arrangements for the visit were made by Kumara Rajapaksa, a

German businessman of Sri Lankan roots, and his firm, Kumara Reisen GmbH in Cologne. Among the German firms in the Club 99 delegation were Coca-Co-la Erfrischungsgetranke AK Koln, Top Magazin Koln, Bayer AG, Presi-dent Porsche Club, Hotel Radisson Blu Dortmund, OVS Senatsschreiber, Pro Gast GmBHm Wolfgang H Eckner GmBH & Co, GolfClub Schloss Miel GmBH, and Coldes Textilien GmBH Koln.

The highway, which links with the Canada Friendship Road outside the Bandaranaike Internation-al Airport at Katunayake, extends for 25.8km to the new Kelani Bridge in the Colombo suburbs. Its construction reduces the drive between the airport and the Kelani Bridge to 20 minutes. It also links with the outer circular road at Kelawalapitiya from which there is access to the Southern Expressway in the Colombo suburb of Katawa. It is expected that this new airport expressway will not only make travelling to and from the airport more convenient for tourists, travellers and residents, but will make access to the north much speedier by de-congesting the existing Peliyagoda-Puttalam road. The Expressway consists of six and four lane sections and has been designed for speeds of 80 kph to 100 kph. It has four strategic interchanges; these are at New Kelani Bridge, Peliyagoda, Ja Ela and Katunayake. There are toll gates at Peliyagoda and at Seeduwa. The toll fee for the entire length of the Expressway begins at Rs300 and rises according to the vehicle. Sound barriers have been installed along the route to reduce noise pollution for the area and the Ex-pressway is monitored by a network of CCTV cameras with emergency telephones installed at every 500m. It has been constructed according to rigorous internation-al standards. Although long planned, construction only commenced in August 2009. It was built with funding obtained through the Government of China as well as from the Government of Sri Lanka. In the first 24 hours of the Airport Expressway being opened, it was used by 19,000 vehicles and gener-ated an income of Rs5.1 million from toll charges.

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Arrival of CLUB 99 members, a top delegation Hon. Minister of Tourism - W.P., addressing the delegation

Donations made by the head of delegation to the disabled

The answer to life’s eternal question: Where to dine today?

www.harposonline.com

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While tour operators train their own profession-al staff to their compa-

ny standards, until recently there has been no responsible training programme for the freelance sec-tor. This has sometimes resulted in tourists being misinformed and even harassed by people purporting to be guides. Recognising the value of these freelance service providers, programmes have been devised to give them training so they have the correct knowledge and attitude to be of service to visitors. For the first time in its his-tory, the Western Province Tourist Board (WPTB) in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management, and the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Au-thority, in 2013 conducted an Area Guides Training Programme. Of the 40 participants in the first course, 30 were successful in obtaining credit passes at the end

of the course. This is encouraging in view of the need to cater properly for the increased number of visitors ar-riving as part of the programme for Sri Lanka to host 2.5 million tourists by 2016. The WPTB has made plans to conduct two or three Tourist Guide programmes annually with a target of adding 350 certified area guides trained through the Western Province. Should the other provinc-es follow the example of the Western Province we can expect an additional 2,500 qualified Tourist Area Guides within a short period. This number will be in ad-dition to the National Guides and Chauffeur Drivers trained by the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management. The Western Province Tour-ist Board has also conducted training programmes for drivers who trans-port tourists. After a thorough train-ing and passing a final exam, drivers

were awarded a special identifica-tion card. The objective is to bring them into the formal sector of disci-plined and trained service providers. Training programmes are also to be introduced by the WPTB for three-wheeler (tuk-tuk) drivers and also for leisure transportation boatmen and vendors. As a result, Sri Lanka will be offering some of the best trained and most courteous service providers for tourists of any country. The Chairman of the West-ern Province Tourist Board Claude Thomasz with all support extended by the Hon Minister of Tourism for the Western Province, Nimal Lanza, is dedicated to giving this opportu-nity to freelance service providers to be of help to tourists and the commu-

nity, and to maintain good discipline under a well-monitored system. The aim is to convert them to the formal sector so that every tourist arriving in Sri Lanka will be able to receive a professional standard of service. The first training course for tourist drivers in Sri Lanka was held under the auspices of the Western Province Tourist Board and the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Au-

thority in Kalutara. It took place at the A-Prima Tourist Hotel in Katuku-runda, South Kalutara, which gener-ously provided additional facilities for the participants. There were 93 participants in the four-day course, which fo-cused on training licensed drivers in ways to improve the tourist ex-perience. Drivers were taught about tourist expectations and how each

driver could personally contribute to the success of the tourist industry by treating their tourist passengers with respect and understanding. The drivers were presented with certificates of participation by the WPTB as well as being given an identity card issued by the Sri Lan-ka Tourism Development Authority stating the holder is an Authorised Tourist Driver. It is valid for one year. They were also issued with a stick-er to display on their vehicles and a name badge. Tourists are being recom-mended to travel with the officially licensed drivers. These Authorised Tourist Drivers will be monitored on their performance. Should tourists have any complaints about a driver, they can quote the driver’s identi-ty number and report them to the Western Province Tourist Board for appropriate action. New courses for tourist ser-vice providers will continue to be held under the auspices of the West-ern Province Tourist Board during 2014. Applications are being invited from all freelance service providers to take part in these courses. q

The Western Province Helps Service Providers

Area Guides being trained at Gangaramaya Temple

Area Guides being briefed at the Bere Lake

The 2nd batch of Area Guides poses for a photograph with Chairman & Lecturers

Area Guides at the examination hall

Kapuhenwela, Marakolliya,Tangalle, Sri Lanka.

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