Sri Lanka: travelogue - day 14-20 (Ahungalla - Kosgoda - Ratnapura


		Day 14 - 20 : Ahungalla - Kosgoda - Ratnapura - Ambalangoda Home \| Travel page \| Info Sri Lanka \| Map Sri Lanka \| Previous day \| Next day

(click on the photos for a bigger format)

Regular visit of the
squirrels

In expatiation of the last days of the main perahera (for details see General info Sri Lanka) we held a 1 week vacation on the

A hermit lobster

palm tree beach of the Triton Hotel with the company of squirrels, crows and hermit lobsters.
But after a few days we're already tired of the idling. So decide to make a trip to Ratnapura, City of Gems. Via the reception of the hotel we hire a taxi with driver for a full day for 2.700 rupees (thus not so cheap).
We drive first to Bentota. Everyway along the road you will see the so-called 'toddy-tappers' working in the palm trees. That means, they tightrope from the top of one tree to another on shaky ropeways to remove the full buckets of toddy and replace them with empty buckets.
Just before Kosgoda we stop for a demonstration by a toddy-tapper. We taste the

High in the palm trees:
the toddy-tapper

toddy, a natural drink, a bit like cider (it's very rich of vitamin C). After getting the toddy from the top of the palm trees, it's collected in wooden barrels along the road. Periodically brewers raise the barrels to distillate the toddy into arrack.

Arriving at Kosgoda we stop at one of the many breeding place for turtles in Sri Lanka; They all resort under the Wild Life Protection Society. The turtle eggs lie unprotected on many beaches in Sri Lanka. However children and fishermen bring them to the breeding places, because they receive a small donation for each egg they bring in. In that manner several endangered species, such as the 'hawksbill' are saved.

Around Kosgoda (click here for a bigger format of the photos)

Breeding grounds for turtles			Production of rubberr

We also visit a rubber plantation. An old woman demonstrates how she taps the rubber from the rubber tree. In a nearby rubber factory we can see the whole production process from fluid to a solid rubber product. Everything happens in an old fashion way and under primitive circumstances. Nevertheless Sri Lanka is still one of the biggest rubber producers of the world.

Passing Bentota we turn into the road to Ratnapura (central Sri Lanka). The environment becomes more and more beautiful, more and more green, abound of all kind of flowers, plants, bushes and trees.

An iguana is crossing
the road

Suddenly the car has to stop because a hug iguana is crossing the road. We think he's (or is it a 'she'?) about 2 long. He's taking his time, so we get time enough to film and to take photos.

Because of the many stops along the way, we just arrive in Ratnapura shortly in the early afternoon. First we visit the Gemmological Museum (there's also the National Museum, but we didn't visit it). Here you get a good overview of the many different gems one can find in Sri Lanka (for information on gems: see our travelogue day 8).
Along the road to Ratnapura we already saw many digging pits, mostly in the middle of fields or paddies. Also in the direct neighbourhood of Ratnapura city there're a lot of such places. Our driver shows us the way to one of the mining pits. A vertical tunnel about 10 to 20 metres deep are supported by wooden poles. At the bottom in the dark someone is digging in the mud water. He fills a basket with mud. On his sign an other man at the surface pulls up the basket. The muddy gravel is washed and an expert search through the pebbles in the hope finding some stones. In the same pit usually the diggers found a variety of different stones. As expected the working men want to sell us some 'gems' ('Sir, sir, ... look real gems!').


Mining pits for gems in Ratnapura (click here for the photo gallery - bigger format)

Returning from Ratnapura we planned a little walk in the centre of Bentota, but once again it's almost impossible because of the many sellers, beggars and children which try to attrack our attention (and rupees). We run away into the car...

While staying in the Triton Hotel we make a study of the Singhalese masks. There are 3 types:

masks carried at rural dance dramas (klam)
masks carried for the devil dances to exorcise the demons (san)
masks carried during the processions and festivals (rasta)

Touristy or not, most of the masks are of good or very good quality. It seems that the most beautiful masks of Sri Lanka are made in Ambalangoda. Therefore we decided to visit the centre of the masks. At the reception of the hotel we hired a taxi for 300 rupees. As soon we stepped into the cab the driver wants us to visit a gem shop, a batik factory, to do a river safari, to sell us real antique, etc., etc.! It took us a great effort to persuade him to drive us just to Ambalangoda, more specific to the shop of Ariyapala (or his son), one of the most famous mask carver of Sri Lanka. Of course our driver would like to go to an other (and according to him to a better) mask carver. But for once we stick to our guns!

Ambalangoda:
Ariyapala mask

In Ambalangoda we stop at Ariyapala's shop. First we have to visit a 'museum of masks' (donation please!).
The shop assistant notice that my wife knows a lot of painting techniques. So he leads us to a separated room where he sells much more beautiful, and of course more expensive, masks. he tells us that those masks normally are not for sale to tourists. We believe him. At the end we buy a special mask and pay about 1.300 rupees for it. You can buy tourist masks already for 100 rupees.

In Sri Lanka there's a lot of fishing. Therefore all hotels serve excellent seafood dishes. Try once the giant skewers with tiger prawns.!

The day before we should return to Kandy there's a general curfew and and a total prohibition on alcohol, because of the coming elections. We wonder how we will get to Kandy for tomorrow.

Disclaimer

Last update:
2001-09-30