First I would like to thank everybody for your good wishes for our wedding. Specially Priyanjan…

As I was busy with my wedding I had to temporarily stop writing travelogues but I was surprised and happy to see lot of new travelogues during my recent visit to Lakdasun web site.

Also I would like to thank Ashan for the wonderful service he is doing to the Lakdasun community. I love your travelogues…

So Guess I am Back…. Hope you all didn’t miss me 😉

This is the third trip in three months and I will write the other travelogues and remaining Jaffna travelouges when time allows…

This travelogue is dedicated to Nihal De Silva the author of “The Road to Elephant Pass” who lost his life inside Willpattu National Park by a land mine explosion and my lovely wife Subhashini. Also I would like to dedicate this travelogue to all the wildlife members who lost their life in Willpattu and for brave soldiers lost their lives.

This was a 3 day 2 night trip and it was VERY LONG AND TIRING JOURNEY and we drove 1100KM in 2 Days as we spent 1 day in Willpattu. So to get an idea I am going to mark our road trip on a Map.

( Map is just and illustration not accurate ) 1st Day - Red (Colombo – Thali Mannar – Nochiyagama ) 2nd Day – Wilpattu Safari Blue (Nochiyagama – Kalpitiya – Colombo) – 3rd Day

1st DAY (COLOMBO – TALAI MANNAR)

We started our journey around 12.30 AM and continuously drove up to Puttalam it was 2.45AM when we arrived Puttalam. From Puttalam there were 2 roads to go to Talei Mannar. Short one goes through Willpattu but it need a 4×4 vehicle and the other one through Madawachiya and joins A14 road. We chose the long drive as the Road through Willpattu opens at 4.30AM and it is a Hazardous journey. We came to know later when we arrived at Mannar the road through Willpattu was flooded. Puttalam – Auradhapura there is a huge road construction going on so the road is not good for about 30KM.

Anuradhapura is a very difficult place to find the correct road as it has so many roundabouts it’s always better to ask from somebody before taking a wrong decision.

We stopped for breakfast on A14 Highway near a small tank and if you are a bird lover this is a good place for bird watching.

A14 Highway

We didn’t have any plan to go to Thanthirimale Temple but after seeing the sign board we were unable to resist.

Thanthirimale sign board

Things to see at Tanthirimale Rajamaha Viharaya

The road to Tanthirimale Rajamaha Viharaya is not in the best condition to visit by a car there are some places bit difficult for the car but it is an awesome drive. You can see lots of birds along the way. Frankly speaking I saw lot more peacocks than Yala while traveling through that road. If you can camp somewhere you can see lots of birds and elephants in that area.

The road to Tanthirimale Rajamaha Viharaya

Peacock

Malabar Hornbill

HORNBILL
Hornbills have unique nesting habits ; the male seals the female into the nesting cavities, most likely to defend against monkeys and snakes, also the male feeds its partner through a bill sized aperture for a period of six weeks to three months while she incubates the eggs , and the fact that the hornbills mate for life , has made them the subject of superstition amongst native tribes , who use them in religious rituals as symbols of purity and fidelity.

The Hornbill is the national symbol of Sarawak. In Sarawak, as in other South East Asian countries, the hornbill is a protected species.

Tanthirimale Rajamaha Vihara

The Raja Maha Viharaya of TANTIRIMALE

Tantirimale temple is situated slightly away from the preserved historical site not to harm the priceless ruins. There are about 10 monks in the temple. There is a Pirivena (an institute which teaches Buddhism) in the temple and the novice monks and the village children learn here.

Anuradhapura is famous throughout the world for the number of pagodas built during the previous centuries. Some of the giant pagodas had been the largest brick buildings of the world at the time. Huge or small the vision behind them was universal to all.

For the Buddhists, Dagoba or the Pagoda is a symbol of the Buddha himself. The relics of the Lord Buddha, along with other valuable items and images and the teachings of Lord Buddha, which is written on gold or copper sheets, are also enshrined in the innermost chamber of a pagoda to make it an object of reverence. According to Buddha’s teachings The Buddha is none other than his teachings.” Whenever a Buddhist worships a pagoda or a Buddha image they meditate over the teachings of the Buddha.

Tantirimale pagoda is like a silver bubble placed on black velvet, a picturesque sight on the unfolding rocky landscape of the temple. It is small in comparison to the other giant pagodas of Anuradhapura but it is a significant symbol, distinguished form the black rocky background in the vicinity, just like the Buddha is significant among the rest of the lay world. Thousands of devotees annually come here and pay their utmost respect to their teacher, the Lord Buddha. On the full moon day of each month, hundreds of devotees clad in white attire, practice meditation here enjoying the calmness of the place as well the calmness of the mind.

Tanthirimale Rajamaha Viharaya

Tanthirimale Rajamaha Viharaya

We wanted to stay more but time stood against us, so we had to continue our journey towards Mannar. Our Next Destination was Madhu Church. There was a Road construction going on Chettikulam Manik farm Area and etc… So the road condition was not good.

Cheddi co-op Papadam Industries

Madhu Church Entrance

Madhu Church Entrance

Although it is not the church feast time there were lot of devotees come to visit Madhu church. Most of them stay overnight and attend the morning mass to seek blessings and depart after lunch.

Madhu church road

land mines warning boards

We were surprised to see the Madhu road condition as it is in excellent condition. We should thank Army for repairing the road and it is a great service for the Devotees. There are land mines warning boards along the road and it is strongly recommended not to step in to the forest area on your way to Madhu.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu

The Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu

The Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu is a Roman Catholic Marian shrine in Mannar district of Sri Lanka. With a history of over 400 years, this shrine acts as a center for pilgrimage and worship for Sri Lankan Catholics. The site is considered as the holiest Catholic shrine in the island and is a well known place of devotion for both Tamil and Sinhalese Catholics alike.The church has been a symbol of unity not just between Tamils and Sinhalese, but also between people of different religions, including Buddhists, Hindus and Protestants. Attendance for the August festival at times touched close to a million people before the out break of the Sri Lankan conflict.

We wanted to stay overnight but we had a schedule to keep so we had to move on. Our next destination was Sillavaturei.

We had to take a turn from A14 road towards Silavaturei which was 16Km Drive but was very difficult due to the road condition. Then we arrived at Sillavaturei junction and headed towards Arripu to find the colonial bungalow “The Doric”.

The Doric sign board

The Doric

The Doric - Arrippu

The Doric - Tower

The Doric has been erroneously mentioned as the Dutch Fort by a few journalists and authors recently. Some of these have provided photographs of it. This mistaken identification seems to be due to few reasons. Though many knew about the existence of the Dutch Fort in Arippu, most of them were ignorant of the existence of a British mansion in the aarea. Also the lack of frequent visitors is the main cause of this ignorance. In some extreme cases the Doric was mentioned as a Portuguese mansion and the palace of a legendary queen Dona Katerina.

The beach near Doric was very calm and quite and recommended for a sea bath. We didn’t have time so we had to move on… Our next destination was Talei mannar but on our way visited some interesting places in Mannar. We visited Giant tank and the water level was very low.

Giant Tank
The Giant’s Tank in the north western corner of the island is a huge ancient irrigation reservoir of 3,800 hectares

Giant's Tank - Mannar

Mannar Causeway

Mannar Causeway
The star birds here are Oystercatcher, Pallas’s Gull and Heuglin’s Gull. All three species are rare in the south. The causeway also allows close views of Whimbrel, Eurasian Curlew and at times Avocet and Crab Plover.

Mannar Fort

Mannar Fort
Built on the island of Mannar by the Portuguese in 1560, it surrendered to the Dutch on 22 February 1658 and was rebuilt by the Dutch in 1696. On 5 October 1795 the Dutch surrendered to the British. The fort has four bastions and it’s still in good condition.

Boabab Tree - Mannar

Boabab Tree
The baobabs in Sri Lanka is believed to have been brought by Arabian Traders. According to a study done in 2003, there are about 40 Baobab Trees surviving in Sri Lanka, out of which 34 has been identified and measured in Mannar. Most of the trees were calculated to be 300-400 years old. The oldest and the largest baobab is at Pallimunei which is said to be about 800 years old. This tree was calculated 723 years old in the 2003 study. The circumference of the tree is is 19.5 meters and its 7.5 meters tall.

Mannar Bridge destroyed by LTTE

We were so tired and also were hungry so we had our lunch in Mannar. As it was the May Day we didn’t had much choice of shops only very few were open. After the lunch we continued our journey towards Talei Mannar. Our main Target was to see Adams bridge remainings. But as its “Warakan” we couldn’t go to near that place.

Talei Mannar light house and new peer

Talei Mannr light house on map

We tried to get access to the light house but it was a high security area so we had to return to Nochchiyagama. On the way to Nochchiyagama we drove through Anuradhapura scared city.

Thuparamaya at Night

Mirisawetiya at Night

We returned to Nochchiyagama around 11PM and had a goodnight sleep.

Have a Safe Journey…..