Aluthgama and Bentota

Ahhh! Bentota!  That expansive white - yellow sand on a palm fringed beach is an excellent choice for holiday makers seeking sun, sand and a relaxed holiday!

Bentota Beach

A popular destination for holiday package tourists, Bentota, now an easy one hundred or so kilometre drive from Katunayake airport, has much on offer, especially beach and water based activities of snorkelling, diving, wind surfing, water skiing. We travelled smoothly on the new expressway, which, while it is an easier ride,  misses the hustle and sights of the old Galle Road.

Bentota River

Our holiday apartment was in Aluthgama, across the road from the Bentota River, so  I was soon sitting on the river bank watching some jet ski fun, boats returning from cruises a well as small boats adorned with fishing rods heading upstream for a bit of tourist fishing. The river cruise was a great hit with one family who excitedly reported seeing baby crocodiles and water lizards. 

That's a baby one!

As I sat and watched the world glide by, I acquired a curious, but shy, companion who gazed at me with gorgeous eyes until an adult's command had him run safely home.

Kindergarten class

It is forty years since we last visited Bentota and we were here to visit friends who had been targeted in  racial and religious riots some months back. Their homes still in disrepair, they welcomed us so cheerfully and generously that breakfast was the only meal of any day that we found for ourselves. By day, we were taken by tuk tuk to explore wherever we wanted, returning to one of the extended family's homes for lunch and to another home for the evening meal. Despite their ordeal, the reality of living in homes still under major repair and difficulty in knowing whom they could trust, they were cheerful and seemed hopeful of better things to come. 
One morning I was able go with my host family to visit a kindergarten and also a junior class. The kindergarten children start lessons very early and took a breakfast break soon after my arrival so I was able to chat with the teachers about their lessons and hopes. When I visit again, I plan on taking acrylic paints and accessories for the children to have an opportunity to be creative with their art. Such things are luxury in schools here where education is learned so formally. I visit several schools whenever I come here and notice that the curriculum in this country seems so restrictive considering the rapid changes in technology, the elimination of many clerical jobs and high need for coding skills in the future. Of course, those in this country who have money and power have their children in more up to the minute private schools, studying an international curriculum and receiving private tuition before going overseas to University.

Near Beruwala

It was a sobering tuk tuk ride around the coast road from Bentota to Beruwala. This area was very badly affected by the December 26th, 2004 tsunami which took more than 35,000 lives in Sri Lanka. Very many more than that, is my opinion as I had  travelled by train from the South of the country during the week before the tsunami and had been appalled by the seemingly wall to wall shanties, teaming with children, that lined the coast between the track and high tide line from Galle to almost Mount Lavinia. Most of those shanty dwellers would not have been registered and therefore, not counted. I did hear very recently that the numbers of people lost were being raised. While we saw a plaque in the ground and a community centre that had been built with tsunami money, I couldn't bring myself to take photos. Too, too, sad.

Masjidul Abrar Mosque

We found the oldest mosque in Sri Lanka on standing atop the peninsular in Beruwala. Built in 920AD by the Arab traders it is a remarkable landmark between the ocean and the fishing harbour. We spent an informative and peaceful hour here being shown around by a young man who, having noted our progress along the road from Bentota, was ready to offer his services. His tour was very enjoyable so we were happy to respond to his request for payment for his time. I do wish he hadn't given us one of the usual hardship stories though.

Fishing boats at Beruwala

The day was very still and not too hot for our tuk tuk tour. Younger tourists were also out exploring but by bike, scooter or motorbike and we met up at the icecream tuk tuk. I learned that some of the hotels make bikes available for their guests and I think it a great way to explore this flat area.

Beruwala beach

After our cool ice cream stop, we headed away from the beach and soon saw a massive Buddha dwarfing the people and tuk tuks parked below. This gigantic seated Buddha was a recent addition to an ancient Kande Viharaya Temple and is said to be the tallest sitting Buddha statue in the world. Thinking of all the other "Big" constructions elsewhere in the world [ bananas, pineapples, kiwi fruits etc] it would be a shame for such a relevant philosophy that Buddhism is, to be so cheapened by a desire to be the biggest. The recent proliferation of such statues everywhere doesn't sit well with my understandings of the principles of Buddhism which has at its core the fundamental idea that there is no happiness in greed, pretense, ego and so on. In fact most sermons have references to letting go of ego, emotions and the causes of personal suffering. To me, the lessons from Buddhism include the realisation that I am but a microscopic spec in the passing of the ages, my ego is irrelevant.

Samdhi Buddha, Beruwala

Kande Viharaya Buddha, Bentota

As my companion was becoming tired I wasn't able to go inside to see the paintings of the Buddhist stories and I look forward to doing that on another trip.

Bo Tree, Bentota

Just outside the temple gate there is a impressive Bo tree, encircled by shrines.

So, that's a glimpse of Bentota through my eyes! 

Note for travellers: 
Weatherwise, if water sports and the beach is the attraction for you the seas are at their best here from around November to April. There are so many other things here to explore such as the Portuguese and Dutch history. It's an ideal place for day trips to Galle, the turtle sanctuary at Kosgoda and more. There's accommodation to suit all budgets, plenty of restaurants serving all kinds of food - except western fast foods - and a train station at Aluthgama.