11 April 2013

Got up at 5:30 this morning to have a wonder around the vast grounds here in Chaaya Lodge. In the morning it is peaceful and tranquil.

There are water lilies growing in the middle of the manmade lake. The water is very still. There are various water birds about.

It is also the time of the morning when the monkeys are active, swinging from tree to tree and having some breakfast. There are sort of beige coloured and furry with a black face.

At about 6:30am, the sun had come up and shining rays were breaking through the foilage.

We had breakfast, packed our bags and hit the road. We were heading for Mihintale. The road to Mihintale is littered to various ancient archeological sites.

Mihintale is know as the place where Buddhism was introduced to Sri Lanka in 247 BC. Mahinda, the son of Ashoka, the Buddhist king of India was sent to Sri Lanka to spread Buddhism. At the entrance is The Kantake Chetiya dagoba. It originally stood above 30m.

Proceeding towards a flight of steps that lead to the upper terrace, you come across the Conversation Hall. Then we went up a flight of 1850 steps to the upper level.

At this level stands the somewhat smaller Ambasthala dagoba.

I decided to further climb a bare rock outcrop callled Aradhana Gala (Invitation Rock) where Mahinda preached his first sermon. I wanted to get a good view of the area around this place. It was truly breathtaking.

From here you got a good view of the Mahaseya dagoba which can be seen for miles around. It is reputed to contain some ashes and a single hair of the Buddha.

After visiting Mihintale we started making our way to Jaffna. In Jaffna we had a short rest before embarking on a trip to Point Pedro which is at the extreme North-East of the island. We went to a well at Nilavarai. In Hindu mythology, Ravana needed water for his troops. He drew an arrow and shot it into the ground to create the well. No one knows how deep the well is. It is reputed to be connected to Keerimalai Springs that we visited earlier by some underground channel.

We made a trip through a coastal town called Velvettiturai. It is infamous for being the birthplace of Velupillai Prabhakaran, founder and leader of the Tamil Tigers. His birth home had been demolished by the army. All that remains is an empty block of land.

We watched the sunset at Point Pedro before heading back to Jaffna, which is about 32kms from here.

 8 April 2013

We got up at 5:30am to have an early morning walk to the waterfront. One of my cousins came with me. Fishing is quite active in the waters off Jaffna between the mainland and Karainagar.

Again, we also passed by homes that were destroyed in the war. Some of these homes with have been quite magnificent during the good times but now are in a sad state. This is quite widespread.

We returned to the hotel after an hours walk to have breakfast. The we were on the road for a tour of Jaffna. We drove through some areas were some of the worst battles took place during the civil war. The devastation is quite confronting. We were heading for the Keerimalai Springs which is adjacent to an ancient temple.

The springs are meant to have curative properties. We had a swim here. The adjacent temple was built in ancient times but was first destroyed by the Portuguese in 1620. It was rebuilt again in about 1894. Some ancient structures are still visible today.

The Sri Lankan army occupied the temple at various times but in 1990 in was destroyed by aerial bombing as retribution. The destruction is quite extensive.

We came by a dog in the temple compound have a good snooze on a mount of sand. He was very comfortable and was enjoying his sleep under a shady tree.

We also went to another ancient temple (most of these temples date back to several hundred to a 1000 years). This is a famous temple that was struck by indiscriminate bombing. This temple has quite exquisite workmanship on the front gopuram (tower). This temple is the Maviddapuram Kanthaswamy temple.

We stopped by for lunch at what seems like a reasonable place. The air-cond in the place wasn’t the best but what caught our eye was the notice on the wall.

We returned to the hotel after lunch. I chilled and had a snooze. Charles decided to follow the ladies on a shopping trip. Our dinner was at a local restaurant called ‘Taste of Jaffna’. Food was good. In fact the food in Jaffna is great. We our off tomorrow on a 2 day trip to Trincomalee.

5 April 2013

It’s 4am. Getting packed to check out of hotel here for a 5am departure to Jaffna. The trip will take 10 hours by road. Meeting another cousin in Vavuniya which is 3 hours away from Jaffna. This will be a different from Colombo as it will be less developed, I am told.

Arrived Jaffna in good time as the roads are good now. New roads are being built after the war in rapid time. The road to Jaffna was interesting. We followed the coastal A3 road from Colombo and then cut at Puttalam onto the A12 road to the ancient city of Anuradapura, which we will visit again in a few days time, and then onto A9 into Jaffna.

We went through Vavuniya which is a major town in the centre of the island and then proceeded into Kilinochchi. Here there are still military checkpoints. Just out of Vavuniya, there is a town called Omantai where we encountered a major military checkpoint. Our car had to be registered for entry. In addition, we had to produce our passports and our particulars were recorded. On the return trip, we have to ‘check out’. The military was keeping an account of everybody heading north. Following this point, you are confronted with the devastation of the war. There were minefields on both sides of the road that are still being cleared. Nearly every house along the way was damaged or had bullet holes. Still live is returning to normal in some pockets. Padi fields are extensive and in full production. Cows, goats and dogs are wondering about. Plenty of dogs around. We reached Elephant Pass in less than an hour.

Not sure why it is called Elephant Pass as there are no elephants around. The Elephant Pass is a narrow causeway that is strategic and was the site of numerous battles.

It felt rather eerie how quiet it is now. Following another hours drive we arrived in Jaffna through narrow busy streets. However roads are still being rebuilt and the town is a hive of activity. We checked into the hotel and met my relatives. We had lunch.

It is quite hot here. About 35C and dry heat. Rooms are air-conditioned in the hotel but otherwise it is basic. Nevertheless, it is comfortable. In the evening, we visited my grandmother’s first cousin who lived down the road. He is a retired public servant who worked in the central bank in Colombo for some 37 years. We managed to have a yarn and caught up on stories about relatives. I gathered some good information for my family tree project. This man is affectionately known among the cousins as ‘white-and-white’ because during his working life he dressed in a white shirt and white pants. It was probably the norm among public servants in those days.

At night, after dinner, Siraj, my cousins husband decided to take us on a quick ‘hoon’ around town. He had a Toyota Hi-lux that he borrowed from his brother in Colombo and we sat at the back for a quick tour. After 10pm, the streets were deserted except for a few eating shops. We stopped in front of one such shop and had coffee and tea brought to us. Real ‘drive-through’ service. The shop assistant did it with a smile, like Maccas, only thing is that he was an old man who probably lived through the war.