To Batticaloa
We took the 7.15 train to Batticaloa from Colombo Fort, which seems to be the place from where most of our travels begin. It is also possible to get to Arugam Bay via Ampara but spending A?11 hours in a bus wasna??t exactly our idea of fun.
The train ride is long. We only got to Batti at 5 am. It stopped at various places for no apparent reason. Traveling on a Sunday night in second class will get you double seats for yourself. But, unless you are a midget, youa??d be hard pressed to get some comfortable sleep. Tickets are Rs. 500. Its a longass train ride that takes you through Habarana and Polonnaruwa seemingly just to avoid the hill country.
At Batti, following the guidance of Lonely Planet we visited a very mediocre looking dutch fort. The generalA?architectureA?of Batti is reminiscent of South India. There arena??t many trees but the ones there are have been colonized by pigeons, with very bad bathroom habits.
We ate at a restaurant called Hotel Thameemy at the end of main street. We had Parata and pol rotti with potato curry, pol sambol and beef. The food was excellent.
Good price for nolvadex
To Arugam Bay
The ride to Arugam Bay was in three stages. Batti to Kalmunai, Kalmunai to Akkaraipattu and Akkaraipattu to Pottuvil. The landscape is dry and arid. Its got a strange beauty about it.
The first two stages were in hot buses. We had interesting chats with the driver on the second stretch. The roads are being developed at a rate and this provides a lot of employment to area residents. On the stretch from Akkaraipattu to Aa??bay we took a tuk tuk. This cost us around Rs. 1300. We recommend you take the bus.
Eating and Sleeping in Aa??Bay
We stayed at Sooriyas, the only place in Sri Lanka (pendingA?verification) whereA?accommodationA?can be gotten for 200 bucks per person. The room comes complete with bathroom, fan and fresh linen. The host, Asraff, is friendly and a good cook. Food is billed for separately though and if youa??re looking for ultra cheap meals then Aliraa??s, a fewA?metersA?north on the beach side, is a good option.
Peanut farm
We rented 3 push bikes and biked over to Peanut Farm. Bikes can be gotten from Hakeema??s for 300 rupees a day. Peanut farm is a surfing point that is roughly 8kms south of Arugam Bay. Its got beautiful deserted beaches and some interesting looking rocks on to the right side with some caves in them.
The road heads through fields flanked by thick dry zone forest. Elephants are said to haunt the roadsides after dark and we had a close encounter with one on the way back. It gave us the stink eye. We assume there is rap music involved somewhere.
This post might be a bit delayed because we are currently using internet that apparently uses smoke signals and monkeys overdosing on Acid for transmission provided by the dude over at indi.ca via dialog. Phone reception is particularly good with most areas covered by that operator.
source:
http://sinhalayatravels.wordpress.com/2009/10/29/day-1-arugam-bay/
Arugam Forum
Arugam Photo Galleries on Picasa
Old Website
Press Coverage
Surf Forecast for Arugam Bay
Taken from the original site:
Responses
1.
Hey that ’sooriya’s place looks a very good ‘buy’! Thanks for that info..
Damn.. Dialog is everywhere.. I prefer to go to a place where there is no single mobile signal..peace of mind 🙂
Good info on that cycles too..I’ll keep all that in mind..
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By: Kirigalpoththa on October 29, 2009
at 3:49 pm
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2.
awesome post Whack! Batti looks awesome! 😀
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By: Chavie on October 29, 2009
at 5:27 pm
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3.
the post could use some beefing up, seems rushed. but informative nonetheless (:
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By: St. Fallen on October 29, 2009
at 11:18 pm
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4.
The whole trip sounds interesting.
Can you map out the route , the method of transportation and costs associated ? How much of supplies did you carry and how much did you buy ? Is the drinking water safe ? What type of repellants were most effective ?
Could non sinhala/tamil speaking people make this trip ? We would have no contacts in the area so would we need clearance from the govt etc ?
With the cheap air fares to that side of the world and the SLR against the Euro going well, this seem a fantastic adventure to record off the lonely planet routes.
One of those NOT ON LONELY PLANET discovery things, hopefully.
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By: Lindsay on November 3, 2009
at 4:02 pm
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5.
Also how long does it take to organize it upon arriving in Colombo ? We understand that the train tickets cannot be bought online 🙂 . Can we buy all supplies in Colombo ? tents plus gear ?
The air fares are much cheaper if we select the carry on only options.
Further is there a best season to visit this area ? We understand that the street parade in Kandy happens in Aug/Sept. Similarly is there a season
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By: Lindsay on November 3, 2009
at 4:06 pm
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6.
Also google map the route , if possible.
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By: Lindsay on November 3, 2009
at 4:07 pm
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7.
Hi Lindsay
well we generally proceeded along the east coast of SL. foreigners can easily make the trip as the locals are very friendly and helpful and can speak passable english. The security is also very tight so no worries there. No clearance is required for the east coast, but proceeding to the northern parts past trico is still a problem. As for seasons well, different things happen in different seasons, your lonely planet guide will give you the main variants. Other than that most things are the same all year round.
We budgeted around rs 10,000 and were comfortable enough:) i suggest you buy the tent from abroad as you probably will not be able to find good ones here. Decent Backpacks can be bought in Colombo. Supplies are available in most towns. But thats only for food and other basic needs. I’ll put up the google maps route shortly. please mail us when you get down here. We’ll help you guys out with more info 🙂 cheers! and i hope you enjoy ur stay