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Arugam Bay Must have something. Very Special. Even magical. Because we know of few resorts, which have the honour to have half a dozen or more Books and Novels, travel Reports and History Documents Published in Book Form. We refer to International publications; not Travel Guide Books.
Only recently, the best seller “Der Krokodilfelsen” (The Crocodile Rock) was finally translated from it’s original two German editions into English:
This establishment above is also featured
And you may buy or borrow the book from there.
The Travel Novel is based on true facts, set in 1983 in Arugam Bay.
It gives a perfect insight into the Bay as it was then.
And follows events all the way to Hawaii.
Highly recommended to buy and read!
Local outlets are expected to stock it, but a link to Amazon will be published by the aithor herself in due course.
Frau Claudia reacted at once.
Here is the order link:
Order Here. From Amazon directly
Below a summary:
Sri Lanka 1983: For the first time, the young German backpacker travels alone to South Asia. In the fishing village of Arugam Bay, she meets the charismatic Tamil Sooriya with whom she bonds in a special relationship.It is a time when civil war begins ravaging the tropical island. Sooriya finds himself increasingly in danger. In a situation tense with political intrigue, they arrange for Sooriya to leave the country.Years later, destiny reunites them. Sooriya is now living in Hawaii where he has become an acclaimed copper artist and the spiritual leader of Mouna Farm Arts and Culture Village. Back in Sri Lanka, he is respected as a holy man.In 2016, Sooriya Kumar got the award of “Living Treasure of Hawaii.” In 2017 the Love Peace Harmony Foundation and the United Nations Association of Hawaii honored Sooriya as an “International Peace Builder.”
Good News!
With immediate effect mostNations now qualify to be issued with a completely FREE Tourist Visa. On arrival. Or via the link below:
http://www.eta.gov.lk/slvisa/
Please note that the link above is the ONLY proper, official web site.
Do NOT fall for scam and other pages, who offer the same at much higher costs.
This will give you a troubled free, 30 day visa to enjoy tropical, sage and secure Sri Lanka.
Once you are here, and LOVE it: This can be extended for 2 more months, and even up to 6 months (moderate charges apply depending on Nationality)>
Further information and list of included Nations below:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Sri_Lanka
(0)Good News from Remote Arugam Bay!
Full Information about
1.) Health matters (Covid -19)
2.) New Books published (in English and German about AbaY)
3.) Weather and Surf reports
4.) Security updates (Military and civil)
5.) Tourist Visa is FREE again for most Nationals!
Full Details will be publish here within the next few days
(0)Arugam Bay Beach
Sri Lanka
November through March is a great time to visit Sri Lanka, but it can get crowded.
Arugam Bay, on the southeast coast, is a far cry from the busier resorts on this teardrop-shaped island’s west side, which are packed at this time of year.
With its chilled, hammock-swinging vibe, excellent beachfront restaurants (don’t pass up the fish curries at Ranga’s Beach Hut), and superb surf, Arugam Bay is a wonderful place to escape the crowds and get a taste of Indian Ocean life.
Source:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/tripideas/12-great-beaches-for-winter-sun/ar-AAHnZ5n?li=BBnbklE
The legendary photographer, the late Nihal Fernando’s stunning image narrates the tale of the vanishing glory of Muhudu Maha Viharaya
Life brings tears, smiles and memories that last forever. All it takes is a picture to bring back a thousand memories. Our subject this time is the Muhudu Maha Viharaya in Pottuvil where time stands still, where the dust of the royal past never settles. How about reliving an age gone by?
Now, you can take a step back in time and enjoy the fascinating past. Photographic records of a bygone era capture a slice of history and become part of our cultural heritage. Nihal Fernando’s timeless photo of Muhudu Maha Viharaya, brings alive the past in minute detail. A picture is worth a thousand words, they say. The photo, with a vast grove of coconut trees amidst the ancient ruins of Muhudu Maha Viharaya narrates the tale of today’s despair in a telling manner.
Though there is no dearth of evidence on an era gone by in Muhudu Maha Viharaya, this picture is perhaps the first of its kind. Fernando might have taken it in the 60s or 70s which shows how the temple ground occupies the grove of coconut trees near the sea coast off Pottuvil. Just about everything in Pottuvil is contained in this photo. And what’s more, it solves many a jigsaw puzzle.
The photo presents a grove of coconut trees in front of the temple ruins which belonged to the temple and is now a bustling housing scheme. Similarly, one gets to see government buildings close to the sea coast near the temple. This photo is one of the best ways to show the picture of Muhudu Maha Viharaya in an age gone by and today the temple is facing a land dispute.
Photographer Nihal Fernando embarked on a voyage across the length and breadth of the country with camera in hand in an era of black and white or monochrome photography (sixties and seventies). He captured historic sites, monuments, people and wildlife, travelling freely everywhere in the country which was an obvious advantage during the post-independence but pre-war period.
I am an avid admirer of this great photographer and the stunning photo was culled from one of his pictorial books –‘The Wild- The free – The beautiful’- published in 1988.
At the Muhudu Maha Viharaya, he captured this breathtaking candid shot that captures the solitude and silence of the environs in a bygone era which is evidence of today’s encroachment of temple land by nearby villagers.
As Nihal Fernando did, I too visited Muhudu Maha Viharaya on several occasions during my journeys to the East. I visited it after the Peace Accord (MoU) was signed by the Government and the LTTE in 2000 and also during my visits to the Yala East National Park.
During my second visit in 2008, I stayed overnight at the temple to view the breathtaking sunrise over Arugam Bay. At that time, Ven. Kataragama Sirirathana Thera was the resident monk of the Viharaya. He told me that he rarely gets the Dana (alms) twice a day since the Sinhala Buddhis community is very small in Pottuvil. Sometimes he depended on the Buddhist pilgrims who visited the temple.
Ven. Udalamaththe Ratnapriya Thera is the present resident monk of the temple. He said that in the past the temple owned 30 acres of land, but due to encroachment by the villagers the land has shrunk to a very small area. He said there are around 17 Sinhala families who live around Pottuvil and offer Dana (alms) to the temple. Sometimes, the soldiers of the nearby Army camp provide meals while some financial contributions are provided by Buddhist pilgrims who visit the site. Not far away from the township of Pottuvil lies a tiny hamlet amidst bustling concrete block houses. Scattered here and there on the elevated ground were a few stone pillars and a torso of the standing statue of the Buddha along with limbless limestone -cut statues believed to be a Mahayanist Buddhist site. In the bushes of the sand dunes generated by the waves are a few stone pillars. A few yards away from this spot on the sandy beach facing the sea was a heap of broken bricks strewn here and there. Some stone pillars were partially submerged in the sand. A glistering newly-built white dagoba stands majestically on the elevated ground in the coast. Several brickbats and terracotta sculptures have been discovered in the process of excavation.
The name given to this antique spot locally is Muhudu Maha Viharaya. According to a folk tale, after the Royal wedding of Princess Vihara Maha Devi, daughter of King Kelani Tissa and King KavanTissa of the Rohana kingdom, the Royal couple made their maiden visit (probably on their honeymoon) to this spot. Kelaniya was submerged by the sea due to a natural disaster. Princess Devi the daughter of the King of Kelaniya was cast away to sea in a vessel and the princess washed ashore near the Muhudu Maha Vihara in Pottuvil. To commemorate that occasion, the king is said to have built these dagobas and the image house which are now almost in ruins and hardly discernible.
When Nihal Fernando visited the site, the limestone cut-Buddha statue that was lying prone on the ground has since been restored. This fallen Buddha statue has now been restored to its original standing position by the Department of Archaeology. However, the stunning photo that Nihal Fernando captured many decades ago is a perfect picture of Muhudu Maha Viharaya even to date.
source:
http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2019/09/08/reflections/going-back-time-through-timeless-frame
World Surfing League Qualifying Series 3000, also referred to as So Sri Lanka Pro 2019 is all set to be staged at the world-class point break of Arugam Bay from 25 to 29 September, with the participation of over 122 surfers from 24 nations.
The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau announced that the surfing event has been extremely well-received by professional surfers from around the world while many have expressed their keen interest to participate and witness the qualifying rounds in Sri Lanka.
The Bureau noted that while entries are still being received, nearly 122 surfers from 24 nations have entered the final list. This impressive line-up includes participating countries such as Australia, Indonesia, France, Venezuela, Israel, USA, Portugal, New Zealand, Mexico, Spain, Great Britain, Brazil, South Africa, Costa Rica, Argentina, Japan, Ireland, Chile, Belgium, Peru, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka. World Surf League (WSL) Regional Manager Asia and Global VNR Producer Steve Robertson remarked, “We are here to deliver positive stories about Sri Lanka to the world. This is all about a magnificent surfing event and a global promotion about Sri Lanka. All Sri Lankan media is encouraged to engage with World Surf League. We want to work with the domestic media as well. It’s been a great journey, and we are looking forward to the event. We want to bring out a superb event, where everyone is a winner, and we want to keep coming back here, and just to reiterate of how great Sri Lanka is as a destination.”
“It will be so amazing to have the WSL come back to Sri Lanka,” said Sri Lankan Surfing Federation President Hiran Ukwatte. “We can’t wait to witness a world-class event and watch the positive effect it will have on surf sports in our country and on surf tourism to the area. Arugam Bay is a world-class wave with some fantastic local surfers like D.A. Lakshitha, Praneeth Sandaruwan, and Lesitha Prabath to name a few. These surfers are looking forward to the opportunity to compete with and surf with surfers from all around the world,” he expressed.
Many of these surfers are very well-known within the world professional surfing ranks and many are serious contenders to represent their nations in next year’s 2020 Japan Olympic Games, where surfing makes its Olympic debut. One such surfer is the fast emerging Rio Waida from Indonesia. The powerful youngster placed 3rd in the WSL World Junior Championships in 2018 and he is already identified as future star of the sport.
“I am very excited to be coming to Sri Lanka for this great event,” said Waida. “I’ve heard great things about the waves in Sri Lanka and it is always fantastic for us to have the opportunity to compete in quality surf ? I can’t wait!”
The So Sri Lanka Pro 2019 will also play as a huge opportunity for some of the local surfers to take on the international professionals as wildcards in the event. This opportunity is something that has been made possible through the WSL and the Surfing Federation of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) Chairman Kishu Gomes remarked that the event will amplify Sri Lanka’s position as a major surfing and tourist destination. “Over 700 visitors are also expected to be present, in addition to the 122 surfers who would be in the country. The surfers and visitors are scheduled to spend at least 10 days in the surfing paradise of Arugam Bay,” he said.
The So Sri Lanka Pro 2019 Men’s QS3000 will run from 25-29 September, and the ground arrangements will be handled by Lanka Sportreizen. Head to www.worldsurfleague.com or the WSL App for more information. Click here for more information on Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau. For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.
source:
http://www.colombopage.com/archive_19B/Sep15_1568525691CH.php
Nate Berkus Remembers Late Partner Who Died in Asian Tsunami on his Birthday
The interior designer and TV host is upholding the legacy of the late photographer, who died tragically in 2004
Nate Berkus is paying tribute to his late partner to mark what would have been his 54th birthday.
The celebrity interior designer and Oprah protege lost his longtime love, Argentinian photographer Fernando Bengoechea, in the 2004 Asia tsunami. The couple were on vacation in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka, when the natural disaster occurred and were swept out of their accommodation, a beachfront hut, by the force of the wave, Berkus told Oprah in 2005. They managed to stay together through the rushing water, but were eventually separated. When the waves receded, Bengoechea was reported as missing and was never found.
His family released a statement soon after saying, “Based on all of the information we have gathered and the search team’s extraordinary efforts, we still have not heard any word of Fernando. Therefore, it is with great sadness, we are forced to presume Fernando died in the tsunami.”
“It’s been almost 15 years since the tsunami, when we lost Fernando. Every day I think of him, but especially today on his birthday,” Berkus wrote on Instagram.
“Fernando’s brother Marcelo keeps his art alive by hand weaving photographs using the same technique and museum quality materials,” he continued. And while Marcelo’s project is ongoing, Berkus notes, “this month, @fernando_bengoechea_photo is donating 10% of proceeds from the sale of each woven photograph to the Tsunami Relief Fund via @globalgiving.”
The designer shared an old snapshot of Fernando and an image of the woven artwork made from his photography. The image of a Joshua tree is similar to one Berkus displays in his own home, and can be seen in his former Chicago apartment, published in Elle Decor in 2008, and his former New York home in Architectural Digest in 2012.
Berkus wrote candidly about his life after the tsunami in 2005, recalling that the year began with him “lying in my bed, unable to eat, unable to string a sentence together.” It wasn’t until nine-and-a-half months later that he says he found a “new normal” and wasn’t solely focussed on grief.
Remembering a celebration at his home, he wrote, “My best friend had organized the evening, my best friend who had flown to London to save me. Fernando’s ex-boyfriend of seven years was at the table too. They were laughing and smiling. I was laughing and smiling too. He was a stranger to me before the tsunami. Now he is my brother.”
He continued: “That night it occurred to me that I could again be ‘happy,’ that I was not defined only by loss and fear and grief, but also by love and joy and light.”
Berkus married designer Jeremiah Brent in 2014 and the couple now share two children, Poppy, 4, and Oskar Michael, 1. Oskar’s name is also a tribute to Fernando.
“[Fernando’s] middle name was Oskar,” Berkus, 47, told PEOPLE exclusively of the poignant inspiration in April 2018 — and what’s more surprising, the tribute “was actually Jeremiah’s idea.”
“We have always honored Fernando’s memory in our relationship. He’s a part of our love story,” explains Brent, 34. “It’s such an important chapter in Nate’s life. So the idea that we can honor his memory in a beautiful way was exciting to us.”
Fernando Bangoechea’s woven photographs are available on fernandobengoechea.com
Source: https://people.com/home/nate-berkus-remembers-late-partner-who-died-in-asia-tsunami-on-his-birthday/
Related links: https://www.arugam.info/2008/10/10/nate-berkus-life-changed-in-arugam-bay/
Arugam Bay in the Pottuvil Divisional Secretariat Division in the Ampara district is one of Sri Lanka’s tourist hotspots.
Arugam Bay is a famous surfing spot that attracts tourists from all over the world.
The tourism industry, which suffered a severe setback after the Easter Sunday attacks, is still recovering after the relaxation of travel advisories by many countries. Lonely Planet, one of the most popular travel magazines in the world, still lists Sri Lanka as the top destination for 2019 despite the Easter Sunday terror attacks.
Arugam Bay is one of God’s greatest gifts that enhances the beauty of Sri Lanka, to the extent that it can be described as a ‘tourist’s paradise’.
Arugam Bay is located on the southeast coast, 320 km from Colombo and can be reached within seven hours via Moneragala. Arugam Bay beach, a wide sweeping sandy beach around the village of Ulla, is an attraction all year round.
The beach is not the only attraction in the area. The surrounding countryside encompasses the loveliest scenery that spans mangroves, jungle, lagoon, river, paddy fields and dunes, all of which are popular with tourists.
Thousands of local and foreign tourists visit Arugam Bay each year. The area is also reputed for its rich cultural heritage and famous places of worship such as Muhudu Maha Vihara, Magul Maha Vihara, the Kudumbigala archaeological site and Aukenda Temples. The Kumana National Park and the sand dunes are other attractions.
The surfing season in Arugam Bay starts in April and ends in October. During the season, the wind is predominantly offshore. Two kilometers inland from Arugam Bay is the scenic Pottuvil Lagoon. Local fishermen offer tourists boat rides on the lagoon.
The season for offshore dolphin viewing at Arugam Bay is from April to October and falls within Arugam Bay’s high season. Twelve kilometres south of Arugam Bay is Panama, the last inhabited village before entering the Yala East National Park. Panama lies inland, but intersects with lagoons and is rich in bird life
Twenty kilometres south of Panama is the village of Okanda that has a popular surfing spot. The village is home to a famous shrine located at the point where God Skanda is believed to have landed on the island.
Kumana National Park fed by a channel from the Kumbukkan Oya is the focal point of Yala East National Park. About 20 km into the park is the Kumuna Reservoir where mangroves host a wide array of aquatic birds, many of which nest in May and June. Among the birds, the painted storks, herons, egrets, Indian darters and little cormorants are common. Black-necked stork, one of the rarest birds of Sri Lanka, also finds a habitat in the park.
A few kilometers inland from Okanda lies the Kudumbigala forest hermitage. About 15 km inland from Arugam Bay (on the Siyambalanduwa – Pottuvil road), the main road that passes through the scenic Lahugala Park draws a herd of about 150 elephants during July and August.
Just east of Lahugala lies a cluster of ruins of the ancient Buddhist temple Magul Maha Vihara, built by King Dhatusena.
source:
http://www.dailynews.lk/2019/08/14/features/193919/arugam-bay-%E2%80%93-surfers%E2%80%99-paradise
We are happy to report that again there are
Daily transfers from the airport to Arugam Bay
And although the old, original Arugam Bay Taxi Initiative is no longer fully active, due to other commitments:
We still will assist anyone to share a ride, and still:
We NEVER, ever charge any commission to anyone.
It’s a completely FREE Community service.
Contact us via e-mail:
arugamtaxi@gmail.com
or
What’s up:
+94773200201
- Crisis in Sri Lanka
Please be informed that most social media have now been blocked and are inaccessible.
Therefore Facebook, What’s Up, Instagram and Twitter
as well as the BBC etc.
Are no longer available on our island right now.
This is in reaction today’s bomb explosions
And to stop rumors.Anyone feeling unsafe, anywhere, is invited to come to Arugam Bay.
Where the Community and some hotels will provide FREE rooms.
To anyone who requires comfort and shelter
(Plenty of free rooms are available)
Fact seems to be, that
5 Star Hotels and
Christian Churches
are the main target:
There are NONE of those in AbaY
We just don’t have a church, and No Big Hotel.
Also, the only and single road in & out of Arugam
Is very easy to control.
So it is realistic to assume, that
Arugam Bay is a very safe destination.
History, in all those terrible war years have shown just that
Nobody has an interest (so far) to blast a few surfers and pot smokers…
This is a fact.This is NOT a tourist promotion,
Nor does this post have any financial motive!
But it’s a useful information
And an invitation to anyone feeling unsafe elsewhere.
The Community welcomes you.
And money is not an issue at all.
Arugam Bay is truly a beautiful place on Earth.
We like to keep it that way.
And also weed out frauds and land thefts.
Please sign our new Petition!
Just a click or two below will assist us !
Investor, Developer President Trump shifts his focus from Ireland to Arugam Bay
A Wall around a famous Surf Bay, An outrage in Ireland (see link below) Now at Arugam Bay?
“I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I build them very inexpensively.”
Donald J. Trump
As known President Obama is a keep water sports man & surfer.
Now Trump jumps on the popular bandwagon it seems: Reports are coming in.
That this keen developer has teamed up with a loco banker at nearby PottiVille.
To grab some prime property. Then brick it up
& develop the site.
Keen Surfer dude Trump. On his way to AbaY
Happy to see his predecessor wiped out
Believe you me: I can surf better than anyone.
Presidential staff unloads boards @ Mad Mattala airport. 2 hrs. distant from Arugam
Rival Obama was not interested in Walls at all.
1st victim of the Grand AbaY wall: The Siam View. Licensed bar bricked up end March, 2019
Rumor has it, that Trump made deals with a local bank. To take possession and brick the entire beauty spot and all old popular places up.
******************************************************************************************************************
Lessons from the Republic of Ireland
Irish plans however, did run into stiff opposition:
Below extracts from the Surf Simply site.
Question is: Will the Arugam Bay Community and the Sri Lankan Nation tolerate such a take-over?
US Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump’s desire to build an impenetrable barrier along the border between the US and Mexico (inexplicably paid for by the Mexican government) is not the only contentious wall project that the seventy year old billionaire property developer and presidential hopeful is hoping to push through. Donald also wants to build a wall along a beach on Ireland’s wild west coast to protect one of his golf courses.
An empty peak at Doughmore beach. Photograph courtesy of Otter Surfboards.
Trump International Golf Links (TIGL) Ireland Ltd. are seeking permission to build a 4.5 metre high wall, consisting of 200,000 tons of rock, along 2.8 kilometres of Doughmore beach in front of a sensitive coastal sand dune ecosystem designated a “Special Area of Conservation” by the European Union. Construction of such a hard coastal defence installation will, according to the US based Save The Waves Coalition: “destroy the sand dune habitat, restrict public access, negatively impact the quality of the surfing waves, and ultimately result in beach loss”. Dune systems are, by their very nature, dynamic systems that trap and store sand, feeding beaches and offshore sediment deposits and acting as a “soft” buffer zone to protect the coast from storm damage. They are also rich but fragile ecosystems that support a surprisingly rich variety of wildlife. Trump’s golf course is built along the Carrowmore Dunes in front of Doughmore beach, a consistent and popular beach break, and local surfers are amongst those concerned that the disruption to the movement of sediment that a wall would cause would starve the beach of sand, negatively impacting the quality of the surf but more worryingly eventually leading to the disappearance of the beach.
If You stand for justice, and do not like this type of “Progress:
Please sign the petition below:
Save Arugam’s Heritage and the Old SVH
source
https://surfsimply.com/nature/trumps-wall-against-the-waves/
International Surf WQS planned at Arugam Bay this June!
With the growing success of the Surfing Federation of Sri Lanka (SFSL), it will host the World’s most accomplished Surfers in a World Qualifying Series (WQS) competition this June at Arugam Bay.
The SFSL is a member of the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka and will play a big part in the proceedings.
Altogether, 145 competitors and 105 officials from 22 countries such as United States, Brazil, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, France, Japan and Indonesia, to name a few. are billed to participate, with the projected income for Sri Lanka set at US$ 450,000.
Surf Champ. Julian Wilson. Enjoying his winning with a cool Corona @ the Siam View
The World Surf League (WSL) is the home of professional Surfing, and the WQS events are given Star Ratings with this particular event made a 6 Star Event, the highest rating in this series, up with the Hawaiian events and attracting the very best of professional Surfers. In the exciting world of professional Surfing no one is safe on the “tour” and attendance and good results at these events, held worldwide, are vital in keeping the dreams alive of a possible world title one day.
The WQS is the only possible route into the final Championship Tour that decides a world champion from 32 Surfers, but those in the lower rankings of the Championship Tour have to compete in the WQS events to stay on that tour, so expect to see some of the biggest names in Surfing gracing our waves.
The global media presence at the WSL events is massive with an expected 120 million online viewers over an event window. This media exposure would be a huge boost to, not only Arugam Bay and Eastern Sri Lanka, but to the entire Sri Lankan tourism sector. Sri Lanka would be up in the rankings of Hawaii, California and Australia who of course are major venues for WSL events.
WSL events are expect to bring around US$ 450,000 of direct revenue to the area where the competitions are held, but it’s the aftermath of this exposure online that has made a huge and positive impact for many countries that have hosted these events.
So how do they find a winner? Surfers are judged by a panel of 5 professional judges who travel the tour and the Surfer will be judged according to a set criteria, with each wave judged out of a possible maximum 10 in a 20-30 minute period. Of course, they are surfing against their rivals but more than that, they are trying to catch the judges eyes with a solid performance. Its exciting stuff and quite easy to understand. Even the layman can often give a solid opinion on a spectacular surfing display. Surfers compete against one another in groups of 4 until the final exciting rounds where its man-on-man competition until the winner is crowned. They receive considerable prize money too for their efforts.
source (of the text content):
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/190203/sports/lankans-biggest-surfing-event-ever-scheduled-for-june-334099.html
The Old Siam View Hotel is inviting EVERYONE to celebrate the NEW YEAR 2019.
The will be LIVE Music, a Magic Show and of course a fully licensed Bar with fine wines and draft beers.
Also of course, as “Siam” Stands for:
A great authentic THAI restaurant.
EVERYONE is most welcome to join in; especially Families and children!
Please keep drunks and aggressive guys out – and go easy on fireworks.
Everything else is completely free (Just pay for food & drinks pse)
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Surf Forecast for Arugam Bay
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