Whenever, I write in this blog about coming home to Minuwangoda, this is the place I mean. This is Jay's house about 9 kilometers from the international airport and around an hour from the capital city of Colombo, Sri Lanka. (By clicking on any of these pictures, you will be able to view a larger version on Flickr.)
This is a typical Sri Lankan style single-storey dwelling built in the 1980's. This is true to the original with painted concrete floors and an open ceilings. I'm a little put off by recent construction.
Whether it's new-found wealth or the need to show off, most houses now are two or three story behemoths. The designs seem to pay scant attention to the fact that, being in the tropics, living half outside is possible year round. Even old colonial structures used to put wide porches wrapping around the front of the structures. All new construction seems much larger than necessary, so maintenance will eventually be a problem and all those stairs aren't convenient for the elderly either.
Anyway, enough architectural criticism from this layman. I love spending time in this modest dwelling. I celebrate the land and location. It really is our second home.