Poya Day

Day 41 - The day of the full moon is special in Sri Lanka. It is a civil and bank holiday. Many Sri Lankan Buddhists observe the day by visiting a temple. Last night we ordered a driver and van to pick us up this morning so we could discover three temples in the Gampaha area. Sri Lanka is dotted with temples and ancient religious places all over the island. Often, they are at sites with hills or special geography. Although today's temples are only about 25 km from the house, Jay and his sisters had seldom if ever visited them, certainly never all in one day.

We rented through PickMe and chose to pay for 6 hours and 60 kilometers. The driver would wait at each location and then bring us back to the house. The cost would be a bit over US$ 18.00, which works out to less than $5 each. Jay had calculated that would be enough time and distance. Our driver was a tad late but the day worked out well. There was enough climbing so that I know we will all have sore legs tomorrow!

Pilikuththuwa









Maligathanne









Varana








At the end of the third temple, we decided to get lunch. The driver brought us up to Nittambuwa, so we could go back on the Veyangoda Rd. A well-know place, Sashas, is on that road and a good place to get rice and curry buffet.

We got home about a half-hour early and we had travelled 60.76 kilometers. I took a shower immediately as my shirt had been pretty sweaty during the climbing! Oh, and later, there surely was a great full moon from Minuwangoda.

Rural Richmond

For the first Sunday in ages, Jay didn't have to go to work.

We decided to take a quick trip to Richmond, BC just for the drive. The day started off grey but has turned increasingly brighter. We'd never travelled on the completed, South Fraser Parimeter Highway, so we popped across the Puttullo here and travelled west all the way to 91. Then, on the other side of the tunnel we turned onto the Steveston Highway.

We stopped at the Richmond Buddhist Temple.


Although we came back via the Westminster Highway, we did go east to turn at #6 Road. This allowed us to stop at the Richmond Country Market. They had huge boxes of Okanagan apples and, of course, quite few local pumpkins.

A Nearly Indescribable Location

I have finally uploaded a few photos from our October 2009 trip to Cambodia. As of this minute, there's only one from the temples from Angkor.



Perhaps, it's just the trip's immediacy, but I think Cambodia was one of the most interesting vacations of late. We enjoyed the people and travelling there was the perfect type of journey. Our day spent in the temple complex of Angkor has got to be one of the places I'll always remember. In the photo above I'm standing inside the Bayon Temple. It was tiny in comparison to the monumental Ankor Wat proper. Yet, the Bayon Temple has to be the very most interesting architectural achievement I have ever witnessed. If I had means to instantly jump to any worldwide GPS position, this location would be on my Top-10 list of places to go.

When writing today's entry, I also re-discovered the superb BBC Ankor Wat YouTube documentary in my eJournal and images. It's over fifty minutes long but you can watch bits when you have the time. Just click the CAMBODIA tag (label) below and scroll to the bottom entry.

Sri Lankan Places

It is a dreary morning and I spent it correcting assignments. Yesterday I was a bit lazy in creating an entry and the same goes for today. Rather than a deep philosophical discussion, I will try showing some of my pictures on Flickr. I cannot believe I've still not uploaded half of the September/October trip to Italy. It's okay as there are already over 5,000 other pics there to draw from. The use of tags means different trips can be combined into a single slide show. Here, I'll try to embed all pictures that have the tag, temple. I further refined the search to include 90 taken in Sri Lanka. They are mainly Buddhist places of worship but I noted several Hindu Kovils too.

1993: Static or Moving

Although this top photo is fourteen years old, it has existed in scanned form for a year and a half. It has been quietly sitting on Flickr.

In the photo Jay is talking with a monk when we climbed Swayambhu.

We only spent a short, winter vacation in Nepal; however, this blog already boasts a fair number of references to the trip. We, of course, flew into Kathmandu. After spending some time there we took an express bus about 200 kilometers to the city Pokhara. After that, we visited the birthplace of the Buddha near Bhairahawa.

This media content comes right from the Kathmandu valley though. Initially, I was determined not to get carried away inserting YouTube clips here. Yet, as I've been converting old 8mm camcorder video, I keep wanting to reference some of the recently uploaded clips. This reminds me of the days I first became enamoured with Flickr's photo-sharing site. I'm a little late to the YouTube party, but at least they let me in!



I think a little background is needed for this photo and clip. It comes from www.multinepal.com, a site which mentions the whole valley is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

"Swayambhunath, one of the most important cultural and historical place of Kingdom of Nepal and listed as one of the World Heritage Sites from 1978, is located about 2 km. to the West of Kathmandu. The vehicular access is available up to the saddle between Swayambhu and Manjushri hills. Stone steps lead to Swayambhu and Manjushri hill tops. the Swayambhu hill top is known for massive Buddhist stupa, Haratimata temple and a number of other temples and monastries. The Manjushri hill contains well known Manjushri Gumba and the image of Saraswati goddess. A peripheral road exists at the base of the hill."

Waterfalls

We were up with the birds. Well, not exactly as there don’t seem to be the same types up here in the hills. Jay and I thought we were late when getting up at 6:30 but nobody was ready at that time. We were eventually ready to hit the road by eight. Unfortunately, the driver was unable to start the vehicle. After unsuccessful pushing for a jump start, he went to a garage and somehow, as if by magic, we sped away at 9:00 am.

This morning we were on the Badulla Road. Yet, it wasn’t long before we stopped at Hakgala Botanical Gardens. A huge bus-full of young monks were almost ready to depart. They’d obviously started on their journey, earlier than we did. Although probably not the most prolific time of the year, there were enough blossoms in the garden to keep everyone happy. The roots of huge trees from California and Japan must have been planted a very long time ago. In addition, lots of small flowers were budding and there was an exceptionally large rose garden. As we walked about, I couldn’t help but think of the numerous old movie songs that must’ve been filmed here.



This reason for our current trip is mostly for the thrill of the scenery. It is surely in abundance! We’d left jungle but now were in areas of difficult yet determined farming. All types of vegetables can be grown in the cold air here. We passed terraced fields of carrots, potatoes, leeks, lettuce, cabbage, beans, and beets. Jay and I both love taking road trips. The major goal is not the destination but in the getting there. Not all people share our love of the highway.

In today’s case the first major, urban center along the path was Badulla. We stopped at a famous temple in the city. It is relatively well-known here because the Buddha, on the way to Kalenyia, stopped here and meditated.

Later in the afternoon, we took a hike to Dunhinda Falls. The path was relatively flat during the first half but we started climbing down during the rest of the hour. The falls were impressive although the water wasn’t at its highest volume at this time of the year. The hike back was a lot harder.

Next, on the way to our eventual place for the night, we decided to take a five kilometre side-trip to Ella Falls. The town of Ella is Sri Lanka’s highest. It is 1041 metres above mean sea level. The falls required a few kilometres of travel on a very dangerous road. I peeked from the van’s window and, on occasion, looked down at nothing but air for thousands of feet.

It was getting dark by the time we found a rest house on the way out of Bandarawella.

Kartragama or Bust!

We started the day by running out to the junction to get ‘short eats’ food for breakfast. It was cheap and greasy which hit most of the merits I look for in a morning meal. We then walked to see if the other guest house had a room for tonight. We found that it did, so we walked back to our ‘old’ place and carried the bags to the ‘new’ one.

Then we took a tuk tuk about two kilometers to the Tissa bus stand. There was a government bus to Katragama waiting. It was the typical, old-style, Lankan government bus. The seats were mostly broken and squashed very closely together. I requested an aisle seat which really means I made Jay sit near the window. I could stretch my legs that way.

The bus only took a half hour to get to Katragama. Let me discuss a bit about what it is. It’s a place of pilgrimage for Buddhists and Hindus as well. Lots of folks take the trip in special busses. There are lots of ‘stays’ there which are extremely cheap digs without any of the comforts of a regular hotel. Some also just ‘camp out’. They cook their meals outside and wash up in the river.



It encompasses a very large area. It’s also sort of a religious marketplace with a mosque, kovil, and temple. We made it plenty early enough to walk to the stuppa and bo tree. We walked back to the temple area for the 11:00 am service. The god of Katragama is celebrated in a service that mostly consists of noise. There’s a drummer who starts, stops, and keeps up a tempo. Numerous bells hang around the edges of a fairly small chamber. When the drummer drums, people keep the bells ringing. A few words are said. Water and white chalk is applied to one’s forehead. When people leave after 15 to 20 minutes later, they take a handful of rice to eat. Most offer fruit to the god through the priest. What is not selected in now blended into juice to quench the thirsts of thirsty pilgrims.

On the bus returning to Tissimaharama, we stopped at a famous, Buddhist temple of its namesake.

It was time for a nap and then we stayed around and chatted with the proprietor of the guesthouse, Dhamith. He was an instantly likeable chap. He is 38 and is in the middle of constructing a second floor with eight additional guestrooms and a third floor with banquet hall facilities. He’s taking risks but I had the impression he’ll be successful. He was especially interested in learning from foreigners although he hopes his business to be frequently by local tourists too. I found him very handsome, affectionate and kind. We left our address in Canada with him. When we print some of the digital photos, we’ll surely make sure he gets prints.

On the Road Again

It took nearly two hours to get to Lal’s. The roads to Colombo are swamped 8:00 in the morning. Jay’s dad stayed at home this time but Auntie and younger sister, joined Lal and elder sister.

We headed south down the Sri Lankan west coast. The last time I went in the direction down the Galle Road must’ve been in the late 1980’s. I’ll mention some of my impressions in a later entry.

We stopped at the roadside Kalutara Buddhist temple. It spans both sides of the highway on the edge of a large river. It’s famous for the ancient bo tree. I especially like the system where visitors can pour water into side funnels in the protecting walls and it eventually runs to nourish it. There is a very impressing dagaba that is constructed as hollow. On the second floor there are windows looking out 360 degrees. The center had the temple area. One could look up probably four of five stories to the top.



Also, after a ‘buffet lunch’, we stopped at Matara Verahena. The five storey Buddha image may be surpassed. In fact we saw the future successor earlier in the day. Most importantly to me, it was hard to believe I’d been in this exact stop in the late 80’s. I’m so much older as well as wiser now!

We pulled into Tangalle just before dark. This, incidentally, is around 6:30 here. It’s around 6:30 year round which is a bit different than for those who reside at a larger longitude. Jay is the expert planner and had a few names of places to stay that he’d scrounged from travel books. We ended up on the right road and quickly found one not listed --- Wavy Sea Hotel and Restaurant. It was perfect. Although they had no family rooms, we stayed in three separate ones. Lal insisted on buying me three beers which will ensure that I sleep well tonight. Fears of a reoccurring tsunami will be far away.

Yapahuwa Rock

The van came at 8:00 and we were there by 11:00. What a set of steps! Out of a crew of eight if we count the driver, only three made it to the top. Of course, I was amongst the special few. Right near the top of the second flight, Jay’s elder sister fell. She felt dizzy, but thankfully it was near at the top of the stairs. Auntie too gave up at this point, fearing that it would be even harder from this point. It was.

Jay, his younger sister, and I continued. Unlike, Sigriyia, the trail up the rock here was not well marked nor well worn. I found the climb fairly easy as there were plenty of trees to grab on to. In one place, handrails had been installed.





This place dates from the 13th century. It’s near the towns of Daladagama and Maho. The tooth relic of the Buddha that now resides in Kandy has had a long history on the island. Different kings were always fighting and it often had to be hidden. Yapahuwa was such a place. We saw the remains of a dagaba on the top.

The ruins were the only thing we saw at the top. We had the mountain to ourselves. Coming down took just as long as climbing up. But going both ways only took an hour. At the bottom there is a Buddhist temple that housed a wooden Buddha image. It was sort of a cave temple.

We stopped in a Holiday Inn Rest House on the way back. It wasn’t the famous Holiday Inn chain but it certainly did have lots of rooms. Being near a junction means it probably was busy with product sales representatives and officials on a trip. We had rice and fish and chicken curry. I left very full but we paid $15 to feed all eight people. Had we not had the three, vastly-overpriced bottles of water at a dollar each, we’d have had a better deal.

We got home at 5:00 pm. I was happy to get into the shower. It’s 7:00 now. Tomorrow we’ll be able to rest. The next trip / pilgrimage is not until next Tuesday.

Getting Kaalu

If you can find a copy of Deepa Mehta's, Water on DVD, then get it. This film was stunning in the theatre and is worthy of viewing on a small screen too. I've years of watching international film with subtitles, so it's not distracting for me. The film is in Hindi. The DTS version sounds great if you've got a home theatre system.

The movie takes place in the 1930's struggle for independence in India. It involves the story of a child bride who's forced by circumstance to live in a 'widows temple' (ashram). Cast and religion are questioned but in a respectful way. It's a shame it was banned in places where it'd make the largest impact. In fact, it had to be shot in Sri Lanka after insurgency kept it from being filmed in India.

It's another reason the celebrate Canadian cinema. Mehta's first two of the trilogy, Fire and Earth, are also visually stunning and thought provoking.

All Babies Are Cute

I was checking photos that I've uploaded to Flickr. They've been viewed a total of 8,800 times and this particular one is the 19th most popular.



Taken in 2004, the baby and mother monkey were not in a zoo. There were at the Dambulla Rock Temple in Sri Lanka. The caves are a short walk up a mountain and in back of a more recently-built temple.

About a Year Late

I recently put a 135-picture set from September's Eurotrip on the Flickr website. It is really a wonderful way to share photos. In fact, I decided to go back a bit. Yesterday, I also completed putting up selected pictures from our Sri Lankan trip in 2004. It ended at nearly this exact time a year ago.



Click this picture of a Buddhist temple which is near Jay's house in Minuwangoda. You will directly taken to 300 photos on Flickr. (If you are designated as 'friend' on my account, then you'll be able to see an additional 20 photos that include more of Jay's family members and relatives.)

Kandy Temple in Sri Lanka

Although dozens pictures were blogged during September and October of last year, they only scratched the surface of my collection. I had two memory cards for the camera and deliberately saved at a lower resolution so I returned with over 720 images.



You may view many others blogged in context if you return to any week
from those two months.

Page: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09.

Or, you can find the 55 large-format eJournal pictures quickly at Lankan ePictures.

GPS Waypoints in Sri Lanka

Some Sri Lankans must still be sorting out their lives after the tsunami. None of Jay's relatives were affected by the devastation. All that news coverage has made our trip there seem like an eternity ago.

I carried my trusty Garmin eTrex Legend when travelling around Sri Lanka last autumn. Blog entries and large-format photos are available in my eJournal and images from September and October of 2004. (Check the label tags near the bottom of the left column to see travel entries from various trips to Sri Lanka.)

VIEW BLOGGED TRIP TEXT & PICS: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09.

Having a GPS was a fantastic way to measure distances when going by tuk-tuk and it provided access to interesting facts such as a trip's average speed. Furthermore, having the device during a walk meant we'd always be able to find our way back to our hotel.

I had been meaning to post some waypoints of Sri Lankan landmarks and towns. After all, it is data that others could find useful. If only the town's name is listed then the location is generally within sight of the municipal clock tower.


GPS WGS-84 Degree Decimals

ANARADHAPURA ISURUMUNIYA
N8.334644 - E80.390191

ANARADHAPURA MILANO REST
N8.325069 - E80.416882

ANARADHAPURA MIRISAWETIYA
N8.344647 - E80.389109

ANARADHAPURA OLD BUS STAND
N8.322793 - E80.402801

ANARADHAPURA SACRED BO TREE
N8.344879 - E80.397189

ARUGAM BAY ALOHA CABANAS
N6.845226 - E81.831648

BATTICALOA
N7.714217 - E81.697649

CHILAW
N7.578397 - E79.794457

COLOMBO CLOCKTOWER
N6.936882 - E79.849199

COLOMBO FORT
N6.933611 - E79.850277

COLOMBO PETTA BUS
N6.937658 - E79.855347

DAMBULLA
N7.874215 - E80.651047

DAMBULLA ROCK TEMPLE
N7.856444 - E80.648583

HABARANA JUNCTION
N8.039939 - E80.755352

JA ELA
N7.081045 - E79.890935

JAFFNA BUS STAND
N9.666846 - E80.011721

JAFFNA KOVIL
N9.674477 - E80.029744

JAFFNA NAGADEEPA
N9.612507 - E79.774415

JAFFNA TELLIPPALAI
N9.775081 - E80.030137

JAFFNA YARRA CITY VILLAS
N9.665941 - E80.010728

KADURUWELA
N7.932015 - E81.031836

KANDY TEMPLE OF TOOTH (BY LAKE)
N7.292992 - E80.641127

MAHIYANGANA
N7.339841 - E80.992902

MAHIYANGANA SORABORAWEVA VILLAGE INN
N7.346142 - E80.996470

MAHIYANGANA VEDDHA VILLAGE
N7.417270 - E81.104253

MANNAR
N8.977004 - E79.913796

MEDIRGIRYA
N8.156171 - E80.996157

MIHINTALE
N8.351206 - E80.517786

MINUWANGODA
N7.168577 - E79.947159

MINUWANGODA JAY'S HOUSE
N7.179281 - E79.936866

MINUWANGODA YATIYANA JUNCTION
N7.172511 - E79.936551

MONARAGALA
N6.872113 - E81.352144

MONARAGALA VICTORY INN
N6.868328 - E81.347858

NEGOMBO
N7.208611 - E79.835833

NITTAMBUWA
N7.142252 - E80.096333

NUGEGODA
N6.873509 - E79.891061

NUGEGODA LAL'S HOME
N6.872903 - E79.901716

POLONNRUWA
N7.940648 - E80.998765

PUTTALAM
N8.028525 - E79.833726

RATNAPURA
N6.682679 - E80.402363

RATNAPURA OLD REST HOUSE
N6.682878 - E80.404378

RITIGALA
N8.118091 - E80.660367

RUWANVALI
N8.350087 - E80.396894

SIGIRIYA (ON TOP OF THE ROCK)
N7.957361 - E80.760218

SIGIRIYA LION'S PAW
N7.957883 - E80.760130

TANTIRMLAI
N8.572301 - E80.255381

TRINCOMALEE
N8.577417 - E81.234517

TRINCOMALEE FRENCH BEACH REST
N8.610594 - E81.219089

TRINCOMALEE HOT WATER SPRINGS
N8.604507 - E81.171240

TRINCOMALEE SWAMI ROCK
N8.582705 - E81.245586

VAVUNIYA
N8.753517 - E80.498074

VAVUNIYA VANNI INN
N8.751021 - E80.498543

VEYANGODA
N7.154103 - E80.057723

If you are interested in receiving a .gpx or .loc file of this data, please request by email.

Have a Good Rooster

I bet I'm going to have a few tired students today as they probably stayed up to see in the Chinese New Year.

Assessing the Damage

This photo was taken on September 30, 2004. It shows an island area to the west the Jaffna Peninsula in Sri Lanka's north. We headed this way to visit the Buddhist temple of Nagadeepa. It was a low lying area but sheltered somewhat by the top of the country. We wonder what the situation is there.


This area is not controlled by the government in the capital city. A great deal of destruction in the north and east will have occurred in areas controlled by the Tamil-rebels. Hopefully, in the face of tragedy, all people will put aside politics. The statistics of death and damage will be hard to ascertain as these areas are separated politically and physically.

Almsgiving

Jay's mother died exactly one year ago. Some arose from bed at 5:00 am but most food had to be made right before being consumed; for example, the fruit salad, and fried fish.

By 11:00 am everything was ready and the monks arrived exactly on time at 11:30 am. The big Monk and his understudy spoke a bit, but mostly they'd come to be served lunch. There seemed to be fairly elaborate etiquette. The order and progression of the food was served by the family members:

• soup
• boiled vegetables
• rice and curries
• choice of dessert
• king coconut water
• coffee
• araka nuts & beetle leaves

A relic from the temple was a representative for the Buddha and was given an offering of food. After the occasion, this uneaten food can be given away to beggars or provided to animals. Additionally, packets had been bought and wrapped for the monks. They contained sheets, towels, soap, toothpaste, toothbushes, sugar, milk powder, and tea. The head Monk received a purchased packet which cost around $US 25 and included the complete set of orange-coloured robes.



There was a time for all of us to eat when the monks had departed. They had come and gone in a van which Jay's dad had arranged for. We cleaned up a bit and the same van came back at 3:00 pm to take us to the mother's gravesite. The family has just had some tile work done for the headstone. They burned incense and lite oil lamps. We stayed only for a brief time. At the cemetery, there was a funeral going on for a 26-year-old railroad worker who'd been hit and killed by a train.

The house is getting all back to word as I am writing this . . .

The Neighbourhood

They're at it again -- making food that is! Jay's making a fuitcake. His sisters are preparing pickles, and a type of sweet dessert. This time the preparation is for tomorrow's dinner and Thursday's lunch. The one-year memorial for Jay's mother will take place here. There was a similar 3-month occasion that was very elaborate. This one will be smaller with just family members and a few neighbours.

Tomorrow, in preparation, a monk will come in the evening for a sermon. Then on Thursday's lunch, seven monks will come for a big almsgiving. I don't feel out-of-place here but these days promise to be a new experience. I hadn't seen Jay's mom since my 1991 visit.

On a completely different note: I walked 5.7 kilometers around the neighbourhood here. Without my GPS, I'd have been royally lost. We're only about ten miles from the international airport but the roads and paths to home are pure jungle! Once I was only 570 meters from the house but walked a way which was impossible to traverse. I had to reverse back to another road. I saw, among other things: rice paddies, a swimming hole, a temple, and a school where little kids were anxious to try out their English lessons. The shouted, "What's your name?"

Receptions

Earlier in the day, tuktuk driver, Lal and a neighbour came to help put up a new television antenna. Jay and his sister picked up one yesterday. The current antenna booster requires wiggling and cajoling very often now. What good is a remote control, if one has to constantly get up to adjust the booster? Jay bought it when he worked in Saudi, so it has given sufficient service.

Later in the afternoon, the family planned a huge shopping list. They will need to make a very, special meal on Thursday. Although, it could have taken place at the temple, they've decided to host the one year memorial of Jay's mother's death in the house.

Veddah Village

We did tea. Then, we walked downtown to find a bakery. The sky was amazingly blue so we walked to a temple exactly copied from the original found in Bodh Gaya, India. We had seen the original years ago. It was an amazing engineering project designed for people who might not make it to the Bihar province of India.

After, Jay found and asked a 3-wheel driver how much it'd cost to go to the main temple. We liked the price and it was only 2-kilometers from downtown. This place was the first of three times that Buddha visited Sri Lanka. The initial visit was to prevent a war from occurring.



The driver was very young but knowledgeable, so we ended up hiring him to take us more than 14 kilometres to the Sri Lankan aboriginal village too. The 'original' people are darker and have very wild hair. They speak a dialect of Singhala that requires an interpreter. These people were, until very recently, subsistence hunters. Now that they've agreed not to hunt, they count on tourists and crafts to subsist. I wanted to help and agreed to buy a deer-antler ring for $US 3.50. The problem was that we only had a SR 1000 bill ($US10) and no change. Even the village store did not have that kind of cash on hand! We had to travel quite some distance to a shop in a neighbouring village to get change.

I felt a little ill this afternoon, but still managed to walk to an enormous reservoir from which our hotel was named.

Tomorrow, we'll head back towards Minuwangoda. The first part of the trip should be exciting as it's almost directly up into the mountains. There are supposed to be 18 switchbacks as one gains elevation quickly. It's the road that will bring us to Kandy again.