In Search of Prawns and Peace...
That is all we needed, a clue on where to start… Kalutara Bridge
it was… with a quick check on google for the time of the sunrise, we promptly
booked a cab for 5.30 am the next morning, and hurried back to wind up the
‘official’ part of the travel… Now this is what happens when work takes you to
a glamorous locale and binds you down for most part of the stay with official
events… all you are left with is half a day to explore on your own and that too
just the first half of the day. But what the heck, when the USP of the place,
the ravishing sunset, is not on offer… however weird it might appear, the
travel fanatic looks for the sunrise from the west coast, start the day very
early to capture it and pack in as many excursions possible in the limited time
thereafter…We were stationed at the Anantara Kalutara Resort for an office offsite. The Anantara resort is a haven of peace and serenity in a secluded beachfront setting yet only about 97 kilometers down south from the Colombo airport. Inspired by the architectural vision of Geoffrey Bawa, Sri Lanka’s most famous architect, the rooms were sprawling yet warm, the restaurants and food were cozy and delectable and the hospitality was exquisite. Cabs and airport transfers were readily available including an array of bicycles for the occasional ride around the landscape of Kalutara. But, our restless minds were itching to explore further and that’s where the Kalutara bridge served as the door opener.
The Kalutara bridge, on the Kalu-Ganga river with the sun rising
across the river was the bulls-eye.. we reached there much before the slated
time of 6am, but the overcast sky truncated our already low expectations of
seeing the sun rise… we found a few rocks, protruding into the river, and
waited there patiently… and then, when the red burning orb rose over the river,
the clouds steered clear its way… the redness gushed across the sky, the water
and all around us… the Kalu-Ganga river came to life, so did the small sleepy
town of Kalutara… A walk around the town, and it looked sublime… the chants
from the Bodiya (Buddhist temple), the chirp of the flower girls added an
angelic tone to it… We could have spent the whole day walking around the town,
but we had some bigger pursuits on hand for the day… 
Visiting SriLanka and not calling on a beach is considered a blunder, let me confess, in my mind atleast… so next destination on our journey was further 19 kilometers down south of Kalutara … to Bentota, another coastal town at the boundary of the Western and the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. The Bentota beach, to our delight, was completely uninhabited… the calmness at the Bodiya was further enhanced by quietness at the beach.. we found ourselves ascending up the ‘in-pursuit-of-peace-curve’… the unblemished skies, translucent waters, sparkling clean beach, unobstructed views made for a perfect platter for our hungry camera. The Avani Bentota Resort and the Surf Hotel stood at the edge of the beach smiling at our ecstasy on a site they are privileged to see all day round. An occasional paraglider or two from the nearby Diyakawa Water Sports Center thundered over us caressing the vibrant blue sky.
A few beach-side strides and photo stunts later we realized why we were the only ones on the beach that morning … a late realization it was, the blazing sun and the blistering heat had already baked us by then… but with just a few more hours left, this could not have been a deterrent to our hungry vagabond souls … carrying a thick layer of bronze on us, we moved further south determined to leave no stone unturned …
Our car whisked past the sunbathed Colombo-Galle Main Road,
grazing the Bentota Rock Beach, the Induruwa Beach and the Turtle hatcheries … over
the Kosgoda River … and 18 kilometers down, we entered the Southern Province into
the Galle District and stopped at the Captain’s Boat House on the banks of Madu
Ganga River. The Madu Ganga river, that originates from the Madu Ganga Lake and
enters the sea at Balapitiya, is lined with mangrove forests, and hence home to
around 300 species of
plants and variety of resident and migrant birds …. We were overwhelmed to learn that it might be one of the
last remaining tracts of untouched mangrove forests in Sri Lanka.
The river cruise here lent itself to be the highlight of our
expedition. Our motor boat sailed alongside the mangroves, at times through the
natural mangrove tunnels… it was an exquisite experience seeing the villages
thrive on the river habitat with prawn farming, using traditional fishing
techniques… the banks are also lined with small eating joints, seemingly
serving the freshest and juiciest prawns ever… it is in search of these prawns
that we later landed ourselves at one such joint… when they welcomed us in
their shack with smiles, little did we know we would be thrown out by those
very same smiles turning into scowls… our order “quick prawn curry – rice” was
catered to with some random curry and rice under the pretext that we wanted it
quick… not interested in the random, we zealously waited for the prawns to
gratify our plates… only to be told that they had served the order and nothing
more will come… when we argued, our plates were whisked away, the otherwise
empty shack suddenly filled with men, outnumbering us, glaring at us and
demanding us to pay up for the meal we did not order… seething in anger, we
promised them of revenge when they step on our land (just that we made sure
they could not hear it!!), showed ourselves the way out, assimilating the aroma
of spices coming from their kitchen, still wondering whatever happened to those
prawns…
Just behind the prawn farms, were enclosures built for fish spa…
a variety of fishes were held in small reservoirs created out of bamboo... with
an un-quenched craving for sea-food, we sat on those bamboo planks, lowering
our feet in the water, letting the fishes chew onto them.. and thinking “today
is your day lovelies!!”… sitting in the shade, as the coconut trees rose tall
behind us, we sipped fresh coconut water, quenching our hearts… overlooking the
lagoon where the Madu Ganga river merged with the Indian Ocean, we witnessed
one of the most picturesque sights ever... we had probably reached the top of 'in-pursuit-of-peace-curve', even without the prawns!! But the ticking time
reminded us of the short-lived-ness of this blissful place, of the frenzied,
relentless life awaiting us back home… and very hesitatingly, we began our
journey back, down the curve, beholding the serenity of this small quiet river,
before it lost itself into the vastness of the gushing ocean…
The river cruise here lent itself to be the highlight of our
expedition. Our motor boat sailed alongside the mangroves, at times through the
natural mangrove tunnels… it was an exquisite experience seeing the villages
thrive on the river habitat with prawn farming, using traditional fishing
techniques… the banks are also lined with small eating joints, seemingly
serving the freshest and juiciest prawns ever… it is in search of these prawns
that we later landed ourselves at one such joint… when they welcomed us in
their shack with smiles, little did we know we would be thrown out by those
very same smiles turning into scowls… our order “quick prawn curry – rice” was
catered to with some random curry and rice under the pretext that we wanted it
quick… not interested in the random, we zealously waited for the prawns to
gratify our plates… only to be told that they had served the order and nothing
more will come… when we argued, our plates were whisked away, the otherwise
empty shack suddenly filled with men, outnumbering us, glaring at us and
demanding us to pay up for the meal we did not order… seething in anger, we
promised them of revenge when they step on our land (just that we made sure
they could not hear it!!), showed ourselves the way out, assimilating the aroma
of spices coming from their kitchen, still wondering whatever happened to those
prawns…
Just behind the prawn farms, were enclosures built for fish spa…
a variety of fishes were held in small reservoirs created out of bamboo... with
an un-quenched craving for sea-food, we sat on those bamboo planks, lowering
our feet in the water, letting the fishes chew onto them.. and thinking “today
is your day lovelies!!”… sitting in the shade, as the coconut trees rose tall
behind us, we sipped fresh coconut water, quenching our hearts… overlooking the
lagoon where the Madu Ganga river merged with the Indian Ocean, we witnessed
one of the most picturesque sights ever... we had probably reached the top of 'in-pursuit-of-peace-curve', even without the prawns!! But the ticking time
reminded us of the short-lived-ness of this blissful place, of the frenzied,
relentless life awaiting us back home… and very hesitatingly, we began our
journey back, down the curve, beholding the serenity of this small quiet river,
before it lost itself into the vastness of the gushing ocean…
1 comments
Beautiful journey it seems.. Very well articulated
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