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Published: July 21st 2015
We were definitely ready to leave Kataragama and headed down the street to the bus station, stopping for one last samosa at the vegan pastry shop. The buses and trains in Sri Lanka can be somewhat confusing. Nothing is every well-marked and in spite of asking several people, we ended up on the slow bus rather than the more direct route. By slow, I mean that the bus stopped frequently along the way. The driver would slam on the brakes at a nondescript bend in the road and an entire family would clamor out and disappear into the foliage. At other junctures people would flag the bus down, swinging on board while it was still partially in motion. In terms of kilometers per hour, however, the bus was anything but slow. It careened along, screeching around corners and barreling around slower vehicles. More and more people packed the aisles, elbowing us, and adding to the feeling of claustrophobia. It was not a pleasant ride.
One thing stands out, however, in the journey to Weligama. The moment we rounded a point and saw
Taprobane appear, looking every bit as mysterious as I'd imagined. I'd become a fan of Paul Bowles several
years ago after reading “Up Above the World”. I enjoyed his rather terse style and sense of foreboding, his international settings, and unconventional lifestyle. Bowles is known most for his long-term residence in Tangier, Morocco where three out of four of his novels are set. However, he also spent some time in Sri Lanka and for a few years owned a house near the fishing village of
Weligama. It wasn't an ordinary house, but rather his own private island.
It had been built by a wealthy count and Bowles fell in love with it during a trip to the island in the early 1950s. When the opportunity came, he bought it immediately and visited it several times over the next four years, traveling by steamer from Morocco. He even finished “The Spider's House” there. C found a few articles about Taprobane on a website dedicated to Bowes, including a 1985 essay entitled “An Island of My Own”.
http://www.paulbowles.org/island.html I enjoyed reading about his daily routine: drinking tea, swimming, afternoon siestas, enjoying meals brought to him by his personal cook, watching the crows alight on the swaying palms, and occasionally seeking out local music performances.
He described the island nostalgically
Sweet little girls
They asked me to take the picture because they just wanted to see what there photo looked like...many years after his departure:
“It was scarcely more than a hummock of black basalt rising above the waves of the Indian Ocean,yet it was heavily covered with high trees that left visible only a glimpse of the house at its summit. I had never seen a place that looked so obviously like what I was searching for. And felt that it was aware of me, that it silently beckoned, sending forth a wordless message that meant: Come. You'll like it here.”
Bowles left the island reluctantly in 1956, partially because his wife, Jane, greatly disliked it. Another reason for his departure is that the Sri Lankan government had raised the taxes exorbitantly.
Today, Taprobane is a hotel...a very pricy one. A room costs roughly USD $700/night and the entire island as well. For most people it isn't feasible, though apparently the island is a favorite of the Australian pop star Kylie Minogue, who even wrote a song about it. Remarkably, the island was somehow spared from the 2004 Tsunami, which devastated other parts of Weligama.
Not having a celebrity budget, we were content to state at Taprobane from the shore. Weligama is a fishing town
and the beach is a windswept collection of fishing boats and seafood shacks. The far end is a popular spot for surfing. If you walk far enough you can find a casual scattering of surfboards for rent, tents, and would be instructors lounging in the trees. When we visited the waves were tiny, making it a nice spot for beginners. The town of Weligama itself is small and cheerful. Everything is within walking distance: The post office, the bus station, the train station, etc. There are plenty of markets, two liquor shops, pharmacies, and clothing stores. Tuk-tuks are cheap and plentiful. There were enough tourists to make things comfortable, but it didn't detract from Weligama's local flavor.
We stayed at a nice place just over the hill, overlooking its own protective cove. There was some good snorkeling here and the water was crystal clear at low tide.
During our time in Weligama we visited a few other places along the coast. First, we took a tuk-tuk to
Mirissa, roughly 6 km away. It seems that every foreign tourist who visits Sri Lanka passes through Mirissa at one point or another. After just a few minutes on the beach we
Show off!
Local kids having fun in Galle heard Russian, Chinese, German, French, Korean, and all varieties of English. The place seemed like a mini-Thailand with its eager-to-please beach vibe and lineup of reggae-inspired bars and restaurants. We just had lunch and went back, but it seemed like a pleasant place to do some swimming.
Mirissa is also the whale-watching center of the southern coast, with opportunities to see the blue whale as top billing. We thought seriously against going, but opted against it. In talking to people, it seemed that most operations were poorly trained and employed tactics that were far from environmentally friendly. We heard reports of whales being routinely chased and harassed. If you are a tourist going to Sri Lanka and want to see the whales, please don't opt for the cheapest option to satisfy your backpacker budget. The best option (also recommended by Lonely Planet) seemed to be “Raja and the Whales”, an organization that prides themselves in eco-friendly tours and promises more respect toward the animals.
We also rode the bus up the coast to Galle. The old port is another UNESCO site, and had been a major stop on trade routes between Europe, India, the Middle East, and Asia
for centuries. In the early 1600s the Portuguese arrived and recognized the strategic importance of the location. They didn't last long, however, before the Dutch muscled in, claiming the land for the Dutch East India Company and building the famous fort. Its still intact today, and its thick walls actually protected the old city from the buffeting waves of the 2004 tsunami.
Galle is a pretty little slice of beautiful hotels, cafes, restaurants, and gift shops. The cobblestone streets are flanked by colorful buildings with bright flower boxes. The best part is definitely to circumnavigate the the fort, past the whitewashed lighthouse and up into the ramparts. It was blazing hot when we visited, so the walk is best done at dusk, when the evening glow reflects on the old stone walls and strands of bougainvillea. Tourists love Galle. It's easy to see why, with its charm and endless photo opportunities. All day the buses just kept rolling in.
It was however, still easy to wander down a side street to get away from it all, or find a quiet corner to sit and reflect in. In the aquamarine water surrounding the fort we watched a small black-tip
reef shark dart in and out of the rocks. A group of boys was doing back-flips off of a floating wooden door, whooping and showing off for the tourists who clapped and snapped pictures. Below the fort young men were playing a dusk game of cricket.
We had a fantastic meal of egg curry and cold beer, did a bit of shopping, and hopped on the bus back to Weligama (it's possible to take the train along the coast as well, though they are less frequent).
The rest of our days in Weligama were spent in relative laziness, eating roti at beach-side huts, goggling at Taprobane, and swimming in our cove. It was with great reluctance that we boarded the train and sleepy Weligama station to head back to Colombo. The ride along the coast was fantastic. With the windows down the salt wind ruffled our hair as we sped past empty beaches and small collections of fishing huts.
Sri Lanka for me was, in many ways, and entirely new experience. As I mentioned, it was our first visit to South Asia. The trip was wonderful, but not perfect, and I found the country to have a
rather polarizing number of pros and cons. On the plus side, it is an amazingly beautiful place. The landscapes are diverse and jaw-dropping. From the rolling hills of the tea country to the scrubby terrain of Yala National Park and beyond, to the rugged southern coast, we saw a nice slice of Sri Lanka's geographical diversity. It felt so epic that when examining the map, I was quite astounded by what we had missed. Though I'd always imagined Sri Lanka to be a small island, its variety of terrain and wildlife make it seem larger than life.
Culturally, Sri Lanka is also a cacophony of color. Everything seems brighter and more visceral: the rainbow assortment of Saris, the piles of spices and fresh fruit, the temples and bustling markets. It wasn't uncommon to see a giant plaster Buddha by the roadside, illuminated in flashing bulbs and blasting techno music. Other sights, like the rock temple and Sri Dalada Maligawa were more reserved, but no less eye-catching. And when it comes to the food...there are no words. I ate some of the best meals of my life in Sri Lanka: home-cooked vegetable curries were the clear winner.
For a
tourist, Sri Lanka presents some unique challenges. While the industry is absolutely booming, the infrastructure has yet to catch up with the influx of visitors. Trains and buses are often poorly marked and making connections outside of major centers can be challenging for someone who is a newcomer. There is also a rather constant stream of attention directed at foreigners, and may be felt more keenly by independent travelers. You can't blame people, considering the economic difficulties and conflict that has plagued the country. But nearly everyone sees the tourist industry as an opportunity to make some money, and you are the source of income. We were almost constantly hit up for offers for rides, tours, visits to see the stilt fisherman, the turtle farm, the flower farm...to buy this or that, go whale watching, rent something, or simply make a donation to someone's hungry family. It's understandable, but it can require a thick skin. It also makes it hard to get to know anyone, as you always have a slight air of suspicion.
For example, in Weligama, our hotel was located at the end of a small neighborhood, and we often strolled around taking photos. One woman struck
up a conversation along with her teenage daughter. The girls was in school, studying English. Her brothers had dropped out to “play” said the mother, shaking her head. Her husband was a fisherman and she invited us in for some papaya and tea. We were excited at the chance to talk, especially to a woman, whose presence had seemed so elusive in Sri Lanka. But soon enough the conversation turned to her eye problems and diabetes, medical fees, school fees, etc. We realized that once again, the relationship was based purely on our economic disparity and the hope for a kind handout. Again, I'm not trying to cast blame or complain, the woman's plight was a sympathetic and difficult one. I'm simply trying to record our experiences and perceptions during our brief visit.
After this and a few similar interactions I was feeling pretty burnt out as we clamored off of the train in Colombo. We weren't sure how to get to the airport, and decided to take one of the local commuter trains. It was a basic, open car - standing room only- and packed to the gills. It chugged along at a painful crawl while everyone sweated
and swayed. A group of teens were entertaining us, drumming on the walls and singing loudly. It was fun for the first hour. Gradually, people began to climb off, disappearing into the darkening suburbs. How much farther was it? Were we even going in the right direction?
I groaned, picturing ourselves trapped in some gritty corner of the city, being charged quadruple-fold for a cab back to civilization. But sometimes, even after you've come to certain conclusions, people surprise you.
A group of women beckoned us to sit down and helped to answer our questions. We were indeed on the right train. Later, as the train pulled up to the station, the driver stopped short of the platform. Two young men tried to help us get off, one carrying my heavy backpack, and nearly missing the train again when it took off unexpectedly. Forced on to the next stop, we did end up lost. Just when we were standing hopelessly in the middle of an empty road with our packs, our guardian angel appeared in the form of a sprightly, gray-haired woman, who spoke perfect English. In just a few seconds she'd managed to conjur a tuk-tuk from
The cove
Just over the hill from Weligama nowhere, bark directions at the driver, and send us on our way.
We arrived at our airport hotel feeling exhausted, dirty, and genuinely touched. Sri Lanka had been full of ups and downs, but that is what makes travel the most memorable.
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