SRI LANKA - Ambalangoda

10:27 Travel Bunny 1 Comments

Ambalangoda is a quiet, unspoiled beach town on Sri Lanka’s south-west coast. The town serves as the home of devil dancing and mask making traditions that have been kept alive for generations.


Woke up to the sound of waves crashing the beach.


View of the ocean from my room.


Hmmm…I guess I’ll explore the beach later.


Time to pack up and leave the hotel.


The gate to the beach was still locked. I then requested one of the staff to open it.


'”Bartender, one glass of dry Martini please”.


Now, that’s one unique looking shower head.


Time to stroll along the beach while waiting for my breakfast to be prepared.


A man enjoying his fishing in the morning.





The ocean breeze together with the sound of waves was simply a perfect start to the day.




The waves are pretty strong here and might not be quite suitable for a swim.


With more than 20 beaches in Sri Lanka, you can opt for a beach with calmer waves.


Wonder what my beau is doing there totally oblivious to waves rushing towards him.


He was actually curious about this clam.


Sri Lanka is also known as the ‘Pearl of the Indian Ocean’.


As an island, Sri Lanka is surrounded by the Indian Ocean.


Sri Lanka is famous for its natural beauty and their beach is no exception.


Sri Lanka is practically surrounded by beaches.


An ideal place for scuba diving, surfing, fishing, sunbathing or just enjoy a dip in the ocean.


I didnt’t have the time to enjoy any of the above. Just a stroll along the beach shall suffice.



If I had known that Sri Lanka beach was so beautiful, I would have spent another day in Sri Lanka.


I’m hungry! Where’s my breakfast?


Walked around the hotel before checking out.


School girls walking to their school.


Since Ambalangoda is famous for its masks, I really should visit the Mask Museum. Entrance is free, so why not?


A guide explaining the main types of masks such as the kolam, naga and sanii, each of which is used for different kind of ceremony, festival, opera or drama.


For instance, a sanni mask is worn to combat illness. 18 different masks as a representations of 18 different devils associated with various sickness are used to drive out the evil spirits responsible for the ailment in ceremonies that sometimes last all night.


The pictures posted here are just the mild version of the masks. Some of the devil masks seems too demonic.


Devil dances are performed to exorcise evil spirits and diseases and also to seek blessings from good spirits.


The museum offers a variety and craftsmanship of this local art form. The masks are too devilish for my liking, but you can buy the masks if you want to keep one as a souvenir. 


Since I had time to spare, my tour guide recommended a visit to a gem mine near Ratnapura. Ratnapura means City of Gems and is named so because of the long established industry of precious stone mining which goes back to at least 2000 years.


A miner in the gem pit waving to us.



Sorting of gems. Sapphire, Ruby, Topaz and other gems are being mined here.


So small? Do you have something bigger?


How about this?


This is more like it!


We have something even bigger!


What attracted me was the Moonstone. I first heard of Moonstone in the TV series ‘The Vampire Diaries’. Didn't think that Moonstone actually exist. 


Sri Lanka is the country associated to the origin of the Moonstone where it shimmer in pale blue on an almost transparent background.



I negotiated hard and parted my hard earned cash for some stones. At first I was there just to look at the mine but was just captivated by the gem stones. Bought a pair of blue topaz earrings and a moonstone necklace. Got it all at a very cheap price .  


A railway track without it’s track? There used to be one, but was destroyed during the 2004 Tsunami.


In the morning of 26th December 2004, the Tsunami waves struck the village of Peraliya where the train was en route to Galle from Colombo. The train came to a halt as water surged around it and hundreds of locals climbed on top of the train thinking it would give them refuge.


The monument of the 2004 Sri Lanka Tsunami rail disaster in remembrance to over 1,700 people who perished.


The mural depicting what happened on that tragedy day. The waves was so powerful that it pushed up the entire train crushing those who stood behind the train, hoping the train would take the force of the water. The train passengers inside the eight carriages eventually drowned as the water filled the carriages.


This was where the Tsunami waves came.



I can just imagine the horror as the Tsunami waves measuring about 7.5 to 9 meters rushing towards the shore.


Nearby is another Tsunami Memorial simply named Peraliya Buddha Statue. The statue was erected in memory of those who perished in the tsunami. Sri Lanka was the the 2nd hardest hit country from the 2004 Tsunami, dubbed as the deadliest tsunami, resulting in more than 35,000 dead out of the total estimated death of 230,000 worldwide.


Measuring at 18.5m high, this statue is the tallest standing Buddha statue in Sri Lanka. The statue is located on a small island in the middle of a pond. 


This statue was built as a replica of the Bamiyan Buddha Statues of Afghanistan destroyed by Taliban terrorist in 2001 and the statue was officially unveiled in 26th December 2006 during the 2nd Tsunami memorial year.



The memorial was built with the financial assistance from Japan’s Honganji Temple and Foundation. Incidentally, Japan was hit hard by the 2011 Tohoku Tsunami which claimed more than 15,000 life and still struggling to resolve the radiation leak at their nuclear reactors


The plaque stating the unveiling of Bamiyan Replica Buddha Statue of Tsunami Honganji Vihara.
Bellow is a message that reads “This Bamian statue has been erected for the remembrance of the victims of the Indian Ocean Tsunami tragedy 2004 and it is the symbol of hope for the mental and spiritual relief of all Tsunami victims of this country and also promotes propagation of Buddhism and its culture by making stronger ties between Japan and Sri Lanka. The foundation stone was laid on the 1st anniversary of the Tsunami tragedy on 26th of December 2005”.      


The south-west coast is dotted with beautiful beaches. Yes, many have died here, some swept out to the ocean and was never found. But its time to move on and just marvel at the spectacular view of the ocean.


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