Author Archive for Fred

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Surf Champions at Arugam Bay. Again.

Published on 03/01/2009 in Money Matters, front page, press coverage and the bay. 4 Comments Tags: , , , .

Arugam Bay back to life event

Shirajiv SIRIMANE

One of the most sought after destinations in Sri Lanka, Arugam Bay, will once again burst with life when it will host the international Windsurfing Championships and beach carnival next July.


Arugam Bay: One of the best locations in the world for surfing

Arugam Bay last hosted an international event of this magnitude in 2004 and it was a major intentional tourist attraction. By hosting this event Arugam Bay will once again enter to the international tourist map giving value to the destination.

Managing Director, Crystal Holidays (Pvt) Ltd, Wasana Hettiarachchi said that his company has tied up with an UK based company to host this event. “We have already spoken to the SriLankan airlines and the Tourism Authority and they have pledged their support to assist us,” he said.

The event will also bring in over 200 foreign visitors to the venue and hotels around would get an opportunity to earn extra revenue. The foreign press too would be in large numbers that would give the much-needed additional exposure to the country.

He said that Sports tourism is gaining popularity and this is why he is taking a lead to promote the event. “A Veterans English Cricket tour too is on the cards for next year,” he added.

Director UK, Professional Surfing Tour, Dave Reed said Arugam Bay is one of the best locations in the world to host surfing events. “We have spoken to leading Surfers who are ready to come to Sri Lanka,” he said. These surfers are from Australia, South Africa, London, Germany and other European countries,” he said.

Since there is peace in the region the venue should be promoted more aggressively to the international market. The contest will also offer prize money totaling British Pounds 5,000.

I LOVE ARUGAM BAY!!

Published on 30/12/2008 in Blogs, accomodation, people, services and the bay. 0 Comments
Piumie
I hate to dress up! I know it’s totally weird considering I am of the “Female Kind”!! In fact I only want to chill out and hang out with friends and my love… I LOVE ARUGAM BAY!! I hope to retire there one day! If I ever retire that is! :) And one day I’d like to take up teaching again. That is something I well and truly miss! If you want an idea of what I am like…read up plenty on the star sign TAURUS. That’ll give you a hint… :-) )

View my complete profile

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Lessons Learnt

Living together is a journey. It’s a journey of ourselves. A process of discovering who we are in a family. We are all born into one, whether it’s a single-parent family or a full-blown family consisting of parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins. We behave in a particular way within a family and our behavior is more or less consistent. We will play the role that we have come to play within the family. But how do we know exactly how we are going to behave when the time comes to start our own family?
Continue reading ‘I LOVE ARUGAM BAY!!’

Ceylon Tours. Arugam Bay

Published on 29/12/2008 in front page. 0 Comments
Spend Your Summer Vacation in the Virgin East Coast in Sri Lanka – 11 nights / 12 days
View Image Gallery

Day 01 – Negombo
Arrive at the Bandaranaike International airport, Katunayake. You will be met and assisted on arrival and transferred to Negombo (8 km, approx.15 min. drive) and check in at the hotel. Afternoon commence sightseeing in Negombo. Visit the Negombo Fishing Village. This little fishing port is a pleasure for the eyes with its fort and canals of the Dutch era. But still more interesting are the beautiful beaches where the fishermen live in houses made of coconut palm leaves and dry the fish they caught earlier that day. The colored boats and the outrigger- canoes or Oruvas sweeping in to the lagoon with their catch, the fish market, the old Dutch churches that dot the landscape & canals that stretch for hundreds of kilometers are fascinating.  It is worthwhile to go on a boat trip to the lagoon or one of the old canals dating back to the Dutch colonization.
Overnight stay at a hotel in Negombo

Day 02 –Sigiriya / Polonnaruwa
After breakfast at hotel, leave for Sigiriya (153 km, 4 hour drive) and climb the Rock Fortress(a UNESCO World Heritage site) built by King Kassapa in the 05thcentury A.D. which was a Royal Citadel for more than 18 years.  The lion rock is a citadel of unusual beauty, rising 200 meters from the scrub jungle. The base of the rock is ringed by a moat and rampart and extensive gardens including the renowned water gardens. The majestic Lion’s Paw picturesquely guards the stairway of the palace on the summit. See the famous frescoes of the “Heavenly maidens” of Sigiriya in a sheltered pocket of the rock and the 10 foot high Mirror Wall. On completion, check in at hotel.

Thereafter, leave for Polonnaruwa (67 km, 1 ½ hour drive) the Capital of Sri Lanka from the 11th to 13th century and on arrival visit the well-planned medieval city defended by enclosing walls (around 5 km. which still remain),graced by palaces, shrines, monasteries, pavilions, parks, ponds and irrigation lakes. Polonnaruwa is strewn with ruins in a resplendent state of preservation. Of these the ‘Vatadage’ and the ‘Thuparama Image House’ are the most spectacular. The ‘Gal Vihara’ which consists of statues of the recumbent, standing and seated Buddha have been cut from a single granite wall and rank among the true masterpieces of Sri Lankan Art. On completion leave for Habarana (58 km, approx.   1 ¼ hour drive)and check in at the hotel.Overnight stay at a hotel in Habarana.

Day 03- Nilaweli
After breakfast leave for Nilaweli via Trincomalee (115 km, approx.3 ½ hour drive). This golden sandy beach on the east is peaceful, clean and wide. Nilaweli is a great beach for relaxing especially during the period of April to October. Nilaweli is one of the best spots in Sri Lanka for surfing and scuba divingOvernight stay at a hotel in Nilaweli

Day 04 – Nilaweli
 Breakfast at hotel.Overnight stay at a hotel in Nilaweli.

Day 05 – Nilaweli / Minneriya / Habarana
After breakfast leave for Minneriya for a Jeep Safari (129 km, approx. 4 hour drive). Minneriya National Park is about 8900 hectares in extent and is an ideal eco tourism location in Sri Lanka. The park consists of mixed evergreen forest and scrub area and is home to Sri Lanka’s favorites such as spotted deer, Sambar, leopards and elephants. However the central feature of the park is the ancient Minneriya Tank (built in the 3rd century). This tank is an incredible place to observe the elephants which come to bathe in the water and graze on the grasses and the huge flocks of birds, cormorants and painted storks to name a few that come to fish in the shallow waters.Overnight stay at a hotel in Habarana

Day 06 – Arugam Bay
After breakfast leave for Arugam Bay Beach near Potuvil (250 km, approx. 7 hour drive). This lazy little fishing village of Arugam Bay is richly endowed with a beautiful stretch of ocean and vast expanses of deserted beach. For many years a popular sea side holiday resort for local travelers, Arugam Bay has grown in the last twenty years into a big attraction for lovers of the surf, who converge on it in numbers from different parts of the world, to indulge in their favourite hobby of surfing and enjoy the bonus of a cheap, easy going, hassle-free lifestyle, among friendly Sri Lankan people. Overnight stay at a hotel in Arugam Bay

Day 07- Arugam Bay
Breakfast at hotel.Spend the day at leisure on the beach. Overnight stay at a hotel in Arugam Bay.

Day 08- Arugam Bay
Breakfast at hotel. Spend the day at leisure on the beach. Overnight stay at a hotel in Arugam Bay.

Day 09 – Kandy
After breakfast leave for Kandy via Mahiyangana (264 km, approx. 8 hour drive).On arrival in Kandy, check in at the hotel. Overnight stay at a hotel in Kandy.

Day 10 – Kandy
After breakfast, commence a sightseeing tour of Kandy, the bustling hill country capital which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visit the pink painted famous Temple of the Tooth which houses the most sacred religious relic, the tooth of the Buddha. Drive past the picturesque premises of the University of Peradeniya and visit the Market Place, and an Arts & Crafts show room. Then drive along the Upper Lake road to get a panoramic view of the Kandy Lake built in 1807 which is an attractive centerpiece to the town. Kandy is also popular because of the annual festival known as the Esala Perahera where the inner casket covering the tooth relic of the Buddha is taken in a grand procession through the streets of the city held annually in the month of July or August.
Late evening enjoy the Kandyan Cultural Show at the Kandyan Arts & Cultural Centre. The show features the graceful and rhythmic dancers and drummers culminating in an impressive fire walking display. Overnight stay at a hotel in Kandy.

Day 11- Pinnawela / Colombo
After breakfast leave for Colombo (116 km, approx. 3 hour drive). En route visit the Elephant Orphanage in Pinnawela. This orphanage was set up by the government to take care of baby elephants lost or abandoned in the wild. Witness the feeding of the elephants. The baby elephants being bottle fed with milk is a heartwarming sight. Thereafter observe them as they take their daily bath in the river nearby, which affords marvelous photo opportunities. Bath time is enjoyed by all elephants, young and old alike and it is a good time to closely observe their tightly knit family structure. The young elephants are protected and cared for, by the older ones in the group and the leader of the group is respected by all. (Open from 8.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.  Daily feeding times- 9.15 a.m., 1.15 p.m. 5.00 p.m. Bathing times – 10.00 a.m., 2.00 p.m., 4.00 p.m.).  On arrival in Colombo, check in at hotel. Overnight stay at a hotel in Colombo.

Day 12 – Colombo / Airport
After breakfast leave to the airport for the departure flight.

Reserve Tour now – Email Us

Thank You!

Published on 26/12/2008 in front page. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .
Taken from the second floor, SVH

Taken from the second floor, SVH

Home Needs Shop area

Home Needs Shop area

Today we remembered events 4 years ago.
We also recall that without your PRIVATE help most of us in Arugam Bay would have gone under since.
The lesson learned is to support individually and NOT give anything to any of the wasteful organizations:
They certainly have done nothing useful in the Bay to this very day.
Thanks, Dear and true friends of the Bay for your unselfish help!

WELCOME TO ARUGAM BAY EAST SRILANKA

Published on 24/12/2008 in Blogs, Money Matters, press coverage, services and the bay. 0 Comments
Wednesday, 24 December 2008 11:34 ?????? EAST SRILANKA
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Arugam Bay is situated on the Indian Ocean in the dry zone of Sri Lanka’s South-East coast. The Bay is located 220 km due East of Colombo. It is a popular surfing and tourist destination.

Many of the buildings were destroyed in the 2004 tsunami.Due to its popularity among tourists thearea has managed a slow recovery by private initiatives only.

The main road through town has not been repaved yet.By April,2008 no help has been received from any official source or International organizations.

An exception is uncoordinated support for fishing folk as well as many school rebuilding programs, sadly resulting in a continuation to provide only separatist schools for each Community.

He Bay hosts a large fleet of fishing boats which operate off the beach. Many organizations donated boats after the tsunami andas a result there are far more fishing boats than ever before.The main beach is bit dirty as it is used as a garbage dump and a toilet by some locals.Nearby beaches are more esthetically pleasing and also have excellent waves. Arugam Surf Point has a very long, consistent, sectiony right hand break.Many organizations claim to ha ve done extensive work in the area, but locally and on close inspection no progress can be observed so far, end first quarter, 2008.US ‘Mercy Corps’ has been the most active organization, funded by Oprah Whinfrey ‘Angel Network’, following a huge fund-raising TV series in the States.Sadly, none of their projects survived the first year of
operation.A bridge survived the first year of operation. A bridges being constructed by USAID to replace the old, original landmark box girder construction linking Arugam Bay with PottuVille town. There is excellent elephant viewing nearby as well as two types of monkeys wandering around the area.

Arugam Bay is far away! 7 hours drive from Colombo, it has until fairly recently only attracted a tthts. There are now almost dayly flights to Ampara with Sri Lankan Airlines sea planes.

They are presntly applying for a licence to land on Pottuvil Lagoon. The ISA (International Surfing Association) staged Arugam Bay’s first international surfing competition in the summer of 2004, and despite the shocking destruction of the Tsunami, returned again in 2005 to give the battered local economy a boost.

2005 was a difficult year for Arugam Bay as it was one of the worst hit areas of the country.

The post Tsunami recovery has by and large been very quick despite the remoteness of the area. many NGO’s and private organisations like ourselves (LankaRealAid) have help rebuild the area and some of the guest houses are now much better than before the wave. Both north and south of Arugam Bay there are undoubtedly some of the most beautiful beaches in the whole of Sri Lanka.

SURF SPORTS IN ARUGAM BAY

Arugam Bay is on the list of the top ten surf points in the world. Situated on the South East side of Sri Lanka Arugam Bay receives the same Antarctic winter swell’s that hit Indonesia in the in the middle of the year. The best time of the year is between May and November when the predominant wind is offshore for at least the first half of the day.

Due to its location and southerly swell direction the area is dominated by right hand point breaks. There is a beach break in front of the Stardust Hotel, which can be fun for body surfing or for beginners but that’s about it.

Three of the point breaks “The Point”, “Pottuvil Point” and “Crocodile Rock” are within a hour tuk tuk ride from the Hotel, with “The Point being visible (15 min walk) from the hotel. There are several other points that are within a 1-hour’s ride or can be accessed by boat. Some of the staff at the hotel surf and are only to happy to help you plan surf trips to some of these lesser known breaks

The Point: This is the main break at Arugam Bay. The point is a long right-hand point/reef break that breaks at the headland in front of Arugam Bay. It is also the best swell magnet of all the points and you can almost always guarantee that the The Point will be a couple of feet bigger than any of the other breaks. It breaks from anything between 2 and 6 feet but tends to max out after 6 foot. Due to its location it is also attracts the biggest crowd but seems to be handle it as it often sections in a few spots. On a good day it provides a clean rideble wall that will barrel in the sections and give you a 400-meter ride right through to the inside. When you ride all the way through the best option is to paddle a few yards to the beach and walk back out to the entry point (booties are advisable as the reef starts from ankle depth). There is also caf�run by some of the locals that provides a grant vantage point to watch the action from and take in stock up on energy for the next session.

Pottuvil Point: Pottuvil Point is every surfers dream tropical wave. A long deserted sandy beach doted with some huge boulders at the waters edge, make this wave a favourite with some of the season veterans. Less

crowded because of the hour tuk tuk ride north from Arugam Bay, Pottuvil point provides 800 meter rides from the outside section right through to the beach on the inside. The unique thing about this wave is that for most of it you can be working a four foot face and be only a few meters from the beach as the wave grinds down the sandy point.

The outside section sucks up and throw’s out as the swell raps into the point giving a 30 meter wall to work with before it fades as it hits deeper water for about 10 seconds. The wave then tends to double up as it hits a shallow sand bottom section that will have you hanging in there for all you worth just to try and make the next 40 to 80 meter section. Failure can leave you standing in knee deep water with a mouth full of sand if you manage not to get slammed into one of the boulder’s first.If conditions are right and you can make it through this section then the wave peels perfectly meters from the beach for an eternity until it closes out in the bay and you begin the long walk back. Pottuvil Point needs a decent size swell before it starts working at all and a large swell before the middle section

source:

http://www.saitour.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=82:welcome-to-arugam-bay-east-srilanka&catid=43:east-srilanka&Itemid=59

#39 Hillton – Arugam Bay

Published on 22/12/2008 in front page. 0 Comments

Firstly, I want to thank all of you who have called, emailed and written to find out how we are and what happened to the Hillton, when the tsunami struck on 26 th December. By the grace of God none of my family, any of our staff, or any of our guests were swept away, by the killer wave that smashed into Arugam Bay at about 9.45 that morning. Our kitchen staff were quick to see the danger and alerted the others and our guests just in time for us to scrambled up to the first floor to safety. The wave and water that rushed almost reached to the level of the first story. No words can describe my fear as the water rushed below us.

The wave swept away the Hillton’s kitchen, dinning room and four cabanas. All the ground floor rooms were flooded to their ceilings and their contents destroyed. The side wall of the front two rooms and the boundary wall were also swept away. We and our guest lost everything that was in the hotel.

I and my family decided that we must rebuild the hotel, which was begun by my father more than fifteen years ago. Over the last three months my family has used our savings and borrowed to begin the rebuilding process. The ground floor rooms have been refurnished. A temporary kitchen has been equipped. We’ve bought tables and chairs for dinning and in April we opened again for business!

Still there is much work to do to repair all the damage and replace all that we have lost. To all our regular customers I want to say, “Please don’t forget to book your holiday with us again this year!” And to people coming to Arugam Bay for the first time, “The Hillton Hotel is one of the most friendly family run hotels on the beach and not even a tsunami can change that!”

If you are planning to visit Arugam Bay either on holiday or to work with us to rebuild Arugam Bay , stay at the Arugam Bay Hillton.

M. H. A. Raheem
Owner and Manager
Arugam Bay Hillton Hotel

#39 The Hillton Hotel Arugam Bay

#39 The Hillton Hotel Arugam Bay

Mercy Corpse sells its AbaY ‘Investments’

Published on 05/12/2008 in front page. 0 Comments

Abstract:

Tourism is highly vulnerable to external, non-controllable events. A natural disaster can affect the local tourism industry in numerous ways, and such events are particularly devastating for small communities whose local economy is heavily dependent on the sector. Loss of infrastructure plus negative media stories can have long-term ramifications for the destination. In spite of the economic importance of tourism, post-disaster recovery efforts in this sector are often overlooked by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which focus on more traditional livelihoods such as agriculture or fishing.
This paper describes Mercy Corps’ support of tourism recovery activities in Arugam Bay, a remote village on the east coast of Sri Lanka, following the 2004 tsunami. The local economic base is built largely on two sectors: community tourism and fishing. As many other actors were supporting recovery in the local fishing industry, Mercy Corps concentrated on revitalising the tourism sector.

Keywords: Arugam Bay; livelihood recovery; Sri Lanka; tourism; tsunami

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-7717.2008.01058.x

Affiliations: 1: Tourism Advisor, Mercy Corps Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka 2: Director, Climate Change, Environment, and Natural Resources, Mercy Corps, Italy

The full text electronic article is available for purchase. You will be able to download the full text electronic article after payment.

$35.34 plus tax



source:

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/bpl/disa/2008/00000032/00000004/art00007

Lost: Facebook, Westwing, Arugam Bay and the Internet

Published on 01/09/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, Ideas, Money Matters, people, press coverage, surf, the bay, weddings and wild life. 0 Comments

Arugam.info needs YOUR help!

Arugam: Lost, FaceBook & Eastern Wings
Since the middle of last Century our mission has been to promote our remote little Bay.
More than 10 years ago this Home Page was established for this purpose.
In the early days of the Internet www.arugam.info (earlier .com) was the very first Web Site within Sri Lanka.
That was a long, long time before the Government, the Tourist Board or any other establishment had even considered the power of this new media.
Why do wee need YOUR help?
We would love to have “Arugam Bay” mentioned in a new film.
We wish to have Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, the producer of popular West Wing to look at Arugam Bay.

Anyone out there has any Ideas?
How to go about it????
This is the BBC article which drew our attention to Aaron and his plans and work:
Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin has agreed to make a film about the founders of social networking site Facebook.

Sorkin, who created US TV drama The West Wing and wrote the Tom Hanks movie Charlie Wilson’s War, has even opened a Facebook account to aid his research.

“I figured a good first step in my preparation would be finding out what Facebook is, so I’ve started this page,” he wrote.

He said the project was a joint venture between Sony and producer Scott Rudin.

Sony has confirmed the as-yet-untitled project is in development.

Relying on fans

Sorkin added he was aware of other pages on Facebook from people who claimed to be him, but had decided it was “flattering more than creepy”.

Aaron Sorkin's Facebook film group
I feel about this introduction the way I felt about Sophie’s Choice – It could have been funnier
Aaron Sorkin

“This is me,” he insisted. “I don’t know how I can prove that but feel free to test me.”The 47-year-old admitted he did not really understand Facebook, or “how I’m going to write the movie”, so was relying on fans to help him.

“I honestly don’t know how this works, which is why I’m here,” Sorkin said.

“If anyone has any questions, I’d be happy to answer them as best I can. If anyone has any comments, I’m glad to listen.”

Before signing off, Sorkin joked: “I feel about this introduction the way I felt about Sophie’s Choice – It could have been funnier.”

Since joining Facebook, the writer has been responding to questions and comments from fans, leading to some further revelations about the forthcoming film.

“I have a fairly specific idea of what the first 15 pages of the screenplay will be and no idea what will happen on pages 16 thru 130,” he wrote.

“I have very strong feelings about the internet and its effect on our national culture, but frankly those feelings are being countered by the sophistication, kindness, curiosity and wit of the posts in this site.

“You people are screwing me up with your civility and intelligence.”

Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg in February 2004 while studying at US university Harvard.

In the website’s early days, membership was restricted to US students, but it now has more than 100 million users worldwide.

In response, AbHa has posted the following Comment on Aaron’s Facebook site:
“There is a remote little Bay, situated on the war torn Eastern Site of the tropical Island of Sri Lanka.
Here you find wild Elephants, a small group of “Lost” type characters (incl. Locke, Charlie etc.!!) The Internet as well as Facebook have been the ONLY vehicle which transformed the entire sleepy Community into an emerging world class mini resort.
We strongly feel that the combination of a tropical paradise, the slow recovery from the Tsunami, the wasted donations and totally inefficient NGO activities, (This surfer’s spot was the hardest hit area in the entire Country), the Love & Romance input as well as the Three Shows on the Oprah Whinfrey show will provide ample input and true life ideas of who Facebook and the Internet has influenced the life’s of Natives as well as visitors.
Many of which have now decided to settle at this place:
Arugam Bay.
see aslo:www.arugam.info
(The very first Web Site, ever, in Sri Lanka – more than 12 years ago)”

We feel that if we can succeed in having Arugam Bay at least mentioned in this new film, it would give a tremendous boost to our little Bay:
If YOU can help us – You would directly help all of us here in Arugam Bay.
Because a few more guests and a little more income is all we need to recover!

Phil & Monique's Arugambay Surf PhotosPhil & Moniqus Great Arugam Bay Surf shot

Surf Arugam Bay

Published on 03/08/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, front page, people and the bay. 2 Comments

What is the surf like in August 2008?

Take a look! Arugam Bay Surf July 2008

August Surf 2008 Arugam Bay

AbaY War Zone, 2008

Published on 09/07/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, Money Matters, Security & Safety, front page, parties and press coverage. 0 Comments
Pssssst!
New, and very ‘ secret’ pics are online of last night’s Parties @ Arugam Bay!
see link below!
What a dangerous place to endure!
collage5.jpg

http://picasaweb.google.com/arugamsurf/SomlakS33rdBDayDeenSParty

AbaY Walk 2008

Published on 08/07/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, Money Matters, accomodation, bars, cabanas, front page, guesthouse, hotels, people, restaurants, services, shops and the bay. 1 Comment

In the middle of the year, we supposed to have “High Season” at Arugam Bay.
Every July, Arugam. info walks from bridge to bridge, simply armed with a little camera.

From bridge end to the other end of AbaY
This year we have a new USAIDs bridge to the North of our hamlet.
The Southern, Panama end bridge remains in poor shape.
Over the years every single sign and sign post has been documented in that way.
You are welcome to compare each year and study the ‘progress’ – or the opposite thereof…!?
Since 2005 the files are in Arugam.info ‘s our Picasa Album, see link below.
http://picasaweb.google.com/arugamsurf/AbaYWalk2008

Rock the Point

Published on 03/07/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, front page, parties, people, press coverage and the bay. 0 Comments

Daily Telegraph -UK-

PottuVille Point

A famous, most beautiful surf (& Party-!) spot in eastern Sri Lanka just to the north of Arugam Bay.

Here is YOUR chance to enjoy the beautiful setting of The Point!
The resort has been selected to host a private, three day Party in mid July, 2008!

Tickets to the event as well as transport from Colombo are by INVITATION only.
Details, contact numbers and full information, see link below:
http://www.facebook.com/inbox/#/event.php?eid=17541337053
Non Facebook users may need a password to see the above page.
Available from the Rock-the-Point hot line:( +94…)

Phone:
0777284720
Email:
rockthepoint@mac.com

The above photo was selected by the the Daily Telegraph, London and published in March, 2008; see link below.
What a location for a 3 day Party weekend!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/core/Slideshow/slideshowContentFrameFragXL.
jhtml;jsessionidFTYQHT5AUGIGVQFIQMFCFGGAVCBQYIV0?xml=/global/
slideshow/expatworld17/expatworld17.xml&site=News

Surf & Fun

Published on 28/06/2008 in From our own Correspondent, front page, parties, people, press coverage, surf and the bay. 0 Comments
Arugam Bay is unique!

Not only because the Bay has more than 325 sun shine days/year.
Another very unusual feature is a shifting sand bank.
Every year millions of tons of fine sand are deposited by the swell and a very calm baby’s paddling pool is formed.

Sand Bank forming a great Lagoon at AbaY

This process only takes a week or so!
Where else in the world can you find perfect high waves and brilliant surfing conditions?
And a huge, natural sea water swimming pool  next to each other?
Now the Bay has something for everyone:

Kids, Babys and Surfer's Paradise
A perfect destination for any surfer dude as well as families and non-swimmers!

Security Update

Published on 15/06/2008 in From our own Correspondent, Security & Safety and front page. 0 Comments

Arugam.info still promises to publish all relevant security information!
Q.: Following the end of the cease fire agreement, is Arugam Bay still safe as a destination?
Surfers: Protected species

A.: The straight answer is:
YES! Arugam Bay and the surrounding areas are very safe.
But:
Travel to the East could not really be considered to be ultra safe these days.
Potential flash points are the airport, the capital city Colombo, Kandy and all large towns, in the West and South.

  • Do avoid public transport!
  • Try to drive yourself: Car or motorbike
    Avoid freshly dug up areas on any road
  • Avoid large gatherings!
  • Avoid large cities and army camp & any other military areas!
  • Identify yourself as a tourist
  • Do not pretend to be part of any NGO (they are no longer popular in some quarters)
  • Do not comment on political/ military matters to people you don’t know
  • Do not offer lifts to armed people of any group
  • Instruct your driver to refuse lifts of men with weapons – because your vehicle could be mistaken as a target

If you follow these simple, obvious rules we are sure that you will have a peaceful, very quiet and most memorable vacation on the super quiet East Coast – because everybody seems busy elsewhere these days…

Arugam Bay Bridge is open

Published on 05/06/2008 in From our own Correspondent, Money Matters, front page and the bay. 0 Comments

The New Arugam Bay Bridge is open to the traffic.
Arugam Bay Bridge at NightAbaY Bridge May 2008
The official opening Ceremony will take place later, it is said to be 1st. July, 2008
However, the event is shrouded in mystery:
Rumor and very tight security as well as increased military survey lance suggest that Mr. President himself might descend in his helicopter onto the peaceful Bay to perform this, first major function in the East. Arugam.info will report.
The old, distinctive Land Mark Arugam Bay bridge is being dismantled right now.
Arugam.info is informed that it will be re-erected on a location in the South of Sri Lanka, as it still is in excellent condition.

Adios 2007

Published on 10/05/2008 in Blogs, From our own Correspondent, press coverage and the bay. 0 Comments

unawatuna. the gang. arrack. fireworks. moonlit nite. low tide. cool breeze. katty. breakfast at 12 pm at unawatuna bay hotel. bus ride back to colombo with dinesh and TJ. playstation parties at dinesh’s place. loads of FIFA. trinco trip. heaven. movies with katty on borrowed laptops. hanging out with chithika and adnaan. coffee with vaani. infection alert at lowe. creative mantra. blue water hotel. ‘johann the funeral parlor heir’ for a roomie. beef burger that goes cold waiting for johann to wake up. guess who finally devours it. more trips around sri lanka. trainees start heading back home. broken fan. unbearable heat. annoying mongoose on the roof. creepy voyeurs. x-force. hill country trip with dinesh and ralph. discussing life at 2000 m above sea level over a few lion beers. scene at transasia. more movies with katty. tomi leaves for finland. returns with heavy metal, meat and loads of cheese. fifa. occasional games of risk. hanging out with katty. tuk tuk rides with tomi and katty. lonely long walks to board the 122 back home. creative discussions with dilshara. arugam bay trip. 16 hours on the bus. mambo. soaking in the sun, sand and the sea with katty. magic. crocodile rock. splendid views. a drink or two with the boys. katty’s crazy farewell party. one croatian, one indian, one chinese and one sri lankan holed up in a beauty parlor discussing a tattoo. dinner at curry leaves. an emotional good bye. wrapping up the sri lanka story. not easy. but ‘what to do!’. bangalore. lovely folks. anand. everyone’s the same. lovable as ever. the city is absolute chaos. madness. miami ad school. hopes first built then shattered. ogilvy action thanks to sabith and iq. good break. great expectations. still waiting for magic. gifting folks. bass playing. fifa. endless indo-croatian chats. i miss sri lanka.

source:
http://hypnotype.blogspot.com/2007/12/adios-2007.html