Every year, since 1999 a virtual walk all the way through the little hamlet called Arugam Bay takes place in mid year. Always around the 1st July.
Hideaway. In Arugam Bay
Only armed with a small camera, every single visible sign is photographed.
Staring at the PottuVille (Northern) end of town up to the bridge at the other, Southern end where the road opens up into unspoiled Countryside, paddy fields leading to Panama.
A nice, New 7/11 shop at Northern end of the Village
Since 2005 or so this album is digital, on line for all to see changes in this remote village.
“Hello
Some unuasual (sic) question.
As you know there will be the world cup in 2 weeks.
Will it be possible to watch the games in Sri-Lanka
as a non-football country?I am now still in central-asia.
Thank you”
The 2006 World cup @ the SVH. More impressions and memories in gallery below
Answer submitted by the SVH, Arugam Bay:
The SVH (Siam View Hotel) has shown all major games LIVE on two huge screens for many, many years. Surround sound, open air cinema, best draft home-produced all natural beer etc.
Three stand-by generators! Power cuts are frequent.
This is the place to be and enjoy the world cup in a great setting overlooking the entire Bay.
And in the Company of a great crowd.
Other hotels will also show the games, on small TV’s, as many now have a simple Dialog Sat. connection. www.arugam.com
Your host: Khun Somlak, SVH manageress. At the draft beer bar
Four years ago at the SVH
Happy times. At the SVH Beach Bar
2006 World Cup LIVE@ the SVH
The SVH Beach Bar. An Arugam Bay land mark
The 2006 World cup @ the SVH. More impressions and memories in gallery below
Tense moments on the SVH terrace
The SVH Beach Bar. Reconstructed 2005 with reclaimed drift wood
Top selling Mexican beers to be produced in Eastern Sri Lanka
Corona (labeled Corona Extra) is a brand of pale lager owned and produced by Cerveceria Modelo in Mexico. It is the top-selling beer in Mexico and is one of the top selling beers worldwide.[2] Corona beer is available in over 150 countries.[3] All Corona beer is brewed and bottled in one of 7 Modelo Breweries in Mexico.
So far.
Corona Extra. The Mexican top selling beer
Outside of Mexico, Corona is to be slightly renamed and will be produced in a new brewery to be constructed at Arugam Bay. A world famous Surf spot and upcoming tourist resort situated in the deep South East of remote Sri Lanka.
To destinguish the new Sri Lanka Export product from the original Mexican label, and in recognition and celebration of local achievements following the end of the long ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka, the following brand name has been proposed:
Caruna Extra. Export to Asian markets only
For this purpose the Mexican global leaders have teamed up with the award winning, but widely unknown Arugam Bay Surfer’s Beer label under an agreement with the Sri Lanka Government and its Board of Investment Department.
Cerveceria Modelo’s chairman Senioria Condolenzza Gogonzola stated that the Company has welcomed branching out to new markets in the East. Corona is a traditional cult beer favored by young, active people and is popular with modern party people. As world economies are shifting to India, China and Russia it makes no longer sense to ship containers of beer half way around the globe. Continue reading ‘Cerveceria Modelo to invest in Arugam Bay’
Sri Lankan surfers choose their own path with a new identity
Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 19 March, 2010 : – - The Birth of a Surfing Nation project has always had the objective of positioning Sri Lankan surfing in a different manner to that of other existing national surfing organizations due to the unusual environment and context in which the organization was created in 2010.
In accordance with the formation recently of the Surfing Federation of Sri Lanka, the surfers have decided on a new logo for their identitiy, promotion and team look. A logo was chosen which they felt represented their new attacking attitude upon the world of surfing;
The Team colours and designs are yet to be finalised for the new national outfit. They will undoubtedly reflect this group’s intention of branding themselves apart from the others. The new national look will be decided at the upcoming Annual General Meeting in Arugam bay between 18 – 24 June during the first major international Surfing event to be staged in Sri Lanka – the Sri Lankan Airlines 6 Star Pro WQS to be run in conjunction with the local Sri Lankan Tourist Board.
The new identity will be a natural extension of the unusual manner and circumstances in which the Federation has formed this year and reflect the very broad cultural span in the Sri Lankan surfing community. The Surfing Federation’s marketing advisor Peter Rob-o added that the new federation is keen to talk to any of the Surf clothing companies and action sportswear manufacturers who may be interested in taking a chance through supporting the new team and preparing the Sri Lankan Surf Team national outfits.
“We invite the involvement of any surfing or sportwear company starting out (like us) who is interested in connecting to the worldwide industry with a surfing group such as ours who are definitely outside the surfing norm. We could be a very exciting opportunity for the next budding surf industry giant to get associated with at an early stage.
Our objectives are clear and we intend to be highly marketable and noticed. Our surfing talent is already starting to command some attention with the visiting surfers and random overseas surfing groups such as the British, European, Japanese, Israelis and Australians who come here to surf and compete on our shores each surfing season.” proclaimed Rob-o proudly. Continue reading ‘New logo for Sri Lankan Surfing Federation’
A Green and Happy place on Earth.
A true, unspoiled ecological sanctuary.
Just North of famous PANAMA!
A place where Green issues still count
A place with zero Carbon emissions
A place of unique Biological diversity
A place for tolerance of social divisions
A place with strong social networks of friends, families and neighbours
“A place where people say they have a simpler, less materialistic life, more in tune with nature.”
Could this paradise be Arugam Bay? Too good to be true…. Because this place also is:
A place where Money is poured into books and education. Not Bullets
A place with Fair and peaceful Presidential Elections
A place with no Army at all. Ever since 1949
And, perhaps best of all: A forgiving place where….
….A popular piece of philosophy… says:
“No argument or quarrel should last more than three days”
Here the 6th Parallel seems to end ;-( What is the BBC talking about, if not Sri Lanka and the peaceful East?
A new project is under construction near PottuVille Point.
PottuVille Point is being developed
It seems that a new hotel/restaurant is being build on this beautiful coconut estate.
Overlooking the Indian Ocean, facing the Bay of Arugam.
According to local contractors and workers, #01 Stardust owners are branching out to this new location. Other say, an English family are behind this development.
Great spot! Where else on this island could such a fine, unspoiled location be found?
Arugam Bay is located 220 km due East of Colombo. It is a popular surfing and tourist destination in Sri Lanka. I’ve been to Arugam Bay before in its tourist season and it’s an absolute beauty. The waves the wind and everything was so perfect. However in the raining season it’s not the case; you cannot even go out because of the rain. In the raining season it’s very hard to find a day without any rain. Thanks to a weather forecasting website I was able to find a day without any rain. It was June 2009 nearly four and a half years after Sri Lanka was hit by the Tsunami in 2004, and surprisingly Arugam Bay is one of the very first coasts to get hit by the Tsunami in Sri Lanka.This time I visited the place to see how it progress after Tsunami.
Many of the buildings were destroyed in the 2004 tsunami. The post Tsunami recovery has by and large been very quick despite the remoteness of the area. Many NGO’s and private organisations 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.Due to its popularity among tourists they are managed a slow recovery by private initiatives only.
Nominated for the Best of British Award by the Daily Telegraph, London
The SVH on the Surfer’s Bay of Arugam. Established 1977 by a devout CAMRA member. The “Siam View” is still run by the same Manx expat and his family to this day. Despite the 30 war years and 2004 Tsunami this place never once closed its doors for even one single day. Home of more than a dozen all natural draft beers. Continue reading ‘AbaY Hotel nominated for Best of British Award’
A tsunami preparedness rehearsal will be held on December 26, Saturday at 3.00 p.m. in 10 districts, Disaster Management Centre Director General Major General Gamini Hettiarachchi said.
Original 1999 Hotel sign. File photo
Tsunami preparedness rehearsals are held from time to time in various areas along the coastal belt so as to make the public aware regarding natural disasters which bring much havoc to human beings and resources.
Under this Tsunami preparedness exercise a single town has been selected from 10 districts amounting to 10 towns. The towns are Gampaha, Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Puttalam, Galle, Kalutara, Matara, Ampara, Hambantota and Colombo. Under this drill people will be evacuated from the selected 10 towns to places of safety identified earlier.
(Colombo Lankapuvath December 03) –Arugambay Travels and Tours (Pvt) Ltd have opened a new office at a prime location in the heart of Colombo’s commercial area yesterday (02). Since the operations started in 2004 the company was involved in promoting Tourism to the East which is the prime intention.
Although the plans were delayed due to the situation of the country during the past few years now they are pleased to have been able pursue with the targets.
They are fully geared to serve from the new location at Deal Place Colombo 03. May it be local or foreign tourists; Arugambay will serve all of them with more emphasis on introducing new and exotic locations to visitors. Continue reading ‘Arugambay Travels and Tours in Colombo’
The new office of Arugambay Travels and Tour was declared open on Wednesday by Minister of Tourism Promotion Faiszer Musthapha at No. 20,Deal Place, Colombo 3.Deputy Minister of Higher Education Minister M.M. Musthoha Advisor to the President A.H.M.Aswer, Secretary Ministry of Tourism Promotion George Michael, President Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry Sri Lanka Kosala Wickramanayake, Partner Arugambay Travels and Tours and Arugambay Travels Hotels Mark John Scannell, Chairman Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority Bernard Goonetilleke and members of the business community were present at the inauguration. Continue reading ‘ARUGAMBAY’s NEW OFFICE’
By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News website
…….The project’s initial tranche of work focussed on forests, finding that the ongoing loss of forest comes with an annual pricetag of US $2-5 trillion, dwarfing the banking crisis.
The new analysis takes the economists to the undersea realms of fisheries and coral reefs…………
Societies gain financially from leaving forests intact rather than clearing them
Money invested in protecting nature can bring huge financial returns, according to a major investigation into the costs and benefits of the natural world.
It says money ploughed into protecting wetlands, coral reefs and forests can bring a hundredfold return on capital.
We took the 7.15 train to Batticaloa from Colombo Fort, which seems to be the place from where most of our travels begin. It is also possible to get to Arugam Bay via Ampara but spending 11 hours in a bus wasn’t exactly our idea of fun.
The train ride is long. We only got to Batti at 5 am. It stopped at various places for no apparent reason. Traveling on a Sunday night in second class will get you double seats for yourself. But, unless you are a midget, you’d be hard pressed to get some comfortable sleep. Tickets are Rs. 500. Its a longass train ride that takes you through Habarana and Polonnaruwa seemingly just to avoid the hill country.
At Batti, following the guidance of Lonely Planet we visited a very mediocre looking dutch fort. The general architecture of Batti is reminiscent of South India. There aren’t many trees but the ones there are have been colonized by pigeons, with very bad bathroom habits.
We ate at a restaurant called Hotel Thameemy at the end of main street. We had Parata and pol rotti with potato curry, pol sambol and beef. The food was excellent.
To Arugam Bay
The ride to Arugam Bay was in three stages. Batti to Kalmunai, Kalmunai to Akkaraipattu and Akkaraipattu to Pottuvil. The landscape is dry and arid. Its got a strange beauty about it.
The first two stages were in hot buses. We had interesting chats with the driver on the second stretch. The roads are being developed at a rate and this provides a lot of employment to area residents. On the stretch from Akkaraipattu to A’bay we took a tuk tuk. This cost us around Rs. 1300. We recommend you take the bus.
Eating and Sleeping in A’Bay
We stayed at Sooriyas, the only place in Sri Lanka (pending verification) where accommodation can be gotten for 200 bucks per person. The room comes complete with bathroom, fan and fresh linen. The host, Asraff, is friendly and a good cook. Food is billed for separately though and if you’re looking for ultra cheap meals then Alira’s, a few meters north on the beach side, is a good option.
Peanut farm
We rented 3 push bikes and biked over to Peanut Farm. Bikes can be gotten from Hakeem’s for 300 rupees a day. Peanut farm is a surfing point that is roughly 8kms south of Arugam Bay. Its got beautiful deserted beaches and some interesting looking rocks on to the right side with some caves in them.
The road heads through fields flanked by thick dry zone forest. Elephants are said to haunt the roadsides after dark and we had a close encounter with one on the way back. It gave us the stink eye. We assume there is rap music involved somewhere.
This post might be a bit delayed because we are currently using internet that apparently uses smoke signals and monkeys overdosing on Acid for transmission provided by the dude over at indi.ca via dialog. Phone reception is particularly good with most areas covered by that operator.
Sri Lanka is blessed with the azure waters of the Indian Ocean, which lap the entire 1,585 kilometres of the coastline. This, together with the two seasonal monsoons that hit each side of the island at different times of the year, means that water sports such as Windsurfing can be indulged in at any time.
Windsurfing began in America sometime in the early 70s after the discovery that a mast located on a swivelling pivot could be used to steer a small sailing craft by using body weight instead of a rudder. The first boards made their way to Sri Lanka in the late 70s, when a group of Swedish holidaymakers decided to try to bring them along on vacation. After this more and more tourists started bringing boards, some of which were intentionally left behind. It was these boards that west coast locals used to learn the sport for themselves. Continue reading ‘Windsurfing Arugam Bay’
Keshini Hapugoda might be Sri Lanka’s first female kite surfer. The 28-year-old IT consultant loves to surf and dive, and kite surfing is her latest passion. A few weekends with an instructor in Negombo have helped her learn the basics of kite surfing and while she’s sticking to the shallows now, she’s hoping to head into deeper water soon.
Dilsiri Welikala is already comfortable out at sea. “It’s an amazing feeling, harnessing the power of the wind to propel yourself along,” he says. He talks of skimming along the water for hours at a time and of chance encounters with pods of dolphins. Though he needs a little help getting his 10 square metre kite up, once that’s done and the lines and harness are secured, he’s good to go.
“Your kite becomes like an airplane wing,” says Dilsiri, explaining that he controls the direction of his kite by changing the angle of his board. Kite surfers are slaves to the winds and will drive many hours to catch the right kind. As a result, this group has been all over the island, from Puttalam to Arugam Bay. Continue reading ‘Games to play at Arugam Bay’
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