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Trip to heaven and back

News from the east of Sri Lanka is not always pleasant, but tucked away amid all the strife is a paradise called Trincomalee

PHOTOS: REUTERS AND THE AUTHOR

SPLENDOUR The serenity of the environment (left) around Trinco strikes you and a view (right) of the blue ocean off the coast of the city

I wake up with a start to hear the phone ring. I pick it up with a half-awake "hello", and then realise it is the alarm I set. It is 4.30 a.m. and I am just 30 minutes away from being picked up en route to Trincomalee, better known as Trinco.

I doze off for the first quarter of the journey from Colombo to Trinco and get up to my van whizzing past lush green paddy fields and clear blue skies. I watch the scenes zooming past and feel the impact of nature recharging my strained city nerves.

Having been in Sri Lanka for a year now and travelled extensively, the country's natural beauty has never failed to fascinate me. I have waited for this day, when I get a weekend in the strife-torn east of Sri Lanka, known for its unspoilt beauty.

Wildlife

Driving through Kaudulla National Park is refreshing. The wildlife is spectacular. Suddenly there is a shout: "Look left." I swing around 180 degrees and what I see is worth a thousand snapshots — a serene blue lake. The van slows down. Ralph, my Dutch friend, is busy clicking away with his camera, while I soak it all in.

The whole point of this trip is to donate a maternity bed and trolley to a hospital in Gomarankadawela, a village desperately in need of help. My van follows the truck carrying the beds.

The movement is stop and go thanks to the numerous checkpoints. But I appreciate it. It gives me more time to drink in the surroundings. We get to Trinco around two p.m. and what's that near the urban council? Stray dogs? They have spots and antlers! It is spotted deer. I click away with Ralph's camera while everyone admires the rest of the herd on the other side. We have got to get to the village soon. It is 40 km away from Trinco. There is just enough time because of all the checkpoints to reach our hotel on Inner Harbour Road. We drop our bags off and head out only to be stopped at the same checkpoints all over again.

The road to Gomarankadawela winds through miles and miles of dense jungle with no sign of human habitation except for soldiers in combat fatigues. They smile at you in unison as you drive past. Sri Lankans always have infectious smiles to greet you.

The whole village seems from a different era thanks to the total absence of all signs of commercialisation. We park at the hospital. The staff is thrilled to see the beds. After donating the beds, we head to a school where my friends are planning to donate bicycles. We learn from the headmaster that there are students who travel from as far as 12 km to study. We step out from the headmaster's room to see all the children lined up with baskets of fresh flowers. It is Saturday evening and time to pray.

Dusk is nearing and we head back for Trinco. The sun is setting at a distance and the sky is a riot of colour. Not far away, cutting their way through tall grass, weary soldiers return from a patrol. Loaded guns in hand, watching each other's backs, they head towards the road. It looks like a scene right out of "Apocalypse Now".

The next day we have a guest over for breakfast, a young Sri Lankan Army major. He is the one who identified the needy village and gave us the opportunity to help them. He offers to join us to Koneshwaram Kovil, a temple perched atop Swami Rock, a 130m high cliff with a breathtaking view of the sea. The much-talked-about Lover's Leap is nearby. The tale behind the leap is of a Dutch official's daughter who, watching her fiancé sail away, decides to make the fatal leap. People say death is guaranteed if you fall off the point.

It is either the sheer drop or the electric eels that finish the job. I walk over, look down, and see a school of fish just under the surface of the water.

The major takes us to the Officers' Mess at Fort Frederick. There is a whole wall documenting the history of how the fort had been taken over by various European colonisers. In fact "Lonely Planet" says: "Trinco has the most convoluted colonial history." The Major points to the harbour, considered Asia's best natural deep harbour. It has the capacity to conceal some 300 ships and thus is strategically vital.

We walk out towards the beach and see a sign saying "for officers only". But the major says: "Go ahead and soak yourselves in the sea." The water is so clear that even without any snorkelling gear, Ralph spots a stingray.

I make my way into the water. Head above the turquoise water, feet sunk in the grainy white sand, I soak all the natural splendour Trinco is blessed with.

V. ABHISHEK

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