A Trip to the GA’s Bungalow Polonnaruwa ?

This is a true story that took place way back in the year 1981. We were newly married with our baby son Naveen just a few months after his first birthday. Employed as a technocrat in the Irrigation Department took me into remote wilderness locations on duty. My narration of these wild locations enthused the in-laws that we make a trip to the North Central Province (NCP) and back. Living in Galle it would be a long way out to the NCP.

The dates for the trip was on a long weekend in October and the itinerary was drawn up assisted by my bosom pal Wilson Kulasuriya.  The trip for three-night outs were approved by all. The first day was basically a run-up to Chenkalady for the night a township in the Eastern Province with a visit to Buduruwagala, a place close to Wellawaya, that had effigies carved out of living rock. Day two to Polonnaruwa with a stay over in Polonnaruwa. Subsequently, proceed to Anuradhapura for an overnight stay and back to Galle the following day. The itinerary was passed by all. However, the long haul from Galle to Chenkalady was something that did have my fingers crossed.  This was in the year 1981 and the roads were of a rickety, bumpy state.

Next was to find a mode of conveyance. An enterprising Storekeeper in my office who had invested in a passenger bus service then, helped me locate a sixteen seater TOYOTA van. The dates fixed and the estimate for three days was thought to be fair. Our salaries then were very meager and limited to three digits.  However, the trip cost ran to four digits and we had to look for additional trippers to meet the budget. Finally, the budget was met exceeding the seating capacity. The kids and babies will have a lap ride all the way. The three-night stays were arranged with request Postcards sent out to the locations for reservation. The night in Chenkalady will be in the Irrigation Camp. Polonnaruwa was to be in a pilgrim rest in the vicinity of the Government Agents residence and the Dutugemunu Pilgrims rest was to be the night stay in Anuradhapura. The Postal Service then was thought to be reliable but for its promptness in deliveries.

Finally, the planned day dawned and the trip did kickoff on time at 4:00 A.M as scheduled from Galle. Breakfast was planned at Ambalantota at a relative’s house where three more trippers would hop in. A general timing of an hour for breakfast in Ambalantota did overrun with all the fun and laughter, longtime no sees, loo queues, plain tea, and milk tea mix-ups and finally we are back on the road to Buduruwagala.

We locate the turnoff to Buduruwagala with much difficulty and are on a dirt track which is in a very bad state for an overcrowded vehicle. No Google Maps or Air-conditioning then, we are drenched in sweat in a humid forest area covered in tall grasses. The van comes to an abrupt halt and the driver says … it’s the end of the road. On inquiries from some workmen living in temporary coconut cajan huts, we are told that the Buduruwagala Tank Bund had breached during the previous monsoon and the escaped waters had totally scoured the road below and the only way to the rock with its beautiful carved effigies was by the contractor’s boat service that took visitors across the tank for a fee. We are told that a party had already gone in the boat and once they are back another party is ready to go and our turn will be once they are back. Rough calculation showed a lapse of over four hours and we decide to abandon the visit to the effigy rock and decide to proceed. We still have more than half the distance for the day to be covered.  We had packed lunch on the way and did dose off when the driver missed a turn and we are now traversing via Passara/Lunugala a detour accounting for extra time and adding insult to injury we have a punctured tire. The wheel changed we are carrying the punctured tire to be vulcanized and repaired in Chenkalady. Passing Mahiyangane we reach Maha-Oya when darkness falls and is stopped at a police road barrier. There had been some skirmish with the security forces and the Tamil militia in Chenkalady and a Police curfew has been imposed for two days. The civil unrest that later turned into a thirty-year war was just in its brewing stage in 1981.

I’m now in a dilemma …. Is it the end of the trip? However, the priority now was to find a place for the night as darkness was closing up in all directions. The Maha-Oya Buddhist Temple was our only solace and some of us approached the chief prelate and explained our plight. His stand was that he would not allow his premises other than for pilgrims and as we were on our way to Polonnaruwa which according to his standards was not a pilgrimage, and was not happy in accommodating us. However, seeing the women and children and the menfolk to be of sober habits the temple gates were opened. A quick meal prepared and arrangements were made for the night in the sermon hall. The women were given the luxury of the limited water resource in the temple and the males went to the hot springs for a bath and to clean and wash the van. It was to be a very dark night.

Back after dinner, we have a major problem to be sorted for day two. We will have to either abandon the trip and go back home or travel all the way to Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa via Kandy through the Hasalaka - Hunnasgiriya road on the sixteen hairpin bends. The extra cost and time is no way a match for us. However, enthusiasm and adventurism of the team said otherwise. There is a jeep track from a turn off midway between Maha-Oya and Mahiyangane through Weddah country to Welikanda on the Polonnaruwa - Batticaloa road. Welikanda is outside the Batticaloa district and is curfew free. Drivers agree and democracy had its way that day. We would leave as early as possible before sunrise and we are on the jeep track around seven in the morning.

(Apparently, this is the road that runs from Welikanda to Mahiyangane today via Girandurukotte and Siripura)

Breakfast was had on the way with plain tea from a wayside kiosk that served a smoke flavored black brew… my instincts say if we are lucky on this jungle tract we should be in Welikanda by around 2:30/3:00 P.M. But around 10 O’clock the sun is a scorching silver ball and we are sweltering in a crammed van running at breakneck speed in an elephant infested habitat in the dry zone jungles. The dust cloud created by the van is racing behind us, and it overtakes each time the van negotiated a ditch or a scour on the dirt track. Our exposed skin and hair turned brown with the dust cloud giving us all an aboriginal look. Everybody is silent through fear of possible elephant encounters or a possible breakdown that would strand us in this no man’s land.  The body language, however, did discomfit me as the trip coordinator and the feeling and expression of contempt that would fall on me, if at all we get stranded in this jungle. Just then we are struck with a disaster once again. We have another tire puncture and the feeling of being stranded is almost inevitable now with no spare wheel to change as we had not got the puncture repaired yesterday. We are stranded for sure and I’m looked at by everyone but I don’t give a damn but help the drivers with the wheel and looking for large stones to prop up the vehicle. The drivers will now have to carry the two tries to a local vulcanizing shed to mend them and come back. Our only hope now is for a bicycle or a farmer’s tractor coming this way. An hour passes and our people are in various locations where there is a shade. The kids are irritated and the mothers have a time comforting them. Our straining eyes see a speck in the distance and when it nears its a two-wheeled tractor with trailer. We are in a locality called Pimureththewa; there is an Irrigation Department workshop close by where we will have assistance. Two hours have gone and we are still stranded… but have trekked through curiosity to the upper reaches of the Pibureththewa tank and the kids are in the water and somewhat a comforting feeling to all in this scorching heat. By the time the van is ready the sun has turned over to the setting side. We have lost day two as well on the outskirts of the Pibureththewa jungles and I have another issue that’s worrying me now.  

Our overnight stay in Polonnaruwa is not confirmed and my plan was to finalize matters when in Polonnaruwa as the travel from Chenkalady to Polonnaruwa was only three hours then and a contingency could be sorted out if we were not booked in. However, now we are reaching Polonnaruwa once again in the late evening and locating a place as a contingency plan would be very vague. I had sent a Postcard in time to the pilgrims' rest but if it was received on time at the rest was my issue.  The rest is located close to the Government Agents residence and therefore I had addressed the postcard thus….”The Pilgrims Rest, Near GA’s Bungalow, Polonnaruwa.” 

We are now in Welikanda on the Polonnaruwa-Batticaloa highway and with a short time, we would be in Polonnaruwa and darkness would be falling soon. Where are we heading to? ask a voice from the front and I say ‘ask for the GA’s bungalow’.  ‘Are we staying there tonight?’ was the sarcasm in the question and the joke was enjoyed by everyone except me. We are there at the supposed pilgrim’s rest which is now full of activity with people running about chatting, cooking, washing, bathing, etc. We walk up to the caretaker/manager and explain our situation and ask to be excused for being late arrivals.

A humble gentleman looks up at us from his desk and asks in the native Sinhala tongue…                 “ඔබ තුමන්ල දිසාපති හාමුදුරුවන්ගෙ නෑදෑයොද?” ….. (Are you the people related to the Government Agent)…others looked at each other.... my wit came in in no time knowing what would have happed …. I said “ඔව් ඔව් ඒ අපි තමයි”… (Yes, yes… they are us).

The postman had delivered the Postcard to the GA’s bungalow instead and the GA on his way to the Kachcheri had handed the Postcard to the caretaker/manager and explained that a party would arrive on the said date.  

There had been many callers that day for accommodation but the large room had been kept reserved for GA’s relatives. My day was saved and right through the period at the  Polonnaruwa rest we were all relations of the Government Agent Polonnaruwa.

The trip now had to have an extra day as all needed to look around Polonnaruwa. And we being relatives of the GA the humble caretaker/manager allowed us an extra day in his rest. The trip continued a day behind schedule to Anuradhapura and we had no issues during the rest of the trip.