Newsletter aus Sri Lanka von Royston Ellis

[Claudia]

Hallo Premasiri,

danke für den Newsletter! Er ist wie immer sehr interessant.

Paradise Road ist ein MUSS für mich, wenn ich in Colombo bin.
Da findet sich immer etwas was man unbedingt braucht .

Weiterhin einen schönen Urlaub

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 196, Sunday 26 January 2014. Greetings! This week’s tropical topics features plants and culture. Bougainvillaea’s a diva. Bougainvillaea has always been a puzzle to me, not because of how to spell the plant’s name correctly but also because the plant, surely a female, seems so temperamental, like a diva. One day she’s vibrant with colour, the next day she’s shed her leaves as though sulking and only twigs remain. So I was thrilled to see the bougainvillaea plants at my cottage have started reviving. Their colours rival a diva’s ball gown. As well as traditional purple they show themselves off in flaming red, bridal white, Victorian ivory, and the pinkish orange of this plant. Orange Diva by Sasindu Balage (age 4) ​ It’s not the flower that has the colour (that’s white and small) but the bracts that complement the green leaves. Each cluster of three flowers is usually surrounded by three or six bracts. The bracts seem as fragile as parchment, which is probably why bougainvillaea is sometimes known as the paper flower. Victorian ivory diva ​ Bougainvillaea is a prickly beauty at best but, treated well, she thrives in sunny corners, celebrating her existence with outrageous displays of colour that make her periodic tantrums of leaflessness tolerable. When that happens, as with any diva, we have to wait until she decides to charm us again with her radiance. Made in Sri Lanka Since sunburn in Sri Lanka can ruin a holiday it is appropriate that Sri Lanka is also the source of a natural oil to mitigate the harsh effects of the sun’s rays. Step forward Aloe Vera. Aloe vera oil and plant ​ Not another diva like Dame Bougainvillaea, although she has a name fit for one. Aloe Vera is a succulent, if prickly, plant; part of the lily family (Liliaceae), and a relative of garlic and onions. Different parts of the plant can be used to treat a body’s maladies and it is used for both internal and external applications. Aloe Vera contains over 200 active components including many vitamins, minerals, amino acids, enzymes, polysaccharide, and fatty acids. The bulk of the Aloe Vera leaf is filled with a clear gel-like substance, which is approximately 99% water. Man has used aloe therapeutically for over 5,000 years. It is renowned as an adaptogen, something that boosts the body’s natural ability to cope with stress (physical, emotional and environmental stress like pollution). Aloe is known to soothe and cleanse the digestive tract and help improve digestion. It can help the proper elimination of waste from, and detoxification of, the body. It is an alkaline forming food. It alkalises the body, helping to balance overly acidic dietary habits Aloe Vera juice may be able to help lower the risk of heart disease, helps boost the immune system and is also an antipyreticwhich means it is used to reduce or prevent fever. It acts as an analgesic, acting to help relieve pain of wounds, that’s why it’s good for sunburn. It helps supply oxygen to the skin cells, increasing the strength and synthesis of skin tissue and induces improved blood flow to the skin through capillary dilation. Aloe vera close up ​ Phew! I didn’t know any of that when I bought this week’s Made in Sri Lanka product. And I didn’t know I actually have this wondrous plant growing in the cottage garden. My plastic bottle of Aloe Vera Oil was produced by an outfit known as Weerarathna Essential Oils Industries at Kananke, inland in the south of Sri Lanka (tel: ++ 94 91 4928763). It consists of 84% Aloe Vera oil plus 2% each of Gut Well [sic], Kowakka Leaf, Gingerly, Cow Milk, Ushira, Sandal Woo [sic], Kasta, plus 0.5% each of Kachura, Water lily, Liqurise [sic], Kollan Leaf. The label states, in very small print: “Aloe Vera Oil made out of the extracts of plants listed above can be applied anywhere on the skin to stop sunburn. It is ideal for massaging. It also helps to cure insomnia, week [sic] memory, severe headaches, mental disabilities, bile, tearing of the eye, etc.” All that for Rs350 [£ 1.66; US$ 2.69] for 125ml. Colomboscope Although it sounds like a horrible bodily probe or a punishment, this is a “multi-disciplinary arts festival” and it happens in Colombo from Thursday 30 January to Monday 3 February. According to a press release, the festival (which was first held last year) “celebrates contemporary literature, music, dance and theatre and brings artists, academics and cultural commentators from Sri Lanka and Europe together.” There will be author readings, guided walks, talks, panel discussions, dance, drama and musical performances from both Sri Lankan and international artistes held in some unusual venues such as the old Whist Bungalow and its gardens in Mutwal, the Old Town Hall in Pettah; St Peter’s Church in Colombo Fort, and the Rio Cinema & Hotel Complex in Slave Island. This formidable initiative is supported by Standard Chartered Bank, the British Council, the Alliance Francaise and the Goethe Institut. More information on www.colomboscope.org Memories of Ceylon Another project to bring Sri Lanka’s culture to wider attention has been inaugurated online, so you don’t have to be in Sri Lanka to appreciate it. From Dr. R. L. Spittel Collection. ​ Dominica Sansoni, Sri Lanka’s famous photographer, has begun collecting and uploading photographs from the past that give a revealing insight of a way of life that has almost disappeared. The project aims to create a digital archive of old photographs of Ceylon from family albums up to the year 1972. Dominic says: “I think there must be a wealth of material held by the descendants of the old planting/business families overseas who lived in Ceylon and who have old photographs.” Original uniform of the Ceylon Police Force ​ He is keen that people who have albums and photographs they are willing to have scanned for the site should contact him (dominicsansoni@gmail.com) The temporary home for the images until they are moved to a dedicated website is: http://threeblindmen.photoshelter.com/gallery-collection/Ceylon-Memory-Project/C0000ho.zxgezp.w Guide Time Sri Lanka (newest edition) ​ For more on Sri Lanka the new edition of my guide book has just been published by Bradt (UK) and Globe Pequot (USA), Check: http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html Beat regards Royston Ellis von der sende ich euch allen sonnige und warme Gruesse Premasiri

 

[Premasiri]

Sweet Hot Stuff MA’s products are well known in Sri Lanka because of their packaged spices, curry pastes and sauces. It seems Ma’s husband as got into the act too as there is also a product line called Dad’s Garden Sauce. I bought this one last week to try it. (Unfortunately the company no longer makes the Worcester Sauce about which I raved in Newsletter No.77: http://www.masfoods.lk) Sweet Hot Stuff in the garden ​ It lives up to its billing as “a rich tomato based hot sauce with a strong garlic flavour” and is attractively bottled so you can see bits of garlic and chilli floating in it. The ingredients are listed as “sugar, vinegar, tomato, garlic (3.4%), corn flour, chilli (1.3%) salt, ginger, paprika, pepper, preservative (E211).” The 375ml bottle cost me Rs280 [£ 1.33; US$ 2.15]. It claims to be “Perfect with rolls, steaks, pastries, stir fries, BBQs, hotdogs…” There’s a sticker on the label that says: “Supporting Community Trade. Rs1 from this product will go towards supporting the sustainable agricultural practices of small scale organic farmers in Matale, Sri Lanka.” Gives me a warm feeling, that does. Perfect Retreat At last, by pure chance, I have found the answer to the question of where to stay in Sri Lanka when I want something different from mainstream, five-star, package, boutique or backpacker hotels. It’s called Kadolana Eco Village. Andadola Station. Photo by B Kumarasiri ​ What drew me to it was a photograph of a bijou railway station just 12km from where I live, which I never knew existed. That’s not surprising because Andolana station was built only 10 years ago, to serve a community of villagers living in charming old and modern houses by the Madu Ganga (river). The well-surfaced Berathuduwa Road leads inland from the Galle Road, just after Balapitiya and the 80km marker, to the station. Just before the station, I discovered a lane on the right that leads to the unpretentious gates of Kadolana Eco, marked with the Sinhala versions of the letters “K’ and “E” in wrought iron. Kadolana entrance gate. (B Kumarasiri.)jpg ​ Opened only four months ago, this riverside retreat has already had repeat guests and it’s easy to see why: it is simply perfect, or perfectly simple. Previously a neglected cinnamon garden, a blissful haven has been created there by a Sri Lankan family, and is under the direction of their Australian- educated and much-travelled son. Pool & river. (B Kumarasiri) ​ The entrance pavilion reveals a magnificent view and a glimpse of a glimmering swimming pool poised above the wide sweep of the river. There are two a/c cottages with all mod cons, as well as four “eco chalets” built of new clay bricks and roofs thatched with woven palm leaves (not used as camouflage for asbestos sheets). The chalets are clean and compact with small bathrooms open to the sky. Eco chalet bedroom. (B Kumarasiri) ​ There is a separate dining pavilion with a modest (and low priced) menu of Sri Lankan or Western dishes, available if ordered in advance as nothing comes from a deep freezer. The lunch we had was fragrantly delicious and a tribute to fine Sri Lankan cuisine. Lunch (left to right) Front row: Rice with fried curry leaves, acharu (pickle), chicken ambul thiyal (spicy/sour) style, banana flower; centre row: fresh Madu Ganga prawn curry, lady’s fingers (okra) sambol, green leaf mallum, curried breadfruit; back row: pappadam & sprats, battered oyster mushrooms. Watch tower with eco chalet in the background. (B Kumarasiri) ​ With a narrow jetty floating on oil drums for embarking on a boat for a river safari, a riverside spa pavilion for ayurveda treatment, a wooden watch tower for cool meditation and secluded accommodation, this is the kind of place one wants to keep secret, but can’t help sharing with others. (www.kadolanaecovillage.com) Green Flash It’s not a lethal cocktail with pastis (or an eco perversion) but a natural phenomenon sometimes witnessed from the west coast at this time of the year as the sun goes down: a green flash. There are sceptics who say it doesn’t exist but if you watch the sun carefully as it sets into the sea on a clear day, and don’t blink, it can be seen – sometimes. The moment before the Flash ​ There are photographs of superb green flashes on the internet but I’ve never been able to catch it on camera as it’s so fast. It is a rarely seen pin prick of green light as the top rim of the sun slips below the horizon. In the latest edition of my Bradt Guide to Sri Lanka, I describe it as: “an event caused by a scattering of light by molecules in the atmosphere. It is light refracted by air.” It’s also a great talking point as we sit at my beach view bar and sip sundowners. In the pink I’m planning a party soon and so I’ve been choosing material for new staff uniforms suitable for a sundowner cocktail session (and hoping for a glimpse of the Green Flash). In next week’s newsletter I’ll have a photograph of the tailored ensemble. Choosing material ​ Book Note Don’t miss next week’s newsletter for details on how to obtain a discount on the purchase of my guide to Sri Lanka published by Bradt. In the meantime, my two books for retro beat reading are available. To order The Big Beat Scene click on http://musicmentor0.tripod.com/book_big_beat_scene.html and for raunchy beat poems of the 1960s, Gone Man Squared visit: http://nortonrecords.gostorego.com/kicks-books/kicks-books/hip-pocket-books/gone-man-squared-by-royston-ellis.html Retro reading for reprobeats ​ Beat regards Royston Ellis grüsse Euch alle wieder aus der Schweiz..heute angekommen aber schon wieder Heimweh nach der LG Premasiri

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 198, Sunday 9 February 2014.


Welcome to this week’s tropical topics with some old photos and new outfits.


Mad for Mushrooms
I’ve written before about my passion for mushrooms and the varieties to be found in Sri Lanka. So when I saw fresh Three Star Farm Abalon [sic] mushrooms on sale I bought a packet as a change from the rather insipid oyster mushrooms which local cooks curry or cook in batter. This selection of mushrooms, 200g, cost Rs125 [£ 0.59p; $ 0.96p]

Abalon [sic] mushrooms from Sri Lanka
​

From the ever helpful Internet, I learn that: “The Abalone mushroom, scientific name Pleurotus cystidiosus, is also known as the White Elf, King mushroom and the Akuratake mushroom…It is named for the aquatic shellfish, abalone, whose shape the mushroom resembles. Its skin is ivory white with small golden lines and perforations found throughout its surface. Its flesh is crisp, white, dense and spongy with an earthy, buttery flavour with notes of pepper and a velvety texture when cooked.
“Abalone mushrooms have a concentrated protein and carbohydrate content as well as a large proportion of dietary fibre. They have medicinal qualities including antioxidant properties, anti-inflammatory agents and tumour inhibiting qualities.”
The back of the label on the packet states: “Rid yourself of appetite loss & constipation. Is an excellent protein substitute. Is a potent inhibitor of cancer causing agents.” The mushrooms also happen to taste pretty good too. I had come cubed and tossed in olive oil with bacon pieces, but their subtle flavour came out better in a salad.

Abalon salad ingredients
​

To make that I washed and cubed some of the mushrooms and tossed them in heated sesame oil in a wok for a couple of minutes with some chopped spring onions, shredded ginger and mashed garlic pieces. I added a little coconut toddy vinegar, crushed pepper and a dash of Worcester Sauce and, just before taking the wok off the stove, sprinkled in some chopped coriander leaves. I let it cool in the fridge for an delicious sundowner nibble.


Old family photos

Dapper dude and classy belles
​

Tomorrow, Monday 10 February is my birthday, so I am using that as an excuse to publish some old family photographs. The first was sent to me recently by one of my Canadian cousins. The dapper dude in this photo (probably dated around 1920) was my Uncle, George Norman Ryall (1898-1990). Behind him is his mother (my grandmother), Alma May Violet Ryall (1880-1955) and my mother, Alma Georgina Ellis (1904-1995).

Little horror, 1948
​

I am the little horror, age seven, in this 1948 photograph with my father, John William George Ellis (1904-1971). As a bigger horror (in 1961) I was a performing beatnik poet. In this photograph I am wearing a coat that previously belonged to the controversial author, Radcliffe Hall (she of The Well of Loneliness).

Performing poet, 1961

Beat poet, age 21
​

Birthday Suit
Last week there was a photo of the material I chose for tunic tops as part of the birthday party outfit. Here’s the finished kit modelled by Kumara, Madu & Dilantha.

Kumara, Madu & Dilantha, ready to party
​

High in Haputale
I dropped in to Haputale, my favourite town in Sri Lanka, high in what was formerly Lipton’s tea country, for a couple of days to introduce friends there to my son, Eddie, visiting from his homes in London and Dominica. Eddie was amused to see draughts being played streetside with arrack bottle tops.

Bottle top draughts
​

And in the daily market poised on a plateau over a magnificent hill and valley vista, we bought this leg of goat for birthday lunch, for cooking Caribbean-style by Eddie. (It cost Rs900 [£ 4.20; US$ 6.92] a kilo.

Goat for party
​

False Flash?
My mention last week of the Green Flash drew an instant comment from a reader in France who stated “The green flash is the result of retinal persistence. A camera can’t catch it.”
Actually, I thought, perhaps he is right and it was because I was staring too hard at the sun that I thought I saw the Green Flash.
But then the same reader emailed me again, saying: “I checked and there is a real phenomenon as well.”
And my brother who lives on the Pacific Island of Vancouver, confirmed it: “I’ve seen the green flash in the Canadian arctic, and also on our island. I think it occurs worldwide, wherever the sun can be seen setting on a horizon. Most people never see it though. It takes time to stand still and watch a red sun as it sinks below the horizon.”
Thus it occurs to me that the further away you are from the Equator, the longer the sun takes to set and so the Green Flash lasts longer too. Any comments?


Old Ceylon
A reader in England of my Guide to Sri Lanka who, coincidentally, used to live in Pinner where I was born, has sent me scans of some old photographs taken in 1943 when his father was stationed in Ceylon. He is keen to find out where the photos were taken and whether the buildings are still there.

Where was this taken?
​

This photo is captioned: Our Colombo billet. I’d be happy to hear from anyone who can identify this building. I’ll publish some more of his old photos in subsequent editions of this newsletter.


Birthday Present
Thanks to Bradt, the publishers of the new 5[SUP]th[/SUP] edition of my Guide to Sri Lanka, I can give readers of this newsletter a present on my birthday.
Bradt has very generously agreed to grant a 40% discount on the cost of the Guide to anyone ordering online. However, this offer is valid only from 10 to 28 February 2014. Simply click on http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html and enter the code SRILANKA40 in the checkout box, and the book is yours for a discount of 40%.

Sri Lanka (latest edition)
​

Happy reading!

Royston

morgen feiert Royston seinen 73 Geburtstag...wird sicher wieder eine von seinen legendären Geburtstags Partys

LG Premasiri

 

[snoopy]

Danke Premasiri.
LG Petra

 

[Biggi]

Hallo Premasiri,

auch erstmal danke!
Das scheint morgen eine grosse Party zu geben, das Staff ist ja schon mal gut ausgestattet.

Übrigens, die alten Familienfotos von R. E. sind einfach genial!

Liebe Grüsse, Biggi

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 199, Sunday 16 February 2014.


Welcome back to this weekly newsletter of tropical (and teen) topics.


Durians on display

Durians on display
​

Durians abound by the roadside at this time of the year, although I was appalled to be asked for Rs700 for one in Aluthgama (perhaps the seller assumed I was a Russian tourist, of which there is also an abundance at present). I purchased a couple (of durians, not Russians) at Rs200 [£ 0.95p; $ 1.53] near Ratnapura recently – and the pong stayed with us in the van for a couple of days. The fruit was, as usual, ambrosial despite its rotten reputation.
Home Stay
“Home Stay” is the official name in Sri Lanka indicating private residencies that provide accommodation to tourists. These are a wonderful option for budget travellers and for those who want to experience life as part of a Sri Lankan household.

Leisure Mount View Holiday Inn (Photo by B Kumarasiri)
​

One such home stay has the impressive name of Leisure Mount View Holiday Inn as well as an impressive location high in the hills of Haputale with a vista of tea gardens and hills rolling down to the south coast. You need a very clear day to see that far but the view is nevertheless inspiring.

Balcony view (B. Kumarasiri
​

So, too, is the stay in the house run by Hashan Chamara and his mother and sister who specialise in cooking fine Sri Lankan dishes and are delighted to let lodgers into the kitchen to learn how to make an authentic hill country beef curry. I was lucky enough to sample breakfast there recently and the thought of those flavours still makes me drool.

Home stay breakfast
​

Accommodation is in one of four cosy if compact bedrooms with attached bathrooms in the original house (at Rs2,000 [£ 9.52; US$ 15.38] a double, room only)

Home stay bedroom (B Kumarasiri)
​

or in one of the three newly built bedrooms with balcony and soaring view.

Bedroom for three (B Kumarasiri)
​

These are larger (one has locally made double and single four poster beds) with attached bathrooms and are, according to one guest comment: “furnished to a high standard.” The rate for those more upmarket rooms is Rs4,500 [£ 21.42; $ 34.62] double, with breakfast.
Hashan is a charming and enthusiastic, hotel school trained host happy to meet guests at the railway station and welcome them to his home (email: leisuremvinn@yahoo.com)


Pattaya research


In preparation for the publication by Kicks Books (www.kicksbooks.com) of a series of ten novels by me, I popped over to Pattaya, in Thailand, last week to research for the tenth one. The tone of the beachside town is summed up in the T-shirt which I didn’t buy that bore the slogan: Good Boys Go To Heaven; Bad Boys Go To Pattaya.
So do lots of Russians and portly gentlemen of a certain age hoping to replicate the thrills of their youth with hired help.
The place swings with gender-bent noisy bars, intriguing street food (pigs entrails, deep fried scorpions) and such a friendly population visitors feel safe to party all night.

View from my bedroom at Baan Souy, Pattaya
​

It was made bearable for me by the tranquillity of the hotel where I stayed with rooms around a central swimming pool. My room was like an apartment with a kitchenette (with large fridge and microwave), easy to manage light switches and plenty of power sockets, a lounge, a grand bed, a walk-in closet and a big bathroom with a vigorous rain shower. All that for the equivalent of Rs10,041 [£ 46.09; $ 76.79] double, a night.
http://www.baansouy.com

Researching. Photo by Gemunu Amarasinghe
​

Photo from the past
Here’s another photograph from a wartime family album. It bears the caption “Sergeants’ Mess, Colombo.” Where was this and does the building still exist?

This used to be the Sergeants’ Mess
​

Enquiry


From the same source as the above photograph comes this query. “Have you ever heard of the Aircrew Club in Colombo? or a place called Cads Castle – somewhere on the island? I’ve searched the Internet for clues but drawn a blank.
“Also, I wanted to contact the Colombo Library and Sri Lanka airbase at Koggala by email but on their webpages they just give postal addresses and phone numbers. The SLAF main site gives a media email but no response! Any ideas I wonder?”
I’ll forward any replies.


Teenage Rebels


Many thanks to the readers who sent me the surprising news that, at 73, I have been included by the popular UK magazine Time Out (26 January 2014) as Number 3 in the magazine’s list of London’s Top Ten Teenager Rebels. You can see the list on: http://now-here-this.timeout.com/2014/01/26/londons-top-ten-teenage-rebels/

A Present Guide

Harsha plaiting coconut palm leaf
​

My birthday celebrations began with a scurry of activity on the morning of Saturday 8 February as a gang – at Kumara’s idea – got busy plaiting coconut palm leaves and cutting down branches. I’d no idea what they were doing until I saw the finished result in the evening: a pop up bar with palm thatched roof.

Pop up bar
​

Even if you’ve no idea of what’s happening in Sri Lanka and no time to visit yet, you can enjoy an armchair read of the new edition of my Guide to Sri Lanka published in the UK by Bradt and available (as a present from me, courtesy of Bradt) at a discount of 40% – but only until 28 February. Visit at:http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html and enter code SRILANKA40 on check out.

Bradt Books about Sri Lanka by Royston Ellis
​

Happy reading
Royston Ellis

auch von mir viel Vergnügen beim lesen...
LG Premasiri

 

[Claudia]

Sieht ja lustig aus, die hängenden Durians.

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 200. Sunday 23 February 2014.


Greetings to readers as we countdown to the end of the discount period for purchasing my Bradt Guide to Sri Lanka.


Another Arrack


A beautiful pink hued glass bottle was given to me for my birthday containing what I’m happy to describe as an arrack of distinction. To my astonishment, according to the bottle, it is “bottled by authority & to specification in the United Kingdom.” However, it is “distilled & aged by Rockland Distilleries Ltd, Sri Lanka.” So I assume what is described as “Ceylon Arrack: 100% natural from the sap of the coconut flower. Pure distilled. Aged in traditional Sri Lankan Hamilla wood.” is shipped to the UK for bottling.

Rose-tinted arrack
​

I always thought that arrack originated as a workingman’s drink but the label etched on to the bottle has a different theory. “In the days of the kings, the process of making arrack was fiercely guarded and revered as an island secret. This ‘drink of the Gods’ was so highly esteemed that it was served only to the royal families.”

So what does this “blend with a distinct tropical accent, which we are proud to call ‘sunshine in a bottle’” actually taste like? Its bouquet is caramelly, its colour once it’s poured out of the rose-tinted bottle, resembles a pale sherry but its taste (at 40% alcohol) is fiery. One sip swells in the mouth and lingers with a long finish. It is certainly “sunny” and is what I imagine a single mint malt whisky would be like, were there such a thing.

Booked bird


I’m not an enthusiastic nature lover but do my bit to conserve wildlife by staying away from it. Thus I don’t join in the safari jaunts by jeep rattling around Sri Lanka’s nature reserves to gaze at elephants who’d prefer to be left alone, or screech across the Indian Ocean in speedboats searching for whales to watch or dolphins to photograph.

A rare book on birds
​

So when a friend sent me the 1977 edition of A Guide to the Birds of Ceylon by G M Henry first published in 1955, I dipped into it cautiously to identify this perky chap I photographed at a market stall in Haputale.

Cabbages and aubergines…and a sparrow?
​

It seems to be the Ceylon House Sparrow (Passer domesticus soror). Mr Henry’s text was so readable I quickly became hooked. He describes this bird as “a notorious hanger-on of man, its food is anything in the way of waste grain or other farinaceous food …” He continues: “The song of the male – uttered while courting, with much attitudinizing before his lady-love, and later, while she is incubating, from a nearby perch – is an endless repetition of phillip, phillip, phillip.”

From the fly leaf of the book I learn that G M Henry was for 35 years on the staff of the Colombo Museum. He confesses: “My interest in birds is primarily aesthetic; their beauty of form, colour, texture and pattern of plumage; their flight, song, b_ehaviour and elusiveness appeal to me far more than the – to my mind, utterly barren – attempts to achieve a uniform set of technical names…”

Cartoon card
​

Mr Henry seems a formidable writer with a style as pretty as the birds about which he writes so intimately. Thanks for this delightful book to my friend, who accompanied his gift with this cheeky card created by himself.

More birthdays


There’s a lovely custom in Sri Lanka of feeding loved ones and friends with birthday cake, hand to mouth. A lot of birthdays here this month, including that of Kanchana (Kumara’s wife) on the 17[SUP]th [/SUP]and Kumara himself on 26[SUP]th[/SUP]February. Here they are enjoying themselves in my garden at Kanchana’s birthday party. My thanks, too, to the many readers who emailed me greetings on my own recent birthday.

Cake for her birthday
​

Looks familiar?


From a reader in England comes another photo from his father’s collection taken in Ceylon in 1943. It looks familiar. Where is it?

A familiar Colombo sight?
​

I mentioned in a previous newsletter that Sri Lanka’s premier photographer, Dominic Sansoni, is setting up a website archive of photos of old Ceylon. He is keen that people who have albums and photographs they are willing to have scanned for the site, should contact him (dominicsansoni@gmail.com).

Posters


I used to collect old postcards of Ceylon but never thought of tracking down old posters promoting the then Ceylon’s attractions. There is currently a new exhibition of posters at Colombo’s Barefoot Gallery with many exotic film and travel posters on display until 16 March when the collection goes on a world tour. Worth seeing but if you’re not in Colombo, check online at: www.sticknobillsonline.com

From Stick No Bills collection
​

The Small Print


I am often asked how I find topics to write about each week in this newsletter. That’s not a problem really as there is usually something intriguing happening here in Sri Lanka, or in my writing life. The original idea of this weekly newsletter was to let readers know about my books because, to survive as an author, I need to sell my books (as do my publishers, bless ‘em).

My main concern is not what to write but making sure that the newsletter is circulated on time. I do all the things the publisher Word Press demands but still it doesn’t always get to readers every Sunday morning as it should. However, if you’re missing your copy in your email inbox, you can read it online at www.roystonellis.com/blog.

Andrew, the webmonster who set up this newsletter nearly four years ago (this is our 200[SUP]th[/SUP] edition) tells me that in January we had over 1 million unique visitors and almost 5 million hits. While I will continue the writing, Andrew is taking over the design and circulation so I can concentrate on getting a dozen new books ready for my USA publisher Kicks Kindles (www.kicksbooks.com) and on my memoir for Tomahawk Press of the UK about Cliff Richard & The Shadows (more on that next month).

Discount Countdown

Bradt Books about Sri Lanka by Royston Ellis
​

In the meantime, there are only five days left (until 28 February) to get 40% discount on my Bradt Guide Sri Lankaby visiting: http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html and entering code SRILANKA40 on check out.



Happy reading
Royston Ellis

LG Premasiri

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 201, Sunday 2 March 2014.

Welcome to this week’s tropical topics newsletter featuring nuts, wild camping and historic photos.

Betelmania

Not a misspelling but a pithy pun on the habit of people in the Indian Subcontinent of chewing “betel.” In India the stains of scarlet expectoration colour darkened corners of buildings. In Sri Lanka, perhaps because betel chewing is more a rural habit, traces of the practice are more commonly seen on the vermilion lips of its addicts than on walls.

Areca nut trees in the garden (Photo B Kumarasiri)​

Betel is the name for several ingredients combined as a betel quid (synonymous with pan or paan) to give a consoling chew. The betel quid contains betel leaf, areca nut (Areca catechu) and mineral slaked lime (calcium hydroxide), sometimes with the addition of tobacco leaf.

Areca nut in its shell​

In Sri Lanka, the ingredients are wrapped in a betel leaf to form a tiny parcel which is popped into the mouth and lovingly chewed. The areca nut is often inaccurately called betel nut; it isn’t: betel is the leaf of a vine belonging to the Piperaceae family and thus is a relative of pepper.

A betel leaf​

Chewing betel is an ancient practice and from the amateur researcher’s resource (aka: the Internet) I learn that “the lime acts to keep the active ingredient in its freebase or alkaline form, thus enabling it to enter the bloodstream via sublingual absorption. The areca nut contains the alkaloid arecoline, which promotes salivation and is itself a stimulant.”

Betel seller at Haputale​

Betel sellers, like this one in Haputale, are proud of their profession and will happily help the novice to split the nut and package it in a leaf, before offering it for a jolly good chew.

Mystery Photo from 1943

Thanks to that keen British era enthusiast and editor of the Lanka Railway Digest (http://www.ceylonrail.net/) Vinodh Wickremeratne for this detailed description of last week’s 1943 photograph.

A familiar Colombo sight identified​

“This is Slave Island roundabout...the building is the Salvation Army on Union Place, now called Colvin R de Silva Mawatha. To its right is General's Lake Road, (some believe as General Lake's Road), now Sir James Peiris Mawatha....Beira Lake is visible in the background. The beginning of Rifle Street and Bridge Street is visible, now combined as Justice Akbar Mawatha. On the left is the beginning of Shorts Road, now called Kumaran Rutnam Mawatha. The end of Vauxhall Street is also visible.”

Mystery solved​

The reader who sent that photo also sent me this one from his father who was based in Ceylon in 1943 that he wanted to identify. I guessed from the teapot sign in the background with the letter “T” that it was somewhere connected with the hill country, but hadn’t a clue as to where.

Then the reader found out for himself. He wrote: “Thanks to you for putting me in touch with Dominic. He suggested that if I scanned the bullock & cart shot at a higher resolution then I might be able to pick out a few more clues and he was quite right. On the side of the cart is a board that says “DIYATALAWA”, which I have now located as a village in the hill country. It seems there has always been a military barracks there so maybe that’s why Dad was in the area?”

Splendid Ellerton

The fifth edition of my guide to Sri Lanka, published by Bradt (http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html) has drawn the following comment from Richard Goode, whose father I recall meeting when we both lived in Dominica.

“I have looked with interest at your latest Bradt guide on Sri Lanka, and it's obvious that, unlike other guides, that you really do know the country well. However, I was disappointed to see absolutely no mention of Ellerton! Things have moved on quite a lot since your visit a few years ago – we now have eight rooms, or ten if you count the two that are triple rooms; we have the highest rating on TripAdvisor of any hotel in the Kandy area – 96% approval rating, which can't be bad! Also, we have been over 90% full for December/ January/February, and I suspect there are very few hotels in Sri Lanka at that level, so clearly we must be doing something right – so I would have thought we merited a mention!”

Featuring Ellerton​

I don’t know how such a splendid place as Ellerton escaped being described in the guide although I did feature it in an article in the Sunday Times (http://www.sundaytimes.lk/100117/Plus/plus_18.html) in January 2010 when I commented that the bungalow resort is: “half an hour’s drive from Peradeniya off the old road to Gampola…the original bungalow was built 100 years ago…has its own library, a huge veranda and a swimming pool with a view for 20 miles down the forested valley…it’s cleverly designed so guests who don’t know each other can keep to themselves or join in the polite house party atmosphere.” (http://www.ellertonsrilanka.com)

Wild Camping

Wild Lanka​

The Department of Wildlife Conservation (www.dwc.gov.lk) has launched a service that will be a boon to both locals and tourists wanting to rent one of the department’s 38 bungalows and 40 camping sites in Sri Lanka’s wildlife sanctuaries. Skip the wordy worthy introduction on the home page and go to eservices for the reservation form. A warning says the process must be completed in five minutes. I didn’t try, so I don’t know what happens if you take longer. Cost seems to be about US$ 15 per head per night.

Kicks Kindles

Kicks Books of the USA, the publishers of my collected beat poems, Gone Man Squared, are about to launch a series of novels by me as Kicks Kindles. The first is due out on 16 March, the day of the Full Moon, with a new novel every subsequent Full Moon day for a year. More details later.

Gone Man Squared and the perfume the poems inspired​

In the meantime, the 128-page hip pocket paperback book (also available as a Kindle) of Gone Man Squaredis available from http://nortonrecords.com/kicksbooks/books.php together with a perfume called Rave, a stimulating fragrance inspired by the poems.

Next project? I’m hoping for a CD of me reading those poems.

Beat (or Betel) regards
Royston

LG Premasiri

 

[aliel]

Oh Premasiri ich find die alten Bilder einfach schön.

Danke fürs reinstellen der Rundbriefe. Ich lese sie immer wieder gerne.

 

[Premasiri]

@aliel, danke für Dein Feedback


ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 202, Sunday 9 March 2014.

Welcome to this week’s newsletter where the tropical topics include do-it-yourself fusion cuisine, a web mystery and tower climbing.

Whistle blower

When I was in Thailand recently I bought a lot of souvenirs, as one does, most of them pointless – including a whistle on a key ring.

A simple whistle slows traffic

This small whistle is remarkably loud, as I discovered while riding in Kumara’s tuk tuk and we were overtaken by a speeding bus crossing a double white line. In sheer anger, I blew the whistle and, to my astonishment and delight, the bus slowed down, pulled over to the left and drove awfully cautiously.
The driver obviously thought he was about to be nabbed by the police for crazy driving. Whistle blowing - a simple way to cure speeding?

Galle Festivities

The rampart-walled Galle Fort (once occupied by the Portuguese, Dutch and British) attracts festivals, as well as wealthy foreign settlers. It began with the Galle Literary Festival, has enjoyed culinary fiestas and, since 2009, has played host to the Galle Music Festival.
This years festival (a free event) takes place on Saturday 15 March at the Moon Bastion in Galle Fort, with performances starting from 4.00 pm and going on until 11.30 pm. There will be a repeat performance by some of the groups at a free concert in Colombo on Monday 17 March at the Galle Face Green, between 5:30 pm and 10:30 pm.

International groups likely to take part include a Norwegian group of teenage songsters called Ten Sing, Bangladesh’s most popular band, Shironamhin, a Brazilian samba group called Grupo Roda Vida, an Indian pop fusion outfit, Saheen from Palestine, a music network, as well as Sri Lankan groups such as the Oriental Music Orchestra, a classical fusion group, a folk orchestra, a team of percussionists, and nATANDA [sic] billed as “Sri Lanka's First Contemporary Dance Company”

nATANDA [sic]

At the top

Atop Dawson's Tower (Photo B Kumarasiri)

The significance of this photo is to understand where I was. Not safely on a hotel balcony but perched somewhat precariously on a narrow ledge atop a tower 125 feet tall. I got there through sheer madness in wanting to see if I could do it.


Bar at Kadugannawa Rest House

We had stopped for a G&G (gin and ginger beer) at the drinks dispensary attached to the side of the un-modernised Kadugannawa Rest House up a narrow lane off the main A1 road between Colombo and Kandy. It is close to Dawson’s Tower, that slender lighthouse-like projection into the blue sky built in 1832.


Dawson's Tower at Kadugannawa.(Photo B Kumarasiri)

I saw a man gnawing at a cob of sweet corn sitting at the tower’s base and, on a hunch, drained my gin and walked over to him. Yes, he said, he was the tower’s caretaker and, yes, he had the key to the padlock and, yes, he would let me climb the tower.


Underside of wooden steps in Dawson's Tower

Naively I thought he would climb too, but he didn’t. He lent me a torch, opened the heavy wooden door and I was launched on a climb of 112 wooden steps, each less than two feet wide, supported by a tall central column and the tower’s wall. By the time I reached the top I was practically crawling but posed triumphantly, if a little shakily, for the photograph.
Going down was tougher as it meant clinging to the central pole and hobbling down one step at a time. I could still feel the pain in my leg muscles two days later.

Plaque at the foot of Dawson's Tower

A plaque at the base records that his friends and admirers erected this wonderful tribute to Captain W F Dawson “whose science and skill planned and executed this road and other works of public utility.”


Hot Rock Dinner

I was lucky recently to be invited by a visiting friend to The Cinnamon Bey Hotel near the west coast fishing town of Beruwala for an unusual dinner. The hotel’s Rock Salt Restaurant specialises in “an inspired fusion of flavours presented in unique fashion…the best of ingredients seared on hot stones.”
To start I had a dish called Textures of Seafood described as “local seafood candied, sashimi & ceviche with passion fruit, avocado pudding, young coconut, pickled cucumber, almond crumb, coriander salt, chilli rings. (Rs1,100++ [£ 5.23; US$ 8.46]. The description was almost bigger than the portion.

Textures of seafood

The waiters then fussed around with aprons and toques to dress us for the meal, which we had to cook ourselves. My choice was four slices (180g) of Australian Sirloin for which a pre-heated stone slab and garlic flavoured oil were provided so I could sear the meat as rare or as burnt as I wanted. Included in the price of Rs4,500++ [£ 21.42; $ 34.61] was a choice of two side dishes (I had asparagus at Rs1,500 and mushrooms (Rs350) and a choice of one sauce (in my case wasabi & blue cheese butter at Rs250).


Hot rock steak

The dinner was fun and memorable, especially accompanied by lashings of Whispering Bey Cabernet Sauvignon, the hotel’s own house wine.

Web mystery

Webs on the lawn

When I went into the garden one morning last week, I saw the lawn was covered in these tiny cobwebs sprinkled with dew. I’d be grateful if any reader can explain what they are and how they happen.


Web mystery

Suite Surprise


Alas, this isn’t the interior of my cottage but the wood-panelled living area of the suite I stayed in last week at Kandy’s premier hotel, Mahaweli Reach (http://www.mahaweli.com). It contained a fully equipped kitchenette behind a cocktail bar counter, a table set up for dinner, a lounge of comfortable chairs, an alcove with desk and fax machine, an entrance hall, a mini-gym, two bedrooms both with bathrooms en suite, a guest bathroom, a Jacuzzi, and a mirror-walled dressing room. I’ll report on my sensational dinner there next week.


Book End
Next Sunday sees the launch by Kicks Books of the USA of the first in my monthly series of Kindles ebooks: Sweet Ebony. In the meantime, more on Sri Lanka is to be found in my Bradt Guide available from: http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html

The latest guide
Beat regards
Royston

von mir viele sonnige Grüsse Premasiri

 

[JanThePic]

Aha, gut zu wissen, die Betelgeschichte war mir immer ein Rätsel.
Sonnige Grüße
Jan

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 203, 16 March 2014.


Greetings to readers around the world on this Full Moon Day.


Car-azy

Inspiring nostalgia
​

I no longer drive and don’t think much of modern motor vehicles either. However, I was swamped with nostalgia when I saw this line up of vehicles for sale in a dealer’s yard on the way to Kandy (403 Kandy Road, Beligammana, Mawanella; rifazinayathulla@gmail.com). They looked in such fine condition for a moment I was tempted to buy even a Morris Minor (at around Rs350,000 [£ 1,666; US$ 2,692] but sanity prevailed.

Austin 7
​

This vintage, pre-1930 Austin Seven on display reminded me that I once had a very old, much pre-owned black one when I was a teenage tearaway in Brighton in 1959. It cost me £ 15 to buy. I used to drive to London in it, until some friends drove it down Devil’s Dyke on a joy ride one night and it had to be retired.
If you are in Colombo this morning and see this note in time, there’s a chance to see a parade of classic British cars dating from the 1930s on a jaunt from the Town Hall grounds to the Kingsbury Hotel, where they are scheduled to arrive at 11.30am


Fine Dining


Mahaweli Reach in Kandy is a five-star hotel without a fine dining restaurant. But it doesn’t need one because gourmet standard cuisine is served wherever guests want. That’s how I experienced fine dining at its best by candlelight on a terrace overlooking the Mahaweli River where it flows seaward by the Reach from one bend to another.
Conversation was inspired by the innovative cooking of the hotel’s Executive Chef, I G Tharaka Gunarathne. I have often wished that a restaurant steward, after taking the dinner order would leave the menu on the table so I can compare the text with reality of the dish. So I was delighted that a souvenir menu was provided for each diner to keep.
Dinner began with a starter of avocado-wrapped ceviche of smoked salmon with black caviar & tomato salsa, which I devoured ecstatically before we thought of photographing it. Thus, no photograph. The soup was accurately described as “Cappuccino of Wild Mushroom” but the menu gave no clue to its presentation: in a bun. Sensational, when the creamy soup mingled with the soft texture of the bread.

Cappuccino of wild mushroom (Photo by B Kumarasiri)
​

Next came “Pan fried sea bass served with risotto rice & marinated crispy fennel.” This was a mini-sampler with a delicate flavour and delicious gooey rice.

Fish dish (B Kumarasiri)
​

I was so relieved when a sorbet wasn’t offered next as I have never liked a frozen dollop of flavoured ice between hot courses.

New Zealand lamb. (B. Kumarasiri)
​

This tasted as good as it looks: pistachio crusted New Zealand lamb served with tandoori potatoes (them’s the orange orbs), vegetable summer roll & cardamom jue ([sic].

Just dessert (B. Kumarasiri)
​

I don’t eat chocolate so the dessert of mango & chilli dome served with vanilla ice cream came without the Rocky Road (chocolate) Bar on which it was perched. It was a great finish to a perfect meal. (www.mahaweli.lk)


Jungle Tide

Jungle Tide, in a sea of tea. (B Kumarasiri)
​

This is the name of a new, modern 4-bedroom guesthouse in the hills high above Kandy modelled on colonial plantation bungalows, with a green-painted tin roof, high wooden ceilings and a long garden-view veranda. Curtains and bed canopies are of raw silk, the furniture solidly made and practical (no boutique hotel fussiness here) and there is an option to try self-catering in the guest kitchen or authentic Sri Lanka meals prepared by the resident housekeeper and his wife.

Traditional plantation bungalow style (B Kumarasiri)
​

For Sri Lankans, expatriate residents sick of city life and visitors tired of touring, the cure could be to surrender to the bliss of the Jungle Tide.

Jungle Tide, raw silk counterpane and curtains (B Kumarasiri)
​

The owners, Sally & Jerry Martin, built the bungalow for their eventual retirement, Sally having been born and brought up Ceylon, the fourth generation of a British tea planting family. According to their website (http://www.jungletide.com) they named it after a book published in 1930, written by John Still, an English eccentric, telling of his wanderings in Ceylon and his philosophy. The Jungle Tide of the title refers to the transience of humans who create magnificent cities and civilisations that eventually crumble and are overtaken by the relentless jungle.
Coincidentally, I discovered that John Still is also credited as the author of a 29-page book called Amazing Beetles.


Betel Health Warning.


Some readers have suggested that my piece a couple of weeks ago about chewing betel, should have carried a health warning.
“As always, an entertaining and informative newsletter! However, you MUST also note that chewing betel is terrible for one’s health – oral cancers, loss of teeth, and underweight babies in women (yes, a lot of women chew betel) are the main effects. It is a terrible habit.”
“That was a fascinating piece, particularly the bit about the role that lime (chunam) plays in the mix. There’s a very dark edge to the habit, though, that I remember (from my dim, distant, youth!) when advertisements in colour (a rarity then) appeared showing of the ravages of mouth and throat cancer among betel-chewers. Given the fact that this habit has anything but benign outcomes in all cases, perhaps a little note might be indicated.”
So beware betel.


Web


Thanks to Nancy van der Poorten for solving last week’s mystery. “The mystery webs are spider webs. They are usually made by a species of funnel spider. If you look at them closely, you’ll probably see the funnel. They spin them overnight and the dew collects on them in the morning. The spiders are harmless (except to their prey of course!).”


Poor circulation


We’re experiencing circulation problems so my apologies if this newsletter doesn’t pop up in your inbox on time. It should be available, though, on www.roystonellis.com/blog.
Buy a Guide


In this case, my Bradt Guide to Sri Lanka with the latest information on new resorts, restaurants and sites, and on the old ones too. Click on: http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html


Beat regards
Royston

Liebe Grüsse von Premasiri, die nach dem lesen des Newsletters Hunger hat!!!!!

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON’S REPORT, Number 204, Sunday 23 March 2014.


Welcome to this week’s newsletter with an announcement about butterflies.


Provincial Butterflies


According to an article in the local press, “everybody loves a butterfly, and perhaps Sri Lankans more than most.” That speculation is because not only does Sri Lanka have a national butterfly (the Sri Lanka Birdwing) but also because each of the country’s nine provinces has recently been assigned an individual butterfly as its emblem.
There are 245 species of butterfly in Sri Lanka, of which 26 are endemic to the country. Nine of the endemic ones have been selected because they are “charismatic and readily seen.” None of them are pests nor a vectoring agent of disease. “Researchers,” according to the report, “have also satisfied themselves that these species have no negative cultural or spiritual beliefs attached to them.”

Provincial butterflies
​

The leader of this flutter of butterflies is Sri Lanka’s largest, the national butterfly mentioned above (Troides darsius)with a wingspan spreading 165-180mm. The Southern Province, where I live, has been assigned the Sri Lanka Tree Nymph (Idea lasonia).
The other provinces and their butterflies are: Western, Blue Glassy Tiger (Ideopsis simils); North Western, Sri Lanka Lesser Albatross (Appias galena); North Central, Banded Peacock (Paplilo cino); Northern, Large Guava Blue (Virachola perse); Eastern, Spot Swordtail (Graphiu nomius); Central, Sri Lankan Monarch (Parantica taprobana); Uva, Baronet (Symphadria nais); Sabaragamuwa, Sri Lanka Rose (Pachliopta jophon).
Let’s hope the people of each province do what they can to ensure the conservation of all butterflies, not just their assigned one.
Appliqué of Akurana

Parasols of Pipli (Photo Gemunu Amarasinghe)
​

About 20 years ago I was travelling by car to Bhubaneswar in the Indian state of Odisha (formerly Orissa) when I chanced upon the village of Pipli, centre of India’s Appliqué cottage industry craft. Appliqué is defined by the dictionary as “a cut out decoration fastened to a larger piece of material” but the definition does not reflect the astounding joie de vivre of the people of Pipli and their creations: gorgeously garish parasols, gaudy counterpanes, florid wall hangings and psychedelic tablemats.

Pipli applique mats (Gemunu Amarasinghe)
​

So I was thrilled to find that there is an equivalent community in Sri Lanka, at Akurana on the A9 between Kandy and Matale. Several godowns there are dedicated to sourcing and selling pieces of cloth to village matmakers.

Akurana, source for cloth pieces for applique work
​

However, the appliqué craftsfolk of the area seem to lack the imagination, discipline and flair for design that their counterparts in Pipli relish.

Applique mats at Akurana
​

While the appliqué mats they make are a riot of colour and brighten the floor of a home, they are poorly stitched and their makers could learn a lot from the appliqué people of Pipli. But a bundle of 10 mats cost me Rs630 [£ 3; US$ 4.84]… which seems reasonable.


Vintage assemblage


The varied sights to be seen on the road to Kandy from Colombo never fail to intrigue me. From wayside vendors selling pineapples, cashews and durians, shacks bursting with rattan furniture, clay pots and retrieved motor vehicle bodies to the glorious the hill country scenery. An odd attraction is the open air Highway Museum at Pilimatalawa.

Vintage steamroller
​

Opened in 1986 and maintained in superb condition, it features a gathering of vintage steamrollers in great nick, painted red and green. Steamrollers were probably introduced to Sri Lanka soon after mass production began in Britain in 1867. The majority of steamrollers were of the same basic three-roll configuration, gear-driven, with two large smooth wheels (rolls) at the back and a single wide roll at the front.
A few metres from the steamrollers on display, down the road alongside the railway track, is a grand brick bridge, now closed to traffic, bearing the date1826. It’s part of the original Kandy road.



Apologies


Profound apologies to subscribers who received an issue from the archives last Sunday, before we managed to get the correct issue into circulation.

Gone Man Squared


There will be some exciting announcements in next week’s newsletter about the publication of a book-a-month by Kicks Books (associated with Norton Records of the USA) representing my oeuvre since I had my first book published in the UK 55 years ago. Since then I have had more than 60 books (novels, biographies, guides) published in the UK, USA, Singapore and Sri Lanka. I also have a few unpublished manuscripts in a trunk in my attic.
This unusual event of a book-a-month by a single author has been inspired by the success of my collection of beat poetry, Gone Man Squared, published by Kicks Books last year. It is part of the revival of interest in the Beat Generation both in the USA and UK.

Beat poet
​

For an independent review of Gone Man Squared go to:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/709310254?book_show_action=true&page=1
Gone Man Squared is available as a hip pocket paperback from http://nortonrecords.com/kicksbooks/ellis.phpand the perfume the poetry inspired, called Rave, with its stirring notes of cardamom, is available from the same website.

Book & perfume now available on line
​

The eBook version of Gone Man Squared can be downloaded instantly from
http://www.amazon.com/Gone-Man-Squared-Royston-Ellis-ebook/dp/B00EDTC2RS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395313849&sr=8-2&keywords=gone+man+squared


Beat regards

wünsche allen Usern trotz Regen einen wunderschönen Sonntag

Premasiri

 

[Biggi]

Applique mats at Akurana
But a bundle of 10 mats cost me Rs630 [£ 3; US$ 4.84]…

​

Wer kennt die Matten nicht? Die sind in jedem Haus und Auto zu finden. Aber da ich noch nie eine gekauft hab, war ich über den Preis erstaunt. für 10 Matten gerade 630 Rs. ?

Premasiri, danke für das Einstellen und liebe Grüsse, Biggi

 

[Premasiri]

ROYSTON REPORTS, Number 205, 30 March 2014


Welcome to readers around the world to this final edition of my weekly report on tropical topics. But read on…


Indian Oak




Last Sunday, while having lunch at a table set up in the shade of a venerable tree in the garden, I began to wonder about the flowers that lay strewn around the lawn. I was told the local name of the tree is Mudilla and, thanks toRuk Rakaganno, the Tree Society of Sri Lanka, I learn that the tree only flowers in the evening.
True enough, the next day soon after dawn, I saw the tree had several flowers greeting the sun, nestled within the shade of large, glossy and dark green leaves crowded in bunches at the ends of the branches. By breakfast they had fallen to the ground.

Barringtonia asiatica abloom
​

The flowers are fairly large (about 12cm wide) and have four thick, waxy petals, with many pink tipped stamens. There is no flowering season so we see them all year round. The wood of the tree is soft and white and is used to make boats, cabinets and other furniture including the inner fittings of railway carriages, and bullock carts are made of this wood. The leaves, seeds and bark are used for medicinal purposes.
Mudilla is indigenous to Sri Lanka and is known as Midella and Diya Mudilla in Sinhalese. In Tamil it is calledArattam. The common name is the Indian Oak. The scientific name is Barringtonia asiatica. There are two varieties, the racemosa bearing pink flowers and the asiatica bearing white flowers.

Spot the blooms
​

Saffron & Blue


It seems that every spare perch of beach along the west coast where I live is being walled off by new hotels. However, look carefully and there are a few villa and bungalow style hotels defying the urge to expand and retaining the reassuring calm of a small exclusive, boutique property.
One of the most unusual is Saffron & Blue. It’s unusual because it isn’t a conversion of an old mansion but a comparatively new building designed as a residence for guests by Channa Daswatte, one time protégé of the renowned Sri Lanka modernist architect, Geoffrey Bawa .
Although the clean lines, concrete columns and air flows of a Bawa-inspired building are evident, Daswatte has added his own touches: a flair for the bizarre and for creating spaces that are fun as well as practical.

Heart of Saffron & Blue
​

The heart is a mini-atrium railed by first and second floor galleries serving as links between the villa’s two wings with a spacious master bedroom, two second floor bedrooms, and an amusing ground floor double bed room featuring an unusual staircase made out of hollow wooden cubes, which leads to an attic where there is another bed, suitable for junior.

Saffron & Blue bedroom staircase
​

The other side of the central atrium is the dining room, which has an enormous square table with seating for three guests on each of its four sides.
Although the beach and the sea are a few paces away, the villa garden and its enticing swimming pool are walled off from the beach because of the private, exclusive nature of the property.

Saffron & Blue square table for 12
​

Managed by Jetwing, this unusual small hotel, popular wit Sri Lankans as well as expatriate residents escaping the city, has all the attributes of a boutique property as well as input characteristic of Jetwing properties, such as fine dining, good housekeeping, attentive service and even special varieties of tea produced exclusively for Jetwing:www.jetwinghotels.com.


Flutterbye typos


I’m grateful to a keen eyed reader, and butterfly fan, for spotting these typos copied from source in last week’s newsletter:
Sri Lanka Tree Nymph (Idea lasonia)= Idea iasonia.
Blue Glassy Tiger (Ideopsis simils)= Ideopsis similis
Sri Lanka Lesser Albatross (Appias galena) = Appias galene
Banded Peacock (Paplilo cino) = Papilio crino
Spot Swordtail (Graphiu nomius) = Graphium nomius
Baronet (Symphadria nais) = Symphaedra nais

Moonlighting


Thank you to loyal readers around the world for your support and comments during the past four years of the circulation of this weekly newsletter on tropical topics.

Full Moon Chronicle coming soon
​

Now, for various reasons, I am changing the publishing schedule of Royston Reports from weekly to lunar monthly. So the next issue, named Full Moon Chronicle, will be circulated on Monday 16 April 2014 and subsequently each full moon day. If you don’t receive it when the moon is full, please go straight to my website: http://www.roystonellis.com and read it there.
In the meantime, here is an update about my books in print.


GONE MAN SQUARED


The Beat Poems of Royston Ellis (complete & unabridged) with an introduction by Jimmy Page.

The Collected Beat Poems
​

Available as a hip pocket paperback from Kicks Books on http://nortonrecords.com/kicksbooks/ellis.php and the perfume the poetry inspired, called Rave, with its stirring notes of cardamom, can be bought online from the same website.
The eBook version of Gone Man Squared can be downloaded instantly from
http://www.amazon.com/Gone-Man-Squared-Royston-Ellis-ebook/dp/B00EDTC2RS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395313849&sr=8-2&keywords=gone+man+square


THE BIG BEAT SCENE




(Photo above) Jet Harris with Royston in 1959 from: The Big Beat Scene – “An Outspoken Expose of the Teenage World of Rock and Roll. First published in 1961, republished with a new foreword and afterword in 2010. Essential reading to understand the dawn of the Swinging Sixties.”
http://musicmentor0.tripod.com/book_big_beat_scene.html.


SRI LANKA: THE BRADT TRAVEL GUIDE


The fifth edition published in 2014 of this comprehensive guide to Sri Lanka revealing secrets only a long time resident would know.
http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html


Coming Soon


CLIFF RICHARD & THE SHADOWS
A Rock and Roll Memoir by Royston Ellis

Coming soon
​

http://tomahawkpress.com/cliff-richard-and-the-shadows-a-rock-roll-memoir/


Until the April full moon, beat regards.
Royston Ellis

Hoffe das ich den Full Moon Chronicle auch noch per mail erhalte, sonst werde ich ihn in der home page von Royston kopieren und hier einstellen...

es grüsst von einem wunder schönen Frühlingstag

Premasiri

 

[Premasiri]

Happy New Year!


ROYSTON REPORTS Number 206 The Full Moon Chronicle, Monday 14 April 2014


Welcome to the first edition of my new lunar monthly email newsletter from Sri Lanka.


Poya Day

Full Moon over Horizon Cottage (B Kumarasiri)
​

In Sri Lanka Monday 14 April is the Bak Full Moon day; it also happens to be the Sinhala and Tamil New Year. The day of the Full Moon is known as a Poya Day in Sri Lanka and is marked by a public, bank and mercantile holiday, with most places closed and with the sale of alcohol and meat on this day being banned.
The celebration of the Full Moon has it roots in history. In ancient times Asian ascetics made it a practice to cease worldly pursuits and engage in religious activities on Full Moon days. It became a government decreed public holiday throughout Sri Lanka in 1966 to celebrate the lunar rituals of the traditional Buddhist calendar.
It was on the Bak Full Moon Poya day, in the fiftieth year of his enlightenment, that the Buddha perceived with his divine eye a dispute brewing between the two Sri Lankan Naga communities. So the Buddha visited Sri Lanka and preached his doctrine illustrating the evils of discord and the value and benefits that accrue from unity and peaceful co-existence.

Full Moon at dawn
​

The lesson to be learned on this Bak Full Moon Poya Day is that victory brings hatred and the vanquished live in misery. One whose mind is calm, tranquil and undisturbed lives happily.
The next Full Moon is on Wednesday 14 May, 2014, so check on the new website www.roystonellis.org orwww.roystonellis.com on that day for the next Full Moon Chronicle.


Living Heritage


This is the name of an amazing boutique hotel set in 80 acres of forest at Koslanda in the lush hill country of Sri Lanka. And it only has four accommodation units.
I use the term “units” deliberately because the rooms, being self-contained suites, are unlike any others in Sri Lanka. The sense of being in for a rare experience begins at Beragala junction where the A4 narrows and winds through woods and passes a sign reading “Motor Bus Halting Place” near a round red Georgian pillar box.

Koslanda ancient bus halt
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The hotel’s website instructs drivers to turn at the 203.3km stone mark by a blue house. The house is now orange, but its gate is blue. The website also claims that the hotel is 20 minutes from Haputale Railway Station but by road it takes a good 30 minutes longer than that.

Koslanda Living Herritage long veranda
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The main accommodation consists of three suites linked by a long veranda, with an ancient sedan chair setting the tone for pure relaxation. Step through the heavy beamed doorway of a suite and you really do step back in time with a meda malawa(ancient style courtyard) in the centre. The bedroom leads off this and each suite also has a modern bathroom and an open air Jacuzzi.

Koslanda Living Heritage suite courtyard
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Standing alone near the gate is the fourth suite, a granite brick cottage of formidable exterior and cosy interior with, instead of a veranda, an entire ambalama (pavilion) for private relaxation.

Koslanda Living Heritage gate house
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Deep within the hotel’s private forest, a perfect stamping ground for trekkers, is a delightful waterfall and a cool jungle pool. There is a real swimming pool stretching into infinity overlooking paddy fields atop a small hill.
Koslanda Living Heritage is deliberately named to record the story behind its creation. The buildings have been constructed and positioned according to traditional Sri Lankan architecture and astrology. The management stresses that because of its creation jobs were created for local craftsmen who used traditional materials and building methods, some of which had to be re-learned and revived. The place’s attraction for guests is being able to step back in time but with all modern comforts. (www.koslanda.com)



Gliding Butterfly


A reader writes:
“I was very interested to learn that the Sri Lankan provinces now each have their own butterfly. You are fortunate to have the iconic Tree Nymph for your province. It has the most graceful and mesmerizing flight of them all and it might be apt to quote from Bernard D’Abrera’s classic work The Butterflies of Ceylon in which he said the following:
“The flight of this huge insect is a thing wondrous to behold….floating and sailing like a paper glider from the tops of trees or hills down to the water’s edge. These butterflies convey a sensation of great calm and to me are perhaps more reminiscent of a Paradise Lost, than any other animate creature”.

Tree nymph
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“There are at least five other Indo-Australasian Tree Nymphs within the genus Idea but the Sri Lankan or Indian one (iasonia orjasonia) is the largest and most spectacular in my view.”


Spiked Drinks


The latest advice for visitors to Sri Lanka issued by the British government contains a warning that drinks in southern coastal resorts might be spiked! My advice for tourists is to be aware that forged large denomination (Rs5,000 & Rs2,000 & Rs1,000) currency notes are in circulation in Sri Lanka so only accept such notes from banks or licensed money changers.https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/sri-lanka


Bombay Velvet


Not a spiked drink but the title of a big budget Bollywood movie filmed in Sri Lanka, according to this fascinating article:
http://travmedia.com/Login/Redirect/28096/d02afbd2fa827bf70a4b463eb8c4dcaa5e900a5e/Company/ShowPressrelease/171214


Guidance


A great comment from a reader of my Bradt Guide to Sri Lanka.
“Well here we are back in the UK after a wonderful three week holiday and its no exaggeration to say we are truly “hooked” on the Country and its people!
“Sri Lanka and its people are a joy to encounter, we met so many lovely folk and experienced such a blend of culture and humour the likes of which we could never have imagined. We came away thinking that other societies may be wealthier in material terms but Sri Lankans are rich beyond comparison in their humanity; of course you will have realised this a long time ago!
“Thanks to you and your excellent book we had a real head start to our trip and I have just ordered the 5th edition to lend to a friend who is planning a trip over.”
The Bradt Guide to Sri Lanka is available direct from: http://www.bradtguides.com/Book/622/Sri-Lanka.html


Sweet Ebony

A rollicking read
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http://kicksbooks.blogspot.com/2014/04/royston-ellis-series-launches-with.html
I am delighted to announce that a retrospective of my oeuvre (my writing since 1959) is gradually being published in separate paperback volumes by the enlightened and enterprising New York publisher, Kicks Books, a division of Norton Records.
The first volume, published in 2013, was a collection of my beat poetry with an introduction by Jimmy Page, Gone Man Squared .
Just published by Kicks Books (as a paperback and as a Kindle) is my novel Sweet Ebony, a rollicking romp of a story about four women on safari in search of the “F word” (fulfilment, of course) in 1970’s Kenya.
The plan is for a new volume to be published every month, so watch each issue of Full Moon Chronicle for more details.

Sweet reading
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Sweet Ebony Kicks Books hip pocket paperback is available by mail from:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sweet-Ebony-Royston-Ellis/dp/1940157072/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1396574649&sr=1-1&keywords=Sweet+Ebony


Sweet Ebony Kicks Books Kindle ebook from:
http://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Ebony-Royston-Ellis-ebook/dp/B00JBV49Q0/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1396526423&sr=8-1&keywords=sweet+ebony


Some of my other books can be ordered via my bookshop website: http://www.roystonellis.org/Books_on_line.html


Sweet reading.
Royston Ellis

Wünsche allen Usern eine schöne Karwoche und frohe Ostern

Premasiri

 

[Biggi]

Hallo Premasiri,

Die Koslanda Living Heritage sieht sehr gut aus. Und die Lage bei Koslanda, dazu der Wasserfall und natürlicher Pool, traumhaft...Ich war auf der HP vom Resort, ist nicht gerade günstig, aber sie bieten dafür sehr viel an.

Danke für das Einstellen und liebe Grüsse, Biggi

 

[Premasiri]

Hallo Biggi,

Mache ich doch gerne....leider gibt es den Newsletter nur noch am Vollmond...

LG Premasiri