Just Me Travel

Just Me Travel

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Month: September 2022

A PHOTOGRAPHIC TOUR OF GEOFFREY BAWA’S GARDEN, SRI LANKA [2022 Updated]

Photos of an Astounding Untamed Garden by Geoffrey Bawa.   Geoffrey Bawa is still regarded as one of the greatest architects to have ever lived. But his genius was not…

Photos of an Astounding Untamed Garden by Geoffrey Bawa.

 

Geoffrey Bawa is still regarded as one of the greatest architects to have ever lived. But his genius was not confined to bricks and mortar. On Lunuganga Estate, Geoffrey’s country home in Sri Lanka, he brought together architecture, art, plants, and the odd cow to create a magnificent, controlled landscape of untamed wilderness.

Finding things to do in Sri Lanka away from the maddening crowds is an excellent reason to visit Geoffrey Bawa’s garden as it is largely undiscovered by tourists, being something different from the ‘usual’ tourist attraction.

 

I have my sister to thank for our visit to Geoffrey Bawa’s garden – not to be confused with Brief Garden, the former estate of Geoffrey’s older brother Bevis Bawa.

While researching things to do for our trip to Sri Lanka, that teardrop-shaped nation sitting at the bottom of India in the Indian Ocean, my sister discovered a reference to Geoffrey Bawa’s garden on his Lunuganga Estate. How could we not include a garden described as “the most seductive, passionate pleasure gardens of the twentieth century” (lunuganga.com) on our itinerary?

So, who was Geoffrey Bawa?

Geoffrey Bawa (1919-2003) was Sri Lanka’s most well-known architect and is deemed the most influential Asian architect of his time. For those architect enthusiasts reading this post, he was one of the founding fathers of the architectural style known as “tropical modernism”. Geoffrey Bawa is probably best known for designing Sri Lanka’s Houses of Parliament.

Living permanently in Colombo, Lunuganga Estate, situated on the banks of Lake Dedduwa in Bentota (midway between Colombo and Galle), was Geoffrey Bawa’s country retreat. Here, on 23 acres, he spent 50 years turning this abandoned rubber plantation (and, before that, a cinnamon plantation) into eclectic gardens of multiple shades of green.

We explored Geoffrey Bawa’s garden with the Head Curator on a 2-hour private tour.

Don’t expect to find manicured gardens of colourful flowers, neat borders, and gurgling fountains. But expect an untamed but controlled tropical wilderness of sudden vistas, intimate groves, sculptures, and wide landscapes. I found Bawa’s garden a place of peace, tranquillity, and restfulness.

Lunuganga Estate – Geoffrey Bawa’s garden

Lunuganga Estate is about 500 metres long and 300 metres at its widest. There is no spot where you can view the garden in its entirety. Instead, it is a journey from one seemingly disconnected space to another that somehow Geoffrey managed to create a cohesive whole.

Take a stroll with me on a visual tour of Geoffrey Bawa’s garden.

The Hen House

A brick and wood hen house with tile roof set amongst tropical forest.

Geoffrey Bawa’s Hen House on Lunuganga Estate.

 

Geoffrey Bawa famously designed Sri Lanka’s Parliament House. He then created his hen house (chicken coup) on Lunuganga Estate in the same style. Take from that what you will!

Sandela Pavilion

A glass room with large black and white floor tiles, polished wooden table, chairs and coffee table.

Sandela Pavilion

 

The Sandela Pavilion, also known as the Glass House, is an open, airy space and served as Geoffrey Bawa’s office. From here, he had a lovely view of the lake and could see anyone who arrived at the main gate.

The Red Terrace

A flat red earth terrace with views of a lake. with a stone wall on one side and jar on the wall

The Red Terrace with views of Lake Dedduwa

 

The Red Terrace derives its name from the red laterite ground surface, produced by the decomposition of the underlying rocks.

With its views of Lake Dedduwa and the Water Garden at the bottom of the hill, the Red Terrace was a favourite spot for Geoffrey to have lunch.

The Water Garden

A pond surrounded by tropical forest

The Water Garden

 

The Water Garden is a tropical oasis. The pond is shaped like a butterfly and is filled with pink flowering water lilies. A bench seat takes pride of place beside the pond in the shade of trees. Here Geoffrey would sit and ring the garden bell for his gin and tonic to be brought to him.

The Water Garden incorporates ornamental rice paddies stretching along the banks of Lake Dedduwa, adding to the eclectic nature of Geoffrey Bawa’s garden design.

Rice paddies beside a lake

Rice paddies on Lunuganga Estate

 

Sculptures around the garden

There are several sculptures around the garden.

Rusty, blue metal sundial sculpture with the head of a dog

Sundial sculpture in the Water Garden

 

The rusted metal sundial sculpture in the Water Garden has an air of decline and abandonment.

A stone sculpture of the face of horned pagan god, Pan.

“Hindu” Pan sculpture

 

The sculpture of the pagan god Pan was sculptured by one of Geoffrey’s Tamil assistants and called “Hindu” Pan by Geoffrey. No reason has been given as to why he called it such. Perhaps because a Tamil sculpted it?

Metal sculpture of a figurine with four arms

Garden sculpture

 

The Plain of Jars

A large black jar sitting on grass is reflected in the waters of a pond

The Plain of Jars

 

In a setting of sloping grassy plains surrounded by forest, the Ming dynasty-style jars that dot this part of the landscape were added here by Geoffrey.

The jars are not confined to this area of the garden but were purposefully placed by Geoffrey throughout the garden. Geoffrey Bawa had a knack for controlling the landscape without taming it.

A large black jar on the ground underneath a tree

Ming dynasty-style jar on the hill

 

A large black jar on the ground under a tree

A Ming dynasty-styled jar under a tree.

 

Jackfruit

Two Jackfruits growing on the Jackfruit tree

Jackfruit in Geoffrey Bawa’s garden

 

Lunuganga Estate is set in Sri Lanka’s wet tropical zone, so tropical fruits, like the Jackfruit, are not unknown and grow to large proportions.

Cinnamon Hill House

A single story orange coloured building with blue doors.

Cinnamon Hill House on Lunuganga Estate.

 

In a forested area on the western slope, Geoffery used Cinnamon Hill House as a studio from where he created his architectural designs. It also served as accommodation for his guests and was the last addition to the Garden.

Geoffrey Bawa’s home

A single story White House with black and white painted doors and red tile roof, partially hidden by trees and bushes.

Geoffrey Bawa’s former home.

 

The tour ended with walking past a most unusual windmill before the gentle climb up Cinnamon Hill for lunch on the wide veranda of Geoffrey Bawa’s former home on Lunuganga Estate, now a boutique hotel. Lunch consisted of a set menu of delicious traditional Sri Lankan curries.

A multi-storey brick windmill that looks like a castle turret

A unique windmill on Lunuganga Estate

 

The veranda of a home set with tables and chairs ready for lunch

Lunch on the veranda of Geoffrey Bawa’s former home.

 

The home sits at the top of Cinnamon Hill, allowing breathtaking views over Lake Dedduwa. Lunch was a visual and gastronomic pleasure.

The gardens are open to the public, and the buildings on the estate operate as boutique country accommodation

Guided tours of the gardens run daily: 9.30 am, 11.30 am, 2.00 pm, and 3.30 pm. A reservation is essential if you want to have lunch whilst visiting the estate. Check the Geoffrey Bawa Trust website for garden tour prices and how to book lunch.

Guests staying on Lunuganga Estate can wander the gardens without needing a guided tour.

How to get from Colombo to Lunganga Estate, Bentota

The drive from Colombo to Lunuganga Estate will take about 1 hour and 14 minutes, for a distance of 83.9 kilometres.

But what if I don’t have a car? Can I still get to Geoffrey Bawa’s garden?

You have three options if you don’t have the means to drive to Lunuganga Estate: train, bus, or taxi. The train is the fasted option, taking 1 hour and 6 minutes and costing AU$5 – AU$7, including the taxi fare from Aluthgama Station to the estate. For a taxi from Colombo to Lunuganga Estate, the most expensive option, expect to pay AU$30 – AU$40.

Refer to the website, Rome2rio, for details on schedules, costs, routes, travel times, and operators.

 

Geoffrey Bawa’s garden is not a formal garden in the European sense. Nor is it a major tourist attraction. But that’s what makes it interesting and a bucket list thing to do in Sri Lanka.

 

Editor’s Note: I originally published this blog post in February 2019 and have updated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

 

Disclaimer: This post contains no affiliate links. All views and opinions are my own and non-sponsored. All photos are my own and remain the copyright of Just Me Travel.

© Just Me Travel 2018-2022.

 

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts. Would you visit Lunuganga Estate and Geoffrey Bawa’s garden if visiting Sri Lanka?

 

Like this post? Save it for later!

A pond surrounded by tropical forest. The writing on the image states, Visit Geoffrey Bawa's Garden in Sri Lanka.

A photo of a house veranda set with tables and chairs for lunch. The writing on the photo states, Have lunch at Geoffrey Bawa's Garden in Sri Lanka.

 

Are you looking for more ideas on destination Sri Lanka? Then don’t miss these posts:

WHAT IS THE MISSING TRUTH ABOUT CLIMBING SRI LANKA’S LITTLE ADAM’S PEAK

FIRST 24 HOURS IN GALLE FORT, SRI LANKA

WALKING THE RAILWAY LINE FROM ELLA TO DEMODARA, SRI LANKA

WALLAWWA – a tranquil luxury boutique hotel in Colombo City

ULTIMATE SRI LANKA ITINERARY – The best of Sri Lanka in 20 Days

 

Author’s Note: Please check the latest travel restrictions before planning any trip, and always follow government advice.

 

Sign up to receive the latest in travel destinations, topics, resources and guides.

 

6 Comments on A PHOTOGRAPHIC TOUR OF GEOFFREY BAWA’S GARDEN, SRI LANKA [2022 Updated]

WALKING THE RAILWAY LINE FROM ELLA TO DEMODARA, SRI LANKA [2022 Updated]

Do as a Local, Walk the Railway Line From Ella to Demodara in Sri Lanka’s Beautiful Hill Country.   When my son was little, his grandmother told him to say,…

Do as a Local, Walk the Railway Line From Ella to Demodara in Sri Lanka’s Beautiful Hill Country.

 

When my son was little, his grandmother told him to say, “The devil made me do it”, whenever he was in trouble. What, you might ask, is the connection between walking a railway line in the hills of Sri Lanka and a grandmother teaching her grandson how to get out of trouble? Read on to connect the dots and discover a path less travelled.

 

When staying in Sri Lanka’s pretty hill town of Ella with my sister and brother-in-law, my sister decided it would be an adventure to walk the 3 kilometres along the railway line from Ella to the iconic Nine Arch Bridge. From there, we would choose whether to walk back to Ella or continue a further 3.5 kilometres along the railway line to Demodara train station, catching the Kandy-Colombo train back to Ella.

With all in agreement and knowing the expected time the train departs Demodara, we set off at 8.20 am after an early breakfast for our possible 6.5-kilometre walk.

A man walks along a railway line which is surrounded by hills and tropical vegetation.

Walking the railway line in Sri Lanka from Ella to Demodara.

 

Just after stepping onto the railway line near our hotel, we were confronted with the sign, ‘WALK ON THE RAILWAY LINE IS PROHIBITED’. I immediately decided that when stopped by the railway police, I was going to tell them, “The devil made me do it”. I wonder how well this translates into Sinhala or Tamil? If that didn’t work, I was going to blame my sister, the hotel manager, and guidebooks because they all suggested this escapade – a “must do” in Ella, to do as the locals do.

I stopped worrying about ending up in a Sri Lankan prison when about 5 metres further down the line there was a sign advising that walking the railway line was dangerous. Evidently, the authorities had given up telling people that walking the line was prohibited. I relaxed. ‘Dangerous’ I can handle, but ‘prohibited’ went against my ‘good’ girl nature.

However, ‘dangerous’ became a not-so-friendly companion again upon entering a tunnel that was impossible to see any light coming from the other end. Blindly feeling my way through the tunnel with my feet against the railway track, I wondered aloud what action should be taken in the event of a train coming whilst we were in the tunnel. Luckily, my brother-in-law had been thinking ahead and consulted with our hotel manager to find out when we might come face-to-face with the train from Kandy on the Nine Arch Bridge.

Feeling relatively safe in the knowledge I was not about to be squished by a train, the walk through the tunnel became a devil-may-care adventure filled with excess adrenaline running rampant through my body. I wasn’t convinced I was doing something entirely legal in a foreign country.

I may not have felt quite so safe and would definitely have run out of adrenaline had I known the tunnel exits right on Nine Arch Bridge.

Two people exiting a railway tunnel

Exiting the tunnel at Nine Arch Bridge

 

Two people walk along a bridge constructed with with nine arches. The bridge is in a tropical landscape.

Walking the railway line on Nine Arch Bridge

 

The Nine Arch Bridge, a popular tourist attraction, spans a deep gorge and is surrounded by a vision of green, with tropical forests interspersed with tea plantations. And so-called because it has nine arches or spans. Very imaginative! At 91.44m (300ft) long, 7.62m (25ft) wide and 24.38m (80ft) high, this railway bridge is deemed to be an engineering marvel as it is made entirely of rocks, bricks and cement without a single piece of steel. Not knowing anything about engineering, I must concur with the experts. The bridge’s height and all those arches, plus the environment in which it exists, make it an impressive bridge and worth plugging as a tourist attraction.

We had timed our arrival at the Nine Arch Bridge to watch the 9.15 am train from Kandy cross the bridge.

A blue train driving on a railway line through tropical vegetation in hills.

Here comes the train!

 

Everything you read about Sri Lankan trains advises you they rarely run on time. However, this one was on time and came down the line just after we crossed the bridge. Stepping off the tracks, I expressed our expert timing with an enthusiastic wave to the driver and all the passengers.

The Nine Arch Bridge is the midway point between Ella and Demodara stations. Having gotten this far, we decided to continue our walk along the railway line to Demodara to catch the 10.40 am train back to Ella. Now I was on a mission to reach Demodara in time to catch that train as I was not walking the 6.5 kms back to Ella.

Please Note: The Sr Lanka train timetable has altered since I visited Ella. The 10.40 am train I caught now leaves Demodara at 10.55 am, and the changed timetable impacts the arrival time of the earlier train at Nine Arch Bridge.

We made it to Demodara by 10.20 am but weren’t allowed to purchase our train tickets immediately, being told to wait until 10 minutes before the train was due. No explanation was forthcoming as to why this was so. However, as Demodara was such a pretty station, with its many potted flowering plants lining the platform, we were happy to wait to be ‘allowed’ to buy our train tickets. When I did front up to the ticketing window, I thought I had misheard when asked to pay 30 Sri Lankan rupees (the equivalent of 30 Australian cents) for three one-way tickets from Demodara to Ella (10c each). I was so impressed with how cheap the trip was that I also bought my sister and brother-in-law their tickets.

Two people sitting on a train platform underneath a picture of a steam train engine.

Waiting at Demodara Station for the train back to Ella

 

The train was practically empty. Not what I had expected, which made choosing a seat difficult due to too much choice. Which seat would give me the best view of the scenery as it passes by outside the window? Ultimately, I chose to stand in the doorway like a local.

The train ride, although short-lived, was fun and the highlight of my day. Anyone would think I have never ridden a train before!

A train on a bridge approaches a tunnel and people standing near the bridge wave at the train.

The train on Nine Arch Bridge approaches the tunnel we had so recently walked through.

 

Guidebooks publicise the walk along the railway line as a must-do activity in Ella. However, we came across no other tourists except at the bridge itself. Is it too far off the beaten track for most tourists? We were the only non-locals walking the line. I had to smile whenever we passed a makeshift stall by the rail tracks – Sri Lankans cater to people’s needs wherever they can!

To my surprise, the walk was effortless. It was flat all the way, and you get into a rhythm as you lope from sleeper to sleeper. The endless views of tea plantations, tropical vegetation, valleys, and mountains made for a pleasant walk. And the company was good too – not one disagreement!

Tea bushes growing on hills

Tea plantations are seen along the railway line walk

 

Visiting the Nine Arch Bridge is touted as a must-do attraction in Sri Lanka. You can get to the Bridge by taking a tuk-tuk from Ella or walking through the jungle. Or do as the locals do and walk along the railway line. Take the path less travelled.

 

Editor’s Note: I originally published this blog post in January 2019 and have updated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

 

Disclaimer: This post contains no affiliate links. All views and opinions are my own and non-sponsored. All photos are my own and remain the copyright of Just Me Travel.

© Just Me Travel 2018-2022.

 

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts. Would you have walked the railway line given Ella station’s ‘prohibited’ sign?

 

Like this post? Save it for later!

An image with two photos. One is of three people walking on a railway line and the other is of a bridge with nine arches.

Three people walking on a railway line with flowers, bushes, and signs beside the tracks.

 

Are you looking for more ideas on destination Sri Lanka? Then don’t miss these posts:

WHAT IS THE MISSING TRUTH ABOUT CLIMBING SRI LANKA’S LITTLE ADAM’S PEAK

FIRST 24 HOURS IN GALLE FORT, SRI LANKA

A PHOTOGRAPHIC TOUR OF GEOFFREY BAWA’S GARDEN

WALLAWWA – a tranquil boutique hotel in Colombo City

ULTIMATE SRI LANKA ITINERARY – The Best of Sri Lanka in 20 Days

 

Author’s Note: Please check the latest travel restrictions before planning any trip, and always follow government advice.

 

Sign up to receive the latest in travel destinations, topics, resources and guides.

 

4 Comments on WALKING THE RAILWAY LINE FROM ELLA TO DEMODARA, SRI LANKA [2022 Updated]

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