- Unawatuna
Unawatuna is a
beach resort , located on the southerncoast ofSri Lanka .Mythical roots
From Ramayana
The description of the beach paradises in
Valmiki 's epicRamayana sounds like Unawatuna::"a seashore dotted with thousands of trees, coconuts, and palms dominating, strings of houses and hermitages along the coastline, human beings and superior beings such as
Gandharva s,Siddha s, andascetic s, living in them and countless bejewelled celestial nymphs thronging the shore, the coast intermittently visited by heavenly beings, Gods and demons."Unawatuna traces its roots to the epic Ramayana. In the epic, the monkey-warrior
Hanuman was sent back toIndia to fetch the four medicinal herbs, namely, "mritasanjeevani", "vishalyakarani", "suvarnakarani", and "sandhani" from theHimalayas in order to healLakshman who was wounded trying to save the abducted princessSita from the demon kingRavana . Hanuman failed to identify theseherb s, so he lifted the entire mountain and carried it to the battlefield to try to save Lakshman, but in the process, a chunk of it "fell-down" in the location of the present day Unawatuna, the name of the village meaning "fell down".Currently, an
edifice is being built in honour of Hanuman on the harbour end of Rumassala Hill byJapan esemonk s of theMahayana sect ofBuddhism .Alternate mythology
A banished Indian
Prince was shipwrecked and the Goddess of Earth,Manimekala , taking pity created a rocky shelf for him to save his life and that subsequently he headed to Unawatuna. The Goddess of chastity,Pattini , created a wall of fire to prevent him coming ashore, but being a person of some supreme power, he set in motion atsunami with his foot to extinguish the fire and set foot on the shores of Unawatuna.It is said that he lived in Unawatuna and helped the people in various ways. Over the years he has been venerated and worshipped, and the
Koil (orDevalaya ) on the west end point of the bay which has a history of over a thousand years is believed to be the abode of this Devol deity.Dagaba
In later years a Buduge, or House of Buddha, and the Swethamalee Chaitiya, or Dagaba, was built on the hillock abutting the Devalaya, or House of Gods. Thousands of pilgrims throng to this place of worship every month of
Esala to offer poojas. This festival is a newrice offering so most cultivators bring a share of their crop and pray for timely rain and plentiful harvest. Some others save a fistful of rice from their daily meal and offer that rice, still others would purchase a few measures or even full gunnies of rice along with coconuts to offer.This rice is pounded and mixed with
coconut milk andtreacle and made into aporridge which is then offered to the deities at the devalaya and given as alms to thousands of devotees who will trek to the devalaya for this alms giving or "Maha Deva Dana" or "Kiri Dana". Fisher folk save and offer part of their earnings called "Goda kotasa" seeking protection on their forays into the ocean.Colonial period
After defeating the Portuguese at the Fort of Negombo, the Dutch sailed south and landed on Unawatuna in
1640 and marched toGalle . The Portuguese had encountered the Dutchsoldier s atMagalle (where Closenburg Hotel is now located), and fierce fighting took place there. Over 400 Dutch soldiers were killed, and only 49 Portuguese could manage to get back to their fortification in Galle, where they were held in siege for four days before they surrendered.The Dutch built houses for their
official s in Unawatuna. These constructions include the Nooit Gedatch hotel, Unawatuna Hospital and the mansion Maharambe. UBR hotel is situated on a land called Parangiyawatta, meaning "land of the Portuguese", and the area nearby is known as Jayakotuwa, suggesting there may have been some fortification.The Galle tower or Edwards Pillar in Rumassala Hill is believed to have been a fake
lighthouse built duringWorld War I , and the area is shown as property of theBritish Admiralty in old survey maps.Eco-Tourism
Unawatuna is rich in its
biodiversity . Unfortunately, its greatest potential attraction foreco-tourism was the marsh land or mangrove called Kadolana which was completely destroyed, dredged and filled up to build a chain hotel which never got off the ground. Many locals believe it to have been cursed for being built at the doorstep of the "Wella Devalaya".Over sixty
species of endemicbird s, includingTern s,Egret s,Heron s,Sandpiper s,Kingfisher s, as well as rarer species such as the Lesser Whistling Duck, theAsian Palm Swift , the White Breasted Waterhen, the Turnstone Loten'sSunbird , and theBlack Bittern have been sighted in the locality by theornithologist , Clive Byers. These birds are mostly sighted in the remaining marshy area and Rumassala Hillock.Off the coast of Unawatuna, beneath the
Indian Ocean lies a number ofcoral reef s,shipwreck s, and a great variety offish andturtle s. The turtles still wade onto the shore to lay their nests and eggs, and at times, as if to lay first claim to the sandy shore now invaded by thetourist s and dotted by restaurateurs, even go right into the beach frontrestaurant s .The Rumassala coral reefs at the east end of the Galle Harbor attract divers, but are now endangered due to possible port development. Eco treks in the shrub
jungle s of Rumassala are also available.Current status
The recent
Asian Tsunami Tidal wave swept away many beach front restaurants and has devastated the sandy beach to a great extent, marring the natural beauty of what was once claimed to be one of the twelve best beaches in the world.Fact|date=October 2007The Department of Coast Conservation was hard pressed to implement a coastal resources management plan under the Asian Development Bank plan, but did not spring into action on the aftermath of the Tsunami. The Tourism authorities or Urban Development Authority have not yet taken action in regard to this issue.Now the sea has eaten into YADDEHIMULLA area, where there is virtually NO sandy beach anymore, as the beach area is housing unauthorized buildings put up by political henchmen of Government party politicians of the area.Most restaurants are above 10 feet from waters edge that is lapping up on granite boulders dumped by the Restaurant owners to save their buildings most of which are cracking up on the sea side.The Eastern province opening up for tourism, it will be the death knell for Unawatuna!
Food at Unawatuna
Unawatuna serves some of the best
seafood in Sri Lanka.Fresh days' catch of Prawns, Lobsters, Crab and other seafood is plenty and few restaurants like Lucky Tuna would be happy to serve you a good bottle of wine to go with the fresh seafood.
External links
* [http://www.homestay-strand.net/ Traditional sinhalese family home in Unawatuna
* [http://www.welcome2una.com/ Live coverage from Unawatuna with pictures and latest news]
* [http://lakdiva.org/clarke/unawatuna.html Unawatuna - a picture]
* [http://origin.dailynews.lk/2002/09/14/fea08.html The Unawatuna enigma]
* [http://lakdiva.org/tsunami/unawatuna/ Unawatuna & Tsunami]
* [http://www.unawatuna2612.com/ Unawatuna Charity dedicated to regenerating Unawatuna after the tsunami]
* [http://www.bufferzonenews.com/cms/?q=image/tid/22 Unawatuna Beach Photos]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.