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| Sunday, 8 January 2006 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Travel Yala National Park nets Rs. 90m in 2005 The Yala National Park recorded Rs.90 million income during 2005, said the Director, Wild Life Dayananda Kariyawasam. The coastal border of the National Park and two tourist bungalows Yala Safari and Patanangala were damaged by the tsunami and 57 tourists and three officers perished on December 26, 2004. Today the park has fully recovered and the number of tourist arrivals has increased. The Wild Life Department has developed the park to address some issues in relation to the drinking water problem of the animals during the dry season and tourist accommodation facilities. Three tanks in the park have been renovated. In addition the department has constructed 12 special water pools and arranged to supply water by bowsers during the dry season. A program is now under way to remove thorny bushes in the park that obstructs the grass growing which the animals need. There are six tourist bungalows and two camp sites in the Yala National Park. The tourist bungalows are in Mahaselawa, Heenwewa, Boothawe, Thalgasmankada, Warahana and Kondachchi. Jamburala and Kosgasmankada are the two camp sites. The Department has abandoned the Yala Safari and Patanangala tourist bungalows and built a memorial statue at the Patanangala site. Visitors can book the tourist bungalows and camp sites at the department's head office in Colombo. (GW) Puppetry at Lighthouse Hotel and Spa Live music, live voice and puppets on strings. Thanks to the work of German, Steve Brick, who arrived in Ambalangoda, the local custom of puppetry has been revived first as a means of providing a bit of life and laughter to the various camps in the area and then as a means of reviving a dying art form that creates income generator opportunity. Puppetry has proved its appeal by captivating the hearts of children and adults. Following his success in Ambalangoda, Brick in association with Sir Arthur C. Clarke commissioned Sri Lankan playwright Sarat Gunaratna to write more puppet plays with the tsunami in the plot. The first of many shows will be held at the Lighthouse Hotel and Spa and thereafter along the coast of Galle-Matara and Hambantota. A truly southern project, each puppet is carved from wood and painted by 5th and 6th generation puppet makers from Ambalangoda, also known to be the spiritual home of legendary puppet shows and mask making. Some puppets are said to be more than a century old. Travelling in their Tuk Tuks, Brick and his crew of ten set up their collapsible stage in any area that can accommodate a crowd. Those assuming that the music and voices are pre-recorded are proved wrong when children and a few likely adults are invited backstage to meet the "wooden" stars and the people behind the true voices. Children are given the opportunity to interact with the puppet and make friends, even though it may be for a few hours, this has proved to be beneficial for the children in helping them deal with the ghastly effects of the tsunami. "It's heartening to see them reclaiming something positive out of such a terrible event" Brick said. Sanjiva Gautamadasa, General Manager of Lighthouse Hotel and Spa commenting on the puppet show, said, "What bigger privilege than to be associated with the revival of this dying art of puppetry and under such moving and emotional conditions'. Lighthouse Hotel and spa is a member of the Jetwing family of hotels which also owns and manages, Hunas Falls Hotel, Kandy, St. Andrew's Hotels, Nuwara Eliya, Yala Safari Game Lodge, Yala (opening 2007), The Beach, Negombo, The Blue Water, Wadduwa, Ayurveda Pavilions, Negombo, Tropical Villas, Beruwala, Blue Oceanic Beach Hotel, Negombo, Vil Uyana, Sigiriya (opening 2006), Seashells Hotel, Negombo, Mannal Kadu, Nilaveli (opening 2006) and Sea Garden Hotel, Negombo. Aditya - Lanka's latest Boutique Hotel Sri Lanka's latest boutique hotel, Aditya was opened recently on a secluded stretch of beach in Rathgama, half way between Hikkaduwa and Galle. It caters to a very exclusive clientele and offers its customers a luxurious, personalised and tasteful environment. Aditya consists of five Garden suites, six Sea View Suites and a Grand Surya Suite. The twelve suites named after the twelve sun gods - Bhaga, Savitri, Dhatri, Daksa, Aryaman, Amsa, Varuna, Indra, Saksa, Martanda and Mitra are between 900-1,100 sqft while Surya which is the Presidential suite is 1,850 sqft. "We wanted to create something luxurious, private, exclusive, tasteful, chic, something that will seduce the soul," said Husain Dawoodbhoy, Managing Director. Future plans for the hotel include an art gallery, yoga room, personalised butler service and cookery classes for customers. Bernard Gomez and Pat Mamolka were behind the architectural and interior designing. Aditya is a private property run by Sarath Wickremasinghe, General Manager/Director and Husain Dawoodbhoy, Managing Director. (RC) Emirates SkyCargo set for Malawi Emirates SkyCargo is all set to start freighter services from Dubai to Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi, from January 13. The service will be operated jointly with Air Cargo Ltd, a subsidiary of Air Malawi, the country's national airline. Emirates SkyCargo will serve Malawi, its 12th African destination, with the Airbus A310-300F freighter once a week, every Friday. The cargo division is expecting to transport large tonnes of perishable products such as fruit, vegetables and cut flowers to support Malawi's predominantly agricultural economy. Other local produce-tobacco, tea, coffee, beans, pulses, rice, chilies and nuts are also expected to be part of the export mix. Malawi exports a diverse range of products including textiles, garments, furniture, gemstones, and live tropical fish. These goods are extremely popular in Emirates' destinations, which are also Malawi's major markets, such as the USA, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Japan, France and Switzerland. Emirates' Vice President Cargo-Freighters Hiran Perera said: "Malawi is an excellent destination for our A310F freighter route, with the country's needs. Malawi is a medium-haul destination from Dubai, and shipments arrive in excellent condition. With our top-class facilities at the hub, shipments can be cleared, carefully stored, or quickly turned around for onward journeys to cities across our network. General Manager-Air Cargo Ltd, Nathaniel Limbe said: "We are proud to partner with Emirates SkyCargo and we are confident that the introduction of the direct freighter service between Lilongwe and Dubai will spur considerable economic activity-not just benefiting Malawi but also the cities in the neighbouring countries close to our border", he said. SriLankan wins Galileo Indian Express award SriLankan Airlines, the largest foreign carrier in India, won the coveted Galileo Indian Express Award for the best Eastbound International Airline for 2004-05. SriLankan was selected ahead of Singapore Airlines, Malaysian Airlines, Air India and Indian Airlines who were the other finalists in the category of Eastbound International Airline. "This award is a considerable boost to SriLankan Airlines' efforts in the Indian market, where we have increased out operations consistently over the years. Our strength is the ideal geographical location of Colombo, from where we offer a wide range of destinations Eastbound and Westbound from nine cities in India," said Regional Manager for Sri Lanka and Indian Subcontinent, N.Prabaharan who received the award on hehalf of SriLankan at a ceremony in Mumbai recently. "We are also in the ideal position to connect with the booming domestic air travel in India since we can turn India's new domestic air travellers to international ones by bringing them to Sri Lanka." Sri Lanka's award-winning National Carrier operates 88 flights per week to nine destinations in India, Mumbai, New Delhi, Madras, Trichy, Trivandrum, Calicut, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Kochi. Among the airline's 48 destinations in 27 countries are six to the Far
East and Southeast Asia, Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lampur, Hong Kong, Tokyo
and Beijing, as well as codeshare flights with its strategic partner
Emirates to Jakarta, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. |
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