Ambalangoda

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Ambalangoda Sinhala: අම්බලන්ගොඩ Tamil: அம்பலாங்கொட
Town
Ambalangoda Mask
Ambalangoda Location in Sri Lanka
Coordinates: 6°14′07″N 80°3′13″E / 6.23528°N 80.05361°E / 6.23528; 80.05361
Country	Sri Lanka
Province	Southern Province
District	Galle District
Population  (2012)
• Total	56,783[1]
Time zone	+5.30
Area code	091

Ambalangoda is a coastal town located in Galle District, Southern Province of Sri Lanka. Governed by Ambalangoda Urban Council, the town is famous for its ancient demon masks and devil dancers.^[2] Situated approximately 87 kilometres (54 mi) south of Colombo, it sits on an elevation of 13 metres (43 ft) above the sea level.

Transport

Ambalangoda is served by

• Dharmasoka College
• P. De S. Kularathna Maha Vidyalaya
• Prajapathi Gothami Balika Vidyalaya
• Sri Devananda College

History

Owing to the abundance of cinnamon in its hinterlands, Ambalangoda was the site of a Dutch East India Company outpost in the 18th century. Consisting of a rest-house (now demolished) and a court building on a small bluff overlooking the beach, it served as the residence for the local Dutch magistrate and dignitaries traveling to Galle and Colombo. British Military Governor Frederick North is reported to have spent a night at the rest house during his tour around Ceylon in 1803.^[3] Simon Casie Chitty, in his Ceylon Gazetteer in 1833, gives the following account;

Amblangodde, a considerable village, rest house, and post station, about 15 miles south of Bentotte, and 19 north of Galle. It has a great number of houses covered with tiles, and is larger than most of the villages in this part of the country, and was once the station of a magistrate.

The inhabitants are exclusively fishermen, and a great portion of them are engaged in a coasting trade between the island and the coast of Coromandel. Here there is a remarkably splendid Wihare, as well as a school belonging to the Wesleyan missionaries.

The Ceylon Gazetter 1833

In his travel guide Book of Ceylon in 1907, Henry William Cave describes Ambalangoda as "a pleasant seaside place where good accommodation and excellent food can be obtained, and where the rare luxury of bathing in the open sea can be enjoyed in perfect security". The rest house, said to have been a comfortable hostelry consisting of eight bedrooms,^[4] was razed by an act of a local politician in 2009.^[5] The courthouse survives to date.

Masks and puppetry

The town is renowned for the manufacture of wooden masks and puppets.^[6] The traditional masks are carved from light Balsa like Kaduru wood (Nux vomica). Kaduru trees grow in the marshy lands bordering paddy fields. The wood is smoke dried for a week in preparation. The hand carved and hand painted masks in traditional dance dramas are both vibrant and colorful.

Masks are created for three different types of dancing rituals: '

With the practices of traditional exorcism (thovil), mask dancing (kolam) and puppetry (rookada) shows in the decline, the art of mask carving has seen a reduction of interest. Though only a few of the antique originals survive, the local mask museum retains an interesting collection of reproductions and provides displays of carving techniques for visitors.

Attractions

• Siri Vijayarama Viharaya (Hirewaththa)Temple.
• Dutch Courthouse (Built in 1750)
• Galgoda Sailatalaramaya Maha Vihara Temple - South Asia's longest statue of a reclining Buddha (35 metres (115 ft))
• Sunandarama Vihara - one of the oldest Buddhist temples on the southern coast, with the largest Thorana (gateway arch) in Sri Lanka
• Madu River Wetlands - the 915-hectare Madu Ganga Estuary is connected by two narrow channels to the Randombe Lake, forming a complex wetland system encompassing 64 mangrove islets. It is a Ramsar classified wetland.
• Rock pool - A natural beach pool formed out of two angled rocks on the beach behind the (former) rest house(Old). Mentioned in several historical accounts as a safe spot for bathers.

Cuisine

Ambalangoda has maintained a strong attachment towards seafood from its long standing affiliation with the fishing industry. The local specialties, most of which consist of spiced dishes of fish, include;

• Biling Achcharu - A spicy condiment made from dried biling, Maldives fish and chilies.
• Fish ambul thiyal - A fish dish, mainly tuna, cooked dry in a thick seasoning of pepper, lime, salt and spices.
• Fish jaadi - Fish preserved in a marination of lime, vinegar and salt.^[9]

References