A sad Sunday......

It was last Sunday that I started looking  Lankadeepa for Daya Rajapakshs's comic  story.Bit disappointing because it was not in the paper.Then I waited till this week .

Of course Sunday Lankadeepa was available since Saturday morning.but the story wasn't there either This is the first time  according to my memory repeatedly it was  not published for two weeks.
Even I told  my mother it's  strange,After few minutes  while I was  checking some web news I saw that  Mr Daya Rajapaksha passed away at general hospital Colombo today morning.
What a sad thing to hear...

I started reading   his stories  with " Gginibath Kiritaya"which means the burnt crown.
It was a story about a small shop owned by Sinhalese in where majority of the people Tamil s who work in tea estate.actually I was very small I do remember the name because I didn't know what s the Sinhalese meaning for Kiritaya.
Actually my grandfather who explained this word and said don't think  of reading this kind of stories simply these are adult's stuff.And remanded me to read Lowada sagarawa and Sirith Maldama,Both were poem books without a singe illustration and full of advice of well mannered Buddhist children supposed to follow.
Being stubborn was typically being myself and later on I read those books when i was studding in Sunday school but that did not stop the addiction for Daya Rajapaksha's  comic stories .I never missed  those  stories till this Sunday.
Daya Rajapaksha even did child comics stories for Wijaya paper.But his work always meant for adults.He never did stories with beautiful princess or fairy tales castles with rainbow colors.
The last story he was writing based on older peoples life in a Elder home.

During 1988 -1989 he wrote a story about a poor family who sold their child.It was a time lot of Children were sold to Western Europe countries, this kind of stories really happened  at that time very often.Nowadays we read  overwhelming articles of return  those kids as adults  to Sri Lanka searching for their biological parents.In rational way it s not a worst  thing that a child grew up in a European country with higher life standards.
But again we can't really agreed of the idea of selling a child.
however the story ended in as that  father who actually sold the kid commit suicide.
there was a small note that  Daya Rajapaksha made saying  that he had to stop this story due to various pressure....

It s like end of an era.Now most of the news papers does not have a comic story.
Also there is no any esteemed runner to hold the batten.As readers we are  interested in electronic medias and  reading printed news papers not a growing habit of younger generation .
We have all E news alerts.New President providing WI-FI ,  It easy,

The truth is even I got Daya Rajapaksha's  death  from E news web.actually I was realizing   that I don't have a reason of buying   Irida Lankadeepa now
Can I blame myself?

Nortan Bridge Daya Rajapaksha and the leading female figure of his most of comic stories.

Passing through Hamilton Canel

It s Saturday..Technically I supposed to be work at office.Instead of stopping near Slave island Railway Station I went towards Galle face green,Early morning enjoying the sea breeze ,I kept moving towards Mutwal.
End the end I was near Hamilton canal.
I was about six or  seven years old when I first time saw this canal.Actually I did not notice the canal even.I went to Leprosy hospital with my Mother.
I was more exited about the hospital than this Canal.
Sometimes later I was passing through Hamilton canal,but road s were really we never tried going through the banks of the canal.
Actually Hamilton canal was not designed to be  drive vehicles over the bank of it.The whole idea behind the Hamilton canal was use the canal it self as a way of transportation.
I got old picture of it...The Dutch designed it,definitely they influenced by their country.
unfortunately  i did not have a picture how it look like in late 80's .

This is a very old photograph.I can t remember Hamilton canal like this.when i saw it those days it was not  clean like this at all.

This is a place where majority of the people involved in fishing industry.Actually it is not supposed to be crystal clean water front retreat.

we have experienced different levels of urban retreats  within past three four years. Hamilton canal also has developed as urban retreat area.

It was around 7 a.m .There were not much  people as well dynamism of the fishing community seems dead.There were long line of fishing boats but there was no life in it.

Actually  I was thinking should I go forward towards Uswata keiiaywa or should I take a u turns.

I m not a fan of U turn except the movie which Sean Penn and Jenifer Lopez appeared.

So why not Keep moving forward...

So  I took the coastal line towards Negambo..

We Sri Lankans  have a popular joke among friends,which is going to UK.It s  that all Sri Lankan been to United Kingdom,but most of us been  to UK,that is  Uswata keiiaywa  UK. Subtle beach which is really close  to  Colombo.There are people who brought lands and have their own beach villa Around Preethipura or UK.When we are passing through the beach road road elevation gives  different social layers of Sri Lanka,

Beach Villas which were designed  by  eminent architects and also small shack dwellings.Some land owners have sold most of  their land to an outsider now looking at the well designed boundary walls happily, Obviously they don' t enjoy beach or the sea breeze, may be looking at the sea for too long...

That is  human nature we do get board on most romantic things very soon,and we are loosing it forever.

As well there are identical clone copies of beach Villas in Malibu,plus local interpretation  of post modernism architecture with over decorated pediment and  Corinthian , Doric columns and extravagant minimalist  architecture..

Can we always agreed that Less Is More?

Hamilton Canal long time ago...Thanks to the google

Hamilton Canal now..

Its a common Sri Lankan style of urban retreat..Somewhere in future it may  recognize as MR style  or Ghota Style.What ever  it s typical  red color cement block pavings with concrete curb .

UK beach.....Not early morning....this is actually evening.

palm village hotel gardens.I m not advertising.Had a tea..that 's all.

Negambo is an another story...hopefully somewhere in future...