A Quarter of a Century - For my daughter

A Quarter of a Century

Twenty-five years of beauty and light,

Watching you blossom, a wondrous sight.

A quarter century has softly gone by,

And my heart overflows as I look in your eye.

I see the lawyer, determined and wise,

With passion and brilliance behind your bright eyes.

I see the artist, whose delicate hand

Brings lines into life, so gifted and grand.

I held back my tears as you finished your degree,

Proud of the woman you grew up to be.

And then came the moment that stole my whole heart—

A dream you made real, a true work of art.

On a London stage, with grace in your stride,

You danced Kandyan rhythms and filled me with pride.

I once wished I’d sent you to dance as a child,

Yet you sought it out with a spirit so wild.

Beside a busy job, you took to the floor,

Proving your strength and so very much more.

Yes, we may bump heads and argue a bit,

For you bear my strong spirit, my passion and grit!

But I wouldn’t trade that, or trade you, my dear,

For all of the world or the turns of the year.

You are strong-willed and stunning, inside and out,

A daughter whose heart leaves no room for doubt.

May this year bring joy and success to your view,

I love you endlessly, always, I do.

Happy 25th Birthday!

Happy 25th Birthday, my beautiful loku duva 

Quarter of a century today!

Watching you turn 25 fills my heart with so much pride. You have grown into such an incredible, intelligent, and talented woman—a dedicated lawyer who works so hard, and an artist with a beautiful creative soul and amazing talent in your drawings.

I was happy to see you finishing your degeree course. I am proud of you.

One of my proudest moments was watching you perform Kandyan dance on a stage in Central London with Narthana Dance Company. When you were younger, I always felt sorry that I hadn't taken you to dance classes. Seeing you decide as an adult, alongside your busy job, to learn Kandyan dance just to make that dream come true meant more to me than words can say. It showed your incredible strength, grace, and heart.

We might bump heads and argue sometimes—mostly because you inherited every bit of my strong spirit! But I wouldn't trade that (or you) for the world. You are strong-willed, talented, and stunning inside and out.

May this year bring you all the success, happiness, and joy you deserve. I love you endlessly.

The crumbling legacy of Colonial splendor

The Crumbling Legacy of Colonial Splendour

We spent the final few days of our trip to Sri Lanka at the historic Mount Lavinia Hotel, also known as the Galkissa Hotel. We went there because a conversation arose among us about the Lavinia train locomotive, and we wanted to see the location associated with that historical story.

This hotel is situated on a very beautiful small hill facing the Indian Ocean. The founder of this splendid Governor’s mansion was Sir Thomas Maitland (1805–1811), a British Governor of Ceylon. He built this mansion on this high cliff extending toward the Indian Ocean as his official summer residence and named it 'Mount Lavinia House'.

As famously detailed in the book by Maureen Seneviratne, the mansion hides a legendary, forbidden romance between the British Governor (nicknamed "King Tom") and Lovina Aponsuwa, a local mestizo dancer. Because British colonial high society fiercely frowned upon a high-ranking official associating with a local low caste dancing girl, their relationship had to remain strictly hidden.

During construction in 1806, Maitland secretly instructed his builders to carve out a clandestine underground passage. One end of the tunnel opened directly inside the mansion's wine cellar, while the other emerged miles away, disguised inside a drinking water well in the compound of Lovina’s father's home. Lovina was routinely smuggled through this passage while grand galas took place on the floors above. The romance met a tragic end in 1811 when the British Foreign Office discovered the affair. Regarded as an unacceptable deviation from "Crown and God," Maitland was abruptly recalled and transferred to Malta, where he later died a bachelor.

After Sir Thomas Maitland, Robert Brownrigg, Edward Paget, and Edward Barnes (after whom many roads in Ceylon were named) were the other governors who lived in this house.

During the 1833 cholera epidemic, this house served as a convalescent home for British military troops, and in 1860, as a lodging establishment. In 1877, it was converted into a hotel named the Mount Lavinia Grand Hotel. Used as a military hospital during World War II, the hotel was also chosen as a location for the famous 1956 film "The Bridge on the River Kwai".

Ceylon's first nightclub was the 'Little Hut', established here in 1957.

Despite the property's modern struggles, our arrival was met with true Sri Lankan hospitality. The reception team was incredibly helpful and welcoming from the moment we checked in.

Remnants of the hotel's grandeur still shimmer if you look closely. During our stay, we were fortunate enough to meet Mr. Wijesinghe, a veteran employee who has worked at the hotel for around 40 years. He kindly took us on a personal history tour, guiding us through the legacy of the building.

The property offers an extraordinarily beautiful view from the breakfast room and the swimming pool. The breakfast buffet itself is absolutely amazing, offering a massive variety of food choices with an excellent spread of both traditional Sri Lankan dishes and Western favourites. Eating a world-class breakfast from this high vantage point while looking directly down onto the railway line is unforgettable. With the Galkissa (Mount Lavinia) railway station sitting right under the hotel cliff, it is an absolute paradise for train enthusiasts like me who want to watch the coastal trains click-clack past against the backdrop of the crashing ocean.

When we went there, we got to experience true Sri Lankan hospitality. The reception team was extremely kind and helpful from the very moment we arrived. The doormen at the entrance were dressed in colonial-era uniforms, which I saw as a great way of preserving the hotel's unique identity.

Remnants of the hotel's former glory can still be seen today. During our two-day stay, we were fortunate enough to meet Mr. Wijesinghe, a veteran employee who has served there for over forty years. He very kindly briefed us on the history of the hotel and took us on a special guided tour.

You can see what we observed during that tour in this slide.

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 The view of the Colombo coastline visible from the hotel’s breakfast area and the swimming pool is exceptionally beautiful. From there, one can see Port City—an artificially constructed irony of history. Maitland or Brownrigg would never have imagined such a thing.

The breakfast buffet here is truly excellent, featuring a wide variety of traditional Sri Lankan dishes as well as Western items. Having breakfast from this elevated spot while looking down at the railway track below is an unforgettable experience. Since the Mount Lavinia Railway Station is located directly below the hotel hill, this is a true paradise for train enthusiasts from around the world who love to watch trains running along the coastline.

However, moving beyond this beautiful view to look at the hotel rooms reveals a heartbreaking reality. It appears that the current owners have completely neglected the decline of this national heritage. The hotel rooms are in a somewhat dilapidated state—they are damp, moldy, and emit a strong, unpleasant odor. From what we saw, only a very few rooms in the entire hotel complex remain in a state suitable for human accommodation. Although the air conditioners provided some relief, they did little to change the smell of the air being inhaled. When a mold problem arises in a building, the fungi release millions of microscopic spores, allergens, and irritants into the indoor air. Inhaling these particles can cause numerous short-term as well as long-term health issues. On our second day, we requested a room change to get a better view of the railway track. Since we had moved out of our own choice, we did not complain about it, but that room was filled with air that was even more damp than the first. At night, we opened the balcony door to let the room fill with the salty ocean breeze.

Due to a questionable decision by the hotel management, a large wall has been constructed around its spacious ballrooms. As a result, the world-renowned, beautiful ocean view has been completely blocked for visiting guests.

While the individual staff members working at the hotel are extremely kind and friendly, they seem completely helpless due to a total lack of support or guidance from upper management.

The Mount Lavinia Hotel is not merely a profit-making commercial enterprise; it is a living monument of immense value to Sri Lanka's colonial, architectural, and romantic history. It is deeply painful to watch a place of such cultural significance rot away due to private sector neglect.

Since this hotel is deeply intertwined with Sri Lanka's coastal infrastructure and serves as a major icon of the tourism industry, I feel government intervention is necessary.

Therefore, recognizing its direct connection with the historic Mount Lavinia Railway Station located below, we request the Ministry of Transport, Highways and Urban Development to intervene in preserving this as a protected urban heritage site. Building hotels adjacent to major railway stations was a feature of British colonial planning—large hotel complexes at Paddington and King's Cross in London serve as examples of this. Even in present-day Japan, similar hotels are designed for railway tourists.

Additionally, we request the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment, and Tourism to collaborate with the private management to rescue this coastal treasure and prevent such a world-class tourism asset from decaying.

If there is no cooperation from them, the government should immediately intervene to explore whether this property can be reacquired by the state, followed by a complete renovation through public investment. Some may find this idea distasteful as it recalls the colonial era. However, this building belongs to the people and the history of this country. It is a cultural and national heritage of the nation!

29/09/2026 - Ajith Dharmakeerthi