“HO-GAHANA-POKUNA” by Des Kelly

How many of our Lankan/Aussies remember this place ?

How many ex-patriots even know what the triple-word means. I have just watched a “documentary” about some “Tour-Guides”(about 8 of them in total), taking their first tour of Sri Lanka!. Considering the fact that they call themselves “tour-guides”, one must be “given to the idea” that their main purpose has to be “promotion” of the Countries they visit. Unless there is a sequel or three, to their tour of Lanka, I cannot see too much “tourism-potential” in what has just been televised. Yes, some “pretty-places” were shown, but the triviality of most of the “doco” would have been obvious to many Lankans who are no longer living in S.L. & I did have some rather negative comments passed on to me.

The “tour-guides” themselves, “scored” the tour quite highly, but then, one would have to expect that, wouldn’t one?. IF documentaries of this nature is mainly to promote TOURISM, then people expect to see as much of the COUNTRY, as possible, not a “bunch” of tour guides ambling around, trying to eat stuff that was far too spicier even for someone like me, who was BORN there. Also, why were there so MANY Tour Guides ?. Two or even three, maybe, but seven or eight ?, not necessary, unless they were split up, the reason being, to show as many varied PARTS of the Country being toured, as possible. It is the COUNTRY we want to see, folks.

Which gets me to the “Ho-gahana-pokuna” I am writing about. The tour-guides missed that one. The English translation for the “name” is simply “the pond/water, that ROARS”. You see, when simple Village-folk of Ceylon, scored the chance of coming to the “kotuwa”, or Colombo Fort, they were thoroughly amazed at being taken to what was known as “Galle-face, green”, walked to the area bordering the Indian Ocean, to gasp, in delight, at this roaring expanse of water, with wave after wave smashing onto the huge rocks strewn along the waterline. This, would quite possibly be their first & last time to see the wonderful “Ho-gahana-pokuna”. Simple folk, but, in my eyes, the “cream of the crop” in my Lovely Island home.

Finally, getting back to the “Tour-Guides”, you have a very good job, even though it may be a part-time one, but please don’t go eating the extra-hot chillies again, if you can help it.

To “SRI LANKA (CEYLON) TOURING”, it is all there, already.

“The Colombo “Fort”, the now, built-up, what used to be, the old “H.M.Cy.S. Gemunu” area, Flagstaff Street, bordering the Indian Ocean, the “Galle-face green”, became almost “brown” as I remember it, (please make it green again), the “ho-gahana-pokuna”, the main Galle-Road that runs from Fort down to where an Englishman, presumably, met this beautiful Sinhalese lass, courted her, and decided, for reasons of his own, to call their secret tryst “Mount Lavinia”

Her name was Lavinia, but what HE did, was his business, entirely.

Then, we have the low-lying areas like Kandy, we have the various beautiful tea plantations, acres of paddy-fields, all beautiful to the eye, the flora, the fauna, the hills & the vales, the water-falls, the mountain where all the butterflies end their short life, Siripade, Sigiriya, ” the Lion-rock”, ” World’s End”, Ella, Nuwara Eliya, Diyatalawa, Haputale, everywhere you look, something beautiful & different to see, Jaffna, to the North, Galle, to the South, Colombo, to the East & Trincomalee to the West, around 26.000 sq.miles in total, but still, very definitely the most beautiful “little Island” in the World.

As usual, I finish each of these “special-stories” of mine with the music, hopefully relevant to the writing, but music, nonetheless, and folks, nothing can “say-it” like these utube clips, specially chosen for my eLanka readers. Please watch, read, and listen to another “Ho-gahana-pokuna”.