The estate at Lunuganaga remained Bawa’s muse for all his life soon after he bought it. Awe-struck and in love with the Italian gardens on his travels to Europe he decided to build his own Italian garden when he returned after years of study to be a barrister. He bought a cinnamon and rubber plantation…

The Bentota Beach hotel along the sea in Bentota was one of Bawa’s earliest projects commissioned by the Sri Lankan government. The young architect then took inspiration from traditional Sri Lankan architecture with the pitched roofs, a central courtyard, the frangi-pani tree, stepped in facade volumes and tropical verandahs. Facing the western coastline of Sri…

Kandy is essentially a hill-station brightly centered in Sri Lanka with its main attraction being the tooth relic temple that is one of the major Buddhist centres in the world. Everyday thousands of beautifully bloomed lotus flowers are offered to the Buddhist Lord while the tooth relic is exhibited only when grievous natural disasters occur.…

King Kasyapa built his capital in central Sri Lanka on the rock of Sigriya. In a rare case of urban planning he used the Sigriya or Lion Rock, measuring a massive 200 metre in height, on top on which he built his palace. The Unesco World Heritage Site is filled with colorful frescos and paintings…

The Heritance Kandalama at Dambulla is a luxury 5-star property managed by the Atkins Spence group a microcosm of its surrounds and a hotel that offers noticeably the best of Sri Lanka. Overlooking the Kandalama lake, the hotel was designed by Geoffrey Bawa in the early 1990s, as a landmark project built in spite of political…

Geoffrey Bawa cuts a pretty picture, as do his buildings. Steeped in architectural merit his works are often lauded as the epitome of Tropical architecture. Using nature to stir up a shenanigan he builds in tune with landscape, that probably is the most important element in his architecture and in effect his architectural practice. Its…

Looking down over a foot is the Bruder with a look Marking clearing the nice from all the wary disguise Smart and highly evolved he makes an easy crowd Intelligence made to order and passion by the larder Of thought that comes far vision is what it becomes Binding the all by a spell weakest link in the…

Perched on the rugged Bavarian Hills in picturesque Southern Germany the Neuschwanstein Castle, a 19th century Romanesque Revival Palace plays ode to Wagner and his marvelous compositions. The castle was commissioned of Ludwig II of Bavaria and built largely out of a personal fund. Built on a steep hill and surrounded by other castles in…

Books, much like people can influence life by cajoling one into thinking, by offering a perspective, by simply entertaining or even at times offering for a change, much needed advice. In over a gazillion titles there are a whole wide range of books to delve into. From humor, to information, from recipes to hard-facts, from entertaining…