Lights of life on Beira

Vesak, which falls in May, celebrates the Birth, Enlightenment and Pari Nirvana of the Buddha. Sri Lanka is one of the countries in the world in which it is most grandly celebrated. Vesak can be seen at its best at the Beira Lake where each tree is decorated with lights and lanterns and pandals are erected to display different aspects of Buddhism.

Four hundred years ago, the Beira Lake was nothing but marshland and an overflow for the mighty Kelani River, but with colonisation it was developed into the spectacular lakes that colour metropolitan Colombo today. What spanned a massive 165 hectares is limited to just 65 hectares currently and is divided into two parts. The more commonly known one is the smaller Beira Lake that is featured in some of the biggest Buddhist festivals in the country like the Navam Perahera elephant temple procession and the spectacular Vesak lantern festival.

Working on Beira

D R Wijewardena Mawatha runs along the larger lake and its banks are recently being developed and may even overtake the glamour of the smaller lake.

Work on the Beira began during the Portuguese era, and there are varying stories as too how its name came into being. One-story talks about how one of the Portuguese mariners who started working on it was named Beira. The other story talks about a Dutch engineer by the name of De Beer who was in charge of improving the city's water defences, named the lake after him.

The colonials developed it as a means of transport and defence, to move in and out of the city quickly. The Dutch even introduced crocodiles into it to deter invaders and this is still the talk of all the people who go to

the Cinnamon Lakeside and enjoy their fantastic waterside bar known as 7 Degrees North, as that is how far Sri Lanka is from the equator.

The British, Dutch & Portuguese

After the British were ceded the country from the Dutch they took over and started developing the infrastructure and began the construction of the main city and it's zones, the lake wasn't given much attention and soon used as a dump for garbage and a sewage run off and quickly losing the romance of the Dutch and Portuguese period.

A combination of toxins and the buildup of algae made the lake unusable and quite unpleasant but thanks to a cleanup, the two lakes have again become a star attraction of the city again. The larger one is home to the Colombo Rowing Club, which has been using its waters for competition for over 140 years.

The smaller lake is surrounded by the Prime Minister's residence, Temple Trees, Navam Mawatha where many of the city's largest organisations have their offices, and the upcoming Shangri-La hotel. There on the lake is the Geoffrey Bawa designed Seema Malaka Temple and a manmade island used for different recreational activities.

During the day you can see couples wading about its glistening surface on swan shaped boats and pelicans fishing while the occasional monitor lizard peeps through the water, a silent reminder of the crocs that use to haunt these waters.

One water monitor lizard grew so big that they recently had to lasso him and take him crocodile Dundee style through the city as he was lashing his tail to a jungle forest area just outside Colombo.

Other residential properties

On the other side, the larger lake is surrounded by important government buildings including the headquarters of the Sri Lanka Air Force, a new glitzy casino, the Sri Lanka Exhibition and Conventions Centre, the opulent Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel and part of it also flows past the majestic Neo-Baroque style old parliament building and under the Galle Face Green into the Indian Ocean.

Several of Colombo's largest warehouses were built in close proximity to the Lake during the British colonial era as the Beira was used as a transportation medium. Many of these warehouses, like one in nearby Maradana that has been converted into a community centre and the one next to the Lake that has been developed into the country's largest casino, are all seeing new life breathed into them. As are many such historic structures around the lake.

The Beira Lake is a welcome relief from the bustle of the noisy city centre. In the waters you see its history and in its reflection, what the city is becoming and advancing into. It is also a wonderful spot to enjoy the countries yearly festivals. First comes the Navam Perahera celebrating the ordination of the Buddha's main disciples, Sariputta and Maha Moggallana. Each year on this day, new Bhikkus are ordained in a grand procession around the Beira Lake and involves the Gangarama Temple and Seema Malaka.

The parade brings together traditional dancers, musicians and elephants from all around the country with over a 1000 people participating in this grand spectacle of colour, light and performance in February.

However, the Vesak Week long celebrations in May are the one that remains etched in everyone's minds due to the scale and ornamentation of the handmade lanterns. Each display draws in over a million people from all around the country and the world, sometimes each day that it is held, one is caught up in a carnival like atmosphere as beautiful tissue paper lanterns float across the water. Boats process from one side of the lake to the other and giant water lilies dominate the landscape, while small heavily decorated fishing boat dart between them under a sky of nightly spectacular fireworks.

As Colombo turns into the Paris of the East next month and celebrates its layers of history, Vesak now highlights the magnitude of the creativity and spirituality that this country offers. So create something beautiful this year to celebrate this important date in the Buddhist calendar and make Beira Lake a place to enjoy some of the country's most beautiful creations.An ideal place to stay and remain close to this serenity is the Lake Lodge - 20/2, Alwis Terrace, Colombo 03, www.taruhotels.com, which offers stunning views of the lake with the metropolis in the background.

It is the perfect spot in the city where you can experience the peace of the lake while still been in the centre of things. Book now as they are often busy during the festival and enjoy this magical yearly spot without having to walk miles to get home.