Feel the warm homeliness of a walauwe on a hill
A left turn from the road to Katugastota and a few rugged winding roads later, the adventurous traveller is greeted by a white walauwe type house perched on a hill. “The Kandyan Manor” as it is called is one of the many home stays that have sprung up in and around Kandy. Reflecting its literal meaning the “home stay” concept is fast growing in Sri Lankan tourism.
Greenery everywhere: The lush garden at the Kandyan Manor
With over 180 registered under the Sri Lanka Tourist Board, a home stay is similar to your Bed and Breakfast guest house yet different to hotels, in that it typically offers its guests the feeling of being at home even while they are on holiday. “We ensure that our guests feel at home,” said Suzanne Ratwatte, the Kandyan Manor being the brainchild of her husband and herself.
‘Home’ does seem to be the right word to describe the Manor. There are wooden chairs and settees on the verandah reminiscent of any Sri Lankan home. Walking into the house itself, the four spacious rooms, antique furniture and family photographs invoke warmth and comfort.
The use of colour is probably one of the most striking elements of the “manor” with walls painted in pinks, yellows and greens; lending an afterglow to the bedrooms. Splashes of blue enliven the entire house. Unlike in most B& B’s the family live in as well; with Suzanne and her husband Bathiya doing the cooking and entertaining themselves, being the fourth generation in the family to occupy the walauwe.
In addition to the four single and double bed rooms are three chalets built around the estate. Keeping with the vibrancy of the main house each welcome you to cement cut beds and patched walls -giving a Sri Lankan cottage type charm. Wooden tats in place of doors and wicker lamps make them all the more inviting and homely.
Walking down the paved trail to one of the cottages, the birdlife surrounding the 5 1\2 acre estate provides the only sound except for the occasional faint hum of a motorbike in the distance. A vegetable plot grows just behind the house providing the kitchen with fresh
Cosy comfort: The bedroom painted in red
homegrown produce. The cooking is done by Suzanne herself, offering typical Sri Lankan meals cooked over a wood fire. The menu also extends to a western breakfast and barbeque dinner but otherwise the cuisine is quite Sri Lankan – you can even have Sri Lankan sweet meats such as pani pol and halapa all home made.
Appropriately named, the house, formerly known as the Rambukwella walauwe with its 200-year history is all that a colonial bungalow would be. With its antique furniture and architecture, it still reflects the elegance and uniqueness of the bygone days of colonial Kandy, while staying modern and cheerful; a perfect combination for a holiday in a home away from home.
The Kandyan Manor is located at Rambukwella Walauwa,Yatiwawala, Katugastota, Kandy. For further details contact 077 745 5914