Bringing Buddhist Architecture to Tourism Industry in Sri Lanka
View(s):End of 1979 at the threshold of open economy introduction to Sri Lanka a Kenya based Architect John Twrritte Drake arrives in Colombo. He was asked to explore a lucrative location for an exclusive or members only club hotel owned by two Germans. Before he became a part of Robinson Club Hotels GMBH in Frankfurt, had a practice in Kenya where Club Mombasa a 350 bed resort was designed for them among the other large projects. At the outset of expanding the club by Germans their fifteenth or sixteenth destination was to be in Asia and two owners had an idea about Sri Lanka would be the place for German tourists. The earmarked countries were India, Sri Lanka or Maldives islands. A site was located at Canacona Beach near Colomba, Goa in India was abandoned due to too many restrictions and many individual interferences. Baros and Bandos Islands of Maldivian archipelago were also in the list and Kuda Bandos was not given for foreign tourism.
That island was only for locals to enjoy. So the pre-determined destination worked out for them. Architect Drake stayed in Colombo for two weeks at Cinnamon Gardens Hotel at Wijerama Mawatha exploring Sri Lankan Architecture. He visits almost all historical sites and travelled exploring all the beaches and mountain areas. Drake began to fall in love with everything in Sri Lanka and the climate was not an issue since he was brought up in Kenya, educated in Cape town and practiced in Mombasa. Tropical climate and Buddhist temple architecture hits his idea of making an exclusive club. The sites have to be one hour away from the BIA Katunayake (taking the pot holed road conditions during that time in the country) and preferred a beach front. Negombo stretch and Hikkaduwa was not taken because they thought ‘it is full” and club members will not get what they paid for. Pasikuda beach was too far and focused on south west coast of Sri Lanka.
Architect had been to Nallur Kovil, Point pedro, Batticaloa, Trincomale , Kalpiti, Talai Mannar, Katharagama, Hambantota, Dondra point, Negombo, Hikkaduwa, Bentota, Kahandamodara and Habaraduwa. The club management thought of local airports, Sea ports and inland road network. He visited Kandy, Matale, Sigiriya, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa in search of kind of Sri Lankan Architecture and found clay tiled court yard houses, timber colonnaded veranda houses and Buddhist Temple buildings. He had studied Embakke Shrine Hall, Gadaladeniya and Panavitiya way side inn etc in detail. Collected books on Sri Lanka written by English and had a good sense of what colonial architecture was. The club he did in Mombasa was totally based on African Architecture and used east African native building materials with local technology of building construction. Use of “Maji ya chumvi” [salt slate] which is freely available with Barosti Sticks and poles, unwoven coconut palm thatching with Coral blocks as walling, stick ceilings made some beautiful elements in architecture and design of the Club. whole set of circular and curved buildings started to look nice and camouflaged to the surrounded thick forest. So the architect for the club was doing the job right and club members put his design on the top of the list for space utilization and touch of locality and the excitement created in the hotel by Architecture.
The concept paper was given by the German Clients was a conclusion of a thesis and it was just a A4 sheet. It explained what German tourists expect during their holidays. John Drake captured the key words of it.
Silence, No television, No Radio, No Telephones, No tooting, Sun and Blue Sky, companions, good food.
Selected site was a peninsular at Bentota which has a wide beach on west and Bentota River on the east. The delta of the river changes in non-monsoon period and create a seasonal setting of a beach and once in a while it connects to the distant rocky island where a Buddhist monastery situated within the greenery and not seen from peninsular beach. Drake had considered the Sea, wide beach, beach erosion, river front, Buddhist monastery at nearby island, sea currents, monsoons, flood water levels and people in Sri Lanka in to his master plan and delivered the Club Hotel design. The amalgamated site had about sixteen acres of land with two holiday bungalows already in running condition with fresh water wells. Site had no vehicular access fulfilling client’s brief; but terrifying the developers. Architect argued and got a piece of land by the Kaluwamodara river just opposite the split site of club so that hotel has a foot on main land across the river.
The initial concept sketches were drawn and production of drawings happened in Colombo, Sri Lanka. John Drake got hold of bunch of the best engineers in Sri Lanka during that time for this design. The spaces were pure geometrical in plan form and used local materials as much as possible with local craftsmanship and some instances local technology. The temple roofs were brought in to scheme with colonnaded walk ways connecting residential units to each other. The cluster of building blocks resembled the ‘Kuti’s of monks and was a demobilization of a Walawwa plan with a central garden. Wide walkways were the meditation paths with herringbone designs on floor and had many cross roads or interchanges where a wayside inn was introduced with clay tile roof. All kinds of native plants were brought in as part of landscape which stands the continues salt spray and wind. River bank protection work was set out by driving ‘Hora’ timber logs and coconut trunks found on site. After experiencing Sri Lankan Architecture, Drake insist of using locally manufactured clay bricks, red clay half round roofing tiles, timber structures and single story buildings. The completed bungalows and public areas in the coconut palm groove created the series of clustered buildings with covered pathways through green courtyards with a serene setting of sunrise from river and sunset over the Indian ocean. The place was made; not evolved but there is room for it to grow and evolve. The ambiance of a Buddhist temple simply brought in by composing the solid structures in right places with large volumes of voids in a carefully crafted grid system. Architect had a time in finding the right engineer to the project cos’ all interviewed candidates wanted to use concrete as the principle material where architect thought concrete will kill the concept of scheme. Finally, engineer Arumugam Nadarasah [former deputy general manager of CECB] found and came forward to do some experiments in structures with Bamboo reinforced concrete and large span roofs in timber. Detailing of timber structures were accurately done on drawing board and samples of joints tested on ground. No steel nails or bolts used in timber structures due to continues sea breeze. The use of puddle clay and kaolin plasters to the aeration ponds of natural sewer treatment plants had immense input by veteran engineer Nadarasah to the MEP team.
At the same time Sri Lankan Engineers Mr. Parakrama Jayasinghe, Mr. Tunku Gunawardane and late A.P Jayasinghe was heavily involved with designs of MEP in this club. In that time this is the only local project to have an independent cost consultant. The QS was Barker and Barton [Seashells] where our own QS Joe Fernando was running the show. The making of Robinson Club Hotel at Bentota was a trend setter.
The arrival of guests to the club was a kind of a ritual. 12 hours in a charter flight from Frankfurt to BIA. Go through airport officials for one-hour minimum and meet the guide holding a RCB hord. Come in a saloon car or coach from Airport for two to three hours on Galle road passing Kalutara Bodhi, Beruwala township and arrive at the club gate by the Kaluwamodara river, get down at the embarkation pier which protrudes to the water where boat or a barge is waiting for them. Travel across the calm water sheet of Bentota river for ten minutes vanishes the travel sickness and tiredness. Finally arrive at the club’s reception portico on water. This acts as a walawwa entry where horse cart or car drives in but a boat or barge in this case.
Architecture of this Club Hotel was not spoken about in the country may be because it was not designed by a local or the club was not accessible to all during the peak of tourism. The political background in the country during the time too supported to this fine example of a club hotel.
The building heights, reservation lines, green barriers, noise control through landscape architecture, garbage disposing systems, sewer treatment methods at a beach site and finding potable water were the challenges met by John Drake and his engineering team during the construction of club. The unique element visible to Bentota River and Kaluwamodara and Aluthgama Bridges in this hotel is the Speciality Restaurent located in the middle of the river with a connecting bridge to the central kitchen of Club. This is the only hotel with a restaurant in the middle of a river in Sri Lanka. John drake had seen Buddist chapter houses on water at [Seema maalaka], Balapitiya Maadu river and Ambalangoda Madampa river in his first visit to Sri Lanka. He had also visited ‘Bogoda Bridge’ at Haliela, Badulla. He loves the ‘Biso Kotuwa’ or water control points in irrigation reservoirs. His visits to numerous temples including temples in South Sri Lanka namely Sunandaramaya Ambalangoda and Shailabimbaramaya at Galle etc also had contributed to the hotel design layout.
The Dining hall with large verandas to all sides protects the hall from elements and at the same time during non-rainy seasons verandas become very popular “dining verandas” for user to dine with a view of bentota river where so much of water sports take place. the hall has a three tier clay tile roof giving an impression of a large Daana Shalawa or large dining hall of a Buddhist temple.
Use of decorated timber valance tiles in a simplified form in the bungalows and main buildings with some reused timber columns brought the sense of locality to the user. while at the large cross road building is totally made out of Palmyrah tree trunks brought all the way from Jaffna. The open building of cross roads act as a info center and has a two sloped clay tiled hip roof with clay valance tiles with designs embossed. In some smaller interchanges within the walkways also used Palmyrah timber and ‘Bo leaf’ valence tiles which is seen from walkways. The Club employed veteran artist George Keyt from Sirimalwaththa, Kandy for many paintings in the club. This was during 1981 to 1983. George keyt did a large painting for reception hall. He also did a line drawing of Robinson Crozo and the parrot on this shoulder specially for the club. Architect had a very close connection with the artist. Some rooms had small paintings by Keyt and later found they were looted.
However, the manipulation of local material, local art and craftsmanship was employed to the maximum in this tourist destination. Architect’s knowledge in global architecture, climate, social aspects, tourism, native technologies and adoptive designs showcased the fine example of tropical Asian architecture through the ‘Robinson Club Hotel’ at Kaluwamodara, Benthota. This Architect and the Client never had many number of external consultants. They trusted the selected Architect. There was no such large sums of money set aside for interior, Landscape, signage etc which Germans could certainly afford. All designs were handled by the Lead Consultant, The Architect. At the tail end of design he mention that the help of an interior designer needed; client sent a fresh graduate from Germany in Interior Design to work under the architect to do all designs of FF&E for the hotel. She had identified the concept and did not import anything but brought in all local materials and products such as coir carpets, grass/ leafed carpets, cane products, Batiks, local fabrics and furniture made of local timber etc.
The architecture or at least the buildings and concepts of Robinson Club Hotels were not spoken in Sri Lanka even though they were fine examples of local craftsmanship, technology, local material and the design itself. in Germany they refer Baobab Club Hotel in Kenya and Robinson Club Hotel in Bentota Sri Lanka for fine examples of tropical tourism. John Drake was a visiting lecturer in Hospitality Architecture and Tourism in universities in Germany. He was a Lecturer in Architecture and Landscape in the University of Lesotho and Malawi he mentioned once. He was appointed by the HH Queen for those positions he mentioned once in a private chat.
As the project finishes, Robinson Club Hotels GMBH Frankfurt did not want to send the architect away and got him to establish himself in Sri Lanka through a FIAC project. They commissioned him with design work in Asia and Africa
Susil Lamahewa.
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