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Plans to make Vesak a tourist attraction
By Nilika Kasturisinghe
The services of the hospitality industry are being utilised to place Vesak on the tourist calendar with the Sri Lanka Tourist Board tapping the ceremony for its potential as a tourist attraction in the years to come, and the private sector called upon to light up the streets during the festival.

"We want to highlight Sri Lanka as the place where we celebrate Vesak in all its glory," Tourist Board Chairman Paddy Vitharana told The Sunday Times. The board is obtaining the co-operation of the trade and working with the Hoteliers Association and tour operators, with a special website on Vesak 2003 also on the cards.

Mr. Vitharana said they hoped every hotel would be beautifully decorated with lanterns and other illuminations while a monk would be there to give messages on the significance of Vesak. Alms giving and a tour by hotel guests to the closest temple have also been proposed.

Sri Lanka's foreign missions have also been told to light up their buildings and celebrate Vesak in other appropriate ways. As part of the promotion, the Tourist Board will bring down journalists from all over the world to promote Vesak through the media. Special Vesak pilgrimages to hallowed sites in Sri Lanka would also be arranged with a special package being given to tour operators.

Brochures and posters for this Vesak pilgrimages are being printed while the national carrier SriLankan Airlines is being asked to screen special Vesak films on all its flights during the season. Tourism Minister Gamini Lokuge said he expected about 5000 tourists to visit Sri Lanka during the Vesak season.

Large numbers of tourists had already booked to come to Sri Lanka for the exhibition 'Sri Lanka: Gateway to South Asia' from May 17 to 22 and the Tourism Ministry is now trying to get most of them to come here before that so that they could join in the Vesak celebrations.

Another special feature for Vesak this year will be the visit of the Thai prime minister accompanied by a 300-strong delegation, including monks, to mark the 250th anniversary of the introduction of the Siam Nikaya and the Higher Ordination.
Four new postage stamps, a miniature sheet and a greeting card were issued yesterday to commemorate the Vesak Festival 2003.

The Philatelic Bureau said a ceremony to mark this event was held yesterday at the Kande Viharaya in Aluthgama. The stamps are in the denominations of Rs. 2.50, Rs. 3, Rs. 4.50 and Rs. 23, while the miniature sheet is Rs. 33 and the greeting card Rs. 15.

Three more new postage stamps depicting features of construction of Dagobas in ancient Sri Lanka will be issued tomorrow at the Archaeological Department post office at 10.30 a.m.

Buddha Sasana Ministry Secretary Nimal Weralupitiya said they were preparing Dhamma literature to be given to the people during Vesak. Vesak this year is being planned both with a local theme, "He who lives by the Dhamma is protected by the Dhamma", and an international theme "Vesak in Sri Lanka - a Unique Experience".

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