Oh... Another Year........

Another year was almost finish. All the people try to have a party. I also. But due to studies I am unable to attend the party. Anyway be careful with all of those things.

Year is gone. We can be happy. But we have to say sorry for the past year. Because of the some things we have done in the past year. But most of the people says that the year was gone too fast. I thinks the same. For me 2012 January was like yesterday.

Today I have to do some little things like What I did in the past year. New friends, the things i got success. But there is also some things that I did wrongly. If I can correct them.... But it is impossible. I try to do the right things in the new year as much as possible.

Anyway this is the last post for this year. And I wish this will be a year that do not met with any kind of bad things for you all who join with my experiences blog. I try to make sure that my studies and the tours around Sri Lanka will be get more success in this year.

And wish your all thoughts may gone with Humanity and to make a world with good persons with Humanity.

Speedly on 18 bends road.....

All people who traveled from mahiyanganaya – Kandy road will go through the 18 bends road. In the mid of the 19^th centuary, British government build this road as a supply road. But now it was constructed and created with two ways. As my thoughts, it is a luxury way comparing with the old one.

 

In the past we have to spend 4 hours but now its only one and half hours journey. when the constructions goes on, one bend was removed. So there are only 17 bends from the old road. But when we travel we can count as a 18 because they connect another bend outside from the old bends.

After the opening I was traveled several times to kandy through the 18 bends. But the odyssey and the Happiest journey goes by my bike. Hero Honda Glamour-FI takes only 10 minutes to up and 9 minutes to down for the all 18 bends. Here is the video when I was traveled by bike to up and down. And go to this link for the more Photos I have taken.

Tour Article Number Twenty Five - Buduruwagala

When we travel on the Wallawaya Thanamalvila road, we can turn from the 48 mile post and go nearly 4 kilometers then we can arrive to the Buduruwagala temple. This place was hidden a long time in the woods but now it is little bit open. In present days this is the statue that made on the existing rock. Main statue is nearly 46 feet high and there are 6 more statues. This rock is nearly 70 feet long.

This place was named as Buduruwagala because of this main statue what is made of stone. From there arts, we can say that this place was go to 8-9 centuries in the history. This statue shows demi relief manner. And from the main statue there are three bodhisattva statues for the each side. From the characteristics of the main statue, there is idea that this is a “Deepankara Buddha” statue.

To the right of the main statue, in the middle there is an “Awalokitheshwara” bodhisattva statue (25 feet high) with its left “Thara devi” statue (21 feet high) which shows “Thribhanga” style and with its right “Sudhana Kumara” statue (23 feet high) was created. According to “Mahayana Buddhism” that the “Thara devi” was “Awalokitheshwara” bodhisattva’s wife. So artist was shows the charm of the women that the statue he was created as “Tara devi”.

To the left of the main statue, in the middle there is a statue of the “Mithree” bodhisattva (25 ½ feet high) who became Buddha in the future. On its left “Wajrapaani” statue (22.4 feet high) and its left with “Manju Sri” statue was created. from the “Manju Sri” statue they token erudition and from the “Wajrapaani” statue, the sound of dharma and the protection. As result of the tight of the stone, mouth of the statue was rectangular shaped and the wrinkles of robe is also show the same thing because it was made from the chunam paste.

When we see these statues in the middle of the jungle our thoughts get peace for a little time. Result of the time the nature and the things were changed. So we are unable to recognize the things that the history try to say us. However these statues were still in placed in the original places having there all respects from the Buddhists.

Tour Article Number Twenty Four - Bogoda Bridge

Bogoda Bridge? What was that? We heard about that but do not know about that. Here about that bridge. This bridge is located in Badulla district. And this is a very beautiful place to visit but little bit difficult way to travel because of narrow roar. first go to Haliela then turn to the Etampitiya road few kilometers ahead you will find the Bogoda Rajamaha Viharaya. Bridge is also in Vihara premises. From the terrace to 100 steps down we can see the bridge and the cave temple.

This is a very special Bridge because of some reasons. One of the most important one is this is the unique bridge which has a roof. Before you come to cave temple you can see this roof from the steps. some of people thinks constructions of this bridge is goes to dambadeni period (1220-1270 ad) but some of them thinks it was kandyan period (1747-1780 ad) by Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe who is the king in that period. However this bridge is the one and only bridge which construct only from the wood. And it was 50 feet long and 6 feet with the width.

Another thing is this bridge has a roof with made by wood which is 8 feet high. And it has wooden engravings which is similar kandyan period engravings. Bridge was used to get a beautiful finish to the lebensraum. And here do not use any iron nails, only used wooden unions. Bridge was on two wooden logs. There is a banister to keep safe the passengers.

This bridge was joining the Maha Kumbura and Kekatiya Maluwa villages. And the bridge was still there vigorously. And there is epigraphs say that the cave near the temple was used to hide by the king Walagamba. And there is an idea that the residence places for the monks were constructed by the King Rajasinghe. 

Here is more Photos :)

A Blood Donation Campaign…..

I choose the name as a blood donation campaign; because this is one of the different blood donations I have ever seen in my life. That is organized by us, students of the south eastern university of Sri Lanka faculty of applied sciences. This is our third time. In here I saw a rare thing that was our Muslims also given blood. This is a thing I have personally appreciated. Because they are usually do not like to donate blood. I think they do not know what is it and what are the benefits they got from that. That is the reason they do not like to give blood or there will be other things. Whatever I hope this is only a beginning. Now I will explain a little about what is the blood donating.

Normally human body contains 6 l of blood and in the donation of blood we take only 350-450 ml. That will use to save lives. As a Buddhist this is a meritorious deed. And there are people who think when they donate blood there will be disease affected to the body. This is a wrong idea. If the equipments are clean, donator is well healthy there is no side effect. Do not worry about that. But when the blood was take out there is little difficult at that time. Because the decrement of the volume of the body liquid. And also fainting, protuberance in the place that the blood taken. So we have to be careful for three days from the blood donated day. Do not try to do any tiredness things to the body.

What are the benefits from the donating blood? This is the important part of the blood donating. Because everybody asks for benefits before they start any kind of work. When we donate blood, new blood was creating. That is the main thing. This blood is very energetic that old blood. For that process our body gets nearly 120 days. Another thing was there that the all persons cannot give blood. The person who donates blood should have at least 50kg weight and 18-55 ages can only give blood. If the person affected with any infectious deceases or sexual deceases they are unable to donate blood. If do not pass 3 months when you face deceases such as malaria, hepatitis, mumps, chicken pox, etc. normally we can give blood the period of 3 months. But I recommended it as 4 months.

What did they do to you blood? They use them do give to the people who met with Accidents, and the people with lack of blood. Do you know that in the world one person request blood per every 3 seconds? And in the hospitals one person from the admitted persons need blood. This blood cannot make so it was very valuable. For a year 405million of Americans die because of come short of blood. The doctor who partook our campaign is said that they save three lives from that blood which given by donator. So give blood and save life.

 

 

Anyway donating blood is a valuable thing to do. For our campaign we invited to Kalmunei, Ashroff memorial hospital and Ampara general hospital. I would like to thank all doctors and others who came to the campaign. Also like to thank to police officers Sammanthurei and Air force officers in Malwaththa camp who came to donate their blood. And thanks for the brothers and sisters who donated their blood. Thanks for the all people who helped to success this work.

Photos I was taken is uploaded to facebook because to share with my friends. Here is the link you can see them too.

Tour Article Number Twenty Three - Hingurana Sugar Factory

Hingurana is located 12km from Ampara in the Ampara Siyambalanduwa road. If you want to go to the factory it is in 350m from the Hingurana roundabout. This is closed for some time but now the machines are working again. Now this is started as private factory join with the Gal Oya plantations. I have opportunity to visit this factory from my friend whose father is working in here. When I go to this factory, the machines are stopped working. However they helped me to know the procedure of making sugar. This is the things that I understood and the thing in my memory. The photos were linked because it takes long time to load.

First of all this machine is the lifting method of the load of sugar canes. It can lift 10 tons at one time. There are two machines like this. The machines put the load in to these plates and the chains on the plate will move them to this channel. For one time it will put 3 tons for the channel. In first wheel was arranging the sugar canes and burst them a little. After that the next wheel was chopped the sugar cane. Then cut in to pieces of the size of near one inch. These all happens on the moving plate and then it goes to inside of the factory.

Inside the Factory first those goes to allocating the treacle made of sugarcane. In here the chopped cane will grind from these machines. One machine has three sub units which has small channels on it. When cane goes through it, molasses will allocate to the tanks which are positions in the down of the machine. After the waste, was coming through moving plate. All the units in the factory use the steam power, which produces by this boiler. Wood takes for the start the boiler and then uses the waste cane. Long time ago they use the fuel for the engines but now only uses the wood. Then the heat produced was use in this press to make steam pressure to 250 pounds per inch. Then distribute all over the factory. There is a level to see the water level inside the press. Bottom of the boiler has a place to remove charcoal.

Then we go to see the power house of the factory. It’s also works from the steam turbine. This turbine was rotating 6000 rounds per minutes. Whole machines were working by these 440 volts electricity which produces form the power house. But sometimes it takes electricity from the Celon electricity board. But when the factory stopped working then the electricity was give to the Celon electricity board. And also there was a fuse to save the machines from the variation of the electricity. That is taken from old ship and present from the foreign county to Sri Lanka in the D. S. Senanayaka time. This fuse was keeping the Electricity in balanced level.

Allocated molasses will pomp to this big tank then mix the carbide to the tank. Carbide uses for the remove the mud and other colluviums in the molasses. When mixing carbide, they check the pH value by this machine. In the past, they use to this process slaked lime and the sulfur. In the tank the weight limit comes to the 1 ton, and then automatically releases the valve and pump to another place. And there is a meter to count the number of tons for the day. Then the molasses will pump to the steam burners and then heat for high temperature and then give high pressure such as 200 pounds per inch. Inside these burners has number of tubes, and they flow the molasses up and down to get the temperature quickly. And also the tubes were bend like this because to stop the beating of the steam flux. And this big tank use to clean the hard water. It’s doing for save the tubes from the chemical layers which corroded inside the tubes.

Then again there is another tank to collect that molasses. It is always rotating in small speed. In the tank the mud and the colluviums go to deep and clean molasses comes up. Different levels got valves and by the checking pump the clean molasses to another unit in the factory. Impure molasses clean by special machine. This machine was taken for that process. it was a cylindrical one which rotates touching impure molasses. And inside it there is a vacuum system to suck the pure molasses. And the outside of the cylinder has plate with tiny holes. And also when rotating it will clean the outside of the cylinder and remove the colluvium and mud. Load tයem outside the factory.

Then the next unit supposes to do the molasses in to pebbles. And then clean as a sugar. It is doing by given special conditions. And put some chemicals. Those chemicals did not collide with sugar but helps to increase the size of the pebbles. When it makes the pebbles in correct size it will pump to another level and other will go through again in this process. These molasses liquid is always mixing by using rotating axes inside the tanks. Next step is to remove the molasses and dry out the sugar. For that the molasses liquid put in to high pressure and spray through the heated air. For that it used a rotating cylinder. Inside this cylinder have lots of metalplates to increase the surface area. End of this cylinder there is a hole to collect the sugar and sugar dust will collected separately. Then again the sugar dust will use to make liquid and then again in to sugar pebbles.

There is some mechanism to stop the lumpish of the sugar. And then collect to big tanks. From bottom of the tanks there is automatically release 50kg at one time and collect them to gunny bags. Then after all bags goes to stores. And there is a mechanism to cool the water for the factory. That is a pond with sprinklers. One channel goes to factory with cool water and another channel goes to pond with hot water to the pond. If the heat of the pond increases the hot water channel will change and another cool water channel will open for the pond.

There will be some missing steps and thing. If there is a reader who knows about this processes please let them as comments. And I would like to thank my friend Shan Lakshitha and his father Mr. Sumanasiri who works there. And thanks for the workers in the factory, who helps me to get these knowledge.