Barberyn Island Lighthouse

Barberyn Island Lighthouse Barberyn Island Lighthouse Barberyn Island Lighthouse

The Barberyn Lighthouse in Beruwala is located on Barberyn Island; approximately half a mile offshore from the little town of Beruwala. This tiny 8 acre tropical island has hosted the lighthouse for over a century. Today, Barberyn Lighthouse is one of only four international lighthouses in Sri Lanka.

History

Barberyn Lighthouse was built by the British Colonials in 1889, to cope with the dangerous waters and underwater reefs in Beruwala that could rip out the bottoms of ships. The lighthouse was managed by the British Imperial Lighthouse Service.

After the country gained independence in 1948, the management was taken over by the Sri Lankan government. In 1969 the old dioptric apparatus produced by Chance Brothers was replace with a Pharos Marine PRB-21 sealed beam optic and drive pedestal rotating beacon. This made it one of the most modern lighthouses of the time. In 2000, technology caught up with the lighthouse and, a Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) was installed and the Barberyn lighthouse was linked via a network with all the major lighthouses in the country.

In 2004, the Boxing Day Tsunami hit the island; but the lighthouse was not affected, escaping damage miraculously. Today Barberyn takes its stand as an international lighthouse that provides safe passage to thousands of sea vessels every year.

Things to See

Visitors are not allowed to enter the lighthouse, due to a fairly recent debacle where some people caused a lot of trouble after entering. However, one of the five lighthouse keepers will be happy to have a chat and explain how the lighthouse is operated.

There are a few ruins from the British era; some of which have large open windows with picture postcard-like views. When you wander the island you will also find an old abandoned well that supplied water for the inhabitants.

Amongst the structures still in use, is an old clay roofed hut. The hut was a bar for lighthouse keepers during the British era. Though no more top quality alcohol remains nowadays, the hut is still used as a place to socialize and have fun.

Barberyn is an island that is reminiscent of a tropical paradise, with its pretty 100 foot tall lighthouse, swaying palm trees, thick tropical foliage, and bright blue sea. There’s even a few ruins to give it an exciting aura of mystery. Hence, it’s a great place to picnic, have a nice swim and spend a relaxing day at. Since not many people take the effort to talk to the fishermen and negotiate a reasonable price to ferry them over; there are not many visitors disturbing the peace and quite of the island. If proper permission is obtained, you may even be able to camp out and spend a night or two.

Barberyn Island Lighthouse 

Sobre el distrito de Kalutara

Kalutara se encuentra aproximadamente a 42 km al sur de Colombo. En el pasado, fue un importante centro comercial de especias y estuvo bajo el control de los portugueses, holandeses y británicos en diferentes momentos. La ciudad es conocida por sus cestas y alfombras de bambú de alta calidad, así como por sus deliciosos mangostanes. El puente de Kalutara, que tiene una longitud de 38 metros y se construyó en la desembocadura del río Kalu Ganga, sirve como un enlace importante entre las fronteras occidental y sur de Sri Lanka. En el extremo sur del puente se encuentra el Kalutara Vihara, un templo budista construido en la década de 1960, que tiene la distinción de ser la única estupa en el mundo que es hueca por dentro.

Sobre la provincia occidental

La provincia occidental es la provincia más densamente poblada de Sri Lanka. Alberga la capital legislativa, Sri Jayawardenapura, así como Colombo, el centro administrativo y comercial del país. La provincia se divide en tres distritos principales: Colombo (642 km²), Gampaha (1,386.6 km²) y Kalutara (1,606 km²). Como el centro económico de Sri Lanka, la provincia occidental alberga todas las principales empresas locales e internacionales, así como importantes minoristas de marcas de diseño y comercios de alta gama, por lo que estará listo para disfrutar de una excelente experiencia de compras.

Con la mayor población de todas las provincias, la provincia occidental también cuenta con numerosas instituciones educativas prestigiosas, como la Universidad de Colombo, la Universidad de Sri Jayawardenepura, la Universidad de Kelaniya, la Open University of Sri Lanka, la Buddhist and Pali University of Sri Lanka, la General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University y la Universidad de Moratuwa. La provincia occidental tiene también la mayor cantidad de escuelas en el país, incluidas las escuelas nacionales, provinciales, privadas e internacionales.

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