Ulpotha Sri Lanka

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Media Reviews
"'The retreat is maintained as a traditional working village, providing a rare opportunity for guests to experience Sri Lankan life in its most natural form. There is a strong emphasis on farming highly nutritious traditional strains of rice and at harvesting time it is possible to witness the villagers ushering the buffalo in circles to tread the grains from the crops, with the sounds of traditional chanting heard late into the night. Such a unique oasis, veiled in a setting so far away from the stresses and strains of everyday life, is the perfect "
Tricia Willis, Travel Sri Lanka, Vol 3 No 1
January 1900 More »
Simillar Properties
Ulpotha, Embogama
Price From:  US $ 357.14 (Bedroom, FB Basis, Twin)
Location
Ulpotha, a Yoga-focused eco-retreat and one of Sri Lanka's greatest secrets, is hidden away in the near Embogama close to Anuradhapura. Ulpotha is one hour’s drive North from Kurunegalla and about two hours North West from Kandy. It is situated on sacred land with a deep-rooted history dating back thousands of years. According to ancient spiritual lore, traveling mendicants from the foothills of the Himalayas, while searching for a sacred site associated with Lord Kataragama (son of Shiva), identified this location and built a shrine where now the entrance to the village is located. This is also ancestral land belonging to regional chieftains who's sacred duty was to maintain this village shrine to Lord Kataragama as well as maintaining the rituals, traditions, and lifestyle of this indigenous culture. Thus, Ulpotha's foundations are laid on timeless grounds of nature, history, tradition and myth. The surrounding hills still continue to harbour cave-dwelling ascetics.
Introduction
Ulpotha meaning `water spring', named after the numerous underground springs throughout the land on which it is located, is not a hotel: it is an experience of Sri Lanka's traditional lifestyle of a `balanced existence' - a balance which is attained through one's relationship to family, community, nature, and the spiritual world, as well as one's outlook towards work. This is a lifestyle that is practiced with pleasure rather than as labour with an appreciation for the need for adequate rest inbetween - all of which ensures healthy living. Thus, Ulpotha is about experiencing a relaxed and contented lifestyle that is still practiced in many of Sri Lanka's rural villages - areas where so called `economic progress' hasn't completely overtaken this lifestyle of a balanced existence. Surrounded by low mountains, a lotus-ringed lake, and green paddy fields, Ulpotha is a place of total peace and tranquility where one lives among trees, sunflowers, marigolds and vegetable patches, in simply furnished wattle and daub houses with roofs thatched with woven coconut palm leaves. The surrounding land is rich with potent therapeutic medicinal herbs, which are used for specific Ayurveda treatments. Ulpotha is only open for 13 fortnightly periods between June and August and also from November to March. Between these periods Ulpotha is closed to allow the village time to revert to its natural state. There is a maximum of only 19 places for guests when Ulpotha is open. Guests are encouraged to visit Ulpotha for a whole fortnight with bookings running from Sunday to Sunday. Short stays are available on request subject to availability.
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Accommodation
Ulpotha has no large concrete buildings, electricity, phones, television or radio. Instead, visitors stay in wattle and daub huts within this village and eat traditional Sri Lankan food cooked in clay pots over a hearth. Rooms have oil lamps, spring water in a pot to drink, and mosquito nets covering the beds. There are also bedrooms, a modern kitchen and an office in the main `Walauwa', a restored manor house with its courtyard, verandah and bedroom walls drenched in vibrant hues.
Facilities

A central 'Ambalama' (an open-sided pavilion for relaxing and eating) provides the sprawling property with a central focus for both relaxation during the day and eating in the evenings. . Yoga classes are conducted in an open sided building with a leaf-thatched roof or in the cool shade of a Banyan tree. There are 13 fortnightly courses planned each year (see schedule below). In addition, Ulpotha is a particularly suitable place in which to undergo Ayurvedic treatment as the food and the environment will complement the therapies and serve to underscore the holistic approach of Ayurveda itself. Ulpotha's resident Ayurvedic doctor, Dr. Sri Lal, can draw up a personalized detoxification and rejuvenation treatment programme for you. Allow at least two days to acclimatise after arrival in Sri Lanka before start of Ayurvedic treatments.

Yoga schedule for Summer 2009:
     
Start Date End Date Programme
14th June 28th June Dynamic Vinyasa Yoga with Sam Cunningham
28th June 12th July Sivananda Yoga with Devaki
12th July 26th July Astanga Vinyasa Yoga with Alistair Francis & Nicole Griffin
26th July 9th Aug Dhamma Yoga with Mithila Ubayasekara
9th Aug 30th Aug Anusara Yoga with Rajeev Kahn
     
Yoga schedule for Winter 2009/2010:

   
Start Date End Date Programme
8th Nov 22nd Nov Hatha Yoga with Rachel Auburn
22nd Nov 6th Dec Hatha and Kundalini Yoga with Annoushka Hempel
6th Dec 20th Dec Vinyasa Flow Yoga with l Amanda Latchmore & Paola Ceccarelli
20th Dec 3rd Jan Vinyasa Flow Yoga with Daniela Schmid
3rd Jan 17th Jan Dynamic Hatha Yoga with Claire Farman
17th Jan 31st Jan

Dynamic Hatha Yoga & Pranayama Intensive with Stephen Thomas
31st Jan 14th Feb Iyengar Yoga with Lorraine McConnon
14th Feb 28th Feb Vinyasa Flow Yoga with Kathy Roberts
28th Feb 14th Mar Hatha Yoga with Nigel Gilderson
14th Mar 28th Mar Vinyasa Flow Yoga with Mika

Please note: the above schedules may be subject to change.

Excursions
Ulpotha is a traditional working village that focuses on the restoration of an ageless agricultural way of life; it is a community where travelers can experience the warm and generous hospitality that Sri Lankans are known for. You can swim in a lake strewn with water lilies, go on nature walks in the woods and the hills, cycle, boat, and dance to the rhythm of the village music - all special experiences of this lifestyle.

Rate Note: Ulpotha prefers to sell two-week holidays to fit their Yoga and Ayurveda programmes. One-week holidays can only sometimes be accommodated, depending on availability. These would run Sunday to Sunday. There is usually no availability for one-week holidays over Christmas and New Year. The Ayurveda Treatment Programmes are charged for separately and available for a minimum of one week at £200 per person. There are also ten days (£300); two weeks (£400); three weeks (£600); four weeks (£800 per person). Pre-booking is necessary as capacity is limited.
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