St. Anne's Feast, Talawila
Every July, huge crowds camp by the sea at St. Anne's Church in Talawila, on the Kalpitiya peninsula, for one of Sri Lanka's biggest Catholic feasts.
St. Anne's Church at Talawila stands on the Kalpitiya peninsula, a thin strip of land with the Puttalam lagoon on one side and the Indian Ocean on the other. It is one of the most loved Catholic shrines in Sri Lanka, and pilgrims have been coming here for more than 150 years.
St. Anne was the mother of the Virgin Mary, and her feast day is 26 July. At Talawila the celebration lasts about a week, from 26 July into the first days of August, with the main feast mass and a procession with the statue of St. Anne on the final Sunday. A smaller feast is also held in March.
What makes Talawila special is the way people come. Families travel from all over the island, Sinhala and Tamil, Catholic and of other faiths, and stay for days. They camp in the shrine grounds and under the trees near the beach, cook together, and spend the time between masses praying, shopping at the stalls and swimming. Many come to make a vow or give thanks for a prayer answered.
Expect very large crowds and heavy traffic on the Puttalam to Kalpitiya road during the feast week, with extra buses running. Bring water, a hat and something to sit on, and dress modestly for the church.
Talawila's beginnings are part legend. One telling has a Portuguese traveller resting under a tree here, dreaming of an image of St. Anne and waking to find it beside him; another speaks of a shipwrecked crew who marked a great banyan tree with a statue of the saint. The present church dates from the 1840s.
If you'd like to see the feast without the biggest crowds, come a day or two before the final Sunday, when the atmosphere is building but the grounds are less packed. Many visitors combine it with the beach at Thalawila and a stay in Kalpitiya, which is also known for dolphin watching from November to April.
At a glance
- When: Usually in July
- Duration: About a week, from 26 July into early August
- Venue: St. Anne's Church, Talawila, Kalpitiya peninsula
- Organizer: St. Anne's National Shrine, Talawila (Diocese of Chilaw)
- Entry: Free