Colombo

Today, while negotiating Colombo's increasingly congested roads or witnessing the latest example of brash architecture, it is difficult to realize that just three decades ago the main vehicles plying the virtually empty roads were double-decker buses and Morris Minor taxis, and that the buildings were spacious. Colombo was a relaxed city where time stood still. But then that was how it had been for centuries, since its accidental creation by foreigners.

Colombo, it has been said, is an accident of alien design inflicted on the islanders. Its establishment and initial growth had little to do with the indigenous population, something unusual with capital cities. Instead, it was an array of foreign merchants and mariners, colonizers and proselytizers, administrators and military men, who really created Colombo and gave it an identity, first as a fort town and later as a garden city

The islanders at last had a chance to impose their own on the capital city after independence in 1948. More recently, Colombo has had to grapple with modernity and globalization, which has largely diluted its former charm. Regrettably, to many visitors nowadays it is a necessary evil that must be endured as a stopover, or in order to change airline reservations and extend visas. Nevertheless, colorful and chaotic Colombo has much to offer historically.

Arab mariners traders were the first to use the shelter of the bay here during storms. However, they preferred to moor their vessels a little farther north at the mouth of the kelani Ganga(river), where it flows into the Indian Ocean. This was because the river provided access to inland areas that could not be reached on foot due to the marshy terrain and thick jungle about Colombo. Indeed, even today the city is still surrounded by wetlands, and though home to over two million people, it is still very green.

A Chinese trader named Wang-Ta-Yuan visited Colombo early in the 14^th century and was one of the fist to refer to the place, calling it kao-lan-pu. The Moroccan adventurer lbn Batuta arrived several decades later and remarked: "Calenbou, one of the finest and largest cities of the island of Serendib. It is the residence of the Wazir Lord the Sea(Hakim-ai-Bahr), Jalasti"

In the early 16^th century the Portuguese happened upon Colombo and established an outpost. Twelve years later they returned and requested the King of Kotte to allow them to construct a small factory on the coast for baling cinnamon. Despite considerable apprehension, the king acceded. He had every reason to be concerned, for the Portuguses immediately erected a fortress and later built a long rampart cordoning of the area covered by today's Fort and Pettah

The Dutch wrested Colombo from the Portuguese after much bloodshed and a seven-month siege in 1655-6. They then set about reconstructing the war-damaged fort. It was such a massive undertaking that after twenty years the fortifications were still incomplete. Work was curtailed for financial out to be only one-third size its predecessor.

Even though no enemy forces breached the Dutch defences of Colombo, an elephant once crossed the Beira Lake and entered the fort through one of the gates, having torn off the arm of one sentry and dashing another to death. The elephant proceeded to terrorize the sea near Galle Face. Hemmed in by jungle on three sides, the fort was an intrusion not recognized by the wild animal population

After the British expelled the Dutch in 1796 Colombo was transformed. The fort was demolished, streets widened, parks created. The city became an important centre of the Indian subcontinent, as Robert Percival reveals in An Account of the Island of Ceylon many different languages are spoken, or which contains such a mixture of nations, manners, and religions."

During the 19^th century, Colombo enjoyed a growth that mirrored the expansion of the island's economy after the introduction of coffee then tea. This growth was accelerated once the new breakwater was inaugurated in the 1870s. Passenger arrivals increased considerably, resulting in a hotel boom. Colombo was a pleasant place for first class passengers who could afford to drift into the likes of the still- functioning Grand Oriental Hotel. Advertised as the "largest and best-equipped hotel in the East," the GOH boasted a gymnasium, a resident orchestra, and a twice-weekly "cinematograph performance" on the roof garden.

Of course, conflict has bedeviled Colombo in the last 20 years. We have witnessed unimaginable horrors that have done nothing to attract visitors to our very special city. With any luck, however, the days of bloodied streets and smoke-blackened skies are over Now, perhaps, Colombo can forge a new identity yet still be mindful of its past

If you are in Colombo and tired of shopping watching cricket or restaurant-crawling. There are a few places of historical interest worth visiting, such as the belfry of kayman's Gate and the cell of the last King of Kandy. In addition, the National Museum and adjoining Natural History Museum, Dutch Period Museum, Bandaranaike Museum and Municipal Museum, are all remarkable in their own way.

Eye-catching examples of surviving period or colonial architecture include President's House, General Post Office, Old Parliament Building (now the Presidential Secretariat), New Town Hall, Independence Memorial Hall and the Clock Tower.

Alternatively, if you wish to sample some places of worship, try the Buddhist viharas of Lsipathanaramaya and Gotami. Both of which have beautiful frescoes. Then there are Hindu kovils, such as the New kathiresan, Old Kathiresan, and the Sri Kailawasanathar Swamy Devasthanam, the oldest in Colombo. The mosques of Jami-ul-Alfar Jummah and Devatagaha are worthy of a look. Christianity is well-represented too, with the Garrison Church, Wolfendahl Kerk and St. lucia's Cathedral being of particular interest

A Guide to Shopping in Colombo

From the no hope Situation of a decade ago, Colombo has been transformed into one of the most popular shopping destinations in the region, with a variety of stores and merchandise that amazes even seasoned shoppers. Such a phenomenal rise is not entirely fortuitous, for this period has seen a parallel growth in the manufacture of garments for export. So go on, experience shopping in paradise.

Visitors to Sri Lanka are in for a delightful experience when they drop in at the many malls and department stores located in and around the city. Being a world center for the manufacture of garments, Sri Lanka is able to provide shoppers with the leading international brands at a fraction of the overseas price. Clothes, shoes, handbags and accessories – you name it and we have it on this tropical island!

Men go wild at the range of cool and casual, rich and elegant shirts, and the two and there piece suits cut to perfection. Polo and Ralph Lauren are just two of the brands found at any reputed department store. The ladies have a choice that is truly mind – boggling: the flimsiest lingerie, to trendy embroidered denim jeans, line and cotton tops, mini-skirts and embroidered evening wear.

Galle

If there is one place in Sri Lanka indelibly associated with 19^th century tourism, that place is Galle. Due to its strategic position on the world's sea routes, Galle became one of the great passenger ports of the era and the gateway to the Orient. At its zenith, up to 700 passengers a day arrived at Galle. But all good things pass, as they did with Galle when it eclipsed as a port by Colombo.

It shouldn't be surprising that the port of Galle has been pivotal in Sri Lanka's rich cosmopolitan heritage. The city's remarkable continuity as an entrepot , its distinctive colonial heritage, and its blaze of glory as a major port, during the 19^th century, make it one of Sri Lanka's most historically profound cities.

Dambulla

Cave Temples and Cyber Cafes

A visit to Dambulla used to entail a train journey from Colombo to Matale via Kandy and then a mail coach ride. The usual objective was to witness the famous elevated cave temple with its frescoes and sculpture galore,  not to mention the incredible view of the countryside. So it is today, except that tourists ride in by air-conditioned car or charabanc, and tomorrow perhaps by plane or chopper

Kandy

The Great City

"Kandy is with many visitors first favorite among the beautiful places Ceylon cam show. " This early 20^th-century guidebook assessment of the country's hill capital still holds good, although modernity has somewhat tarnished its charm. Fortunately it still has enough attractions of the cultural king, such as temples, museums and the world-renowned Esala Perahera, to make it a remarkable destination

Nuwara Eliya

Little England in the Mountains

An early 20^th century English writer commented on Nuwara Eliya: " When he looks out of his window in the early morning and sees the whole world glistening under hoar-frost and the garden brimming with geraniums, pansies, sweet peas and every English flower, be wonders if he is really in the tropics at all" there's no need to wonder. It is the tropics and it's for real

Bandarawela and the health triangle

There is the familiar and seemingly dangerous Bermuda triangle and Sri Lanka's not so familiar but positively benign Cultural Triangle. However, the country has another geographic triangle, the Health Triangle, and the hiss station of bandarawela has much to do with it. Within this triangle are a number of destinations waiting to be discovered.

Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage

Sri Lanka has an elephant attraction unique in the world – an orphanage where abandoned and orphaned elephants are looked after. Most eventually find homes as working elephants, while some stay on to swell the resident herd. In recent years Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage has become a major tourist attraction because it is possible to observe these magnificent creatures under almost ideal conditions.

The Sri Lanka Leopard

Early travelers to the island wrote of the woods being infested with 'tygers'-referring to the leopard and other wild cats. Leopards seldom attacked humans, but often killed villagers cattle. In turn, the villagers trapped and killed leopards for their skins. Today, these magnificent felines are of course protected and, although largely nocturnal, they can be viewed in the daytime in some national parks.