Before there was Sri Lanka, as what we all know the island-country as now, there was "Ceylon"...and much earlier than that there was "Serendib". The varieties of references to this beautiful island were attributed to them being referred by different people who had encountered the existence of this island long time ago whereby it was referred as Serendib by the Arab/Persian/Urdu speakers while years after that it was called Ceylon by the English explorer. What ever names have been used to refer to this wonderful island and in whatever dialect it originates, it still refer to the same place which is as diversely cultural, beautiful and at the same time mystical as it references.
This was a trip i made way back in February, but still fresh in my mind. The 4 days that i spent there seems to be inadequate as there are so many things to explore in Sri Lanka, considering that it is quite a big island and the attractions are scattered throughout the island. I managed to visit the capital city, Colombo and the highland attraction Kandy.
Noted that most people are still skeptical of Sri Lanka, and this is not unjustified at all, as the country had just recovered from ethnic war between the Tamil and Sinhalese. Further, most people has the perception that the country is plagued by poverty where slums overcrowded the cities and beggars roam the streets,as what is happening in India. The fact is that there is no better time to visit the country than now as it is as safe as any other country in the world free from war or ethnic clashes and the people now are focusing on unity to rebuild the country. Surely you will not find all the flashes and luxuries as per Paris or New York in Colombo but Colombo has been regarded as the cleanest city in South Asia and the people of Sri Lanka as the friendliest. I hardly saw any beggars or homeless people in Colombo making strolling around the city a hassle free and safe experience.
We departed Kuala Lumpur with AirAsia morning flight for a 3 hours plus flight to Colombo and arrived well around 7.30 am local time.
Some scenes as we entered the Sri Lankan airspace...it looks mystical and serene.........
The airport itself is small yet modern and clean, a close resemblance to the old Subang Airport.....
We made our way to our hotel Ranveli Beach Resort which is located at Mount Lavinia, around 1 hour from the airport. Ive reviewed the same here earlier : Ranveli Beach Resort
Our arrival to the city was in conjunction with its National Day and thus it was a public holiday whereby many shops were closed. Take note as well that Sri Lanka is known as the country with the most public holidays in the world, as what we were told by the locals.
Sri Lankan flags were raised due to National Day.......
There's no highway here and mostly 4 lanes road which are small but of good quality
Shops were closed...
Sri Lanka has a large population of Muslims albeit majority of its citizens are Buddhist...
Once we have checked into our hotels and refresh ourselves a bit, we started our first wonder around the city of Colombo. For our first day we did not arrange for any specific tour with any tour guide but it was a free and easy walk around any interesting places of Colombo. Anyway, we have inquired earlier with the hotel owner who suggested a tour guide cum driver to take us to Kandy the next day. To venture around Colombo is quite easy as the tri-wheeler motor tazi better known as tuk-tuk are in abundance here and most are metered.
Early morning the next day our driver was already waiting for us at the lobby to take us around Colombo. Take note that here they are really particular whether you need an airconditioned or non airconditioned vehicle thus make sure you confirm your preference. Airconditioned vehicle will be charged slightly higher.
The first attraction of Colombo that we were taken to was Galle Face. This is an open space field overlooking Indian Ocean whereby the locals spend their free time with families and friends. This place is also significant as along its stretch of road you will find important buildings such as the parliament house, the World Trade Centre, Bank of Ceylon building and few high end hotels. At the end of the road you will find the first light-house built here whereby it acted as a clock-tower as well.
you'll be surprised how clean this area is noted that this is a public place frequented by many people.......
you can see the twin towers of the World Trade Centre and next to it the Bank of Ceylon building...
the Parliament House.....
Gems shop, Sri Lanka is very famous for its precious gemstones....
the first lighthouse, but no entry is allowed thus we had to make do of taking pictures from outside the gate....
We hopped on to our ride again and wandered around the quite city of Colombo as many shops were still closed for the holiday....
In a way this city reminded me of Penang as you could see many colonnial-themed buildings around the city...
Port Authority building...
Later we were brought to an interesting temple whereby many antiques were displayed, in addition to other Buddhist religious items, the thing is i didnt even ask for its name or for the significance of having all those antiques such as the car to be displayed here...in anyway it was an interesting place to be visited.
A visit to Colombo will not be complete without a visit to the Independence Memorial Hall. This place is situated in the middle of Colombo city and the hall was nicely erected on elevated base. I reckon this will be a perfect venue for the Independence Day celebration.
Another interesting place not to be missed in Colombo is its National Museum. It houses artifacts and relicts of the history of Sri Lanka from the previous ancient empires who had ruled the land to the colonnial times which shaped up the modern Sri Lanka. One day in this museum is not enough as there are so many things to see as this country is rich in history and culture embedded deep in its multi racial influence, and they are all being displayed here in this museum. Entrance fee is charged to visitor.
this is how they ensured precision in the old days..really creative...
Significant Malays influence in Sri Lankan history..
weapons of the old times..including the keris, traditional Malay dagger...
our visit to the museum was a memorable one and very insightful as it helped us to understand the culture and history of Sri Lanka.
a few walking distance from the museum we came across this very beautiful and unique building only later to know that this is an art and performance theater called the Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theater. The design of the theater reminds me that it may resemble a lotus in full bloom.
we later made our way to the most popular shopping mall in Colombo, Majestic City to have our lunch and to conclude our city tour of Colombo. This mall is not comparable to other malls in Malaysia or other cities such as Bangkok or even Jakarta as it is very basic and minimalistic and not much things are offered for sale here. Believe Colombo is not the place for those who love to shop in modern airconditioned shopping malls. Anyway there are still small shops around the city offering quality textiles and other merchandise and the known place for textile hunter is located at Colombo 7.
Another famous retail outlet/chain outlet which is highly recommended is Odel, selling mostly local produced products such as clothings/souveniers etc. Their outlets are located around major city of Sri Lanka and you can find an outlet at the Colombo airport as well.
will continue my story of Sri Lanka in another part and this time i will write about the beautiful highland city of Kandy. Kay2012
