Farewell Sri Lanka

 The Galle area in the South has a rich history. A trading port for the Arabs from ancient times, it was accidentally discovered by Portuguese in the 16th century when they were blown off course during a hurricane. They established a fortress to defend the area. This was captured by the Dutch in the 17th century and has since been known as the Dutch Fort, as they extended and fortified an even greater area. We have been here for 3 nights so had time to explore. Our arrival however coincided with the Buddhist Poya Day on Friday and the Full Moon Festival (Sinhala and Tamil based). It meant many of the shops and restaurants were closed and no alcohol served. The Araliya Resort we are in has a big mix of Russians, Muslims and we Aussies are a minority novelty.

Greeting dancers on arrival at resort. View from our window, at the Dutch Fort.

Full moon, cricket ground Galle, the Infinity Pool, level 12 at resort, surf beach.

Departed for Colombo this morning for our final 2 days. We visited a Mask Factory and Turtle Hatchery en route. Also passed the area devastated by the 2004 Tsunami and saw the Memorial dedicated to the many victims. Staying at Hilton Hotel. As it is the public holiday there was very little traffic or people about the city. Walked to One Galle Face, a huge shopping mall. Ventured to the Pettah Markets, again with most of the stores closed, but we did manage to purchase a few items and fabrics.

Turtle Hatchery, Lotus Tower in Colombo.


 

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