Sightseeing in Colombo

Colombo is an easy city to travel around. Some people appreciate its colonial heritage and dash of urban buzz in a rural country, while others quickly tire of the diesel fumes. Fort district, Sri Lanka's business and commercial areas is in the north of the city. You can find many shopping malls, bookshops, airline offices here. Fort is also the site of the Central Bank, which the Tamil Tigers blew up in January 1996. There are considerable sites including the clock tower, a former lighthouse, the president's residence (known by traditionalists as Queen's House), and colonial buildings, which lend the district an air of the bygone Empire. In the southern part of Fort is Galle Face Green, a seafront expanse of green graced by cricket games, kite flyers and trysting lovers while in the east is the Pettah bazaar district. Visitors will find there are many different kinds of goods which include fruit, vegetables, meat, gems, gold, silver, brass and tin junk for sale. Beyond this lies Colombo's smart neighbourhood, Cinammon Gardens, boasting elegant mansions, tree-lined streets and the lovely Viharamahadevi Park. The closest beach resort to the city is Mount Lavinia, about 10km from the city. Most who holiday in Colombo do so for a short time on their way to or from one of the beautiful Sri Lankan beach resorts, because the capital city with its frenetic traffic and general chaos is a little too much for most to handle. Colombo is, however, worth a look, offering colour and some interesting attractions, like the national museum, historic buildings, beautiful parks, the Pettah bazaar and some lovely temples. People who travel to Colombo also enjoy the Galle seafront and delicious local cuisine.

 

 

Fort

Fort, is not really a fort anymore as there are no actual fortifications left, lies between Colombo Harbour to the north and Beira Lake to the south, is the heart of Colombo. The Portuguese built and extended their fortress here during more than a century of conquest and resistance. It was taken over by the Dutch, and finally demolished by the British after they completed their conquest of the country in the mid 19th century. Today, the area is the city's financial and commercial heart and houses Colombo's main international hotels, as well as Sri Lanka's seat of government. The fort area is a mixture of buildings from many eras of the cities past. The most notable of residences of the fort is the President's House, official residence of the President of Sri Lanka, next to the Gordon Gardens which was once open to the public is now part of the President's House.

 

Cinnamon Gardens

The Cinnamon Gardens District, is a suburb of Colombo, approximately a block inland from Galle Road, shows not a trace of the spice plantations from which it gets its name, but is now the city's university and diplomatic quarter and its wealthiest residential area. With its boulevards lined with jacaranda and frangipani trees, it is in sharp contrast to the grime, commerce and visible poverty of the Pettah area to the north. Cinnamon Gardens is a multi-religious and multi-ethnic area. The major ethnic communities in Cinnamon Gardens are Sinhalese and Tamils. The white-domed Town Hall, said to have been modelled on the US White House, is a major landmark, overlooking the semi-circular expanse of Viharamahadevi Park.

 

Viharamahadevi Park

Viharamahadevi Park, located at Cinnamon Gardens, is a lovely patch of greenery in the middle of Colombo. It is on the opposite site of the road from the Colombo Town Hall. Like many roads and places in Colombo, the Viharamahadevi Park is a rename of a park created by the British. Originally named Victoria Park after Queen Victoria, it was renamed in 1958 in honour of a different queen, a Sri Lankan one rather than a British. This is quite similar to what happens in former British colonies. The park’s features include a huge Buddha statue and a series of water fountains. It also includes a mini zoo and a children's play area. The Viharamahadevi Park is the only large scale public park in Colombo and is maintained by the Municipal Council of Colombo.

 

Dehiwala Zoo

The Zoo is one of the most visited tourist destinations in Sri Lanka. It houses a wide number of bird and animal species. It is located on Galle Road around 9.6 km away from the center of Colombo city . Some of the animal species that can be found in this zoo are bears, tigers, lions, giraffes, rhinos and gorillas. John Hargenberg is the founder member of this zoo. Colombo Government took the control of this zoo in the year 1936. The animals of Dehiwala Zoo are spread out in a number of houses. Some among them are: The Reptile House - The Reptile House of Colombo Dehiwala Zoo has a collection of crocodiles, tortoises, snakes and other reptiles. The Mini Medura - The Mini Medura has a display of more than 500 varieties of fish. The Nocturnal House - This house contains the nocturnal birds and animals like owls, bats, rodents, and lemurs. Every month the Dehiwala Zoo in Colombo is attended by thousands of visitors. The visiting hours of this Colombo zoo extends from 8 am to 6 pm.

 

Galle Face Green

Galle Face Green, immediately south of the Fort, is a promenade which fills up with vendors, children, teenagers, merrymakers, picnickers on weekend evenings and is a popular meeting place for local people. A narrow arm of Beira Lake separates this district from Slave Island, actually a peninsula where the Dutch imprisoned slaves from their Asian colonies. There are two large hotels that border the strip, the Ceylon Continental Hotel and at the other by the quaint Galle Face Hotel, one of Sri Lanka's oldest and most popular hotels, with a variety of old world charm including old furniture, hand carved doors, balconies and high ceilings. This is the largest open space in Colombo.

 

National Museum

The National Museum has about a dozen rooms with a pretty good display of the history of Sri Lanka starting from prehistoric times, and a sculpture gallery. The history rooms are set up consistently, with artefacts and information on politics, literature, architecture, and a couple of other topics, not extensive but a good overview. The Colombo museum as it was called at the beginning was established on 1 January 1877. It is the largest museum in Sri Lanka. Its is maintained by the Department of National Museum of the central government. The collections that the Museum possessed accumulated over the years and by the time it was commemorating its 125th anniversary, the Colombo National Museum had over a hundred thousand antiquities and natural history specimens.

 

Pettah Dutch Museum

A relic of the colonial era, the Dutch House Museum, is open to the public on Prince Street. The mansion house dates from the 17th century and was the residence of Count August Carl Van Ranzow. This museum covers the history of the Dutch rule in Colombo. Its rather chaotic collection includes weapons, coins, pottery, portraits and furniture from the period of Dutch rule. The restoration of this building commenced in 1977 and was completed in 1981. This museum was opened to the public in 1982. This building embodies the unique architectural features of a colonial Dutch town house. The museum while displaying the Dutch legacy with the artefacts, portrays facets of contemporary life and culture.

 

Temples, Mosques, Kovils and Churches

Few places in Sri Lanka can boast the diversity and cosmopolitan nature of Colombo, both domestically and internationally. All of the nation's major religions are here seen grouped together. The Buddhist temples and stupas are easy to spot. None are particularly notable when compared to the ancient ruins found elsewhere in Sri Lanka, but the grander structures such as Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara a short distance east of the city are still worth seeing, particularly as an appetite sharpener for the main attractions elsewhere on the island. A Kovil is the Sri Lankan name for a Hindu temple. These brightly coloured and heavily ornate places of worship are dedicated to certain of the Hindu gods, including Vishnu, Shiva and Ganesh. The best examples in the city are the Kathiseran Kovil on Galle Road and the Sri Bala Selva Vinayagar Moorthy Kovil at Captain's Gardens off DR Wijewardene Mawatha, which is reputed to be the oldest Hindu temple in the city. There are several mosques scattered around the city of which the most notable is the Grand Mosque in the Pettah (New Moor St). The most famous church in the city is the Wolvendaal Church - the oldest Dutch church still extant (Wolfendahl St). North-east of the city in Kotahena you can find Colombo's Catholic cathedral, St Lucia's.

 

Gangaramaya Temple

Gangaramaya Buddhist Temple Colombo is located in 61 Sri Jinaratana Road of the capital city of Sri Lanka. Throughout the year a huge number of devotees from around the globe come to the largest temple of Colombo. This temple has several statues of Buddha. The Gangaramaya Buddhist Temple in Colombo not only is a place of worship, but is also a recognized learning center. A residential hall, a museum and education rooms are found in the temple premises. This temple also has a wide collection of souvenirs of Lord Buddha. Colombo Gangaramaya Buddhist Temple temple has made several efforts to console the victims of the devastating tsunamis that struck Sri Lanka in 2004. In the Relic Chamber several golden statues are preserved. They were brought from China, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan and Thailand. There are also a number of Jataka paintings. While making a trip to Sri Lanka, tourists must never miss a visit to the Gangaramaya Buddhist Temple Colombo.