December 12, 2009: Columbo, Sri Lanka is not the capital of Sri Lanka, but it is the largest city, port, and commercial center of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka was formerly known as Ceylon under British rule, but when they gained their independence in the early 1970’s the name Sri Lanka was chosen – it means ‘prosperous land’. It is a small island nation where the major industries are agriculture, textiles and tourism. Ceylon tea has been famous around the world for centuries and is still highly regarded today. One of the nice excursions available in Sri Lanka is to visit a tea plantation. Textile manufacture and clothing manufacture are also big business and many clothing exports go to the U.S.  The primary religion of the population of Sri Lanka is Buddhism, although Hindu temples, Christian churches and Islamic mosques can also be found. It is believed that Buddha visited the island long ago. In the past few years there has been a lot of unrest in the country due to the violent acts of the Tamil Tiger rebels. However in May of this year a treaty was agreed between them and the Sri Lanka government, so the country is at relative peace again.

We chose a half day tour of Colombo in which the highlights of the city were shown. It began with a drive through the busy commercial center and thriving Saturday markets for fresh fruits and vegetables. Much of the markets and types of commerce and transportation appeared similar to what we saw in India. One major difference that we did notice was that more of the women appeared in western dress, rather than traditional dress, than in India, and head coverings were seldom seen. We then visited the National Museum of Sri Lanka which was founded by the British in 1868. It is housed in a beautiful British Colonial style building (without air conditioning) and has interesting collections of art and artifacts from Sri Lanka’s past. Most of the treasures are enclosed in glass cases and range from prehistoric agriculture and implements to beautiful jewelry, all types of firearms, knives and sabres, pottery, religious statues, ornate puppets, and relics from the heyday of British rule of over a century ago. Our next stop was at the venerable Galle Face Hotel, opened in 1864, that has hosted many famous celebrities, politicians and royalty from around the world for over a century. It claims to be the first hotel in Asia, and is still an admirable hotel today as we saw preparations for lavish weddings and holiday parties taking place. It is situated on a beautiful spot on the beach and a small museum is located in the hotel as well to help you imagine Colombo as it was during the British reign. And our last venue on the tour was a visit to a Buddhist Temple, the Gangarama Temple dates from the 15th century. We had to take our shoes and hats off before entering, and shoulders must be covered, but we were allowed to take photographs throughout this sprawling complex. We learned that authentic Buddha statues had only three posed in Sri Lanka, and that Buddha was always on a Lotus flower. The temple complex was very colorful and composed of several buildings and outside areas, and included a live elephant and charcoal burners for lighting incense. This port call gave us a glimpse of the diverse life and culture in this tropical island nation.

December 13, 2009: Another day at sea to rejuvenate and enjoy the pleasures of cruising.