Tuesday, Day 73 - Mar. 20 - 8AM to 6PM, Colombo, Sri Lanka

Colombo, capital of the ancient Kingdom of Kandy, has been visited for over 2,000 years by Roman, Chinese, Arab and European traders. This is an exotic city full of colorful colonial buildings including the Presidential Secretariat, the Grand Oriental Hotel, and the Lighthouse Clock Tower. There is a wonderful bazaar district, Pettah. The narrow, cobbled streets are lined with shops and street stalls offering the most unimaginable range of goods. Other noteworthy sights include Viharamahadevi Park, the city's largest and oldest green expanse; and the palatial mansions of Cinnamon Gardens. This is another new port for us as well as a new country. We are combining a half day free ship’s tour with some time in the city on our own.

The ship docks on time, just before 8AM, and we meet in the theater at 8:15AM after a room service breakfast. Our tour “The Treasure Hunt - A Shopping Opportunity” is called right on time at 8:15AM and the two bus loads, about 25 people each, leave the port on time at 8:30AM. Amazing, we are right on schedule for this four hour tour; a first!.

This is essentially a shopping tour!  We go to three of Colombo's stores, each with its own specialties, including handicrafts, jewelry and fashions and are allowed a solid 45 minutes at each stop. Sounds like fun for at least one member of the team! The really nice thing about the tour is we have an in depth bus tour of the famous parts of the city narrated by a good guide. The only down side is all pictures are from inside a moving bus!

We drive through:
Tohe Pettah, a historical area of Colombo and landmark, formerly an exclusive residential area with stately homes, the Pettah is now the primary bazaar district. The old Pettah Market building is closed while it is being restored. Jami Sul-Alfar Mosque is near here. It is a beautiful red and white striped brick building built in 1901.

The Fort, an area named because of a 19th century British fortress that was here. The Fort is also known for the Old Parliament, built in the Neo-Baroque style during the British reign. Plus there are many other Victorian buildings like the Queen’s house and former home of Sri Lanka’s President.

Slave Island, during Portuguese and Dutch reign, slaves mainly from Africa were held her. Now it is a suburb where large lovely Beira Lake is situated.

Colombo 07, home to the lovely Viharamadevi Park, the largest in Colombo. Also the National Museum, Town Hall and Independence Memorial Hall, a popular outing for school children, are in this area.

The first shopping stop provides an opportunity to purchase exquisite, gem-studded jewelry in one of Colombo's finest stores. Sri Lanka is known for its gem stones and claims the world's highest concentration of gems, including brilliant sapphires, star rubies, moonstones and garnets. The stones are known for their clarity, beauty and healing properties. The store reminds us of our favorite jewelry store in Bangkok with the armed guards and security gates. They have lots of really heavy ornate pieces that, while maybe neat to look at, are not something most people would wear. However they do have a huge collection of loose stones that attract Carolyn. She is looking for small stones to make into studs. After much searching neither she nor the salesman can find two stones that are a good color match. But she does find something a little different that our daughter may like.

The next stop is a state run store known for its locally made handicrafts. The variety of items found here is varied, many of them are handcrafted using traditional techniques such as mats, terra cotta pottery, fine silverware, aromatic spices, and beautiful sarongs made with vibrant batik fabrics, plus Ceylon tea, a famed, highly coveted product harkening back to the time when Britain ruled Sri Lanka and called it Ceylon. There is another jewelry store here, a branch of a well known one. Carolyn has luck here with a pair of small, matching, blue sapphires,

Finally, we check out designer clothing at the Odel department store. Many of the fashions sold here are made locally for famed designers so prices are a fraction of what one may pay elsewhere. The merchandise ranges from handbags and footwear to swim wear and sportswear. Odel also sells accessories, cosmetics, sunglasses and fine items for the home.  It is really a nice store with a food court where all the guys congregate while the wives shop. Carolyn finds a couple of clothing items and calls it a successful outing. Dick calls it expensive for a free tour!

We start back to the ship on schedule about noon. From Odel’s we drive by the luxurious British Colonial Galle Face Hotel, in the fort area, another landmark from the British colonial period. Our Guide stops the bus in front of the hotel and lets us out per our request. We are going to have lunch at the Hotel and then make our own way back to the ship.

Located right on the Indian Ocean, Galle Face is a masterpiece of Victorian architecture. We enjoy a late lunch $25US on the veranda right on the ocean with a great sea breeze and pounding surf. Carolyn is a collector of British Colonial Hotels so she is in hog heaven! Before we head back to the ship we are given a tour of the Hotel’s museum. The staff member guiding us opens the door of a 1940 car that  Prince Phillip bought for £12 when he was on the Island in1941.  He lets Dick sit in it even though it has a DO NOT TOUCH sign on it. What fun! We spend a couple of hours at the hotel just relaxing and enjoying the ambiance. We arrange for a hotel car to take us back to the port gate for $6US where we meet the port shuttle bus to take us the rest of the way to the ship.

It is about 3:30PM and we check out the stalls in front of the ship for a few little trinkets. It is surely 5PM somewhere so we stop at the bar for a cooling Mojito before going back to the room to clean up.

What a fabulous day...everything went like clock work, the tour and guide were excellent and the hotel lived up to it reputation.

We watch the sun set as we sail out of the harbor then go for an early and light dinner. Bed feels wonderful!