Colombo is a city where there’s so much and yet so little to
do… So to help you navigate through what you should do while you’re in Colombo,
I’ve compiled a list of popular tourist attractions and reviewed them with my
honest opinion.
Dutch Museum
This somewhat lesser known attraction in the heart of Pettah
is what used to be a large two storied house built in the 17th century by
Thomas Van Rhee, The Dutch Governor of Sri Lanka from 1692- 1697. It is now a
museum that holds over 3000 artifacts from when the country was under the Dutch
rule. After you get over the fact that such a large building exists on a crowded
street in Pettah squashed between the tiny shops, you start to appreciate the
beauty of its architecture and the artifacts that are held within. What
impressed me the most was the old well that’s in the corner of the courtyard!
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| The trade route - right at the entrance |
Colombo National Museum
The architecture of the building is pretty impressive and
there’s a cool skeleton of a blue whale suspended from the ceiling, but other
than that, it’s not very exciting. Not really worth a visit in my opinion…
maybe just a drive by.
Zoo
The National Zoological Gardens of Sri Lanka, also known as
the Dehiwala Zoo is not really worth a visit or even a drive by!
Old Parliament Building,
Town Hall Building, Cargills Department Store, Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque
All of these are
interesting buildings to drive by!
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| The Cargills Building |
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| The Town Hall Building |
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| The Old Parliament Building |
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| Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque |
Gangaramaya Temple, Seema
Malaka Temple and the Beira lake
These three are all very close to each other and are great
places for photography. The two temples are very touristy though. So if what
you’re looking for is to experience what a real Buddhist temple is like, look
for a local area temple. My neighborhood temple, Balapokuna is lovely and
peaceful in the evenings. I’d recommend going on a paddle-swan-boat on the
Beira Lake to anyone though. It is a lot of fun!
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| Buddha Statues inside the Gangaramaya Temple |
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| The Seema Malaka Temple |
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| The Beira Lake |
Viharamahadevi Park
This large Park opposite the Town Hall Building and next to
the Museum is a scenic place to take a casual stroll or even for a work out in
the evenings.
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| One side of Viharamahadevi Park |
Galle Face Green,
Galle Buck Lighthouse and Sambodhi Chaithya
This is a must-do in my opinion, not during the day though
because of the heat. The best time to go is in the early evening to watch the
sunset and then stick around for all kinds of street food. Be warned though, it’s
not for the ‘weak-tummied’. Weekends and public holidays are better because
there’s a crowd of people flying kites and playing games on the green.
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| Galle Face Green |
Towards the North of Galle Face Green, close to the
Kingsbury Hotel is the Galle Buck Lighthouse. It’s a quiet spot to watch the
sunset from.
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| The Galle Buck Lighthouse |
Wander a little further down the road and you’ll see the
Sambodhi Chaithya which is a temple built above the road on two arches. Climb
11 levels and 300 steps and you come to the entrance of the charming temple and
get a great view of Colombo city.
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| The Sambodhi Chaithya |
St. lucia’s cathedral
One of the most beautiful cathedrals in Sri Lanka, St. Lucia’s
is definitely worth
a visit.
Wolvendaal church
A masterpiece of Dutch architecture, Wolvendaal Church
should be added to your list of places to visit in Colombo. With its thick
walls and high arched ceiling, this building from 1757 was built to last and is
full of history.
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| The organ inside Wolvendall Church |
Independence square
This too would have
fallen into the ‘drive by’ category a few years back. However now, the grounds
around Independence Square have been developed into a park where many healthy
people exercise in the evenings. There’s a museum under the building that’s
worth checking out as well.
Sri
Kailawasanthan Swami Devasthanam Kovil
This Hindu Kovil is an ideal place to soak in some culture
and marvel at the sculptures as well as the rituals.
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