World Cruise 2017 Day 69 Colombo, Sri Lanka

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Today the ship is in Colombo, Sri Lanka.  The ship arrived at 11 PM on the previous night so that several people could leave the ship at 2 AM for an overnight trip to India.  At 9:20 I left on a tour called "Contrasts of Colombo".  We drove buy several buildings of interest and our first stop was at Independence Memorial Hall.  Our next stop was at the Colombo Museum.  Our last stop was at the Bangarama Temple a Buddhist temple with an unusually elaborate collection of kitsch artifacts which is different from the atmosphere of Buddhist temples.  The traffic in Colombo is really bad.  Within the town there are no freeways and the streets are loaded with tuk tuks which are small 3 wheel vehicles that are used at taxi etc.  At about 2 PM we arrived back at the ship.  I looked up the information from the 2013 cruise and found out that I had taken the same tour today as I did in 2013.  The Fly Richts a group of 3 black singers from England gave the show after dinner.

Colombo is the commercial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo metropolitan area has a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993^[ in the city proper. It is the financial centre of the island and a popular tourist destination. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, the legislative capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital since Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is within the urban area of, and a satellite city of, Colombo. It is also the administrative capital of Western Province, Sri Lanka and the district capital of Colombo District. Colombo is a busy and vibrant place with a mixture of modern life and colonial buildings and ruins. It was the legislative capital of Sri Lanka until 1982.

Due to its large harbour and its strategic position along the East-West sea trade routes, Colombo was known to ancient traders 2,000 years ago. It was made the capital of the island when Sri Lanka was ceded to the British Empire in 1815, and its status as capital was retained when the nation became independent in 1948. In 1978, when administrative functions were moved to Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, Colombo was designated as the commercial capital of Sri Lanka.

Like many cities, Colombo's urban area extends well beyond the boundaries of a single local authority, encompassing other municipal and urban councils such as Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte Municipal Council, Dehiwala Mount Lavinia Municipal Council, Kolonnawa Urban Council, Kaduwela Municipal Council and Kotikawatte Mulleriyawa Pradeshiya Sabha. The main city is home to a majority of Sri Lanka's corporate offices, restaurants and entertainment venues. Famous landmarks in Colombo include Galle Face Green, Viharamahadevi Park, Beira Lake, Colombo Racecourse, Planetarium, University of Colombo, Mount Lavinia beach, Nelum Pokuna Theatre, Colombo Lotus Tower (under construction) as well as the National Museum.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka near the ship.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.  This is the Parliament House.

This picture was taken at the Independence Memorial.

This picture was taken at the Independence Memorial.

This picture was taken from the bus in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.  This is the Bandaranayke Memorial Interational Conference Hall.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.  This is the sport complex.

This picture was taken at a stop at the Colombo Museum. 

This picture was taken at a stop at the Colombo Museum. 

This picture was taken at a stop at the Colombo Museum.  This is Goddess Durga from the 9-10 century. 

This picture was taken at a stop at the Colombo Museum.  This is the Museum.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.  It shows the traffic in Colombo.

This picture was taken at the Gangarama Buddhist Temple.

This picture was taken at the Gangarama Buddhist Temple.

This picture was taken at the Gangarama Buddhist Temple.

This picture was taken at the Gangarama Buddhist Temple.

This picture was taken where we stopped for shopping.

This picture was taken where we stopped for shopping. 

This is a picture of a Tuk Tuk that are all over Colombo.  Most are used as taxis.

This is the shopping building where we stopped.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This picture was taken from the bus of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

This picture was taken from the ship.

This picture was taken from the ship.  This is a TV and Radio tower under construction.

This picture was taken from the ship.  This is a new building under construction as a world trade center.

This picture was taken from the ship.