City of lullabies 🌆

 COLOMBO🌆

♻️Sri Lanka's commercial capital is an interesting blend of the varying influences, it has seen for more than 600 years. Its importance as a trading port increased after the arrival of the Portuguese to the Island in the early 16th Century.♻️

📍Colombo continued to grow under the Dutch and British, and today shows the marked influence of all those cultures from the islamic mosques, the Catholic, Dutch Reformed and Anglican churches The Dutch Colonial style of architecture is very much in evidence, as are the special quarters for separate trades in the Colombo Fort and Pettah 🏙️🌇

Fort 🏙🛣️

📌️While the Fort gets its name from the former military ganison which was located here under the Dutch and British, it is still the location of Janadhipathi Mandiraya, the President's House On its fringe is the beautiful sundstone building which houses the Presidential Secretariat and the Government Secretariat, formally the Parliament, almost a replica of Whitehall in England

Clock tower and the lighthouse🕰️🏫🛕

📌️it is a very rare sight indeed a lighthouse in the the middle of the city centrel A landmark in the Colombo Fort is the lighthouse with clock tower, a legacy of the British colonisers for nearly 100 years it performed the dual task of being a beacon to ships in the indian Ocean whist keeping time Designed by Lady Ward, wife of Governor Sir Henry Ward, it was built in 1857 installed in 1915 after being stored a warehouse for 42 years due to lack of funds to install it in 1950 a second lighthouse was constructed by the sea.

Galle Face🏝️🌊⛱️

📌️Gale Face Green, the mile long promenade which borders the Fart on the South, is the largest open air stresch in the city affording a beautiful view of the sunset. Around it are the main city hotels, from the Galle Face Hotel which was established in 1864, the Inter-Continental which is the first modem five star facility, the Colombo Galadari and the Taj Samudra. Nearby are the Colombo Hilton, The Cinnamon Grand and the Holiday inn.

                                     Pettah🏙️🌁

📌️The Pettah, which was earlier on the outer fringe of the Fort, is still the busiest shopping bazaar in the city. Its many criss-crossing roads mark out sections which specialises in various trades from textiles and sarees, spices and condiments, goldsmiths and jewellers, wholesale dealers in rice, sugar, lentils and chilles

Bauddhaloka Buddha Image (Avukana)☸️🛐

📌️Facing the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall stands a beautifully executed statue of the Buddha in the standing posture. The elbow in the Abhaya Mudra with left hand holding the folds of the robe. The statue is 36 feet tall and is the largest Buddha statue in the city of Colombo. It is a replica of the Avukana Statue on the banks of the Kalawawe Anuradhapura.

Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara☸️☸🛐

📌️In the immediate suburbs of the city are two very important visitor attractions. One is the Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara, (a very important Buddhist temple in the North East of the city, and one of the three places in Sri Lanka where Lord Buddha visited, has very facinating wall and ceiling paintings by famous artist Solius Mendis. Its site dates to the very early days of the Sinhalese Buddhist civilization in Sri Lanka.

An open-air Art Gallery in the heart of Colombo👩‍🎨✍️

📌️Paintings or works of art are rarely organized for public viewing in open spaces. Such displays of art and artistic skills are often held inside galleries and halls for security reasons and for better display and management. However, in the heart of Colombo, at Green Path with the green foliage of the Vihara Maha Devi Park as a back-drop you may view an array of exhibits of local artists of exceptional talent. Visitors have an opportunity to view the paintings of students as well as their "Gurus". Most of the artists are from the University of Aesthetic Studies. All artists show their excellence in portraiture, figure drawing and scenes drawn from life to arrest the attention of the visitors. The display is on only on Saturdays & Sundays