Rodney & Sheryl's Travels: 3/24 - Colombo, Sri Lanka

Colombo, the largest city of Sri Lanka, is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo remains the commercial capital of Sri Lanka. Its large harbor and position along the East-West sea trade routes enticed the Greeks, Persians, Romans, Arabs, and Chinese traders who visited regularly over the centuries. Muslims of various ethnicities began to settle in Colombo around the 8th century AD, mostly because of this trade business. In the 15th century, the Portuguese established a foothold in the area and were granted authority over the coast line in exchange for guarding the coast against invaders. However, they soon expelled the Muslims from Colombo, building a fort there in 1517. The Dutch signed a treaty in 1638 with the King of Kandy, assuring Dutch assistance in the King's war against the Portuguese in exchange for a monopoly of the trade goods. However, in 1656 the Dutch refused to return control to the King, eventually assuming control of the area's valuable cinnamon lands. The British captured Colombo in 1796, beginning an era of British colonialism that ended in 1948 when Sri Lanka (then called Ceylon) gained independence from Britain. Modern-day Colombo is a rich mix of the old and the new with plenty to enjoy.¹

The berth we were originally scheduled to be in was occupied by an Iranian Naval ship and we were moved much farther from the heart of the city (and the Iranian Naval ship). It was much too far to walk to town in 90° humid weather, so we rented a taxi with another couple we met through AAA. The taxi driver took us all around the city, showing us the sights, making photo stops, and, of course, allowing us to collect our little bucket of sand from the beach. Probably not a place we will return to, but it was yet another great day!