Sunday in Sri Lanka

I took a walking tour of Colombo, Sri Lanka.  Colombo is the capital of this country that, until recently, has been involved in civil war.  The tour was designed to give you a glimpse of the life of the average person living in Sri Lanka.  They are hardworking people.  The walk included time in the Pettah or open market.  The group also walked to the Grand Oriental Hotel and the Dutch Hospital (no longer a hospital but has restaurants and shops) which is part of the old Fort Colombo District.

These small vehicles, called a tuk tuk, are everywhere in Sri Lanka.  They work as the cabs, too.

All kinds of dried fish were available for purchase at the Pettah Market.

The produce was beautiful at the Pettah Market.

We were lucky to be at the market on a Sunday.  It's not as busy as a weekday.

The country is religiously diverse, but Buddhism is one of the most important religions of the inhabitants of Colombo.

We came across this as the market opened.  It's burning coconut which is to bring good luck (and money) to the vendor.

Much of the pasta, beans, rice, and lentils are imported and available for purchase in the open air market.

The streets of Colombo on a Sunday morning are busy with merchants.

YMBA = Young Men's Buddhist Association

We had a tea and coffee break at the Grand Oriental Hotel.

Here's the dining room of the Grand Oriental Hotel, and the civil war has been tough on the hotel.

The view of the Colombo Harbor from the Grand Oriental Hotel.  That's our ship docked in the port.

The city has a YMCA, too. 

A terrorist bomb during the civil war destroyed much of this block.  However, the clock tower/lighthouse had minimal damage.

A Buddhist temple, visible from our ship, is found in the harbor area.  That's an elevated stupa known as the Buddha Jayanthi Chaithya.

The city of Colombo as it appears from the harbor.

Our ship exited the harbor at sunset.  Here's what the setting sun looked like as we make our turn around to exit the port.

Here's a look at the lighthouse as we exited the Colombo, Sri Lanka, harbor.