Colombo
 
  Colombo is Sri Lanka's commercial hub. The political capital was shifted to nearby Jayewardenepura in the eighties. Although most tourists prefer to avoid the congested, busy city, Colombo does offer some good bargains in shopping and entertainment.
 

Shoppers have a wide choice- quality garments at unbelievable prices, traditional crafts, local fabrics, books on Sri Lanka, jewellery in gold and silver set in local stones, antiques and leather goods. There are several shopping malls with ample parking and well known shops for books, clothes and fabric.

Colombo is a city of restaurants. Although Chinese outlets dominate, there are several quaint theme café's worth a visit. The Cricket Club is a must for any fan of the sport and Wadiya, a beach side thatch restaurant serving perhaps the city's finest array of sea food is worth a mention. Colombo offers Japanese, Thai, Korean, Swiss, German, Indian, French, Italian and Arabic fare, as well as ice creams in many local flavours (mango, coconut).



A visit to the restored Dutch period museum in Fort is an ideal evening walk. Watch the setting sun at Galle Face, a grassy esplanade by the sea in central Colombo or play a round of gold at the Royal Colombo Golf Course east of the city.

The Pettah is Colombo's link with rest of south Asia. A bustling teeming commercial centre- selling everything from jewellery to Indian sarees to fish nets and hardware. It has a colourful, bazaar atmosphere of pavement vendors and mobile salesmen cramming the narrow, alley-like crossroads that make up Pettah.

 
 
 
Places of worship of all four major religions- Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity are many. The Gangaramaya Buddhist temple is worth a visit if only to see the majestic tusker tethered there. The Captain's Gardens Hindu Temple is a breathtaking sight of intricate sculpture and many old Roman Catholic and Anglican shrines are found in Colombo.