Colombo City Exploration

Sight:Gangarama Temple

Founded in the late 19th century and built during Sri Lanka’s Buddhist revival the Gangaramaya, Colombo’s most interesting Buddhist temple complex comprises an unusual mix of minimalist and modern Indian architectural styles. At the heart of the complex, centred on a small dagoba and a rambling bodhi tree a wooden pavilion opposite the main shrine is a library, where piles of antique ola-leaf manuscripts and Buddha statues await. By the entrance, a grand colonial building houses the Gangaramaya’s impressive museum – a collection of  weird and wonderful objects that have been donated to the temple over the years, including a remarkable collection of vintage cars and a stuffed elephant.

Sight:Colombo National Museum

Founded by Governor of Ceylon Sir William Henry Gregory, the Colombo National Museum, a Neo-Classical building , houses a vast collection of interesting artefacts from prehistoric times to the colonial era and is an excellent introduction to the island’s temples and ancient cities – the most engaging are galleries 2 to 5, which feature exhibits from the Anuradhapura period through to the Kandyan era and a highlight is Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe’s, the last king of Kandy, elaborate gold-and-red throne.

Sight: Independence Square

Rich with traditional Sri Lankan symbolism, including stone lions inspired by the 13th-century Yapahuwa kingdom and intricate wood carvings from the 14th-century Gampola kingdom the serene public space popular for jogging, strolling, and relaxation, amidst lush lawns, walking paths, and cycling tracks was built between 1949 and 1953, on the exact location where Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, opened Sri Lanka’s first parliament, symbolising the end of nearly five centuries of colonial rule and the beginning of self-governance.

Sight: BMICH

A gift from the Chinese government in memory of Sri Lanka’s assassinated prime minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike the striking octagonal Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall with its snow-white marble columns and spacious verandas that blend tropical aesthetics with monumental scale and stands as a symbol Sri Lanka-China friendship and a landmark of post-independence architecture.

Sight: Manning Market

Immediately inland from Fort, the bustling Mannung Market also known as Pettah Market, is Colombo’s historic wholesale fruit and vegetable market housed in a colonial-era warehouse with cobblestone floors and brickwork has been a key hub for fresh produce suppliers and buyers for decades.

Sight: Fort

Occupied for 450 years by the Portuguese, Dutch and British in turn the historic and commercial heart of Sri Lanka features a rich mix of colonial architectural gems like the Old Parliament Building, Dutch Hospital precinct, Fort Lighthouse, and the iconic Colombo Fort Clock Tower and a clutch of more modern buildings dominated by the World Trade Center.

Sight: Old Parliament Building

Overlooking the northern end of Galle Face Green, with its impressive neoclassical columns, steep steps, intricate stone carvings, arms of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and statues of independent Sri Lanka’s first four prime ministers standing in front the Old Parliament Building a significant historical and architectural landmark that served as the seat of Sri Lanka’s legislature for over 50 years is a must visit for those interested in Sri Lanka’s colonial past, political history, and architectural heritage of Sri Lanka.

Sight: Galle Face Green

First used by the Dutch to strategically position cannons against the Portuguese, its name likely derives from the Dutch “Gal Gate,” the gateway facing south towards Galle, or from the Sinhalese term “Gal Bokka,” meaning rocky shore, the Galle Face Green is Colombo’s largest open public space, the city’s most popular gathering spot to enjoy leisurely walks, kite flying, picnics, and stunning sunsets over the Indian Ocean.