Today and tomorrow we’ll be cruising the Bay of Bengal. Our last 2 days were in Sri Lanka, docked in the Port of Colombo. So far in our voyage, we’ve docked in some large ports but I don’t think we’ve seen any as large as this one. Due to the port’s geographic location, it is a strategic hub which connects South Asia’s Colombo Harbor to the East-West shipping route. Rated as one of the top ports in the world, Port of Colombo links the Far East with Europe, Africa and the eastern coasts of the American continents.
Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, has a current population is 633,000. Due to its large harbor and strategic position along the east-west sea trade routes, it was known to ancient traders as far back as 2,000 years ago.
a single container ship (each container rquires an 18 wheel truck)
 |
| overhead cranes for lift and load containers |
trucks waiting below for just one container
 |
| port continues stretches as far as one can see |
We did not have any excursions booked here and that was a good thing for me since I’m still in recovery mode. However, there were a number of shopping opportunities on the dock just off the ship. Vendors had permanent buildings set up with their wares spilling out onto the outside. There were the usual touristy type items – clothing, leather, knick knacks (buddhas, elephants, magnets) etc. The heat was so intense with high humidity that it was impossible to stay outside more than a few minutes without needing another shower.
local vendors just beginning to set up shop in front of orange-topped buildings
wooden masks for sale
In spite of doctor’s orders to stay on the ship and rest, we and another couple decided to catch a cab to a local mall. I was hoping to get a much needed pedicure. The mall was 6 stories high and it felt like we walked almost all of it. There were 3 nail shops in the mall but we only found one shop open and it was unfortunately fully booked. The others were closed due to a public religious (Buddhist) holiday. Ronnie has been looking for Tylenol in the last several countries we’ve visited but he always gets a blank stare from a salesperson when asking for it. Evidently Tylenol isn’t sold in this part of the world, nor are the majority of product brands we use in America. Having learned that from our time in Indonesia, we both brought what we refer to as our “stash” but occasionally something in our stash runs out and we have to search for it locally. We did find a pharmacy and he was able to purchase something that is supposedly its equivalent. I snapped a few photos as we walked around the mall.
.jpg)
all signs in 3 languages
sculpture in mall entrance (child holding mangosteen)
inside One Galle Face Mall
 |
| fast food - prawn pizza, fried (whole) crabs, etc |
.jpg) |
| every flavor of cashew imaginable |
.jpg) |
| fried crayfish? |
We were excited to find a Chili’s and a few other recognizable fast food restaurants, so we decided to eat off ship. We settled on Chili’s and of course we ordered Mexican food. When the waiter brought my chicken quesadillas to the table, he said these are the “ca-SID-deas.” Whatever, they tasted good although somewhat different from ones we might have at home.
While waiting on our friend to purchase some flowers, we stood across from a popular photo op stop.
.jpg)
young family stops for photo op
After lunch, we negotiated the 1-mile ride back to the port for $5 per couple with 2 tuk tuk drivers. However, soon enough we discovered that he was not allowed to enter the port. So he let us out at the gate and we still had about a 10 minute walk back to the ship. Thankfully there was a cloud cover so I made it back without a problem but I was ready to hit the shower (again) and rest the remainder of the afternoon.
 |
| view from inside tuk tuk |
.jpg)
Presidential Secretariat decked out for holiday
.jpg)
Lotus Road traffic circle
.jpg)
 |
| our driver |
beautiful view from our balcony as we pull out of port 
port lights reflected in water
 |
| fresh mahi mahi cooked on deck for dinner |
It’s unfortunate that we didn’t get to see and experience more of the lush, beautiful island of Sri Lanka. But the combination of several different ports/excursions back to back, plus the intense heat and an upper respiratory illness made a couple of sea days very welcome!
Bharberts; Tell Ronnie Paracetamol, Mapap or Panadol are the same thing as Tylenol in most of Asia. Paracetamol is the generic name and the others are "brand".
ReplyDeleteGood to know! He bought the Panadol - 144 tablets for $1.80 something. Hope you're seeing some improvement each day since your knee replacement. Ouch!!
DeleteBharberts: very nice TukTuk you found. I have heard about this big export from Navy friends. Those masks would look cool on a wall, but one wonders if they are god or demon masks, which none of us would want. At least you found a place where there was no heat. I used to read how Asian people lived the monsoons.After you experience their intense heat and humidity, it is understandable to love those great rain storms. I hope if you need other items there, you remember to Google for the Australian equivalent names. The drug companies market in the US under more restrictive names to make more money.
ReplyDeleteI do hope you have improved. Perhaps the dr needs to give you an inhaler...just a thought. ❤️ to our intrepid explorers
I've never seen so many tuk tuks as we saw in Madagascar! Our guide there told us that a tuk tuk cost $4K so most people rent them. I agree with you 100% about the masks! I try to buy a Christmas ornament (or something that could be used as one) in every country. I didn't find anything among the tourist trinkets in Sri Lanka that would work as an ornament (everything either had that mask or an elephant on it). :(
ReplyDeleteThe ship doctor didn't think I needed an inhaler and I think he was right. The cough is breaking up with the nasty cough syrup (expectorant) and Mucinex. Very productive now.
Delete