Columbo, Sri Lanka

Colombo, Sri Lanka                                                                                  March 15, 2017

Larry and I enjoyed the three day journey from Malaysia through the Indian Ocean to the island at the southern tip of India, Sri Lanka.  Our first time traveling the Indian Ocean, we found it to be smooth sailing in its dark blue waters.

One evening while having dinner, we spotted lightening striking the water off the stern of the ship and magically a full moon appeared mystically from behind some, gorgeous smoky  looking  clouds….What a sight…..we had never spotted anything like it in our travels.

Up bright and early Wednesday morning to catch the sun rise, Larry and I found Colombo to be a huge industrial port. 

It had rained the night before leaving the top of the ship with  puddles of water to walk through, while I tried to capture the sunrise between the massive cranes that surrounded our ship. To the east of the ship we could see large sand masses being pushed around by big earth moving machines, evidence of land reclamation. In this part of the world we have seen land being added to the shoreline in Singapore and Hong Kong.  I find it to be an incredible mastery of engineering to be able to add land to the existing property and build sky scrapers on it.

We had decided to try to explore this city on our own since we were at a dock that we could walk off of the ship easily.  Trying to beat the heat, we left the ship at 8:00am way before the excursion busses had left the dock. We walked among numerous taxi cab drivers who hustled to gain our business by providing tours of the city for a hundred or more bucks. Passing their offer up was easy, because we had decided to try to get a tuk-tuk driver or walk for our daily morning exercise.

                                                   One of the hundreds of tuk-tuks

Sri Lanka was once the home to dozens of ancient kingdoms and then colonized by the Portuguese, Dutch, and British. Today it is a smorgasbord of religions and cultures all living together.

On our walk out of the port we met Amue, a thirty year old tuk- tuk driver who promised to give us a two tour of Colombo.

First he took us to an unbelievable red and white brick façade called the Red Mosque, 1909, where we quickly took off our shoes to enter.

We observed many Muslem  men scrubbing their feet clean in a fountain of water and making their way into their own  ‘male’ prayer room off to the side. Women were in another part of the building. They do not pray together.

                                       Modern Skyscrapers  popped up among the old buildings

Amue next took us to some of the oldest architecture in Colombo.

We took pictures outside of the Hindu temple….unable to enter because Larry’s knees were showing since he had on shorts and I didn’t bring a scarf to cover my head.  Oh well, by this time (10:00am) the temps outside were cooking pretty good and we were happy to just see the many figures outside of the Hindu temple.

                                                                               EEEEKK!
Probably the most unforgettable happening while here….a man came up to us with a little round basket. He took the top off and out popped a King Cobra snake….SCAREY  as all get out! But this was his way of making money, by showing off his Cobra. Larry quickly tipped him and we anxiously watched him put the lid back on top of his basket.  This occurred several times while touring the city.

We wondered barefooted through the Gangaramaya Buddhist Temple….. strong  incense greeted our noses as we observed  many  Buddha of all shapes and sizes, while  followers knelt to pray.

The walls were painted frescos dating over a hundred years old….it was a peaceful place with a guard to protect the millions of dollars of jewels and gold and the costly spiritual artifacts from around the world that were in this small cluttered museum.

                                               Just what you need....a hollowed out elephant's foot

Pictures of Queen Elizabeth’s visit adorned the museum walls as well as my favorite…antique Flonaise blue plates.

                                                   Blue Flonaise plates behind elephant teeth

A ten year old baby Asian Elephant…(has smaller ears and body and four back toes (not three)…greeted Larry as we left the temple…friends  told  us that the little elephant bowed down in front of the Buddha without being prompted.

We drove by the  President’s House….

As well as the White House. Amue told us that Obama was the first American president to visit Sri Lanka

We motored along the  Galle Face Green, a seaside promenade…

Sri Lanka is noted for being the world’s largest exporter of tea……as well a rubber, textiles, rice, sugarcane, spices, fruits, and….precious gem stones. Our final stop was the “Government” Gem Stone Outlet….no high pressured sell…it actually was refreshing to have a bit of cool air conditioning while we learned about the stones mined from here.
    
Sri Lankans were so proud of the fact that Princess Diana’s famous blue sapphire stone had been mined from  here stating that it was purchased at $23,000 US dollars back in the 80’s and that today it was worth over $220,000……now that is one heck of an investment!

Amue took us back to the port entrance where he directed us to walk to a shop with wi-fi. We walked about a mile among the crowded shops in the heat in the direction of the wifi. Once we found it, we realized that it was just internet using the owners computer which would not open to our email accounts….I guess due to the strange address.... so out we came back to the street  thinking we would not get to check our email today.

Another young man that Larry had met earlier, told us he would take us to free wifi. Guess where it was? A tuk- tuk ride back to the “Government” Gem Stone Outlet. What a hoot? 

                                                            Another ride among the tuk-tuks

While the new gentleman offered us  a new selection of stones, Larry checked out the mail from back home.  Our trip back to the ship was hot ,hot, hot with  crazy traffic.  Upon arriving back at the port  the tuk-tuk driver wanted 10,000 rupees (around $70.00US) for our trip. 1 US Dollar is equal to 147.00 Rupees.  Larry had a grand opportunity to sharpen his haggling skills as we made our way out of the tuk-tuk. I will say he was quite masterful in getting us out of a huge overcharged trip that we didn’t ask for in the first place.

                                        Manuel labor is still prevalent in Sri Lanka

What an adventure today riding  a tuk-tuk into Colombo!  Not sure that we have ever had an experience like it. We were so glad to have had the opportunity …tuk-tuks have been banned  in  Mumbai, India due to the traffic and their exhaust fumes… this may be our only opportunity to enjoy this unique form of transportation before it totally disappears.  

We enjoyed our day in Sri Lanka and understood why it is referred to as "the Pearl of the Indian Ocean".

Port Klang, Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia

Port Klang,  Malayasia      Saturday, March 11, 2017

Our ship pulled into the dock at 8:00am. What a beautiful port!  A white British style building accented with a red roof ….the native  birds were singing in the morning sunshine. What a delight to see the green lush land that lay around it. The sun was a red ball of fire.

This was such a sharp contrast to the ports of Vietnam.  We knew this day was going to be a grand adventure before we even got started.

Larry and I took a bus to Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia.  What a gorgeous city! Luckily we missed the everyday commuting traffic since we were visiting on a weekend.

So cool....motor bikes had their own travel lanes on the highways

                                            Communication tower stands out in the city scape

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Our first stop took us to the King’s Palace.

                                                                   What a grand entrance!

We weren’t allowed in but were thrilled to get pictures from the gate with the guards and their horses.  In 1957, Malaysia became independent of England. It mirrored it’s current  government somewhat after the mother land with a prime minister who officially runs the government and an appointed king who serves every five years.
      This is their 60^th year of independence so they have had 15 appointed  kings…that is a little different than the English gentry who are empowered by blood lines. 

The mansion is quite stately (painted yellow for royalty) with some beautifully landscaped gardens.

Found a great local artists.

Next we visited the National Monument in the Lake Gardens that paid tribute to the soldiers who lost their lives during WWII.

A gallant statue by the same sculptor of the famous Virginia Iwo Jima Statue was set majestically among some refreshing water fountains as the days temps soared into the high 90's.

   

We were told that it rains a little every day. No wonder the trees and gardens look so lush!

It was fun to see a local group of children visiting the monument.  Islam is the country’s main religion; although, all have the freedom to worship as they please. 

                                                                       What a cutie!

Next we visited the grounds of the National Mosque, a very modern contemporary expression of the Islamic faith with a single 240 foot minaret that towered over the multicolored umbrella like roof….so different from the rounded white traditional mosque roofs.

Here a male calls for prayer  five times a day to the community.

Across the street we were able to enjoy the old railway station. What an exquisite piece of old architecture!

This city understands the importance of saving the historical past as it blends the new towering skyscrapers into the present.

We enjoyed stopping at Independence Square. Evidence of British rule was observable in the architecture of the Royal Selandor Clubhouse standing on the field where National Day celebrations take place today.

Our final stop today was at the Petronas Twin Towers, tallest attached twin towers in the world. What a miraculous modern skyscraper….once the tallest building in the world.

Larry and I had visited Kuala Lumpur, called KL just like Los Angeles is called LA, almost ten years ago. A brand new KL  airport back then had just opened up and  was one of the most modern we had ever visited. We were amazed at it then and see Malaysia as a country in the works of becoming one of Southeast Asia’s prominent treasures.

                                                             KL brings out the wild side  in me..