Galle
Galle is a port city which has long been known to chroniclers of ancient civilizations, mariners and traders from the days of King Solomon. Legends speak of this port city as an important trading hub, an important stop for Ships and which attracted Persians, Arabs, Greeks and Romans from the west and Indians and Malays from Gujarat and Malaccan Sailors as early as the 6th century of the first millennium. The port city entered modern history after 1505 when the first Portuguese ship of Lorenzo de Almeida berthed in its inviting bay sheltered by a rocky peninsula.
In a seminal book “Ceylon Under the British” a scholar records the words “… If the vagaries of the winds brought the Portuguese to Sri Lanka, the lure of Cinnamon kept them there” and here they remained until they were evicted by the Dutch in 1640. The Dutch built a fortified city in Galle which still exists in its original design and grandeur, with 14 bastions enclosing an area of 52 hectares. The architecture of this town is an ingenious mixture of old European architecture and Sri Lankan building traditions, with coral being used with granite in structures of the ramparts. The layout of the streets and homes within this fort is beautiful synthesis of the east and west and leaves visitors with a vision of the times gone by. Today the fortified city of Galle it is a protected world heritage site and the largest remaining fort in Asia. The fort has regained its past grandeur with the imposing granite walls of the fort conceding some space to accommodate world class accommodation and quaint eateries along with many of the historic buildings and landmarks which have stood the test of time.
Attractions is Galle also include Unawatuna beach popular among local and international beach goers, Rummassala in Unawatuna famed for its link to the Ramayana epic, the city’s natural harbor, the National Maritime Museum, the St. Mary’s cathedral and the galle cricket stadium. Galle hosts the annual ‘Galle Literary Festival’ every January an event that attracts the cream of authors from all over the world.
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