Galle/ Dutch Fort.

I thought my last weekend in Sri Lanka would be a total washout, as it started to raining non-stop from Thursday.

 We planned to go to Galle,  in southwest Sri Lanka, about 71 miles from Colombo.

We left Colombo in the pouring rain early Friday morning and it rained all the way to our destination.

Then ta-da, as we arrived, it stopped raining and has been great ever since.😊.

Latsane, Joan, Sharlene, Damith 

My hosts Damith/Sharlene and I all stayed in nice little hotel in town called Blue Heaven. Later we had a grand time hanging out at Galle Fort with their friend Latsane.

This Fort, built by the Portuguese in 1588, is on the Indian Ocean.

In 1649 it was fortified by the Dutch and is today an important architectural heritage site controlled by UNESCO.

The entire town and surroundings are growing rapidly, partly due to the influx of tourists.

However 21 years ago, much of the town was flattened by the tsunami which devasted much of south east Asia.

Thousands of people were swept away and killed, 500 just in the transport center in town alone! 

Naturally the ruins were also damaged but you
wouldn't believe it looking at the surroundings today.

A replica of the original small town.

Most of the archeological site remains in pretty good condition, despite having been badly damaged in 2004.

Miniature, showing the original design of the city.

A huge Mosque near the ruins. As it was Friday, many Muslims were busy in the area.

The very angry Indian Ocean.

Like much of Sri Lanka, this city is home to religious adherents from all the major religions, but the dominance of Buddhism which is so obvious in other areas, was not visible.

A Buddhist temple on the hill quite a distance away. I could also see a huge, old Christian church in town, from the fort.

The roof of the solid ammunition storage building.

A Muslim on her way to the Mosque ahead.

A coconut tree grows out of the large granite rock heap offshore.

These ladies in beautiful saris are teachers at the International School. The saris are their uniform.

A small cafe has been set up in the midst of the ruins.

Tourism is now Sri Lanka's second most important industry, so both local people and visitors flock this area. 

This is a recognized UNESCO world heritage site and every time I visit a place like this, I wonder why we are joking around with our sunken city, Port Royal?

 Such a damn shame.😡

Pic of the very angry Indian Ocean below!

This lovely house on the Ocean was badly damaged by the tsunami, but they fixed it up nicely.
That's where we stayed overnight before heading back to Colombo.

Young people challenging the rough surf on their boards.

There is a statue of Buddha on the hill overlooking the town of Galle.

The Indian Ocean is so rough and sounds so fierce, it's kinda scary.

The sand looks nice though.

Among Damith's friends that we had drinks with on Friday night was Dr Ruwan who served as coroner in Jamaica for 3 years.

Then to my surprise, on returning to Colombo I discovered that my wonderful hosts Sharlene and Damith, had organized a goodbye dinner for me with some of their young friends.

L-r. Charaka, his wife Tara, Dr. Damith, and Ganga.

It's been an overwhelming three weeks as there is so much to see and do in that very big island. And the Sri Lankan people are so warm and generous.

It's really true that time flies when you having fun.

And boy, did I ever have fun😊.

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Update. The rains that started on Thursday night turned into quite a storm with high winds later in the night. It damaged the roof of 
Latsans parents home in Galle. 

He is a contractor though so had already repaired it by midday Saturday when we saw him again. 👏

That same storm however killed a family of seven in another area close by. Their home  collapsed on them.🥺

It's the beginning of the monsoon season in Sri Lanka and the weather seems to be intensifying now.

Istanbul-Asia

Istanbul, the beautiful exotic city which is over 3000 years old, has a population of more 20 million, of which 2/3rds live on the European side and a third on the Asian side.

Our tour group comprised of two Jamaicans, two Austrians, and a British Couple. It was a friendly group led by Turkish students, Emre who lives on the Asian side and Burrak who lives on the European side.

It was am interesting , wonderful and educational tour.

I didn't find an 'Asian' look as over time, as both sides appear to have integrated totally so look rather similar.

However, I personally prefer the Asian side, as it attracts far fewer tourists, so is less congested.

There are  three distinct sections, Muslim, Christians (mainly people of Armenian descent who were mostly followers of the Roman Catholic faith) and Jews. 

However we were informed that while this was how it was originally, its mostly older Jews and Catholics who remain now.

 The synagogue was recently vandalized due to the Israeli genocide in Gaza, so it is being repaired.

As Turks tend to be mostly Muslims, every square has several elegant mosques. 

This is a modern mosque built by the current government.

In the olden days,  Muslims knew when it was "prayer time" based on the position of the sun. This plaque shows how.

The Bosphorus Strait separates Istanbul's European from the Asian side.

Numerous ferries take residents and visitors across daily. It's about a 20 minute ride.

You get a great view of European and Asian Istanbul from the Strait.

A community garden. You can only reap if you sow!

Fresh sardines. Had only seen tinned ones before😊

Where you wash up before entering a mosque 

The European side behind us.

A Turkish submarine heading to the Black Sea

Six streets converge here

A street of lamps

A Christian church