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Top Attractions in Southern

Galle

Galle is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, 119 km from Colombo. Galle is the administrative capital of Southern Province, Sri Lanka and is the district capital of Galle District. Galle is the fifth largest city in Sri Lanka after the capital Colombo, Kandy, Jaffna and Negombo. Galle was known as Gimhathiththa before the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century, when it was the main port on the island. Galle reached the height of its development in the 18th century, during the Dutch colonial period. Galle is the best example of a fortified city built by the Portuguese in South and Southeast Asia, showing the interaction between Portuguese architectural styles and native traditions. The city was extensively fortified by the Dutch during the 17th century from 1649 onwards. The Galle fort is a world heritage site and is the largest remaining fortress in Asia built by European occupiers. Other prominent landmarks in Galle include the city's natural harbor, the National Maritime Museum, St. Mary's Cathedral founded by Jesuit priests, one of the main Shiva temples on the island, and Amangalla the historic luxury hotel. On 26 December 2004 the city was devastated by the massive Tsunami caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake that occurred a thousand miles away, off the coast of Indonesia. Thousands were killed in the city alone. Galle is home to a cricket ground, the Galle International Stadium which is considered to be one of the most picturesque cricket grounds in the world. The ground which was severely damaged by the tsunami, was rebuilt and test matches resumed there on December 18, 2007. Important natural geographical features in Galle include Rumassala in Unawatuna, a large mound-like hill, which forms the eastern protective barrier to the Galle harbour. Local tradition associates this hill with some events of Ramayana, one of the great Hindu epics. The major river in the area is the Gin River , which begins from Gongala Kanda and passes villages such as Neluwa, Nagoda, Baddegama, Thelikada and Wakwella, reaches the sea at Ginthota. The river is bridged at Wakwella by the Wakwella Bridge.

Matara Bodhiya

Matara Bodhiya is a Sacred Fig tree in Matara, Sri Lanka. Its origin can be traced back to a tragic story centred around King Kumara Dharmasena or Kumaradhatusena son of King Kasyapa of Sigiriya and his closet friend, Kalidasa, a famous dramatist and poet. According to the tale the king whilst in the amorous company of a courtesan, spied a bee entangled in the petals of a lotus flower, inspired he wrote two poetic lines. He then offered a reward to anybody who could complete the other two stanzas to his poem. The cunning courtesan seized the opportunity took the verse to Kalidasa, who completed the poem. The courtesan then murdered Kalidasa in order to keep the reward for herself, concealing the body. The king however instantly recognised his friends handwriting bringing the whole murderous ruse to light. When Kalidasas dead body was taken to the funeral pyre for cremation, the grieving king unable to control his grief over the death of his beloved friend, threw himself into the burning flames and immolated himself. Upon witnessed this tragedy, five official queens also leapt into the flames to their deaths. Local legend has it that seven Bo trees were planted over the seven tombs. These seven Bo trees are known locally as the "Hath Bodhis" and are said to be still surviving at six different places around Matara. Matara Bodhiya is one of those trees. It is respected and protected by the local buddhists. In 1783 when the Dutch ruled Matara, a Dutch General is alleged to have cut down those seven Bo trees and had used their timber for the construction of local buildings, with only one having survived.

Yala National Park

Yala National Park is the most visited and second largest national park in Sri Lanka. The park consists of five blocks, two of which are now open to the public, and also adjoining parks. The blocks have individual names such as, Ruhuna National Park and Kumana National Park or Yala East for the adjoining area. It is situated in the southeast region of the country, and lies in Southern Province and Uva Province. The park covers 979 square kilometres and is located about 300 kilometres from Colombo. Yala was designated as a wildlife sanctuary in 1900, and, along with Wilpattu was one of the first two national parks in Sri Lanka, having been designated in 1938. The park is best known for its variety of wild animals. It is important for the conservation of Sri Lankan elephants, Sri Lankan leopards and aquatic birds. There are six national parks and three wildlife sanctuaries in the vicinity of Yala. Among the largest is Lunugamvehera National Park. The park is situated in the dry semi-arid climatic region and rain is received mainly during the northeast monsoon. Yala hosts a variety of ecosystems ranging from moist monsoon forests to freshwater and marine wetlands. It is one of the 70 Important Bird Areas in Sri Lanka. Yala harbours 215 bird species including six endemic species of Sri Lanka. The number of mammals that has been recorded from the park is 44, and it has one of the highest leopard densities in the world. The area around Yala has hosted several ancient civilisations. Two important pilgrim sites, Sithulpahuwa and Magul Vihara, are situated within the park. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami caused severe damage on the Yala National Park and 250 people died in its vicinity. The number of visitors has been on the rise since 2009 after the security situation in the park improved.

Ussangoda National Park

Ussangoda National Park is the newest and the 21st national park in Sri Lanka. The objectives of establishing the new national park are providing long term protection for the areas biological, archaeological and geographical values. The park borders the Kalametiya Wildlife Sanctuary in the east. In Hindu mythology, Ussangoda is believed to be the place where King Ravana lands his peacock chariot. Ussangoda is an important breeding ground for sea turtles and covers both land and sea areas. The red earth forms the soil of the area and the stunted vegetation is a feature resulted by heavy sea breeze. There are several archaeological sites of the origins in the pre-historic times also. The explanation for red soil is a high concentration of Ferric oxide in the area. Ussangoda is one of the four serpentine sites in Sri Lanka. The area is proposed to be designated as a Geopark originally. However due to the areas biodiversity and other important features such as archaeological and geographical values instead Ussangoda had been declared a national park.

National Museum of Galle

The National Museum of Galle is one of the national museums of Sri Lanka. It is located in the oldest remaining Dutch building in the Galle fort, Galle, a single storey colonnaded Dutch building built in 1656 as the commissariat store for the Dutch garrison at the fort. It subsequently served as a billiards room for the adjoining New Oriental Hotel . The building was renovated by the Department of National Museums and opened on 31 March 1986. The museum houses a limited collection of exhibits from the Portuguese, Dutch and British periods. It has three main galleries, the first contains collections relating to the areas cottage industries, primarily turtle shell jewellery manufacturing, Beeralu lace weaving and traditional wooden mask carving. The second contains a collection of Dutch period furniture and weaponry. The final gallery, the Sri Lanka China Friendship Gallery, was opened on 10 September 2013. It is dedicated to the historical and archeological evidence of trade relations between China and Sri Lanka, with displays on the Chinese Buddhist monk Faxian and the 14th Century Fleet Admiral Zheng He .

Galle Lighthouse

Galle Lighthouse is an onshore Lighthouse in Galle, Sri Lanka and is operated and maintained by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. This is Sri Lankas oldest light station dating back to 1848, but the original 24.5 metres high lighthouse built by the British was located about 100 metres from the current site, however it was destroyed by fire in 1934. The existing 26.5 metres high light house was erected here in 1939. The original light was furnished with a glass prism lens floating in a bath of mercury and was powered by a weight driven machine. The light station is within the walls of the ancient Galle Fort, a UNESCO world heritage site and well known tourist attraction. The lighthouse is strategically located at the southern end of the promontory, built approximately 6 metres above the road level on the ramparts, at what is known as the Point Utrecht Bastion, giving it full view of any ships entering Galle Harbour.
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