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Colombo has many bars and clubs featuring very reasonable bands playing western rock, pop and jazz, as well as DJ’s playing the latest house, hip-hop and R&B tunes. Naturally, peak activity is at weekends, but every night of the week there is usually some attraction.
Restaurant and Cafes
Most visitors are delighted at the enormous variety of delicious food available. There are speciality restaurants and star class hotels which cater to regional and continental food.
You can usually choose freshly prepared seafood delicacies along the coast and traditional Sri Lankan and Indian dishes as well as Continental, Chinese and sometimes even Thai and Japanese options. Rice and curry are the staple main course,
while hoppers and string hoppers are Sri Lankan specialties. The desserts often made from rice and coconut can be excessively sweet. The local palm treacle ladled over fresh buffalo milk curd is delicious. A wide variety of delicious tropical fruit grows throughout the year, pineapple, papaya and banana being particularly good.
Dining out in Colombo is world-class. Fresh seafood is abundantly available, whether its in refined dining settings like Lagoon, or relaxed and informal at the thatched-roof, no-frills Wadiya, which has played host to royalty and sports stars over the years - with the signatures in the guestbook to prove it. There are also restaurants that serve every kind of cuisine imaginable from French and Italian, to Japanese, Indian and Thai. Eating out is a favourite Colombo pastime and new restaurants open all the time.
Shopping
Not surprisingly, Colombo offers the widest possible range of shopping experiences, from Westernized department stores to distinctly Oriental street bazaars. Spend time at one of the shopping malls in air-conditioned comfort and you can pick up fantastic bargains on fashionable clothes and shoes (labels like Gap, Nike and Banana Republic manufacture in Sri Lanka) - as well as having a delicious lunch from a food court.
Check out bustling Pettah, a maze of criss-crossed lanes, with different specialties on each street. Main Street, for instance, is where the saree and shalwar kameez shops are located. For gold and silver jewellery go to Sea Street. For mobile phones go to Second Cross Street. One street is home to the traditional ingredients used in Ayurvedic medicine bags full of different roots and plants, all for a specific purpose. |
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Fun and Roving Home Stays |
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