sri-lanka-13-full-pdf-ebook.pdf

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and the oldest of the Fort bastions, with some
portions dating to 1580.
Make your way down to the vast leafy
expanse of cCourt Square. As the name
implies, various courts and related offices ring
the sides. On weekdays you’ll see people in
the shade of the huge banyan trees nervously
awaiting their turn in court. Follow Hospital
St south and you’ll encounter the lavishly
restored dDutch Hospital (p108), which
once was filled with victims of the plague.
This part of the wall is the shadiest and most
pleasant in the heat of the day. You might
even consider a dip at eLighthouse Beach
(p107).
At the southeast corner of the Fort you
can’t miss the British-built fLighthouse
(p107). Just west along Rampart St is the
bright white and imposing gMeeran
Mosque, the centre of Galle’s vibrant Muslim
community. Continue west to have fun and
frolic at hFlag Rock (p105), a good place
to see so many of the submerged rocks that
have claimed dozens of ships through the
centuries. Walk the walls northwest to iTr i-
ton Bastion, a great place to be at sunset.
Now come down off the wall to the cafe-
lined Pedlar St and make a quick turn north

on Parawa St. These two narrow blocks have

some of the most typical of the old Dutch

colonial houses, complete with characteristic

thick columns and shaded porches. Curve

west and at the corner of Rampart St you’ll

find jSudharmalaya Temple, with its com-

pact dagoba. If you have the good fortune to

be here on a full moon day, you can expect to

see all sorts of ceremonies, many featuring

coloured lights and candles after dark.

Head back up onto the wall at kClip-

penberg Bastion. In the usually gentle surf

surging around the rocks and sand below

you may well see sea turtles feeding at dusk.

Head north along the walls and enjoy the vast

grassy expanse that until very recently was

part of Galle’s modern-day army base. Today

you’re more likely to see a cow chewing its

cud than a recruit standing at attention.

North of lAeolus Bastion, look for the

small mtomb of the Muslim saint Dathini

Ziryam outside the wall. At the northwest

corner of the Fort, pause at the nStar

Bastion, which has ample evidence of the

area’s dark past; the fortifications were used

at various times by the Dutch as a prison and

slave quarters. Now complete your circuit at

the Clock Tower.

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