Other Things to do in Galle

This is the second part of my post on Galle (pronounced Gawl).

Galle is a city on the southwestern tip of Sri Lanka, 119 km from Colombo. Amangalla, the Aman resort where we had a really lovely lunch (which you can read about here) is situated in the Galle fort. The Galle fort is a UNESCO world heritage site and the largest remaining fortress in Asia built by European occupiers.

If you read my previous post, you'll know that I was half expecting it to be like the other forts I visited in South Asia, which all look the same, coming from the Mughal influence. Again, I was mistaken. It looks and feels more like Intramuros than what I had in mind from my visits to Agra, Delhi and Lahore.

Post lunch, we made our way to the Lighthouse. The same one you see on the pictures when you do a google image search on Galle.

The iconic lighthouse

The lighthouse leads to the beach at Galle Fort.

This is where the locals swim and play on the beach

Daddy Pau, Baby Luna and Mommy Tala
shot in vivid with the Canon S95

Borrowing the baby who just wanted to sleep

The beach was more peaceful on the other side of the lighthouse
The water was surprisingly very clear

Me in vivid with the Peace Pagoda in the background
It's that white pointy thing of the island behind me

The girls

Daddy's girl

After a quick look around and the photo ops, we went on to Unawatuna and the Peace Pagoda. Both recommended stops as part of Amangalla's Rumassala walking trek. I was just very glad we had little Luna and her stroller as an excuse to take the car instead!!!

The beach at Unawatuna has very fine sand

This is my "WTF! I didn't expect to get this wet" face!

We stopped at this beach club that boasts of being Different! Hahaha

Thought Bubble:
If you have a coconut tree this high, how do you get the coconuts?

After our brief break at the beach, where the back road reminded me of the shopping stalls, restaurants and bars by the beach in Bora and Goa, we headed to look for the Peace Pagoda in Rumassala.

The Peace Pagoda in Rumassala, Galle

Find the hidden Buddha

Shoes need to be removed before entering

Tips for travellers: Do the Peace Temple before Unawatuna,
so you can wash your feet in the beach

The view from the Peace Pagoda
This would be roughly across the Lighthouse in Galle fort 

One of the four Buddhas surrounding the Peace Pagoda

I love how the sun reflects on the water

The lighthouse behind me is hidden by the clouds

Sri Lankan influence on the Pagoda with the elephants on the base

Me and Buddha

Galle was really a pleasant surprise for me. Galle is now accessible from Colombo through the new highway.

Travel time is approximately one and a half hours.

Lunch was lovely, but our day trip just kept getting better and better. Just Saying.