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Come with me to 1930s’ Colombo

Come with me to 1930s’ Colombo

As the country prepares to mark its 68th anniversary of Independence from colonial rule, Tissa Devendra sifts through his rag-bag of memories to life in pre-Independence days…… This memory goes back to the mid-1930s when we lived in Maradana, and I was just learning my ‘abc’ in Nalanda’s ‘Baby Class’. Our neighbours next door were [...]

Letters

Letters

It’s the time for school admissions and the corruption carnival begins The media have highlighted the scandalous state of affairs prevalent in Grade 1 school admissions. With the dawn of the New Year, parents engage in a desperate rat race to find popular schools to admit their children. We are well aware that January is [...]

City of a giant statue and giant pandas

City of a giant statue and giant pandas

Sichuan province in southwest China is famed for its spicy food and giant pandas. A city with a long history and rich culture, today it has progressed remarkably into modernity in many fields, in terms of development, infrastructure, telecommunication, science, and technology. A media delegation from Sri Lanka had the opportunity to visit Chengdu, the [...]

Taking their pain, writing his book

Taking their pain, writing his book

A few years ago, when Samanth Subramanian was in Kattankudy speaking to a survivor of the 1990 Kattankudy mosques attack, there was a disquieting moment where the tables were turned between the interviewer and the interviewee. They were seated in a chocolate-brown linoleum lined living room and the man was recounting a grim tale of [...]

Stand out in statement sarongs

Stand out in statement sarongs

The lid comes off an elegant gift box to reveal a sarong, wrapped carefully in layers of tissue. To Asanka de Mel, its creator, this is not just any old sarong. It is the result of months of experimenting and hard work—the re-invention of a traditional article of clothing as an item of elegant evening [...]

Fruity haven to historic cave; not far from Colombo

Fruity haven to historic cave; not far from Colombo

This time in our ‘All In A Day Travel Series’ we set off on the road less travelled heading to Horana and Bulathsinhala, in the Kalutara District. We took off early morning, on the Colombo Horana main road, enjoying the quintessentially pastoral views of lush green paddy fields, tea and rubber estates with villagers going [...]

The stage was set and a great dancer was born

The stage was  set and a great dancer was born

January 26 was the 95th birth anniversary of the pioneer Kandyan dance practitioner Chitrasena who played a pivotal role in the development of the dance in its stage form. In this article reproduced and edited from the publication, Nritya Puja : A Tribute to Chitrasena 50 years in the dance 1936 – 1986, the author, [...]

Ahead of the pack

Ahead of the pack

At 15, most teenagers are still finding themselves and where their capabilities lie. Not so Nipun Avishka. At 15 he has already invented a stringhopper machine and decided that he wants to study Information Technology. A fine-tuned version of his invention has now won him the Dasis award at “Sahasak Nimavum”, the National Invention Exhibition [...]

British Car Day 2016

British Car Day 2016

The Classic Car Club of Ceylon and Land Rover for a third year running presents ‘British Car Day’, an event, which showcases British cars and motorbikes from the 1930s onwards in true festival spirit – today at the Galle Face Hotel. “A ‘classic car’ is considered an older automobile with enough historical interest to be [...]

Peradeniya alumni to stage ‘Siriwardena Paula’

Peradeniya alumni to stage ‘Siriwardena Paula’

The Colombo Chapter of the Alumni Association of the University of Peradeniya will stage Rajitha Dissanayake’s celebrated play ‘Siriwardena Paula’ on February 6 at the New Town Hall, Green Path, Colombo 7 from 6.30 p.m. to raise funds for its social service activities. Dayadeva Edirisinghe, Jayani Senanayake and Nadeeshani Peliarachchi play the lead roles. Tickets [...]

Multi-talented musicians for India’s Republic Day

Multi-talented musicians for India’s Republic Day

‘Stringstruck’ a sitar concert at the Bishop’s College auditorium organised by the Indian High Commission in Colombo was held on Monday, January 26 in celebration of the 67th Republic Day of India. Indian High Commissioner Y.K. Sinha, Speaker of Parliament, Karu Jayasuriya and his wife as well as Sitar enthusiasts were among the distinguised guests [...]

Bellvantage celebrate in the spirit of “white Christmas”

Bellvantage celebrate in the spirit of “white Christmas”

Bellvantage (Pvt.) Ltd celebrated 2015 with a sparkling event in the spirit of “white Christmas” at the Kingsbury Hotel Colombo on December 16. Bellvantage is a leading outsourcing, consulting and technology provider with many local and multinational brands under their wing.

Colombo Courtyard a winner

Colombo Courtyard announced this week that it has been recognised as awinner of the 2016 TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice™ Awards for Hotels, ranking in its Top 1%. For the 14th year, TripAdvisor has highlighted the world’s top properties based on the millions of reviews and opinions collected in a single year from travellers around the globe. [...]

Biking on roads less travelled

Biking on roads less travelled

Weddings… dinners… parties… Anyone who lives in Colombo knows about the many gatherings which are held in the city, where no expense is spared to ensure that guests enjoy themselves thoroughly. The seemingly endless list of functions one attends is something which most people would understand following the Christmas season which concluded a few weeks [...]

Cantaloupe named top hotel

Cantaloupe named top hotel

Cantaloupe last week announced it has been recognised as the overall winner of TripAdvisor’s Travellers Choice award for 2016. This award is based on the reviews and opinions of TripAdvisor’s global travel community, and is the highest honour given by TripAdvisor to the hotel chain. “We are delighted to be feted with the highest honour [...]

The poet who wants to go to school

The poet  who wants to go to school

Pulitzer Prize winning poet, Gregory Pardlo’s path to poetry has a staccato-like quality. He briefly debated becoming a lawyer and studied political science, enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve for two years, worked in a restaurant in Copenhagen, learned to speak Danish, translated Danish poetry, helped his grandfather run a blues and jazz bar, obtained [...]

Not quite a conversation ‘engaging’ the north

Not quite a conversation ‘engaging’ the north

The 2016 Fairway Galle Literary Festival drew to a close in Jaffna last weekend. Having unfortunately missed the main event in Galle, I was determined to catch at least the end of the festival, and thus found myself on an eight-hour bus ride through the night from Colombo to Jaffna. Although I had worried about [...]

Two distinctive voices star for Soul Sounds

Two distinctive voices star for Soul Sounds

Nella Fantasia, which translates to ‘in my fantasy’, is a beautiful song that speaks of peace, freedom, and prosperity. Usually sung in its original Italian version, the song transcends the mundane world and inspires listeners to reach for something beyond their day-to-day existence. This is also the name of the latest Soul Sounds concert and [...]

SOSL’s Blüthner concert grand steals the spotlight

SOSL’s Blüthner concert  grand steals the spotlight

Swathed in a circle of light sitting elegantly on centrestage was an imposing yet utterly beautiful Blüthner concert grand piano, ready to finally become a fully fledged ‘member’ of the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka. One of the big four world famous pianos, standing proudly alongside the legendary Steinway, Bösendorfer and Bechstein pianos, this Blüthner, [...]

Creations at the touch of her palm

Creations at the touch of her palm

Remember Consy Goonatilleke who makes damson fruit wine and wine vinegar? This creative lady is constantly trying out new things such as ‘leafy sculptures’ (creating with various kinds of leaves), and red clay accessories. Her latest addition is ‘palm prints’ that she will exhibit at today’s Kala Pola at Green Path. The creations are random [...]

Get the sound and feel of a jazz fest

Get the sound and feel of a jazz fest

Next Sunday is Jazz Sunday in Colombo! From noon the newly furbished Galle Face Hotel will be the backdrop for the first ever Colombo Jazz and Blues Festival. Organisers Dinesh Wijesinghe and Gehan Fernando of Mainstage Events have carefully planned an excellent line-up with real variety, combining experienced and popular local artistes such as Geoffrey [...]

Appreciations

Appreciations

Mel Gunasekera A loving tribute to a beloved cousin The painful memory of that horrible day – February 2, 2014, the darkest day in the lives of our family has dawned again. We are forced to relive that gruesome day, when you left us all in a matter of 20 minutes. To me your eldest [...]

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