I’ve taken more time to relax and watch the entire sunset over the Indian Ocean than anywhere else; the majority of these were at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo. And I’m not alone. Usually 50 — at times upwards of a hundred — guests are there alongside me enjoying it as well.
During my visit to Colombo this year I discovered the hotel had added a new twist to the sunset ritual. A Sri Lankan bag-piper playing a dirge, together with one of the hotel employees, solemnly and slowly march out to the edge of the sea at dusk…
The uniformed man methodically lowers and folds the flag as the sad tune from the pipes mixes with the crashing waves, and then equally slowly they return the flag to the hotel for the evening. Everyone seemed to enjoy the new touch.
And when that’s all over, people go back to watching the final rays of the setting sun.
For a list of DrFumblefingers blog posts on Sri Lanka, please click on this link.
