HOLIDAY LANKA

Monday, 18 January 2010

1. Sri Lanka
For a quarter century, Sri Lanka seems to have been plagued by misfortune, including a brutal civil war between the Sinhalese-dominated government and a separatist Tamil group. But the conflict finally ended last May, ushering in a more peaceful era for this teardrop-shaped island off India’s coast, rich in natural beauty and cultural splendors.

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Keith Bedford for The New York Times

Guests by the pool at the Galle Fort Hotel in Galle, Sri Lanka.

The island, with a population of just 20 million, feels like one big tropical zoo: elephants roam freely, water buffaloes idle in paddy fields and monkeys swing from trees. And then there’s the pristine coastline. The miles of sugary white sand flanked by bamboo groves that were off-limits to most visitors until recently are a happy, if unintended byproduct of the war.
Among the most scenic, if difficult stretches to reach, is Nilaveli Beach in the Tamil north. While a few military checkpoints remain, vacationers can lounge on poolside hammocks under palm trees or snorkel in its crystal-clear waters. Or they can order cocktails at the Nilaveli Beach Hotel (www.tangerinehotels.com/nilavelibeach), a collection of recently renovated bungalows with private terraces.
An international airport in Matara, on the island’s southern shore, is under construction, which will make the gorgeousbeaches near the seaside village of Galle easier to get to. Decimated by the tsunami in 2004, the surrounding coastline is now teeming with stylish guesthouses and boutique hotels.
Unawatuna, a crescent-shaped beach a few miles south of Galle, may be furthest along. Higher-end hotels there include Thambapanni Retreat (www.thambapanni.biz), which features four-poster beds, yoga and an ayurvedic spa. The Sun House (www.thesunhouse.com), in Galle, looks like a place where the Queen of England might stay, with its mango courtyard and colonial décor. One stylish place tucked within Galle’s city walls is the Galle Fort Hotel (www.galleforthotel.com), a refurbished gem merchant’s house run by a couple of Aussies. — Lionel Beehner

Sunday, 20 December 2009

Convincing day for Colombo stocks – now at all time high
2009-12-18 16:28:32

A very ‘convincing’ day was how analysts described the Colombo bourse on Friday, as it hit an all time high, while drawing contributions from both retailers and high networth investors investing in shares across the board.

“Today was a very convincing day as there were contributions from all corners and all sectors of the market,” Thakshila Hulangamuwa, Vice President Asha Phillip said.

He said it is a good sign that unlike most days when only high networth and institutional investors are responsible for high turnovers in the market through trading in blue chips, today contributions to the turnover of Rs 1.1 billion came from shares across the board. 1During the past four days, it was boosted by shares such as JKH being divested by the US Federal court- indicted Raj Rajaratnam, while many analysts said that the political factors such as handing over of the nominations did not have any impact on the market.

“Right now there are many funds interested in this market and they are awaiting some large cap stocks,” an analyst said. He noted that this has put a big ‘high’ on investor sentiment as well. “This is the reason that the market is improving,” he noted.

The benchmark index, the All Share rose by 1.73% to end at 3188.82, an all time record and over its last record October 13th high while the liquid index Milanka was up by 2.1% to close at 3630.48. The All Share has been up 112% so far for this year. (DEC)
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