Pettah, Colombo

Pettah, Colombo, Sri Lanka (3 September, 2005)

Pettah is the district in downtown Colombo located immediately east of Fort. Unlike Fort, which has grand colonial buildings as well as gleaming skyscrapers, Pettah is a totally different kettle of fish. This is the market and bazaar district. It is wonderfully colourful, loud and crowded. Pedestrians jostle their way down the narrow shopping streets, hurrying past coolies and wooden carts.

The name Pettah comes from the Sinhalese words, pita kotuwa, meaning outside the fort. This area is located outside the since demolished fort, and it grew into a bustling district.

I have the opportunity to explore Pettah on foot. I was on the last day of our tour of Sri Lanka, and we had a leisure half day off to explore the city on our own. Pettah on foot provided me the opportunity to be part of the atmosphere that is part of Colombo, and I hope members of AsiaExplorers who has no opportunity to join us will be able to enjoy it through the description on this page.