Luna La Vida Galle!

Last weekend, mi Familia La Vida Lanka together with C a friend from Uni (who is here for work) went down South to the historical Galle.  Pronounced as Gawl not Ga-Le as in Robinson’s Galleria.  Hahaha!  I’ve always wanted to go there after reading about it in Gourmet Chick.  Since C have been to Colombo before, I decided a day trip out of town would be best.  Since Galle is only a couple of hour’s drive through the new SCTEX-ish highway, it was the perfect choice!  At least Luna girl will be comfy with the trip as opposed to taking a longer drive.

First up, lunch at Amangalla!  I’ve always wanted to visit the historical hotel of the luxurious Aman group.  Since I don’t have USD550++ to spare for the cheapest overnight accommodation, lunch it is!  And as you can see from the menu, the prices are not at all bad – not bad for hotel food moreover not bad for a luxe hotel!  Take note that 1 Philippine Peso is around 2.5 Sri Lankan Rupees.

The starters are yummy…

The mains are huge for Hubby and C.

Fish and Chips for hubby

Amangalla Burger for C!

Mine (and Luna’s after 7 hours) is just the right size – I love the olive-y flavors!  Since the dish didn’t come with rice, I just ordered extra!

Extra Rice Not In Picture

Hubby took charge of the nappy change in the hotel.  Take note that the toilets did not have any changing table so hubby just used a flat surface near the window sill. 

Hubby and Luna girl by the lighthouse

After lunch we went to see the lighthouse and took pictures by the sea.  Luna was game!  Check out her pose! 

Amangalla and the lighthouse are situated inside Galle Fort (a UNESCO world heritage site).  It is reminiscent of Manila’s Intramuros as Sri Lanka was colonized by the Portuguese, Dutch and Brits.  If we were to go back to Galle (which I hope we could do overnight), I would like to further explore the Fort and its history.    

Since we only had a few hours, the concierge at Amangalla suggested we go to Unawatuna beach.  It’s a 15-minute drive out of the Fort.  The streets reminded me of Boracay and a little bit of Siam Reap – where the hotels and restaurants are.  The beach is ok, but the establishments are too close to the water which makes it look a bit crowded.  Luna and hubby just lounged at the restaurant where we had a few drinks (Coke anyone?) and C and I took pictures by the beach. 

As you can see, Luna has had so much stimulation she couldn’t sleep when it’s time to nap (at that time, we were on Day 3 of Sleep Training).  Poor child. 

After swinging by Unawatuna beach, we took up another suggestion of the Amangalla concierge and check out the Rhummasala.  It was actually a trek but he didn’t know we have a baby in tow.  Instead the waiter (who was quite impressive with his knowledge and suggestions) recommended for us to just take the car up the hill that is the spot of the Peace Pagoda. 

The Peace Pagoda is situated in a hill overlooking the sea and Galle Fort in the distance.  It was a gift from Japan to Sri Lanka “to provide a focus for people of all races and creeds, and to help unite them peacefully” as it is written in the Amangalla info on Rhummasala.

the view of the fort from peace pagoda

The view from above was a good way to cap off our trip to Galle and gave Luna a few minutes’ sleep. 

So how did Luna like it?  For a baby on sleep training, I think she LOVED it!  She slept well on the way there, within her sleep time.  She woke up within her eating time and took in all the view within her activity time.  However, in the afternoon since it was packed with sightseeing, she fought off sleep (until she couldn’t which by the time she had a few minutes it was close to eating time)…  Stimulation galore – sights, sounds and Tita C!  Activity time stretched to the max.  Oh well, I have to give it up for my little girl who is game enough to enjoy the day with us.  I'm sure for her age and size it was pretty tiring.  She didn’t give any trouble at all – except the no sleeping when it’s sleep time but the training is flexible and nanay was not THAT strict (strict pa rin pero konti lang – strict but just a little bit!) and this is not a precedent!  Hahaha! 

That’s the latest adventure of Luna La Vida Lanka!