Great Places to Write (Part Four - In Sri Lanka)
Thursday, May 20th, 2010
THE GALLE FACE HOTEL, COLOMBO
The Galle Face Hotel overlooks Galle Face Green
My novel The Mask Slips opens with the main character sitting on a planter’s chair on the veranda of the Galle Face Hotel. The scene is almost shamelessly colonial, something I wanted for the start of the novel, which is about a young Englishman’s struggle to remain dispassionate and unaffected by the people he meets in Sri Lanka. Whenever I read that opening scene, I taste salt in the air.
That the Galle Face is the setting for this colonal scene is in no way a criticism - or at least, not of its stunning veranda. The famous checkerboard area reflects the sunsets, and the salty breeze coming in off the Indian Ocean swishes through the palm trees, lifting, if only temporarily, the humidity.
The Galle Face’s list of famous guests is long, and ranges from Yuri Gagarin to Mark Twain. Arthur C. Clarke stayed there while he finished 3001: The Final Odyssey. The front of the hotel overlooks Galle Face Green, a long patch of grass that runs parallel to the sea and comes alive at night with people gathering to fly kites and play football and cricket. Colombo itself is a great city for shopping - Paradise Road and Barefoot are my favourite shops - and you can pick up some great bargains.
It’s about six years since I last stayed at the Galle Face. Writing this makes me think that could be six years too long. But then, I’m only thinking of sitting on the veranda, staring out at the sea and the checkerboard area, inspired by the exotic setting. Time has a habit of casting a golden sheen over memories, like the sunsets over the checkerboard. The room we stayed in at the Galle Face was noisy and shabby, and the corridors and great staircase were faded remnants of their past glory. There was nothing faded about that veranda, though. Like I said, the colours were golden. And black and white.
Tags: Colombo, Sri Lanka, The Mask Slips, writing
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