PATA’s 57th AGM and Board of Directors meetings concluded in Colombo this week with delighted delegates voicing their pleasure.  Alwin Zecha of Pacific Leisure best summed up the words of many, when he said “A wonderful event. One of the best I have attended”. 

Outgoing chairman Brian Deeson said “Sri Lanka is a wonderful destination. All the elements are here to be Asia’s No.1 destination”

Peter de Jong confirming PATA delegates’ willingness to visit Sri Lanka said “Of the 122 delegates who had confirmed participation only one delegate asked me about travel advisories and all others were confident of Sri Lanka Tourism’s ability to successfully host the AGM and the Board of Director’s Meetings”.

Hiran Cooray of the PATA Board of Directors said “I have been a PATA member for 12 years and this is one of the highest attended board meetings and it shows that the PATA family is loyal to destination Sri Lanka. Good relations and strong bonds established over the years have proved that even in difficult times PATA members remain loyal.”

PATA Life Member and former Chairman, Inder Sharma of India commending the organization said “Sri Lanka has once again highlighted the warmth of the hospitality of her people.  I am so happy my wife and I came once again at this time”.

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Vice Chair of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the co-winners of the Nobel peace prize, Prof Mohan Munesinghe addressing the PATA delegates in Colombo on ‘Climate Change – Obstacles and Opportunities’ emphasised the importance of caution in land and energy use.

Going on to say the most affected by climate change would be the poor “Climate change is the ice on the cake to make the poverty situation worse”. He also said contrary to popular belief Aviation was not the major contributor to climate change; that development should be sustainable, with efficient use of energy and land. Prof. Munesinghe focussed mainly on the inability of the poorer nations to adapt to climate change and the immediacy for action. 

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Sri Lanka Calling takes pride in announcing that the ‘PATA Chairman’s Award of Recognition 2008’ was presented to Renton de Alwis Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism at the at the PATA Foundation's Annual Charity Gala Dinner held last Sunday, at the Galle Face Hotel, in Colombo. The event was a part of the 57th Annual General Meeting of the Pacific Asia Travel Association and the Board of Directors Meetings held from the 4th to 7th April at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel, Colombo.

PATA Chairman 2007/08  Brian Deeson in his citation of  the ‘Chairman’s Award 2008’  said
“I am happy to make this award to a former staff member of PATA who has throughout the 90’s and in the present advised and guided me as a member of PATA. He has contributed several innovative programmes in travel and tourism in the Pacific Asia region over the years and continue to display the spirit of PATA in an exemplary manner”. Deeson continued “It is significant that this award is made in Colombo, where he is currently sharing his expertise in his motherland through Sri Lanka Tourism”

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The 2007 UNESCO Asia – Pacific Heritage Award of Distinction, for heritage conservation, was presented to Galle Fort Hotel by Richard Engelhardt, UNESCO Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and the Pacific at a presentation ceremony jointly organized by UNESCO and the Galle Heritage Foundation.

The jury panel on making the award has cited  “This carefully considered transformation of an abandoned historic residential compound into a stylish luxury boutique hotel has evocatively captured the spirit of place of the colonial World Heritage fortified town of Galle...”   For more details on the hotel and its restoration work visit www.gallforthotel.com

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Miss Germany 2008, 18-year-old Kim-ValerieVoigt toured Sri Lanka along with two other celebrity beauties:  Claudia Hein, reigning ‘Beauty of the World’ and Carina-Alexandra Nix, third runner up in the ‘Miss Germany 2008’ contest.
 
Kim and her team began their tour with a taste of an Ayurvedhic treatment at the Ayurvedhic Pavillions in Negombo. Beginning with a sun and sand stay at the Beach Hotel in Negombo; the team went on to a Gala Dinner at the Club Hotel Dolphin in Waikkal, where an evening of cultural entertainment inducted them to Sri Lanka.

The beauty queens toured the city of Colombo, were guests of honour at a Sri Lankan fashion show at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo and visited Sri Lanka’s world renowned sites of Sigirya, Minneriya National Park, Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage, Peradeniya Botanical Gardens, Nuwara Eliya and Galle.

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SriLankan Airlines came back to national management with effect from April 1st 2008. Partially privatized in 1998, SriLankan Airlines is now looking to extend its horizons further with service excellence, route and fleet expansion.

SriLankan Airlines now serves 41 destinations in 22 countries in Europe, the Middle East, South Asia, South East Asia and the Far East and is the largest foreign carrier operating to India with 100 weekly flights to 11 destinations.   

The new board of directors of SriLankan Airlines is led by Dr P.B.Jayasundera (Chairman) and members Nishantha Wickremsinghe, Lalith de Silva, Sunil Wijesinha representing Sri Lanka government interest while Tim Clark, Gary Chapman, and Nigel Hopkins represent Emirates.

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The Sinhala and Tamil New Year, which falls on the 13th of April this year, will be a day of celebration for the two major communities in Sri Lanka. Both, Sinhalese and Tamil Communities will engage in festivities connected with the lunar year; showcasing to the world a commonality in culture, of the two major ethnic groups in Sri Lanka.

Most significant in the Lunar New Year Celebrations are the reunion of families at the villages and towns, indulgence in cultural pursuits, traditional games and festivities.

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