Heading eastward from
Tangalle, the scenery changes from the lush green of
the southwest to more open landscapes as you enter
the dry zone of southeastern Sri Lanka.
Hambantota, 240km (150 miles) from Colombo,
is an independent travelers' haven that is showing
some of the signs of escalating into a fully fledged holiday resort.
Like other south coast towns and villages,
it would probably already have made the 
transition if not for the troubles of the
1980s and 1990s. Hambantota stands on a
sandy headland, on the seaward side of
which a huge fleet of outrigger fishing
canoes draws up, and the horizon is
almost always dotted with their small
triangular sails.
With sweeping sandy beaches on either side,
it is also a convenient base for exploring the
nearby Bundala National Park and, somewhat
further away, the Ruhuna National Park and
the temples at Kataragama.
