The University of Hamburg in collaboration with Sri Lanka Association in Hamburg organized the 11th South Asia Day at the University. This is the 11th successive year the university organized the event focussing on South Asia. Sri Lanka became partner country with the university for this year as Sri Lanka and Germany celebrating the 60^th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.

The Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka for Hamburg, Mr. Olaf C. Ellerbrock, and H.E the Ambassador of Sri Lanka for Germany Mr. Sarrath Kongahage have organized a concert with Preethi de Silva at the Mirror Hall of the University of Music and Performing Arts to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Germany.

The Anuga Exhibition is the most important platform for the food business held in Cologne. This year, 6777 exhibition stands catered to the public, and more than 150 000 trade visitors from 187 countries were present to check out the actual trends in the food business.

It was a very special occasion and a very special concert to which the Honorary Consul Olaf C. Ellerbrock and Ambassador Sarrath Kongahage had invited guests to the Mirror Hall of the University of Music and Performing Arts. Both represented the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. With the concert, the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Germany was celebrated.

Even persons praised Ceylon, today’s Sri Lanka, who have never been there.The German writer Karl May, for instance, filled many pages with descriptions about the landscape of the mountains, tea plantations and the spectacular waterfalls, which he only knew from postcards. These photographs marked Ceylon’s image as the wild and romantic Arcadia in Europe at the turn of the century. The exhibition under the title Landscapes of Sri Lanka can be visited at Berlin’s Museum for Asian Art (Lansstr. 8, until 5 January). 

To celebrate the 60thanniversary of the commencement of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Germany, the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Germany is organising many events in Germany.

On the initiative of H.E. the Ambassador for Sri Lanka Sarrath Kongahage, the Embassy has organised a harpsichord performance, which was performed by the renowned Sri Lankan Bach specialist Prof. Preethi De Silva in collaboration with the University of Arts, Berlin, and the Faculty of Music of the University of Arts, Berlin.