The Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Germany, Karunatilaka Amunugama, has organized a Sri Lankan evening with the CTOUR in Berlin and Brandenburg on 24th September 2014 at his official residence in order to give the participants a real taste of Sri Lanka and to motivate them to give publicity to Sri Lanka as a unique destination for tourism. CTOUR is the association of travel journalists from Berlin and Brandenburg. Mr. Kaushal Senevirathne, Director Europe and North America of SriLankan Airlines, Maria Schledder, Sales Manager of Sri Lankan Airlines, Mr. Chalinda Samarasinghe, Director (Europe) of Siddhalepa, Mr. Grafenstein, a good friend of Sri Lanka and the person who initiated this event, and Ms. Sabine Eckhard, a film producer, joined the Embassy for a successful presentation of Sri Lanka to the participants of the event.
39 travel journalists of the CTOUR participated the meeting at the official residence of the Ambassador in Berlin. The Ambassador utilized this opportunity to brief the participants about the current developments of the Sri Lankan economy and the importance of the tourism industry and the future targets of tourism in Sri Lanka to the travel journalists in Berlin and Brandenburg. He also emphasized the fact that Germany is one of the most important markets for Sri Lankan tourism, and German arrivals has increased by 27% this year compared with the arrivals of 2013. Answering the questions raised by the participants, the Sri Lankan Ambassador explained how the Government of Sri Lanka is working towards improving the facilities to provide a comfortable stay for tourists. He also mentioned that Germany and its people are not new to Sri Lanka and Sri Lankans. He further mentioned that Sri Lankan has had long relations with Germany.
While the representatives of SriLankan Airlines made a presentation about SriLankan Airlines as the national carrier of Sri Lanka its progress and future enhancement and also its role in helping in driving tourism in the country, Mr. Chalinda Samarasinghe, Director of Siddhalepa, presented the value of the traditional medicine Ayurveda in Sri Lanka. Participants were also able to receive complimentary Ayurveda treatments from a Siddhalepa Ayurveda Doctor and a therapist.
Ms. Sabine Eckhard, who has already made a film about Ayurveda in Sri Lanka, spoke on her good experiences in Sri Lanka with Sri Lankans. Her film on Ayurveda was broadcasted on leading television channels in Germany such as ARD and 3Sat. She is also working on a film project about the renowned Architect Geoffrey Bawa.
