by Tang Lu, Jamila Najmuddin
COLOMBO, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Young Yasami, along with dozens of children from the Piliyandala Children’s Orphanage and children of staff of the CHEC Port City Colombo spent an unforgettable Children’s Day Saturday at the Colombo Port City.
Yasami participated in various events put together by staff of the Port City Colombo.
Not like International Children's Day, which falls on June 1, Sri Lanka celebrates its national children's day annually in October.
The Port City Colombo organized a number of events this year.
"Children, the place you have come to does not exist yet. It is going to be a beautiful city built on land reclaimed from the sea. It’s name is the Colombo Port City. The Port City is a gift from adults to lovely children. Uncles and aunties who work here are trying to turn a dream into reality. It’s all for you, for your bright future,” Indunil, a local staff of the Port City Colombo, told the children affectionately.
Indunil then led the children to the sales gallery of Colombo Port City . Here, the children listened attentively to Indunil's explanation of the project while carefully looking at the Colombo Port City sand table model.
Yasami said that the Port City model is like a dream, as she has never seen such a city before.
“I look forward to coming back to the beach in the Port City and playing with my friends,” she said.
Nethuli Liyanage, who came with his father, said, "I am proud of my father's place of work. I can't wait to see the Port City completed. I believe that as long as I study hard, I will definitely find a good job here."
The management of the Port City Colombo said that this was the first time that children had been invited to the Children's Day function here.
The Port City of Colombo is a key Sino-Sri Lankan project under China's Belt and Road Initiative. The plan is to build a new city on the reclaimed site on Colombo’s sea front.
The project broke ground in September 2014. At present, land reclamation work has been done. After completion, the Port City will become a high-end urban complex, integrating finance, tourism, logistics and IT.
