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For Yvonne Nazzari, this rings truer than for most – there is no question that this iconic property is a big part of her life, occupying pride of place in many of her memories and deeply intertwined with her childhood.
Presently staying at the Galle Face Hotel during a week-long holiday in Sri Lanka that ends today, her claim runs deeper than most, for Yvonne was born and raised at the hotel.
Her father, E.P. Nazzari, was General Manager of the hotel at the time and her family occupied Rooms 45 and 47. Yvonne was born in Room 45 of the Regency Wing in December 1934 and turns 80 this Christmas.
The hotel was home
“I lived at the hotel from the day I was born, until around 1950. Growing up in this hotel was normal for me, since it was home. However, I always had to be very educated and wherever we went around the hotel, we had to behave. We couldn’t scream and shout!” recalls Yvonne, with a smile, as she sits down for a chat with the Daily FT.
“I liked staying here and even though I was small, when they had the New Year’s party here or weddings, I would go around and look. The Galle 
Road entrance is the same even now. We used this entrance and not the one off Gaffe Face Green,” she says.
As they will, some things have changed at this heritage hotel, adds Yvonne. “It is only natural, after such a long time. Even the swimming pool is new to me. I remember how I used to go to the kitchen if I thought my father was there. I think the kitchen must still be in the same place, but I don’t know. I can’t explain how the place is different.”
Ceylon nationality
Thinking back to the days when Sri Lanka was Ceylon, it was a different life, she says: “Life was nice, easy and happy.”
Yvonne’s her father started working at the hotel possibly around 1932, but she isn’t certain of the year. “I never asked what he did before I was born,” she laughs. “I know he came to Sri Lanka in 1928. We got Ceylon nationality, all of us, even my two brothers.”
Her father died with a Ceylon passport, one which she also has but does not use “because it’s too many problems”.
In fact, Yvonne was here during World War II and having Ceylon nationality ensured that she did not have to leave when war broke out. “My uncle was the manager or supervisor of the bar in front of the Galle Face Hotel, but he and his family were sent to a camp in Pune since they did not have Ceylon nationality; we stayed on because we did.”
Life in Ceylon
At the time, Yvonne’s brothers went to school at St. Joseph’s College, while she went to Good Shepherd Convent Kotahena and later Good Shepherd Convent Nuwara Eliya. She then went to Madras for a while for her Leaving Certificate and when she returned, her elder brother was a manager at Ceylon Tobacco Company and had a bungalow here, where she stayed.
“Even when I was staying with my brother we used to come to the hotel all the time, for dinner or drinks. We came here often. My brother was here until he was transferred to Jakarta. But to stay like now, at the hotel, this is the first time since after we left. I keep coming back to Galle Face Hotel because I miss it. I miss the Galle Face, I miss Sri Lanka,” she adds.
Until the age of 14, Ceylon was all Yvonne knew. “I grew up in Sri Lanka. When I was 14 I went to Italy once to get to know the place and then I came back.”
“Life here was different… I remember going to the beaches, following my parents or my brother everywhere. To be able to say, even at five in the afternoon, ‘let’s go to the beach’ or ‘let’s go to Hikkaduwa…’ – it was easy and it was a good life. When I was leaving Sri Lanka, at that age you don’t realise. You just do it. Maybe afterwards, when you get older, you say ‘why didn’t I say something?’ But I lived a good life so there are no regrets.”
Adding to her cherished memories of the country, she also met her husband in Colombo. “He was Italian and here with a group to make a documentary film. I worked for one year at the Italian Legation, where he came with his passport for some reason or another.”
Passing on her love for Sri Lanka
After she got married in 1960, Yvonne lived in Italy and visited Sri Lanka for the holidays. This visit is to show her grandchildren the country in which she grew up. “We’re here for a week this time. I wanted to show Sri Lanka to my grandchildren. I’ve come before with my daughter Debora.”
Within the week, Yvonne has already passed on her love of Sri Lanka to her grandchildren: “We already went to Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Kandy, Peradeniya Gardens, Pinnawela, and we are going to visit Galle. They love Sri Lanka as much as I do.”
Of course, the country has changed over the years, and some changes are not always for the better for those who cherish Ceylon of yore: “There are too many hotels now and all these skyscrapers… and the traffic,” she says.
But that won’t stop her from coming back, even though her friends are no longer here. “Most of the friends I had here, they’ve gone to Australia – maybe when there was the problem with the Tigers, I don’t know – or to South Africa or London. But I keep coming back. If I can come again, I will come again – even though the flight is very long.”
Pix by Lasantha Kumara
The Galle Face Hotel
The 150-year-old Galle Face Hotel is acclaimed as one of the best heritage hotels in Sri Lanka. In 2012 it became the first hotel in the country to be featured on a postage stamp. The old world charm of the hotel harks back to a vintage when aristocracy and celebrities spent their days in pampered luxury, and sipped their tea while enjoying the magnificent sunset over the Indian Ocean. Over the years, many Heads of State and celebrities have graced the hotel, charmed by its eclectic mix of imperial tradition, architecture and flavour.
The hotel is currently undertaking an ambitious restoration project restoring rooms, restaurants and ballrooms to their former glory with subtle modernisation to enhance the quality of The Galle Face Hotel experience.
Founded in 1864, the Galle Face Hotel is a proud part of a country with its own illustrious history. Built during colonial rule when Sri Lanka was known as Ceylon, the hotel has been part and parcel of the nation’s story and is today a landmark of a bygone era. Many tales have been told of the hotel and its famous guests over the years.
Some of the key milestones in the history of GFH include the celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887 with the presence of over 20,000 people at the height of Britain’s imperial supremacy.
Along its illustrious 150-year-history, royals and statesmen from across the world have graced the Galle Face Hotel, including the Empress of France Princess Eugenie, Princess Alexandra of Denmark, the Duke of Hamilton, Indira Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Richard Nixon.
The Duke of Edinburgh, Admiral Louis Mountbatten, Emperor Hirohito of Japan and several other heads of state have also stayed at the GFH, all of which is recorded on beautiful marble and wooden plaques around the hotel.
Prince Philip of Greece who was a 19-year-old midshipman serving in Ceylon at the time, first set his eyes on the 1935 model Standard Nine car while on a visit to Ceylon. It is said that it cost 12 Sterling Pounds, but after much bargaining he bought it at Rs. 450 which was equal to his seven weeks’ Navy pay in 1940. The Prince’s first car now enjoys pride of place on a special porch of the ‘Regency’ wing. Other such artefacts make up the museum of the Galle Face Hotel, which is a testimony to the colonial history of Sri Lanka.
Alec Guinness, Ursula Andress, Laurence Olivier and George Bernard Shaw have all added their star power to the GFH storyline. More recent notable visitors were Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner – better known as Sting – and BAFTA award winning Hollywood star Scarlett Johansson.
Many world renowned authors who have found the Galle Face Hotel to be an inspiring and tranquil sanctuary from where to pen their thoughts include Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mark Twain, Anton Chekhov and Arthur C. Clarke.
The hotel has also attracted more than its share of famous people, including the likes of world-renowned sportsmen like Sir Donald Bradman and the first man in space Yuri Gagarin.
Today, the legendary Galle Face Hotel provides a stunning venue for social and business occasions with its elegant ballroom and extensive banquet options. Through a perfect blend of the past and present, the legacy of the historic Galle Face Hotel continues, providing guests with a distinctive experience at a truly iconic Sri Lankan hotel.
