Travelling to Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Introduction

Couched in the azure waters of the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka has attracted traders and travelers for centuries. A languorous tropical isle of deep spirituality and serenity, Sri Lanka entered the Western imagination as the Tahiti of the East. Despite its smallness, it has garnered a plethora of names-Serendib, Ceylon, Teardrop of India, Resplendent Isle, Island of Dharma, and Pearl of the Orient-an accumulation that reveals its richness and beauty, and the intensity of affection that it has evoked in visitors.

Physical Map of Sri Lanka

With a length of 445 km and breadth of 225 km, Sri Lanka encompasses beautiful tropical beaches, verdant vegetation, ancient monuments and a thousand delights to please all tastes. The relief features of the island consist of a mountainous mass somewhat south of the center with heights exceeding 2,500 m surrounded by broad plains. Palm-fringed beaches surround the island.

The southern half of the island is dominated by beautiful and rugged hill country. The entire northern half comprises a large plain extending from the edge of the hill country to the Jaffna peninsula. The highest mountain is the 2524-m-high Mt Pidurutalagala (near Nuwara Eliya) and the longest river is the Mahaweli that courses from the center and empties into the Indian Ocean at Trincomalee. The best beaches are on the southwestern, southern and southeastern coasts.

Location of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, an island in the Indian Ocean, is located to the south of the Indian subcontinent. It lies between 5º55' and 9º55' north of the equator and between the eastern longitudes 79º42' and 81º52'. Sri Lanka is shaped like a giant teardrop falling from the southern tip of the vast Indian subcontinent. It is separated from India by the 50-km-wide Palk Strait, although there is a series of stepping-stone coral islets known as Adam's Bridge that almost form a land bridge between the two countries

Climate of Sri Lanka

In the lowlands, the climate is typically tropical with an average temperature of 27°C in Colombo. In the higher elevations, it can be quite cool with temperatures going down to 16ºC at an altitude of nearly 2,000 m. Bright, sunny warm days are the rule and are common even during the height of the monsoon-climatically Sri Lanka has no off-season. The southwest monsoon brings rain mainly from May to July to the western, southern and central regions of the island, while the northeast monsoon rains occur in the northern and eastern regions in December and January.

Prime Minister: Mahinda Rajapakse (2004)

Area: 25,332 sq mi (65,610 sq km)

Population (2004 est.): 19,905,165 (growth rate: 0.8%); birth rate: 15.9/1000; infant mortality rate: 14.8/1000; life expectancy: 72.9; density per sq mi: 786

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Colombo, 2,436,000 (metro. area), 656,100 (city proper); Legislative and judicial capital: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, 118,300

Other large cities: Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia 214,300; Moratuwa, 181,000; Kandy, 112,400

Monetary unit: Sri Lanka rupee

Languages: Sinhala 74% (official and national), Tamil 18% (national), other 8%; English is commonly used in government and spoken competently by about 10%

Ethnicity/race: Sinhalese 74%, Tamil 18%, Moor 7%, Burgher, Malay, and Vedda 1%

Religions: Buddhist 70%, Hindu 15%, Christian 8%, Islam 7% (1999)

Literacy rate: 92% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2003 est.): $73.49 billion; per capita $3,700. Real growth rate: 5.2%. Inflation: 9%. Unemployment: 8%. Arable land: 13%. Agriculture: rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts; milk, eggs, hides, beef. Labor force: 6.6 million (1998); services 45%, agriculture 38%, industry 17% (1998 est.). Industries: rubber processing, tea, coconuts, and other agricultural commodities; clothing, cement, petroleum refining, textiles, tobacco. Natural resources: limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower. Exports: $5.269 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): textiles and apparel, tea, diamonds, coconut products, petroleum products. Imports: $6.626 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): textiles, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and equipment. Major trading partners: U.S., UK, Belgium, Germany, India, Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Iran.

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 494,509 (1998); mobile cellular: 228,604 (1999). Radio broadcast stations: AM 26, FM 45, shortwave 1 (1998). Radios: 3.85 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 21 (1997). Televisions: 1.53 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 5 (2000). Internet users: 121,500 (2001).

Transportation: Railways: total: 1,508 km (2002). Highways: total: 96,695 km; paved: 91,860 km; unpaved: 4,835 km (1999). Waterways: 430 km; navigable by shallow-draft craft. Ports and harbors: Colombo, Galle, Jaffna, Trincomalee. Airports: 15 (2002).

International disputes: none.

People of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has a population of 18.5 million of whom the majority are Sinhalese (74%). Other ethnic groups are made up of Sri Lankan Tamils (12.6%), Indian Tamils (5.5%), Moors, Malays, Burghers (of Portuguese and Dutch descent) and others (7.9%). Although Sri Lanka is a multi-religious country, Buddhists constitute the majority with 69.3%. Other religious groups are Hindus 15.5%, Muslims 7.6% and Christians 7.5%. Sri Lanka's literacy rate of 88.6% is one of the highest in Asia. Sinhala and Tamil are official languages in Sri Lanka. Sinhala, a language of Indo-Aryan origin is the language of the majority. English is widely spoken and understood. Place names and signboards on buses and trains are usually in all three languages.

Flag of Sri Lanka

The flag of Sri Lanka is yellow with two panels. The smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels.

Arts, Culture and Music of Sri Lanka

Woodcarving, weaving, pottery and metalwork are all highly developed crafts, and Sri Lanka is especially renowned for its gems. Ambalangoda is the best place to see Sri Lankan masks; Ratnapura is the center of Sri Lanka's gem trade.

Sri Lanka's classical architecture, sculpture and painting are predominantly Buddhist. Stupas sprinkle the countryside, and there are several extravagantly large Buddha sculptures, notably at Aukana and Buduruvagala. Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa have the most impressive archaeological legacy, but Kandy is the most thriving cultural center today. Colonial remnants include Dutch forts, canal and churches and British residences, clubs and courthouses. Galle is the finest colonial city on the island.

Sinhalese dancing is similar to Indian dance but relies on acrobatics, nimbleness and symbolism to unfold its narratives. Kandy is a good place to see 'up-country dancing,' but Colombo or Ambalangoda are the places to witness the ritualistic exorcism of 'devil dancing.' Folk theatre combines dance, masked drama, and drumming and exorcism rituals to vividly recreate Sri Lankan folklore.

Economy of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is mainly an agrarian country. The chief crop is rice with which the country is almost self-sufficient. Tea, rubber and coconut are also important agricultural crops, with tea being a major foreign exchange earner. In addition, other crops of importance are cocoa and spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, pepper and cloves. Fruit and vegetables, native to both tropical and temperate regions, grow well in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is also a major exporter of precious and semi-precious stones. Within the last few years, remittances from Sri Lankans employed abroad have contributed a large share towards foreign exchange.

The last three decades have seen tourism emerge as an important industry. There has also been a rapid growth in manufacturing industries, which offer a wide range of export goods such as petroleum products, leather goods, ready-made garments and electronic equipment.
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