Sri Lanka

The ruins of ancient civilizations stand testament to a great past while man-made tanks belonging to centuries long gone continue to amaze modernday scientists.

Hanging like a teardrop off the southern tip of India, the tropical island of Sri Lanka has attracted visitors for centuries with its natural beauty. Sri Lanka was the ideal stopover of ancient seafarers sailing across the Indian Ocean to the orient. Marco Polo a great seafarer, who arrived in Sri Lanka in 1265, said “ Sri Lanka is the finest Island of its size in all the world” Samuel Baker, an independent British settler in Nuwara Eliya (1847-1855) wrote in his eight years in Ceylon ”We have sufficient data in the existing traces of its (Ceylon’s) former population to form our opinions of the positions and power which Ceylon occupied in the Eastern Hemisphere, when England was in a state of barbarism”

A tropical climate makes it warm and sunny throughout the year aside from the time of the two monsoonal periods which affect opposite sides of the island. This paradise is full of unexpected surprises. Home to eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites, a glorious history, a rich culture, the world’s most hospitable people, endless palm fringed beaches, a rich biodiversity, marvellous coral reefs, numerous valleys of Tea plantations, lush virgin rain forests, splashing waterfalls, many varieties of animals in the wild, beautiful misty mountains, pods of giants in the blue, priceless hidden gemstones beneath, mouth-watering spicy food, delicious tropical fruits and what more to call this Island ”The Pearl of the Indian Ocean”

History

The earliest recorded human activity in Sri Lanka dates to about 28,000 BC. According to historians the beginning of this island happened with the arrival of prince Vijaya based on the great chronicle Mahawamsa. The continuous written history of the nation exists in this book and it is one of the greatest in the world. The prince Vijaya was an exiled one from Orissa India, came here with his 700 fleet and settle down near the Malwathu Oya.It also describes a minister of Vijaya, called Anuradha, who established the village of Anuradhagama which became Anuradhapura and the capital of Sri Lanka a few centuries later. Archeological evidence is somewhat contradictory to this account, showing continuous settlement in the Anuradhapura area from the 10th century BC onwards with people living in the area having knowledge of agriculture, metallurgy, and livestock breeding.

After the Polonnaruwa kingdom,the capital of the country moved to the South Western part of the island due to foreign invasions. When the Portuguese arrive in 1505, the capital was established in Kotte in the West. The Portuguese came to trade in Spices but assumed rule of coastal areas until 1656, as did the Dutch who ousted them thereafter. The Dutch were in their turn displaced by the British in 1796. During this entire period of colonial contests and conquests the highland kingdom, with its capital in Kandy, fiercely retained its independence despite many assaults. It was ended in 1815 to the British, who thus established their rule over the whole island. Sri Lanka received independence from the British on the 4th February 1948.In 1972, its name was changed to Sri Lanka, and in 1978 the legislative and judicial capital was moved from Colombo to Sri Jayewardanapura Kotte .The flag was also changed as orange and green vertical bars were added, representing the Tamil and Muslim minority populations.

Srilanka Today!

With the end of the three decades war in 2009 and the Tsunami devastation in 2004 Sri Lanka is showing a rapid growth in infrastructure development. The recent improvement of road development is significant, particularly rural roads. The completion of the Highway network has helped massively to the industry of tourism. It has eased you to reach the world’s largest animals the Blue Whales and the Asian giants the Elephants within a few hours of the day.

With the easy access, most of the pristine beaches of Eastern Province are now fully crowded with tourists from all around the world. Visit the sacred Hindu Temples in the North. Experience the beauty of the island with your dream travel partner. Make a memorable holiday in “A Land Like No Other”