Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka is a teardrop shaped island in the Indian Ocean. The tropical landscape, verdant mountains, and vast stretches of coast make it an exotic paradise. There are two monsoon seasons. May to September affects the west and south of the island. From October to January the monsoon season hits the north and east of the country.
Population
Sri Lanka’s history is often linked to that of India. With the passing of time the country has developed a distinct identity of its own. Buddhism has survived well in Sri Lanka and is followed by seventy percent of the population. While much of Sri Lanka’s history is linked to emigration and occupation, archaeological findings indicate an indigenous population that date back hundreds of thousands of years.
With a population of around 23 million, three ethnic groups make up the majority of the population: The Sinhalese who are largely Buddhist, the Tamil who are largely Hindu and Christian, and the Sri Lankan Muslims.
- Seventy-five per cent of the population are Sinhalese who originated in northern India and first arrived in Sri Lanka 2500 years ago.
- The Tamils are believed to have largely arrived in Sri Lanka from Southern India at a similar time to the Sinhalese. However, there is evidence of Tamil speakers living in Sri Lanka before the arrival of the Sinhalese. Fifteen per cent of the population are Tamil (approximately a third of whom were brought over from India in the nineteenth century by the British to work on the plantations). The majority of Tamils are Hindu, but a large minority are Christian.
- The third ethnic group are Sri Lankan Muslims who make up almost 10% of the population.
History
Sri Lanka is home to extraordinary and impressive Buddhist temples, stupas, and statues. Each major archaeological site tells the chronological ancient history of Sri Lanka. Anuradhapura was the centre of the first Sinhalese kingdom and dates back 2200 years. Daily worship for many continues at this phenomenal site.
In the late 10th century, the Cholas (a mostly Hindu Tamil tribe from South India) invaded Anuradhapura and went on to establish their new capital at Polonnaruwa. Some eighty years later the Sinhalese regained control taking both Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa.
For almost 500 years, much of Sri Lanka was in the hands of Europeans – the Portuguese, the Dutch and eventually the British. In 1815, the British took control of the whole island nation until its independence in 1948. Ethnic tensions arose particularly between the Sinhalese and the Tamil. They threw the country into a thirty-year civil war until the Sinhalese government military defeated the Tamil Tigers in 2009. Whilst peace largely prevails, there have been underlying tensions between all three ethnic groups since the end of the civil war.
Safety in Sri Lanka
In recent years, safety in Sri Lanka has concerned people considering travelling to the country and the civil war and the Islamic terrorist attacks kept many away.
Easter 2019, six islamic terrorist suicide bombings on luxury hotels and churches killed 269 people in Colombo, nearby Negombo, and Batticaloa on the east coast. With the passing of time, there is now a renewed confidence in travel to Sri Lanka.
The Journey
July and August are the easiest time of year for me to travel. Many areas of Asia can be rainy and very hot during that time of the year. So, the opportunity to travel with moderate heat and cool in the mountains was most welcome, although Anuradhapura was searingly hot.
I had spent a couple of weeks in the Maldives before arriving and so the coastal areas were not a priority. The train ride from Colombo to Galle follows the southwest coast and reveals its delights. Winter would be a treat there!
Yala National Park is a short ride from Galle and July and August are good for spotting leopards, crocodiles, buffalo, jackals, mongoose, and a myriad of birds.
The rest of the journey from Yala was in the centre and central north of the island including the mountain village of Ella, the second city and ancient Buddhist site of Kandy, the massive lion rock at Sigiriya, elephants at Minneriya, the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, the even older city of Anuradhapura, and the true gem of Dambulla Cave.
Colombo
After the peace and quiet of the Maldives, the chaos, noise and scams of Colombo came as a jolt. It is considerably larger than any other cities in Sri Lanka and you will find the other towns and small cities much easier going. Nonetheless, Colombo has its treasures:
