"Classic Ceylon" Sri Lanka by trisanna

Sri Lanka Travel Guide: 3,609 reviews and 8,335 photos

Sri Lanka is a diverse country. From the peaceful grasslands, where wild elephants live to the hectic city pace of Colombo. It's hard to imagine that in the north of the country-there is a stretch of desert. For almost ten years, the government and the tamil tigers have been at peace. Hopefully this will continue, since it will bring better economic stability to the country thru tourism and business.

We concentrated our trip on the cultural triangle, where Sri Lanka's ancient capitals area. Now UNESCO heritage sites. We didn't visit tsunami hit areas, but it's obvious that the lack of tourists is affecting everyone.

admiring the cobra, dambulla

Sri Lanka is made up of a few different ethnic groups. There are the Sinhalese, who are priimarily Buddhist. The Tamils arrived in Sri Lanka around 2,000 years ago, originally from south India or Tamil Nadu. The majority of the hindu population is concentrated in the northern city of Jaffna. Besides the Buddhists and Christians-there is a sizable Muslim population. Beautiful and ornate mosques are located in Colombo and Kandy.

birds flying off, near Polonnaruwa

Through time, Sri Lanka went through many historical and name changes. From Serendib to colonial Ceylon to the Independent country of Sri Lanka.

4th b.c.-10th century a.d. Reign of the first capital of Sri lanka-the city of Anuradhapura. Located in the northern central part of the country, this capital suffered many invasions from India, due to various religious differences.

1253-1400 the capital is moved to Polonnaruwa. Suffered attacks by Chinese

1505-Portuguese arrive

1658- Portuguese leave, Dutch take over.

1796-Dutch leave, British take over.

1815- The British have full control of Sri Lanka. Before this, Kandy was an independent state.

1948-Ceylon becomes an independent member of the British commonwealth. Now known as Sri Lanka.

Pros and Cons

Pros:lush, beautiful countryside, ancient ruins, friendly people
Cons:touts
In a nutshell:beautiful country

Last visit to Sri Lanka: Apr 2005
Intro Updated May 9, 2005
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Reviews (31)

A lot of touts Warnings and Dangers (4)

Throughout Sri Lanka there are touts. I noticed this more here than in other countries. If you are not interested, you... more travel advice

watch out for scams, kandy lake - Sri Lanka

Watch out for scams Warnings and Dangers (4)

Scams are everywhere, but Sri Lanka is the first place i really came across them. In the city of Kandy, i was warned by... more travel advice

Sightseeing in Colombo Things to Do (14)

If you have the time, you should have atleast one day in your itinerary. There are many beautiful colonial buildings- as... more travel advice

The cashew ladies Things to Do (14)

On the road from Colombo to Kandy, there is a village called Cadjugama, which is famous for their cashew nuts. There are... more travel advice

Favorites (3)
See All Cultural Triangle Ticket
Shopping (4)
See All Try some Sri Lankan marshmallows
Off The Beaten Path (1)
See the cobras

Comments (4)

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kyoub Oct 28, 2005 at 6:28 AM

Thanks for all the great tips. I hope to go there someday. Glad you enjoyed it in spite of the touts.
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bianchis Sep 2, 2005 at 12:52 AM

I was also caught. Paid an enormous amount for oils and spices.Trusted our tour bus (TUI) which took us there. Wrote about it but people's reaction were negative saying what did it matter losing a few buck. In fact it wasnt a few it was a lot of money.
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Rodan44 Jun 28, 2005 at 5:35 PM

wow looks like a great trip! sure hope i get to go someday! cheers!
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imstress May 9, 2005 at 10:48 PM

looks like u had a great Sri Lanka trip.