Peter Peiris Fortnight- Luxury Sri Lanka Holidays

Sri Lanka Holidays: Adam's Peak, Sri Lanka

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 12:52:00 +0000

Sri Lanka Holidays: Adam's Peak, Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Holidays: Buddha Footprint 1

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 12:45:00 +0000

Sri Lanka Holidays: Buddha Footprint 1

Footprint of the Buddha. 1st century Gandhara.

Sri Lanka Holidays: Wild Life 1

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 11:58:00 +0000

Sri Lanka Holidays: Wild Life 1

Minneriya National Park

Ceylon Past & Present by Major C. M. Enriquez,

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 11:24:00 +0000

Sri Lanka Holidays present Introduction to the book “Ceylon Past & Present” by Major C. M. Enriquez, F.R.G.S Year 1812. Tour the ancient island of Sri Lanka with Riolta Lanka Holidays, Sri Lanka.

The oldest name of Ceylon, & one by which it is still known in many Oriental countries, is Lanka. The word Sinhaladivipa (Island of the Lion Race) passed to Selediba, Serendiva, Serendib, & so to the Arabian Selan Diva, the Portuguese Ceilao, the Dutch Zeilan & the British Ceylon.

With the exception of Egypt & Babylon, there is no country perhaps whose lost history has been more dramatically restored than that of Ceylon. A hundred years ago there existed merely a legend of Rama’s battle with the Apes, a tradition of Adam’s Peak & such confused items of history as Valentyne had collected & published in Dutch in 1726.

Then, in 1826, a book was found by an Englishman capable of appreciating it: & it transpired that Ceylon had kept a dynastic history, second in importance only to that of China. Old generations were made to live again with amazing wealth of detail, & with a charming humanity. Authentic history was pushed back to a period nearly four centuries B.C.

Since that revelation, the works of contemporary Chinese pilgrims have corroborated the story. The spade of the excavator has uncovered monuments whose splendour we could hardly have believed from mere manuscript records. But here was an ocular demonstration, when the forest was pushed back from sites which it had overwhelmed. And now the Archeologists have brought to bear that critical analysis which is separating the truth from a mass of incoherence & exaggeration.

It is a wonderful feat, & one of which we British may be proud-the more so because we are often accused of destroying what is indigenous & traditional in the East by our cold materialism. Here at last, we have restored to the Orient that which even tradition had lost: for upon the proud civilization of Ceylon remorseless Tamil raiders had ‘let in the jungle’:& the lowlands, which had once blossomed like a garden, were engulfed by forests that encumber it to this day.

Flourishing populations had dwindled to nothing. The great lakes of unique irrigation system had spilled their water over the land, turning it into a malarious swamp. And gradually, as the centuries gathered & grew, Ancient Ceylon, with all its glories, faded from the memory of man.

To-day the waters have returned again to the lakes. The canals flow as of old, & in a century the population has been quadrupled. Ancient capitals, locked in the relentless grip of forest roots, have been released, & sleep now in placid dignity upon open lawns. The bears have been driven from the monasteries. Elephants no longer stand on the tops of pagodas that once rivaled St. Paul’s in height. A dead country has been restored: & with it the people who endowed it with romance. Stout old King Watta Gamini Abhaya (Walagam Bahu) lives again: & in the remotest age we see the kind & gracious figure of Mahinda, the Apostle of Enlightenment.

Let us then ring up the curtain & watch the actors move across the stage with all their little tricks & affectations. So shall we see King Devanampiya Tissa ‘Beloved of the Gods’ & his great lieutenant: the kingly forms of King Duttha Gamini & Maha Sen; Kassyapa the villain; Parakrama Bahu the Great the hero There shall be scenes of magnificence and of abasement. After Success, the Four Horsemen shall be loosed. Then come fire & sword, & a book from the West. And so the curtain falls to a merry banging of Jazz.

Lanka In the Eyes of British

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 16:22:00 +0000

Tamils (Malabars) in Ancient Lanka

“Notwithstanding their numbers & their power, it is remarkable that the Malabars were never identified with any plan for promoting the prosperity & embellishment ofCeylon, or with any undertaking for the permanent improvement of the island. Unlike the Gangetic race, who were the earliest colonists, & with whom originated every project for enriching & adorning the country, the Malabars aspired not to beautify or enrich, but to impoverish & deface;- & nothing can more strikingly bespeak the inferiority of the southern race than the single fact that everything tending to exalt & to civilize, in the early condition of Ceylon, was introduced by the northern conquerors, whilst all that contributed to ruin & debase it is distinctly traceable to the presence & influence of the Malabars”
Ceylon An Account of The Island Physical, Historical & Topographical by Sir James Emerson Tennent, K.CS. LL. D &c. 1859 London

Malarbars – Maruading Dravidian invaders from Southern India to Sri Lanka.
Southern race - Maruading Dravidian invaders from Southern India toSri Lanka.
Gangetic race - Aryan Sinhalese settlers of the island of Sri Lanka from East India.

... Tamil (whose forebears in ancient Sinhalese history played a part analogous to that of Attila's Huns), perperated an amusing wriggle when pressed by his critics to produce Litera scripta in proof of his claim that the ..

Cinnamon & Frangipanni: Ashely Gibson Year 1923 London, U.K.

Here at last, we have restored to the Orient that which even tradition had lost: for upon the proud civilization of Ceylon remorseless Tamil raiders had ‘let in the jungle’:& the lowlands, which had once blossomed like a garden, were engulfed by forests that encumber it to this day.

“Ceylon Past & Present” by Major C. M. Enriquez, F.R.G.S Year 1812

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Serendipity 3

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 10:28:00 +0000

Sri Lanka Holidays notes 1, 2 & 3 supporting the extract are made by bunpeiris.

1. Sri Lanka Holidays take you to coastal cities of colonial heritage: Colombo, Mount Lavinia & Galle.

2. Sri Lanka Holidays take you to VOC Galle Dutch Fort of Dutch colonial heritage.

3. Sinhalese History web page of Sri Lanka Holidays enlighten you of the murder & mayhem, destruction & devastation, rack & ruin perpetrated by the marauding Dravidian invaders from Southern India.

Serendipity Post 3 by bunpeiris, Moratuwa, Sri Lanka

Posted by courtesy of Dr. Ananada W. P. Guruge, U.S.A.

Serendipity of Andrew Geroge by Dr. Anada W. P. Guruge

Chapter 1

Unraveling a Mystery

Unconsciously, I was counting days. Each sunny day was a harbinger of the warmth of my still little known destination. As I snoozed under my favourite hanging willow tree, I dreamt of the sunny beaches of the far-off island.

That day my dream was real. It was a scene from my past-my childhood. It was of my mother sunbathing under the same willow tree. She was with a friend whom I could not recall. They were speaking of their success in acquiring a tan to last the on-coming winter of southern Canada.

“I haven’t to bother about it,” my mother was telling her showing her tawny arms & legs. “I am lucky I have a tan from the day I was born.”

‘How come?” queried her friend.

‘My father comes from an island near India,” said my mother.

I got up with a jerk. Was it a figment of my imagination, heightened by my preoccupation with Ceylon? Or could it really be that my grandfather was from Asia & even possibly from Ceylon. I had to find out. All I needed was to write to my mother who lived in a suburb of Toronto on Lake Ontario.

I could not recall my grandparents. Had I seen either of them as a child? I had no recollections whatsoever. It was a further matter on which my mother might enlighten me.

I spent the rest of the afternoon writing a long letter to my mother literary with a score of questions. I concluded it with a query: “Mom, am I on the threshold of discovering my lost identity & legacy?”

On my return to the University, I began to read on Ceylon. At first, the encyclopedias. They gave me some basic information.

Ceylon was a Crown Colony of the British Empire (1) from 1802 to 1948. Before that for three hundred years parts of it had been under the Portuguese & Dutch (2). Now it was a Dominion of the British Commonwealth, similar to Canada. It was a sovereign state & not a part of India. The Queen of England was also the Queen of Ceylon. But the British Parliament had no legislative control over Ceylon.

It had a Governor-General, who represented the Queen & assented to Acts of Parliament in her name. Its constriction provided for a bi-cameral system of government; a Senate & a House of Representatives. Legislation to abolish the Senate was pending. Several political parties had come into existence & the general elections had been both orderly & decisive.

The people of Ceylon had enjoyed universal franchise from 1931 onwards & everyone-males as well as females, over the age of eighteen-had the right of voting. They had used it to change their central government & their local governing bodies peacefully.

The leader of the party with the largest number of seats in the House of Representatives became the Prime Minister & he or she appointed ministers. Together they formed the Cabinet that was collectively responsible to the Parliament & to the people for all executive functions of the country. Ceylon had earned the unique credit of electing by popular vote the world’s first women head of government.

The question hour with which every parliamentary session began was an opportunity for a Member of Parliament to ask ministers of anything that happened in their ministers. So ‘the smiling brownies’ of our small town grocer were an enlightened lot, I concluded.

I also began to look for such bits of information as were relevant to my proposed research project. The Island was separated from the Indian Sub-Continent by the Palk Strait which at the narrowest stretch was about eighteen miles wide. The nearness to India determined the character & the diversity of the population. The earliest recorded waves of migrations were from the northwestern & northeastern regions of India. They constituted the majority who spoke an Indo-European or Aryan language & formed the Sinhala Kingdom that had an unbroken history of over twenty-four centuries of independent existence.

South Indian invaders had ruled parts of the Island from time to time. The northern region was a part of the Cola Empire of the tenth century only for a brief period of fifty-even years (3). Since then a substantial Tamil population had settled down in northern & eastern parts of the island. Arab traders & Muslims from South India had migrated & formed the second minority. The latest segment of the population comprised South Indian indentured labor that the British imported to develop their plantations. Scattered about in urban areas was also a small population of descendants of European powers- especially the Dutch.

Unraveling a Mystery will be continued by Sri Lanka Holidays

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Buddha

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 06:01:00 +0000

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Deepavali

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:42:00 +0000

Skanda Pandia Lanka Light & Enlightement to all bunpeiris

Deepavali, popularly known as the "festival of lights" is celebrated by the minority Hindus (18% of the population) of Sri Lanka as well as the Hindus in India. The great festival known by Diwali in India, is a way of celebrating the Hindu concept of Inner Light Atman. Diwali also celebrates the return of most righteous Lord Rama with his consort Sita to Ayodhya, India from Lanka following the epic war, which ended with the death of Demon King Rawana of Lanka.

Although the cycle of birth, death & rebirth on the basis of accumulated merits, demerits, vices & virtues is central to Buddhism, the so called reincarnation on the basis of atman (soul) of Hindunism is rejected in the doctrine of Buddhism.

Then again, the great Hindu epic of Ramayana of India is considered as mythology by the Sinhalese of Sri Lanka. King Rawana of Lanka has no place in the great 2551 (543 BC+ 2008) years of recorded & unbroken history Sri Lanka. As regards the history of Sri Lanka, its authenticity is amply borne out by archeological, epigraphical & numismatic evidence which corroborates, supplements & clarifies the wealth of information recorded in The Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka, The Mahavamsa.

However the ancient island of Sri Lanka is studded with locations associated with the Hindu epic of Ramayana. Among the most famous locations are Ritigala in the dry plains, Rumassala Rock at Unawatuna Bay Beach in the western coastal belt, Rawana temple at Nuwara Eliya in the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka.

www.mysrilankaholidays.com or www.rioltalankaholidays, an extensive if not exhausting, website on tourist attractions of Sri Lanka was hosted on last Deepavali. i.e. 8th Nov. 2007-Day of Light & Enlightenment (Deepavali)

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Serendipity 2

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:45:00 +0000

Serendipity Post 2 bunpeiris,Moratuwa

Posted by courtesy of Dr. Ananda W. P. Guruge

Serendipity of Andrew George by Dr. Ananda W. P. Guruge

Chapter 1

A Voyage of Discovery

It was the summer of 1964 & I was in my cottage on Varney Point Road by Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire. A slight drizzle had compelled me to abandon my usual siesta on the beach.

“A message for Professor Andrew George,” the Western Union Clerk announced over the telephone. “Congratulations. Fulbright Research grant for eighteen months awarded to Ceylon-Bureau of Education & Culture.’

‘Ceylon –did you say? I asked her.

“That’s right, sir. ‘C E Y L O N.’ She spelled it for me.

I had applied for a research grant under an International Cultural Relations Project. All I wished was to study the process of cultural interaction & assimilation in any country emerging from a pre-industrial culture to one of modern technology.

My research with the tribes in conflict in the Amazon Basin in Brazil had been recently upheld as innovative & trail-blazing. I was being credited to have ventured into a new field that I tentatively called Anthropological Futurology. I had developed a method to project anthropological indicators to foresee possible multidimensional trends in nascent conflicts. I was keen to test my method & conclusions in a country where the internecine conflicts were historically deep-seated & complicated recently by economic & political developments. I had indicated that a pluralistic society emerging from Colonialism would be ideal. Apparently some knowledgeable person in the bureau of Education & Culture had found Ceylon to suit my need.

Where is Ceylon

I vaguely remembered Ceylon as an island close to India. But that was about all I knew of it. I was not sure whether it was a state or province of India or not. Being a Professor, held in high esteem by many undergraduate & graduate students, I felt a bit ashamed that I should know nothing about a country that the Fulbright Commission in Washington DC has thought to be important enough for a research project of eighteen months. The fault, if any, was in the system of education that laid little emphasis on the study of the world outside Europe. I tried to see how many others in the neighborhood were in a similar position.

In the small town of Gilford where I was at the time I received the message, others knew even less, I thought. But I ventured to ask a few persons whether they had heard of a place called CEYLON. I had a number of surprising answers.

The man who sells stamps at the Post Office said that he came from Ceylon. But that turned out to be Ceylon, Minnesota, a small community of barely a thousand people. But they had a newspaper that according to my informant was known as the ‘CEYLON GAZETEER.” He showed me the latest issue, which, of course, shed no light on my search.

Several people had heard of Ceylon as an active supporter of the Western Bloc about a decade or two ago. One had heard of the assassination of a Prime Minister. Two women were sure it was a land governed by a woman president or prime minister.

The only person who had been to Ceylon was our grocer, John. He was there during the 2^nd World War. He was posted to a Naval Base on the northeastern coast of the Island. All he remembered were the jungles where he had gone deer hunting on his off-days. John spoke of wild elephants & leopards, bears & antelopes, sambhur & deer. He did not like the giant pythons, cobras or, as a matter of fact, any snakes or crawling creatures. He hated the viper that he called the most vicious of all creatures he knew. He had vivid memories of colorful birds; the peacock with its shiny blue-green & gold plumes, the variegated wild fowl, the green parrot & the black mynah with golden beak & feet. He simply loved Ceylon & her flora & fauna, selectively, of course.

Once I gave him a chance to speak on Ceylon, I could never get him stop even if I had anything very urgent. He came out with exciting accounts of his own experiences in the jungles: how he lost his way & walked into remote villages where he was received with cordiality & given a whole quart of bees’ honey to drink. He described his night vigil near a waterhole. He could scarcely conceal his excitement as he gave a vivid account of animals as they came for their nightly drink of water: their wariness & cunning, their system of protocol, the fear & instinct which were the only protective armor of the smaller species; the daring audacity of the leopard; & the majestic pride of the elephant. By morning, the jungle sky was literary covered with flock after flock of migrant birds, which had flown several thousand miles to avoid the winter of their original homes. He also remembered the exotic orchids, specially fox-tails, almost a yard in length.

John had met only a few people. He said that they were generally friendly & helpful. He called them ‘the smiling brownies.’ He seemed to like the little kids he met around the camp. He spoke gratefully of the villagers who had, on several occasions, helped him to find his way back to the camp. They were poor & eked out a bare existence fro the dry, dusty fields in which they worked for hours in the scorching sun. But they would not accept any payment for a favour done. They were hospitable too. He described how the village folks once cooked a meal for hi & two friends; they had lost their way in the jungle & had no food for a whole day. It was the most delicious dinner he had eaten in his life, he swore. Our grocer’s information & moreso, his enthusiasm, made me look forward to my assignment in Ceylon with a rare degree of anticipation. Even if Ceylon could offer only these exciting jungles & ‘the smiling brownies” of the villages, it was worth a visit. In any case, I had wanted a change from my hectic life in the States. A change of scene would also soften the blow of broken relationship. So I said to myself, ‘This is it.”

Sri Lanka Holidays: Pinnawela

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 13:19:00 +0000

Visit Pinnawela Elephant Orphange, close to Kandy, Sri Lanka with Sri Lanka Holidays.

Twice a day after the meals
Twice a day elephants here, after the meals, are driven across the road to May Oya river for a leisurely bath. And you will be watching their antics from the comfort of river bank, or in superior comfort, from the terraces of the Pinnalanda Restaurant or Hotel Elephant Park uphill of the river.

Sri Lanka Holidays: Serendipity 1

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 13:20:00 +0000

Posted by courtesy of Dr. Ananda W. P. Guruge, U.S.A. bunpeiris, Moratuwa,Sri Lanka.

Serendipity of Andrew George

Sequel to Free At Last In Paradise

Ananda W. P. Guruge

Godage International Publishers (Pvt) Ltd., Sri Lanka

ISBN 978-955-30-0825-1

Ser-en-di-p'i-ty, n. [coined by Horace Walpole (c.1754) after his tale The Three Princess of Serendip (i.e. Ceylon = Sri Lanka) who made such discoveries.] an apparent aptitiude for making discoveries accidentally. (Webster)

Dedication by Dr. Ananda W. P. Guruge

To my beloved parents S.W. P. & Rupawathie Guruge

who from my infancy instilled in me a deep love for my motherland,

& an abiding appreciation of

its scenic beauty, literature & cultural diversity

Forward by David J. Vickery

The imaginery discourses in Ananda Guruge's "Voices from Ancient Sri Lanka" come full-circle in the "Serendipity of Andrew George" in which the country, its peoples & their cultures are explored at the present time. It is unique in its comprehensive approach to the realities of modern Sri Lanka.

Many visiting Sri Lanka will stay in Colombo, Kandy & Galle & think they have seen & come to know the country. "Serendipity of Andrew George" with its detailed account of the geography, history, art & architecture, religions, & societies in all their diversity will show just what they have missed. A more comprehensive account of any country & its society would be hard to find.

It is a remarkable mix of biography & extensive travel throughout Sri Lanka. It can be read as novel & also a travel guide. Written in the form of a biography of a third generation American immigrant returning to the Island in search of his hitherto unknown riits, it leads one to fascinating experiences in an ancient nation with its exotic customs, taboos & social norms. A compulsive read for visitors & even those reading at home over breakfast. I wish I had it during my ten years in Sri Lanka, as it would have enabled me to add to my enjoyment of a wonderful Island.

David J. Vickery, School Building Architect,

UNESCO Representative in Sri Lanka in the 1960s,

Frithville, Boston, Lincolnshire, Britain

Author's Note

"Serendipity of Andrew George" is the second part of a triology on Sri Lanka's bold & steady march into the twenty-first century.

Known in history as Tambapanni, Taprobane, Lanka, Sainhalaka, Salike, Ratnadvipa, Parasamudra, Sihaladipa, Sieladiba, Sinhalanamdipa, Selendip/Serendip, Sihala, TaShih, Hsi-lan-ch'ih. Ceylan, Ceylaan, Ceylon, & now Sri Lanka, the little island near the southeren tip of India, has been the home to an ancient civilization from at least 400 BCE. Indians, Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Venetians, Arabs, the French, Danes, the Portuguese, the Dutch & the British visited it for trade, adventure, & cultural exploration. Sri Lanka, therefore, evolved less as a melting pot but more as a colorful quilt-"a tossed salad of at least four distinct ingredients," as I like to call it.

Home to Buddhism for twenty-three centuries, its leadership role in the preservation, the interpretation & the promotion of this gentle, compassionate religion has been extraordinary. Partially a colony of the Portuguese & the Dutch for three hundred years from 1505, it was a British Crown Colony from 1796/1815 to 1948. Sixty years of independence, fraught with every vicissitude a new modern nation has to encounter, are a record of success & failure, elation & despair. Its history, however, inspires the everspringing hope that the Island has a destiny to fulfill for humanity.

The first part "Free at Last in Paradise" traces the hundred-year bid for freedom from foreign domination from rebellion of 1848 to independence in 1948. It highlights the role of Colonel Henry Steel Olcott of Orange, New Jersey, U.S.A. & his proteges, Anagarika Dharmapala & Don Baron Jayatilake.

This part "Serendipity of Andrew George," reflects life during the best decade in recent history. The 1960s saw the antion through significant political experimentations. Electing the first women head of government in modern world history, a middle-of-the road party included communists & socialists in a coalition government during first five years. For the rest of the decade, a conservative nationalist party formed a coalition with the Tamil Federal Party, bringing for the first & the last time time a political party of the principal ethnic minority to hold office in government. It was an era to be recalled with nostalgia for the peace & security that prevailed & recorded for significant achievements in many facets of development. Chronicling this grand era is what this volume attempts to do.

Andrew George is not totally fictional, even though his search for his lost roots is. It is a composite character created to represent as many as a score American, British, French,Italian, German & Asian scholars & educators whom I have accompanied to various parts of the country during the 'sixties as a part of my official duties. The tours, conversations, & incidents, therefore, are true to life & reflect their curiosity, observations & experiences. Names of real persons are in bold font when they appear for the first time.

I am deeply indebted to my wife Darshanika for all assistance & encouragement, to Dr. Richard T. Arndt & Mr. David J. Vickery for reading the manuscript & offering many suggestions, to the late Mr. Padmal de Silva for the previous reviews published in Sri Lanka, Britain & the USA (One used in this volume as the Preface), to Shao-chen (Helen) Chang & Lung-yu (Terry) Tseng for preparing the typescript, Hee Jong You for being helpful in innumerable ways, to Mr. Sumanasiri Godage for deciding to publish this Sri Lankan Edition & to the staff of the Godage International Publishers for their cooperation.

Ananda W. P. Guruge

January 2008

Sri Lanka Holidays:Names of Sri Lanka

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 14:41:00 +0000

Names of Sri Lanka

Tour the Land of Delights, Sri Lanka with Riolta Sri Lanka Holidays, Sri Lanka.

During Maha Badra Kalpa (Sanskrit) (1)

The chronicles Dipavamsa & Mahavamsa say that Sri Lanka during the dispensation of Buddha Kaku-sanda, Konagmaa, Kasyapa was respectively known as Ojadipa, Varadipa & Mandadipa.

In the mythological era of Yakka tribe kings Malyavath, Sumalin & Malin preceding the mythology of King Ravana, the island was known by the name Lanka meaning resplendent.

Then in the mythologycal era of King Ravana, the island was known by the name, Lanka, a Sanskrit word, meaning abundance, happiness, or one hundred thousand.

During the period of dispensation of Gauthama Buddha (Historical Buddha of Maha Badra Kalpa, i.e. 6th cenury BC during reign of King Chulodara & King Mahadora of Yakka tribe: Lanka

In a period prior to the recorded history: Lanka, Elu or Hela

With the arrival of Prince Wiyaya from East India in 543 BC: Tambapanni

Pali Tambapanni=Sanskrit Tamrapani=greek Taprobane. The Great Mauryan King Asoka of India in his Grinar inscriptions & the Greek geographer Ptolemy refered to Sri Lanka by these names.

Since the begining of recorded history of the island in 543 BC: Lanka or Sinhala

The name Sinhala is a variation of Singha, the north Indian name for a lion (2), derived from the legendary history of Prince Vijaya, the conqueror of the island. The island was called Sinhala, Silan dwipa, or Sihale dwipe, meaning the descendants of lion.

In the second century A.D.: Lanka was called Serendib a derivation of Sinhala by the Arab merchents.

At the time of the visit of Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Fa Hsien in A.D. 413: Sinhala

During the visit of Marco Polo in AD 1254-1324: Marco Polo called the island Seilan.

In the time of Portuguese (1505-1656): Ceilao; Dutch (1656-1796): Zeilan ; British 91796-1948): Ceylon; since independence from British in 1948 till 1972: Ceylon

In 1515 Portuguese captain made great efforts to persuade Portugal to name the island Tennaserim meaning 'land of delights" in an ancient Indian language. But the Portuguese had already setled in with the name Ceilao.

Since 1972: Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Holidays: Railways

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 08:30:00 +0000

Tour the Land of Delights, Sri Lanka with Riolta Sri Lanka Holidays, Sri Lanka

"Sir, too many rivers & rocks."

"Blast the rocks & dam the rivers"

So built the Colombo-Badulla railway line.

By the way, the British engineers drilled the hills too: 46 tunnels. The longest among the tunnels is the Poolbank tunnel, between Hatton & Kotagala, runing 562m(1842ft) with a curve in the middle in such a way, one end of the tunnel cannot be seen from the other end. Then again, our tunnels are not illuminated at all. You will be travelling in dark with only the cabin of your train illuminated by overhead electric lamps.

Railway Bridges were built by Robert Stephenson (1803-1859), the son of George Stephenson (1781-1848), the inventor of the steam engine "Rocket".

Ceylon Railway line to Central Highlands & Ceylon Tea

Following the greatest betrayal ever, of the island nation, by Kandyan Nobles in the year 1815, the British colonialists with their masterful attitude & fanatical zeal, lost no opportunity, left no stone unturned to exploit the ancient island of Sri Lanka for the glory of modern Great British Market. Having distributed our lands among themselves at 50 Ceylonese cents an acre, the colonialists made haste with their industry in the mild climate & rich soil in the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka, then called Ceylon. The Central Highlands, hedged in by impenetrable forests & precipitous mountain ranges made way & waste lands were cleared. The consummate combination of pioneering spirit & unfailing courage of the planters resulted in giving birth to the coffee industry which reached its zenith in the year 1872.

While the planters were making great strides in the industry, there arose the need to transport the estate produce speedily to Colombo harbour. The British planters geared up the government drive for a railway line between seaport of Colombo & Kandy, the gateway to Central highlands of the island. With the colonial government of Ceylon, holding out every inducement to the growth of the lucrative coffee industry, the first train to Ambepussa from Colombo covering a distance of 54km began its historic journey on December 27, 1864. The first train from Colombo to Kandy ran on April 26, 1867. The railway line was extended to Gampola in 1865.

As all good things must come to end, the lucrative coffee industry too was to fall in line with the outbreak of coffee rust in 1869. Such was the devastation, even the ever courageous & affluent planters too lost heart. Such was the disappointment, popular coffee, in the overnight became the bitter berries of the planters. Such was the tragedy, it gave birth to fiction such as "Bitter Berries''. The novel by Christine Spittal Wilson, daughter of much adored Ceylonese writer Dr. R. L. Spittal was translated into Sinhalese by the title "Thitha Kopei" meaning bitter coffee in Sinhalese.

But then the planters wouldn't be denied in their enterprising virtue for long. The bitterness was soon shaken off. A new cash crop stronger than coffee plant was found. Undaunted & obstinate with courage, the planters carried on to establish legendary industry of Ceylon Tea, the finest tea in the world. Meanwhile the Ceylon Railway line progressed on its own journey to Hatton in 1884, then to Talawakelle in the same year, then to Nanuoya in 1885, then to Bandarawela in 1894 & finally to Badulla in 1924. Once again the story of construction of Ceylon Railway lines, drilling, winding, ascending, circling hills, a hill after hill, over the rivers & streams from the sea level at Colombo to Badulla in the Central Highlands is a story that can be told & retold never losing its flavour like the distinctive flavour of Ceylon Tea.

Sri Lanka Holidays: Warts and All

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:58:00 +0000

Marginal Remarks

1. Beautiful Sri Lanka

While I blog Yasantha of Gold FM Sri Lanka greet us 'Good Morning Beautiful Sri Lanka" & play songs saying those are from beautiful Sri Lanka.

So no matter he is tired or not of the succession of corrupt regimes of the island, he keep on reminding us our land is beautiful although the politicians are ugly.

We need patriotism, most of all.

A salute to Yasatha

Hail the soldiers who defend our motherland & the two brothers who give leadership

Sri Lanka Holidays: Ceylon by Joao Ribeiro

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:31:00 +0000

The beautiful Island of Ceilao (1) stretches from the sixth to about the tenth degree of north latitude, that is, from the Point of Galle to the Point of the Rocks(2). Its length is seventy-two leagues(3) & its breadth forty-seven, which is the distance from Chilao to Trequimale(4); while its circumference is one hundred & ninety leagues, & it lies forty-five leagues to the East of Cape Comorim. Owing to its position it is the Mistress of all those regions which are commonly named India, embracing the kingdoms & provinces lying between those two handsome rivers, the Indus & the Ganges, which are separated from one another by more than six hundred leagues of coast line.

From Cape Comorim the Coast of the Fishery(5) runs inland, forming a gulf between Ceilao & the mainland, similar to the Adriatic. This has a length of fifty-seven leagues & a breadth of thirty-six, with its centre in the Islands of Ramanacor (6) & Manar, between which lie twelve leagues of shallows. The only means of approach at this centre to the Coast of Xoromandel is afforded by two very narrow channels, the one at Ramanacor & the other at Mannar, through each of which only a small sumaca (7) can make its way, & that too when the sea is high. All vessels sailing those seas, whether from South to North or from North to South, must go past the Point of Galle, since it is the most Southerly among those lands; whrefore Ceilao is by he position the Crown of the whole India, & God would appear to have created her to the Mistress of that great world, dowering her with a healthful & benign climate, with the greatest treasures which he has distributed over the whole earth.

For a clearer understanding it will be reasonable to describe the provinces; their, wealth & products; our fortresses therein; the title of our Monarchs to this beautiful Island; & the laws & customs which we have preserved among the natives toghether with their rites & ceremonies. All this will be done with the accuracy possible to one who has spent eighteen years there, & lived from the age of fourteen(8) in those forests, amidst the miseries & ceaseless anxieties of a war so terrible, that one scarcely knows how to relate them so as to be able to be unnderstood.

(1) From the Arabic Selon dip, a corruption of Sri Lanka dvipa

(2) Ponta das Pedras was the name applied by the Portuguese to Paritti Turai, the most northerly point in Ceylon(Sri Lanka). The Portuguese name still survives in the English form of Point Pedro.

(3) A Portuguese league was identical with the Sinhalese, being approximately four English miles.

(4) The Portuguese form of the native name, Trikuna Male, of the loftiest of the headlands commanding the finest natural harbour in Indian waters. The English name for the town is Trincomalee.

(5) That is, of the South Indian Pearl Fishery.

(6) The Portuguese form of Ramana Kovil, the Temple of Rama. This is the Island of Ramesvaram, the centr of the Indian pearl fishery, which contain one of the most famous temples in India.

(7) A sailing vessel of shallow draught

(8) He was eighteen when he came to Ceylon.

ABOVE IS CHAPTER ONE OF 'THE HISTORIC TRAGEDY OF THE ISLAND OF CEILAO' BY CAPTAIN JOAO RIBEIRO, LISBON 1685.

TRANSLATED FROM PORTUGUESE TO ENGLISH BY P.E. PIERIS, SRI LANKA, 1947

Rebeiro considered it was a historic tragedy that the Portuguese were not able to conquer the island. It was in the small island of Sri Lanka that the Portuguese armies suffered heaviest defeats during the heyday of Poruguese maritime power. bunpeiris

Sri Lanka Holidays:Ceylon by Tennent

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 01:23:00 +0000

GENERAL ASPECT.—Ceylon, from whatever direction it is approached, unfolds a scene of loveliness and grandeur unsurpassed, if it be rivalled, by any land in the universe. The traveller from Bengal, leaving behind the melancholy delta of the Ganges and the torrid coast of Coromandel; or the adventurer from Europe, recently inured to the sands of Egypt and the scorched headlands of Arabia, is alike entranced by the vision of beauty which expands before him as the island rises from the sea, its lofty mountains covered by luxuriant forests, and its shores, till they meet the ripple of the waves, bright with the foliage of perpetual spring.

The Brahmans designated it by the epithet of "the resplendent," and in their dreamy rhapsodies extolled it as the region of mystery and sublimity ; the Buddhist poets gracefully apostrophised it as "a pearl upon the brow of India;" the Chinese knew it as the "island of jewels;" the Greeks as the "land of the hyacinth and the ruby;" the Mahometans, in the intensity of their delight, assigned it to the exiled parents of mankind as a new elysium to console them for the loss of Paradise; and the early navigators of Europe, as they returned dazzled with its gems, and laden with its costly spices, propagated the fable that far to seaward the very breeze that blew from it was redolent of perfume. In later and less imaginative times, Ceylon has still maintained the renown of its attractions, and exhibits in all its varied charms "the highest conceivable development of Indian nature."

Picturesque Outline.—The nucleus of its mountain masses consists of gneissic, granitic, and other crystalline rocks, which in their resistless upheaval have rent the superincumbent strata, raising them into lofty pyramids and crags, or hurling them in gigantic fragments to the plains below. Time and decay are slow in their assaults on these towering precipices and splintered pinnacles; and from the absence of more perishable materials, there are few graceful sweeps along the higher chains or rolling downs in the lower ranges of the hills. Every bold elevation is crowned by battlemented cliffs, and flanked by chasms in which the shattered strata are seen as sharp and as rugged as if they had but recently undergone the grand convulsion that displaced them.

Foliage and Verdure.—The soil in these regions is consequently light and unremunerative, but the plentiful moisture arising from the interception of every passing vapour from the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal, added to the intense warmth of the atmosphere, combine to force a vegetation so rich and luxuriant, that imagination can picture nothing more wondrous and charming; every level spot is enamelled with verdure, forests of never-fading bloom cover mountain and valley; flowers of the brightest hues grow in profusion over the plains, and delicate climbing plants, rooted in the shelving rocks, hang in huge festoons down the edge of every precipice.

Unlike the forests of Europe, in which the excess of some peculiar trees imparts a character of monotony and graveness to the outline and colouring, the forests of Ceylon are singularly attractive from the endless variety of their foliage, and the vivid contrast of its hues. The mountains, especially those looking towards the east and south, rise abruptly to prodigious and almost precipitous heights above the level plains; the rivers wind through woods below like threads of silver through green embroidery, till they are lost in a dim haze which conceals the far horizon; and through this a line of tremulous light marks where the sunbeams are glittering among the waves upon the distant shore.

From age to age a scene so lovely has imparted a colouring of romance to the adventures of the seamen who, in the eagerness of commerce, swept round the shores of India, to bring back the pearls and precious stones, the cinnamon and odours, of Ceylon. The tales of the Arabians are fraught with the wonders of "Serendib;" and the mariners of the Persian Gulf have left a record of their delight in reaching the calm havens of the island, and reposing for months together in valleys where the waters of the sea were overshadowed by woods, and the gardens were blooming in perennial summer.

Geographical Position.—Notwithstanding the fact that the Hindus, in their system of the universe, had given prominent importance to Ceylon, their first meridian, "the meridian of Lanka," being supposed to pass over the island, they propounded the most extravagant ideas, both as to its position and extent; expanding it to the proportions of a continent, and at the same time placing it a considerable distance south-east of India.

The native Buddhist historians, unable to confirm the exaggerations of the Brahmans, and yet reluctant to detract from the epic renown of their country by disclaiming its stupendous dimensions, attempted to reconcile its actual extent with the fables of the eastern astronomers by imputing to the agency of earthquakes the submersion of vast regions by the sea. But evidence is wanting to corroborate the assertion of such an occurrence, at least within the historic period; no record of it exists in the earliest writings of the Hindus, the Arabians, or Persians; who, had the tradition survived, would eagerly have chronicled a catastrophe so appalling. Geologic analogy, so far as an inference is derivable from the formation of the adjoining coasts, both of India and Ceylon, is opposed to its probability; and not only plants, but animals, mammalia, birds, reptiles, and insects, exist in Ceylon, which are not to be found in the flora or fauna of the Indian continent.

Still in the infancy of geographical knowledge, and before Ceylon had been circumnavigated by Europeans, the mythical delusions of the Hindus were transmitted to the West, and the dimensions of the island were expanded till its southern extremity fell below the equator, and its breadth was prolonged till it touched alike on Africa and China.

The Greeks who, after the Indian conquests of Alexander, brought back the earliest accounts of the East, repeated them without material correction, and reported the island to be nearly twenty times its actual extent. Onesicritus, a pilot of the expedition, assigned to it a magnitude of 5000 stadia, equal to 500 geographical miles. Eratosthenes attempted to fix its position, but went so widely astray that his first (that is his most southern) parallel passed through it and the "Cinnamon Land," the Regio Cinnamomifera, on the east coast of Africa. He placed Ceylon at the distance of seven days' sail from the south of India, and he too assigned to its western coast an extent of 5000 stadia. Both those authorities are quoted by Strabo, who says that the size of Taprobane was not less than that of Britain.

The round numbers employed by those authors, and by the Greek geographers generally, who borrow from them, serve to show that their knowledge was merely collected from rumours; and that in all probability they were indebted for their information to the stories of Arabian or Hindu sailors returning from the Eastern seas.

Pliny learned from the Singhalese Ambassador who visited Rome in the reign of Claudius, that the breadth of Ceylon was 10,000 stadia from west to east; and Ptolemy fully developed the idea of his predecessors, that it lay opposite to the "Cinnamon Land," and assigned to it a length from north to south of nearly fifteen degrees, with a breadth of eleven, an exaggeration of the truth nearly twenty-fold. Agathemerus copies Ptolemy; and the plain and sensible author of the "Periplus" (attributed to Arrian), still labouring with the delusion of the magnitude of Ceylon, makes it stretch almost to the opposite coast of Africa.

These extravagant ideas of the magnitude of Ceylon were not entirely removed till many centuries later. The Arabian geographers, Massoudi, Edrisi, and Aboulfeda, had no accurate data by which to correct the errors of their Greek predecessors. The maps of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries repeated their distortions ; and Marco Polo, in the fourteenth century, who gives the island the usual exaggerated dimensions, yet informs us that it is now but one half the size it had been at a former period, the rest having been engulfed by the sea.

ABOVE IS AN EXTRACT FROM THE BOOK "CEYLON" BY JAMES EMERSON TENNENT, LONDON, 1859

Sri Lanka Holidays: Ceylon by Forbes

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:21:00 +0000

The beautiful sceneary of Ceylon, its mild climate, rich vegetation, & some of its valuable natural productions, have already made known to the British public. The immense consequence of this island, from its position, & the harbour of Trincomalee, could never have been overlooked; so long as the British crown holds sway in India, or British merchants shall trade to the East, its importance can hardly be overrated; now , however, not only are the resources of thsi country,its most remote valleys & elevated plains, better known to Europeans; but the history of its inhabitants & of the island, its former state & late improvement, equally excite curiosity & demand attention. From the native chronicles we find, that the ancestors of a people whom Britons long regarded as savages, & for some time treated as slaves, existed as numerous & comparatively civilized nation at a period antecedent to the discovery of Great Britain & its semi-barbarous inhabitants.

The ancient & continued annals of the Cingalese race have been preserved for upwards of twenty-three centuries, & describe the erection or formation of all those extensive works, cities, tanks, temples,-whose ruins & numerous inscriptions remain to verify the historical records. For a great proportion of that long period the natives of Ceylon will be found to have remained stationary, or to have retrogated in arts, perhaps in intelligence; whilst Britons, advancing in civilization with extraordinary rapidity,benefiting by experience, & improving in policy, have voluntarily abandoned their arbitrary rule in the island, for a mild, free, but still efficient Government. From this circumstance Ceylon is already advancing beyond that barrier of mediocrity, which in Asia seems to have arrested mind & manners at a particular point of civilization.

ABOVE IS THE BEGINING OF 1st CHAPTER OF 'ELEVEN YEARS IN CEYLON" BY MAJOR FORBES, LONDON, 1840

Sri Lanka Holidays: Mangosteens

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:33:00 +0000

Mangosteens

Kalutara is one of the few places in Ceylon that produces good mangosteens-& it would be worth walking the twenty-six miles from Colombo for a good mangosteen. There is no fruit in the world to equal it; it peels almost as easily as banana, with no loose juice to dribble down your chin or squirt into your eye, & serves you with little segments like orange-pigs but ready separated for you, each a mouthful;& it tastes like Heaven.

Above is an extract from the book "Ceylon" by R. Raven-Hart, Year 1964

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Railway lines

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:31:00 +0000

Do you see Moratuwa in the map, just below Colombo? That's where I am.

Western Coastal Belt.

Sri Lanka Holidays:Sri Lanka

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:24:00 +0000

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS: Visa

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:50:00 +0000

VISA

For natinonls from Great Britain, tourist visa are issued on arrival. To Japanese & Indians too.

For nationals of most countries, visas are issued on arrival for 30 days. Extention of tourist visas are handled by the Department of Immigration and Emigration, for further details call Tel: 011 2597511 or visit this link.

Tourist Visa On Arrival
A	Albania, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan
B	Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria
C	Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic
D	Denmark
E	Estonia
F	Finland, France
G	Georgia, Germany, Greece
H	Hong Kong (China), Hungary
I	India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy
J	Japan
K	Kazakstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan
L	Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg
M	Malaysia, Maldives
N	Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway
O	Oman
P	Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal
Q	Qatar
R	Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation
S	Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
T	Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan
U	United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Ugoslavia

SRI LANKA HOLIDAYS:NAMAL UYANA

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 03:54:00 +0000

National Namal Uyana, Sri Lanka Holidays

Location

National Namal Uyana sanctuary (1005 hectares) of Sri Lanka Holidays is located 158 miles north of Colombo at the village of Galkiriyagama close to Golden Dambulla Rock Temple (A World Heritage Site of Sri Lanka Holidays.

Highlights

Na (ironwood) forest; healing plants; massive pink quartz mountain, largest plant fossil deposits in Sri Lanka; archaeological reserve with ruins of ancient monastery and palace; diverse wild life.

Season

Namal Uyana is an all season attraction of Sri Lanka Holidays. Then again, it must be said those who would love to see blossoming and flowering of the Na trees, the best period would be the period from April to June. For those who love to get drenched and waterlogged right along with the trees in the forest, who love the amazing quality of a newly washed forest that brings about new vigor to all living beings & things, monsoon season which span the months of October to February is the best.

Trekking in Namal Uyana

You are suggested to have the company of a knowledgeable Sri Lanka Holidaysguide so that you wouldn’t get lost in the forest or stung by a venomous serpent. You may not find a guide better than the man who rediscovered the forest & since then dedicated his life to protect the unique forest: Buddhist monk the Ven. Wanawasi Rahula Thero. The monk has taken upon himself to play the role of protector of the forest. Ven. Wanawasi Rahula Thero's efforts to conserve develop and protect National Namal Uyana future generations have been recognized by the government of Sri Lanka

Sinhalese Buddhist Civilization & Nature

Namal Uyana of Sri Lanka Holidays, like numerous other tourist attractions is a consummate combination of culture & nature. Sri Lanka holiday makers with Sri Lanka Holidays would never fail grasp the fact that in the ancient island of SriLanka, Sinhalese Buddhist Civilization permeate through everything you experience during the touring the Sri Lanka holidays. The National Namal Uyanais no exception and it is unique in nature too.

In a cultural perspective, Namal Uyana of Sri Lanka leads us to the early Anuradpura period.

The ruins of stupas, shrine rooms, image houses, a Bo tree house, a hospital, and pillars of graffiti, stone altars & historical records have established that ancient jungle sanctuary had been a Buddhist worship of Buddhists called Ratdemata Monastery.

Since carvings sculpture in Sri Lanka reached its peak in 247 BC following the arrival of Great Buddhist missionary Mahinda maha Thero of Mihintale fame, son of Emperor Asoka of India, carvings at Namal Uyana such as Moonstone are not of the delicate sophistication that is witnessed in the ancient kingdom ofAnuradhapura & Polonnaruwa.

History

The historical records reveal King Devanampiya Tissa had intentions of converting Namal Uyana to a park. However it was Mahamewna Uyana Park atAnuradhapura that had come into existence during his reign. History reveals that the villagers at Ranwa, home to Buddhist temple Devrada Ranrada Viharya atNamal Uyana, helped King Duttha Gamini in his epic battle of Sri Lanka against the Marauding Dravidian Invaders from Southern India by not only partaking in the war, but also by supplying weaponry.

The oldest human sanctuary (8^th Century)

Namal Uyana is believed to be oldest human sanctuary in the world. The ancient inscription attributed to King Dappula IV (AD 939-940) found on a hexagonal pillar at Adiyagala at the entrance reads-“…that no person who enters this sanctuarycan or will be harmed in anyway. The King himself cannot harm or otherwise take into custody any person even though that person might be an enemy of the King.”

The human sanctuary had been based on a simple governing rule: the escaping convicts, fugitives, refugees, traitors, criminals may enter the sanctuary in search of escape from the king & the administration, but they may not ever leave.

In addition to the governing rule there had been a code of ethics. The inmates are expected to respect the superiority of the monks & engage in activities in general up keep of the monastery & conservation of the forest. The monks in return would guide the inhabitants on to spiritual upliftment. In principle as well as in application, the sanctuary is superior to modern day concept of rehabilitation center: you may enter even without being granted amnesty by the ruler of the state. The sentry posts surrounding the sanctuary may simply welcome all of run escaping the long arm of law as well as in search of refuge. All the way in is open. Once in, you have no way out.

Na (Ironwood) Forest.

It is believed that originally, the inmates of the sanctuary had planted few trees in their exercises of spiritual upliftment. The humble act of the residents had subsequently gathered momentum giving birth to 260 acres of Na trees, the largest Iron wood park in South Asia. However those who achieved a spiritual upliftment would be released into the mainstream society at the discretion of the Buddhist monks at the monastery.

Na tree is believed to have given shelter to 4 Buddha’s, namely Mangala, Sumana, Revata, and Sobhita out the 28 Buddhas during the supreme enlightenment of each of 4 masters. That was prior to the dispensation of historical Buddha, Gauthama, whose final extinction occurred in 543 BC. On this account Na tree is a revered, adored & protected tree in Sri Lanka.

Biodiversity

The park has 102 species of tropical plants of which 82 are herbal plants within 260 acres of Ironwood Park and the forest bordering it. The greater part of plants is considered endemic to Sri Lanka and at the danger of extinction. The park is also home to 40 varieties of birds, deer, and sambur, leopard, monkey & porcupines. It is regularly roamed by herds of wild elephants.

Subterranean water way

As we make our way through the Na forest, among the rock, roots of trees there emerges a never say dry, babbling & bubbling little brook of clear & cold water which flows serenely downhill for a distance of about hundred meters only to disappear into the underground to join a larger underground river run about 1-2 km providing sustenance to the Na forest to resurface at a place called Urakotaya.

Rose Quartz Mountain Range

Located 1000 feet above, the modern market value of the Rose Marble Mountain Range is incalculable. According to Archeologist Prof. Shiran Daraniyagala of SriLanka, the Rose Quartz Mountain Range is over 500 million years old. The scriptures records blocks of marble in large scale were taken to India & used for the graving structures of the Taj Mahal, one of the 7 wonders of the world.

Sri Lanka Holidays:Light Adventure

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 07:12:00 +0000

Bentota Bay Beach, Sri Lanka

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:49:00 +0000

PETER PEIRIS FORTNIGHT: Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (bunpeiris) — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 16:48:00 +0000

Day 1 Colombo

Arrival at Bandaranayake international Airport, Katunayake, Negambo

Transfer from Katunayake to Mount Lavinia Beach Hotel, Mount Lavinia via Colombo

Overnight stay: Mount Lavinia Beach Hotel

Distance from Katunayke to Colombo: 40km

Distance from Colombo to Mount Lavinia: 05km

Climate in Colombo (Western Province of wet zone): hot & humid

Climate during your fortnight

Anuradhapura (Central Province of dry zone plains): hot & dry

Polonnaruwa (Central Province of dry zone plains): hot & dry

Kandy (Central Highlands): Mediterranean

Nuwara Eliya (Central Highlands): salubrious

Bentota (Western Coastal Belt): Hot & Humid

Light cotton clothes for tropical areas & a light sweater for Highlands would do. We can buy this stuff in Colombo.

Those ladies, the fashion peacocks in green sarees are Air Hostesses of Sri Lankan Airlines. Greet Hai. Aerobridges connects to the terminal. Colombo airport is hassle free & neat; officers in white uniforms are courteous to all. Easy piecy.