Sri Lanka - Useful information for your trip
Discover an Asian insular country: Sry Lanka. It boasts amazing natural environments, as long and untouched beaches and natural parks.
Sri Lanka, also known as ex Ceylon, is an island state in Asia, occupying the island with the same name off the south-eastern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Because of its particular shape and its nearness to the Indian coast it has been nicknamed India's tear. The climate is tropical, hot and wet all the year, marked by monsoons that determine the trend of rains.
Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka in the 6th century. Even Tamil settled in the island. The size and precise time of the emigration are still object of disputes, but around the 13th century there was a considerable Tamil presence in the northern area of the island and lots of fishermen communities along the coasts. The whole island was given to the United Kingdom in 1796 and it became a crown colony in 1802. Ceylon became independent in 1948. In the 80s, tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil minority erupted into violence. This led to unrest with the death of a thousand of Tamil only in three days. Dozens of thousands of people died in this ethnic war. Rivalries ended in 2001, when the Tamil Tigers and the government signed a truce. On 26 December 2004 the southern and eastern coasts of Sri Lanka were devastated by a violent tsunami. The death toll appears to be about 40.000.
Sri Lanka is today a Presidential republic and its administrative capital is Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte even if Colombo, the former capital, remains the biggest economic centre of the country. After the independence, Sri Lanka became a moderately socialist state. In the latest 20 years it has increased privatizations and it has switched to a market economy and an export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka is famous for cinnamon and tea and the most dynamic sectors of economy are the alimentary industry, textile and clothing, telecommunications, insurance and banking.
Sri Lanka is characterized by natural breath-taking landscapes that convey happiness and spirituality, ancient temples and fortresses emerging from the green of woods; cities and colonial atmosphere, very long and silent beaches, mountains, plains, rivers and its tea leaves which make it famous all over the world. All this in a small island.
