Ayubowan! Welcome!!!! to Different Discovery Tours

Situated just off the southern tip of the Indian sub-continent, for millennia Sri Lanka has been regarded as special - a jewel in the Indian Ocean. Neither is the description “jewel” merely metaphoric. On the contrary, through one of its ancient names “Serendib”, Sri Lanka gives rise to the English “serendipity”, the happy ability to make joyous discoveries by accident. From time immemorial, the earth of Sri Lanka has yielded gems stones of exceptional quality, prized by all from the great Ming emperors of China to countless other merchants and traders, who have left their own distinctive marks upon the fabric of the country. Such material riches have a resonating echo in an island of outstanding and often wonderfully unspoilt natural beauty - from sparkling seas and endless miles of pristine beaches, to jungle environments rich in wildlife to spectacular mountain scenery. If nature has richly endowed Sri Lanka.

Man has complemented such natural endowments with layer upon layer of mythic, cultural, religious and architectural wonders and delights. From amongst these, just a few that may be cited are the mighty fortress rock of Sigiria, the magnificent archeological remains at Anuradhapura and the sublime Buddhist carvings to be found at Polonnaruwa. To all of this, add a graceful people, warm, hospitable and generous, a spicy and delectable indigenous cuisine and an entire spectrum of accommodation for the visitor from simple but clean small hostelries right up to five star hotels, and you have a heady mix calculated to intrigue, entertain, interest and captivate the visitor.  

A Different Country – Sri Lanka

Official name: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

Government type: republic

Location: Latitude 5° 55. To 9° 50. North, longitude 79° 42. To 81° 52, 650km north of the equator

Dimensions: 430km north to south, 225km east to west

Coastline: 1,340km

Area: 65,525km

Currency (code): Sri Lankan rupee (LKR)

Independence Date: 4 February 1948

Administrative capital: Sri Jayewardenepura

Commercial capital: Colombo

Administrative divisions: 9 provinces;
Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva, Western, Eastern Province.

Climate: Typically tropical, with a northeast monsoon (December to March) bringing unsettled weather to the north and east, and a southwest monsoon (June to October) bringing bad weather to the south and west

Terrain: Mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior

National Emblem:

Sri Lanka used the British emblem when it was a British Crown Colony. We continued to use it even after gaining independence in 1948. According to the recommendations of a select committee appointed to devise a state emblem more suitable for Sri Lanka (Ceylon) we opted for a new State Emblem. It had a Lion with Sword in its right fore paw encircled with a Palapethi open petal design top. Below there was a strip carrying the country's name in Sinhala, Tamil and English.
A new republican emblem was chosen after the country was declared a Republic on May 22, 1972. In addition to the lion with a sword and the Palapethi open petal design it portrays the Punkalasa, dhammachakka, sun, moon and two sheaves of paddy.
National Flag:
The National Flag recommended by the special committee was presented to Parliament by Mr. D.S. Senanayake on March 2nd, 1951 and adopted. It had two strips, one green and the other yellow. Each of these strips had to be equal to one seventh the size of the flag. Yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border around the entire flag and extends between the two panels.

National Bird

Wali kukula or Ceylon Jungle fowl or Gallus Lafayetti
Jungle fowl the National Bird of Sri Lanka is commonest in the National Parks and forests. A typical fowl strutting about and scratching the ground for food.

National Flower:

The Blue Water Lily (Nymphaea stellata).
In February 1986 blue water lily was chosen as the National flower. Found all the part of Sri Lanka and grows in the shallow water. Petals arranged like a star and the flat round waterproof leaves are bright green. It’s a symbol of purity and truth. It has a sweet fragrance and used for offering at Buddhist Temples and rituals for god Vishnu. Sigiriya frescoes of women holds these flowers in their hands. Seeds and the tubes used as a vegetable by villagers and also leave, stem and flowers used in herbal medicine and dried flowers used to make pillows and says it produces happy dreams.

National Dress:

Sri Lanka has no approved national dress, as there are three major communities call Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims live together.  Though there is no approved national dress, Sri Lankan male consider long sleeved shirt without collars up to the knee and a white Sarong worn by male on occasions as the national dress and even the members of parliament including the President used to wear it.  Though there are differences, people wear similar patterns on some occasions due to the influence from one another. There are regional differences too.  Majority of middle class male wear trouser and the shirt. If it’s an occasion, it becomes a full suit with a tie and a coat and it has been influenced by the western fashions and Females wear Sari (influenced from Indians), Osari (Female dress of Kandyan ladies), Frock or skirt and blouse etc. Kandyan male dress call Mul Anduma worn by bride grooms which is colorful and comes with lots of ornament such as dragger, Crown Royal shoes etc, in traditional type of weddings. Kings of Kandyan period used to wear this and presently worn by chieftains of the Temple of the tooth on occasions. Muslims wear Shirt, Sarong and Trousers sometimes with a cap and females cover the whole body on the advice of Kurana: The holly book of Allah.

National Tree

NA (iron wood) or (Mesua Ferrea)

This rain forest tree grows to about 30 m high and indigenous to the lower wet Zone of Sri Lanka. Remarkable Features of NA is beautiful bright Red Leaves and finally matured in to a deep green. Timber has a very hardness and durability and used to make bridges in the early times. But now not allowed for timber due to its religious value. It's believed that the first visit of Buddha was to grove of a NA Tree at Miyanganaya and also the next Buddha (mithriya) will attain enlightenment under a NA tree. The flower of NA is also used in herbal medicine and preparation of perfumes, cosmetics and soaps. This was named as the National Tree in 1986.

National parks and nature reserves area: 8,000sq.km

Population: 21,128,773

Population growth rate: 1.3%

Population Density: 309 people per sq km

Life Expectancy at Birth74 female, 64 male

Literacy rate: Female 87.9 Male 92.5

Ethnic groups: Sinhalese 73.8%, Sri Lankan Moors 7.2%, Indian Tamil 4.6%, Sri Lankan Tamil 3.9%, other 0.5%, unspecified 10%

Languages: Sinhala (official and national language) 74%, Tamil (national language) 18%, other 8%

Note: English (a link language commonly) is used in government and spoken competently by about 10% of the population

Religion: Buddhist 69.1%, Muslim 7.6%, Hindu 7.1%, Christian 6.2%, unspecified 10%

Time zone: Sri Lanka Standard Time is five and a half hours ahead of GMT. (Allowance should be made for summer-time changes in Europe.)

International dialing: +94

Electricity: 230. 240 volts, 50 cycles AC. If you travel with a laptop computer bring a stabilizer

Economy: Sri Lanka’d most dynamic sectors are food processing, textiles and apparel, food and beverages, port construction, telecommunications, and insurance and banking. In 2006, plantation crops made up only 15% of exports (90% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for more than 60%. About 800,000 Sri Lankans work abroad, 90% of them in the Middle East. They send home more than US$1 billion a year.
Labor force: 34.3% of the labor population is employed in agriculture, 25.3% in industry and 40.4% in services: 40.4% (30 June 2006 est.) The unemployment rate is 5.7% (2007 est.)

Agriculture & products Rice, sugarcane, grains, pulses, oilseed, spices, tea, rubber, coconuts, milk, eggs, hides, beef, fish

Industries: Processing of rubber, tea, coconuts, tobacco and other agricultural commodities; telecommunications, insurance, banking; clothing, textiles; cement, petroleum refining.

Exports: Textiles and apparel; tea and spices; diamonds, emeralds, rubies; coconut products, rubber manufactures, fish

Imports: Main import commodities are textile fabrics, mineral products, petroleum, foodstuffs, and machinery and transportation equipment: $10.61 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.). Percentage of main commodities from main import partners: India 19.6%, China 10.5%, Singapore 8.8%, Iran 5.7%, Malaysia 5.1%, Hong Kong 4.2%, Japan 4.1% (2006)Gross Domestic Product (GDP):Purchasing power parity: $81.29 billion (2007 est.). Official exchange rate: $30.01 billion (2007 est.) Real growth rate: 6.3% (2007 est.) Per capita: $4,100 (2007 est.) composition by sector: Agriculture: 16.5% Industry: 26.9%

Gross National Product (GNP): Sri Lanka is placed in 76th place in GNP figures of the world’s nations with $22.8 billion (2005)

 

10 Good Reasons to Visit Sri Lanka

1.   Diversity


2.   Different People


3.   Cultural Heritage


4.   Different Festivals Year Around


5.   Wildlife


6.   Different Adventure and Special Interest Sports


7.   Finest Hotels


8.   Different Delicious Food


9.   Ayurveda & Spa


10.   Different Shopping