About Sri Lanka

 
Sri Lanka is a picturesque island with a rich and diverse culture, dating back centuries. This resplendent isle is endowed with rich religious traditions of ahimsa and peace. The majority of the country’s citizens practice Buddhism and approximately a quarter of the population practice Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam.

The country’s unparalleled natural beauty consists of unending coastlines, tropical forests, wildlife sanctuaries, high mountains, geo-plains, waterfalls, sea beaches, rocks, paddy fields, tea gardens, rain forests, rivers andlandscapes. This diverse topography is the reason behind the equally varied flora and fauna of the country. Sri Lanka has a varied wildlife habitat with elephants, birds, animals, flowers and an abundance of greenery.
 

 

Fast Facts about Sri Lanka
 
Official Name: The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
 
Geographical Location:

Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean, situated 50kms, or 31miles off the Southern tip of India, 880km north of the equator.
 
Topography:

The coastal area and the northern half are flat. The central and south-central hilly and mountainous.

 
National Day: 

February 04th

 
Capital: 

Sri Jayewardenepura (Administrative)         
Colombo (Commercial Capital)
 
Area:

65,525 Sq.kms (25,325 sq.miles)

 
Climate:

No marked seasons. A special feature is that the hot and humid lowlands and the salubrious hill country are separated by a few hours motoring. Average mean temperature along the coast is 26.7oC (80oF) and 19.7oC (66.5oF) in the hill country. In Colombo, the commercial capital, situated on the west coast, the temperature varies from 26.4oC (79.5oF) to 27.8oC (82.12oF).
Daily weather:http://www.island.lk then click on “Weather”
 
Time Zone: 

GMT/UTC +6 hrs.
 
Government:

Sri Lanka has a Democratic Government, with an Executive President and a Parliament elected by the people.

 

Population and Ethnic Composition: 20.9 Million

Sinhalese                                         - 75%
Tamils                                             - 17%
Moors                                              - 07%
Malays, Burghers & Others                - 01%
 
Religion: Buddhism-70% Hinduism 16% Christianity 7% Islam 7%
 
Language:

The official languages are Sinhala and Tamil. However, English is widely used as a medium of communication in commercial circles.
 
Working Hours:  

Sri Lanka adopts a five-day week, Monday to Friday. Hours of business are normally:
 

Government Departments:
9.00 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. (Monday to Friday)

Mercantile Offices:
8.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (Monday to Friday)
8.30 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. (Saturday)
                      
Shops: 
10.00 a.m. to 10.00 p.m. (Weekdays & Saturday)
Closed on Sundays

Banks: 
9.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m. (Weekdays)
Some banks are open on Saturdays.

Post Offices: 
8.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. (Weekdays)
 
Airport:

Bandaranaike International Airport which is 29kms from the city of Colombo
 
Colombo:       

The Colombo Port has been graded as the 21st best port in the world. It is classified as a hub port.
 
Port:  

South Asia.

 
Currency:

Sri Lanka follows decimal currency system in Rupees and Cents with 100 cents equal to a rupee (LKR)

Daily Exchange Rate: http://www.lanka.net/centralbank
 
Electricity Supplies:

230/240 volts, 50 cycles AC
 
Clothing:

Cotton garments are the ideal as Sri Lanka is a tropical island. However, viscose/cotton mixed garments are commonly worn.  Light clothing is recommended in the lowland areas and light woolen clothing is suitable in the hill country. A sun hat and sun glasses may help to escape the heat during the day time.

 

Visa Requirements:

  

Foreigners coming to Sri Lanka should have a valid passport. Nationals of seventy countries mentioned below need no visa to enter Sri Lanka as bona-fide tourists. They will be issued a landing endorsement for 30 days at the point of entry without payment. Nationals of all other countries should possess a valid visa that can be obtained from the Sri Lankan Mission of their country.

List of Countries: Albania, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong (China), Hungary, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Maldives, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Yugoslavia
 
 
 
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