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Sri Lanka , also known as "Ceylon" is located at the middle of the Indian Ocean and well known as the perl of the indian ocean. It was called "Serandib" and also known as "Thaprobane" and has a long written history which is more than 2500 years.

Ceylon was admired by many Europeans for its Natural beauty Sri Lanka being a tropical country has no distinct seasons and consists of fascinating greenaries all over the country , water falles coverd with mists formed by roaring waters of flowing rivers and many more beautifull places to visit.

Nature
Sri Lanka is a Nature's wonder. the little island 270 km by 140 km in size has everything a nature lover will look for. The highly diversified island differs from city to city, district to district and province to province. Mountains, Geo Plains, Dashing Water Falls, National parks, Sea, Beaches Rocks, Paddy fields, Tea Gardens, Rain Forests, Rivers, Landscapes, Streams all are beautiful. The Sri Lankan nature's beauty blends in it's wild life of elephants, birds, animals, flowers and wide verity of trees.
Discover paradise by visiting it.....

Culture

Culture and art is visible all around the country. There is a mix of cultures in the city of Colombo but as one moves out to the countryside differences can be identified. Almost all Sri Lankans indulge themselves in some form of art such as Dancing, Music or Painting it is a part of Sri Lankan culture. Certain parts of the island are known for specific types of art like Ambalangoda, which is known for making traditional wooden mask and for puppetry and folk dancing. If one wishes to experience first hand art and culture, some of the popular places to visit are Polonnaruwa, Anuradapura, Kandy , Galle and Trincomalee. These beautiful and historically important cities are repositories of Sri Lankan art, culture and traditions.

History
Indo-Aryan emigration from India in the 5th century B.C. came to form the largest ethnic group on Sri Lanka today, the Sinhalese. Tamils, the second-largest ethnic group on the island, were originally from the Tamil region of India and emigrated between the 3rd century B.C. and A.D. 1200. Until colonial powers controlled Ceylon (the country's name until 1972), Sinhalese and Tamil rulers fought for dominance over the island. The Tamils, primarily Hindus, claimed the northern section of the island and the Sinhalese, who are predominantly Buddhist, controlled the south. In 1505 the Portuguese took possession of Ceylon until the Dutch India Company usurped control (1658–1796). The British took over in 1796, and Ceylon became an English Crown colony in 1802. The British developed coffee, tea, and rubber plantations. On Feb. 4, 1948, after pressure from Ceylonese nationalist leaders (which briefly unified the Tamil and Sinhalese), Ceylon became a self-governing dominion of the Commonwealth of Nations. S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike became prime minister in 1956 and championed Sinhalese nationalism, making Sinhala the country's only official language and including state support of Buddhism, further marginalizing the Tamil minority. He was assassinated in 1959 by a Buddhist monk. His widow, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, became the world's first female prime minister in 1960. The name Ceylon was changed to Sri Lanka (“resplendent island”) on May 22, 1972.

Climate and Seasons in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Lies between 6 - 10 of North Latitude and Between 80 - 82 of East Longitude. It has a Maximum Length of 432 km (Devundara to Point

Peduru) and Maximum Breadth 224 km (Colombo - Sangamankanda) . The Land Area is 65,525 Sq. km. The Area Excluding the Inland Water 62,336 Sq. km. The hills appear in the center and the south of Center. Sri Lanka is generally a warm country.
Sri Lanka has 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 26.7 C (80 F) and 19.7 C (66.50 F) in the hill country. In Colombo, the commercial capital, situated on the west coast, the temperature varies from 26.4 C (79.5 F) to 27.8 C (82.12 F). Relative Humidity varies from 70% during the day to 90% at night. In the lowlands the climate is typically tropical with an average temperature of 27OC in Colombo. In the higher elevations it can be quite cool with temperatures going down to 16OC at an altitude of nearly 2,000 meters. Bright, sunny warm days are the rule and are common even during the height of the monsoon - climatically Sri Lanka has no off season. The south west monsoon brings rain mainly from May to July to the western, southern and central regions of the island, while the north-east monsoon rains occur in the northern and eastern regions in December and January.
Annual Rainfall Map of Sri Lanka
Annual 2540 mm to over 5080 mm in south west of the Island. Less than 1250 mm in the north west and south east of the Inland.Rainy SeasonsSouth West Monsoon- May to AugustNorth East Monsoon- November to February