Sri Lanka - Pearl of India Ocean
Sri Lanka well known as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean lies like a teardrop falling from the tip of India's South Coast. Once a little-known treasure, thousands of travellers stumbled upon the island by some 'fortunate accident' and so began to call Sri Lanka the Isle of Serendipity. Known for its White-sanded beaches and Turquoise sea, its abundance of rare wild-life and rich foliage, its precious gem mines, its rolling hills carpeted with the best and tasted tea in the world, and its Rich History and Cultural Heritage, Sri Lanka is a breath-taking get-away
Religion
As a result of its ethnic diversity, Sri Lanka also is home to various religious faiths and is one of the few countries to celebrate every religious holiday as a national holiday. Buddhism is considered the official religion of Sri Lanka. The school of Buddhism followed in the country is the Theravada School and it was first brought to Sri Lanka in 2nd century BC by Mahinda, the son of Ashoka, the Indian emperor of that time.
Buddhism is an important part of Sinhalese culture and the two are strongly linked. Hinduism is practiced by 18% of the population, whom are almost exclusively Tamil-speaking, as well as immigrants from India and Pakistan such as the Sindhis, Telugus and Malayalees. Hinduism is dominant in the Northeastern province, where Tamil people are in significant numbers. Christianity is practiced by 7-8% of the population, especially by the Portuguese and Dutch Burgher people.
The Portuguese first brought Christianity to the island in 1618 when many Tamil Hindus and Sinhala Buddhists were encouraged to convert to Catholicism. While most Sri Lankan Christians are Catholics, there are also significant numbers who adhere to Dutch Reformed Church and the Anglican Communion. A significant portion of Sri Lanka's population is Muslim. The Muslims of Sri Lanka claim descendancy from the Arab traders who made Sri Lanka their home even before the advent of Islam. They can be categorized into two groups, the Moors and the Malays.
Sri Lanka Climate / Weather
The South-West Monsoon brings rain to the western, southern and central regions from May to July, while the north-eastern monsoon occurs in the north and east in December and January. The weather is finest in the coastal regions and hill country of the south-west from October to March. The temperature in the lowlands averages 27 degrees Celsius. However, temperatures fall rapidly with altitude. In Kandy the temperature on average is around 20 degrees Celsius and in Nuwara Eliya it is often below 15 degrees Celsius. This change in temperature at small distance makes Sri Lanka a very popular destination among travelers.