Cheran Dwipa - means island of the Cheras, the ancient kings who ruled the south western part of peninsular India. There was a free exchange of people between Chera kingdom and the paradise island. One of the Chera princes (Elango) was known to have become a Buddhist monk, and sent his emissaries to Sri Lanka as early as 2000 years ago. Cheran Dwipa slowly changed to Serendib, as propagated by the arab traders during the 6th century AD. Srilanka was known by this name for many centuries, and was known as a land of beauty and peace. The English term "serendipity" was coined by Horace Walpole in the 18th century, to denote 'a state of discovering fortunes when not in search of them.' Sri Lanka was supposed to offer unexpected wealth to the traders, and many of them settled in Sri Lanka for good. Even today, the food habits, the musical diction of the language, and festivities bear a lot of similarity to those of present day Kerala.



What a pity! Sri Lanka is no longer that land of serendipity. Since the last three decades and more, an underlying fear has paralysed a nation which has all the resources to become another economic power in South Asia.  Colombo seems to be more populated with security forces than the common citizens. The recent breakdown of the ceasefire agreement, means that the north and east of the country are particularly insecure. Areas north of a line following the highway from Puttalam through Anuradhapura to Trincomalee, and east down to Batticaloa are unsafe for travellers as are the eastern areas around Ampara and Arugam Bay. Any travel to these areas should be reconsidered. The security situation in the Jaffna Peninsula remains very uncertain. Parts of these northern and eastern areas are heavily mined.

The capital, Colombo, has experienced a number of bombings lately, with two attacks occurring so far this year - hot on the heels of an explosion which killed at least 16 civilians in a busy shopping district on 28 November. Travellers should exercise a high level of caution, monitor local news sources and heed any local warnings regarding safety.

However, it must be appreciated that irrespective of all these, life goes on with the friendly citizens, carrying on their businesses brushing aside all threats. We met half a dozen businessmen, and high level government officials, who all showed keen interest to to do business with Indian companies. I would say that all these guys are very talented in their chosen areas of specialisation. In fact, one senior executive remarked that the only way Sri Lanka can come out of the present mess is to simply hitch their stars to India's growth engine.

Even though Sri Lanka is still in the grips of a long running civil war, the people are quite friendly. They love nothing more than to serve every food dish available with hot hot curry and laugh at our gasps for air, or pour out of a cup of their famous ceylon tea - milky and sweet - to douse the fire within! Even their mangoes and pineapples are served from little roadside stalls with curry on them! You haven't had hot food until you've experienced Sri Lankan cuisine.

The small island of Sri Lanka is a land of contrasts - tropical mountains surrounded by rice paddies and beaches, posh cars on the roads, and poverty stricken children laughing and playing cricket, people saying - Ayubhuvan - 'welcome to my country' while eying the guards with guns on many street corners. Every time you just get used to something, then turn around and exclaim at the sight of security guards asking for your ID!

Climatically the driest and best seasons are from December to March on the west and south coasts and in the Hill Country, and from May to September on the east coast. December to March is also the time when most foreign tourists come, the majority of them escaping the European winter.

Out of season travel has its advantages - it's less crowded, and many airfares and accommodation prices go right down. Nor does it rain all the time. Reefs may protect a beach area and make swimming quite feasible at places like Hikkaduwa, which during the monsoon can be quite pleasant. July/August is the time of the Kandy Esala Perahera, the 10-day festival honouring the sacred tooth relic of the Buddha, and also the time for the Kataragama Festival in the South. Srilanka's major religion is Buddhism (70%) followed by Hindu minority, and a small fraction of Muslims and Christians. One can see the impact of Portugese, Dutch and English rulers, in the architecture, cuisine, dresses and other everyday artifacts.

Here are some photographs from the Paradise Island, taken during my recent visit.


Modern World Trade Centre, with a Portugese type building in the foreground. This on a Sunday, the roads were deserted!


Colombo Corporation building - built as White House replica.


Lone coast-guard boat patrolling the shores of deserted Colombo beach.


Replica of Anuradhapura standing Buddha, in a Colombo's busy junction


Colombo Pettah fruit vendors


Viharamahadevi - Posh area in Colombo


These are stray elephants in Pinnawala sanctuary - cool dip in a river


After the bath, elephants walking into the sanctuary for their lunch!


64 year old Raja, the tusker, lost his eyesight in a mine blast. The mahout takes care of him with devotion and love, leading him around carefully.




The above two pics, taken on the way to Kandy, remind one of Kerala!

   
A tea garden near Kandy                                          An old light-house


5000 year old rock formation in Sigiriya


Colombo sunset in front of Taj Samudra