If you haven’t eaten Pol Sambol as a staple must in your diet, you’re either not Sri Lankan or you need to crawl out from that rock you’ve been hiding under. Pol Sambol is a truly Sri Lankan experience, in fact, a phenomenon – it makes everything from rice to bread to crackers to roti to string hoppers taste so ...
Hambantota just cannot catch a break. Not for the first time in less than a month, clashes in Hambantota have been making headlines. By now, the Mirijjawila clash during the inauguration ceremony of the Sri Lanka-China Logistics and Industry Zone Development Project is probably one of the biggest news stories of the month ‒ and that, too, less than two ...
After a hard day at work, we at Roar decided to take an Uber back home. Being big fans of the service, and having used it in California, New York and Sydney, we thought that this would be a good opportunity to compare Uber’s service in Sri Lanka to all the other (overwhelmingly positive) experiences we’ve had outside the country. ...
On a clear day, it’s difficult to miss the yet to be completed Lotus Tower dominating Colombo’s skyline. Although the project has been mired in controversy (and not the Freudian sort), and perhaps because of it, most people seem unsure as to what purpose the Tower will serve. We all know the basics of how the Lotus Tower will be ...
The new, ostentatious Customs office on Main Street is hard to miss. Walking in, you will immediately be arrested by the sight of not-so-ordinary looking sculptures. Yes, there is a man in a toga with a laurel of leaves but no, he is not Caesar and he is most definitely in Sri Lanka, interacting with a Sri Lankan customs official ...
Editor’s note: Elina Sundqvist is a journalist intern from Sweden, who recently spent time traveling and working in Sri Lanka. While her opinions do not necessarily reflect those held by Roar, we are happy to hear her thoughts on useful tips for women travellers to the island, along with whatever foreign insight she has to offer. All women know that ...
Sri Lanka is a diverse and multicultural country and this multiplicity is also evident in its cuisine. A visiting friend once asked why the locals tend to have a common trait of possessing the muffin top no matter what size they are. The only possible response was to credit the muffin top to the wonderful display of carbohydrates and starch ...
If you’re Sri Lankan, to say you haven’t attended a wedding would be like saying you don’t breathe oxygen ‒ the concept of “weddings” has been practically embedded in our DNA. The concept, however, has evolved leaps and bounds over the years to the point where modern day weddings barely have a passing resemblance to the simple, ritualistic celebrations of ...
Last Tuesday (24 November), the arrivals lounge of the Bandaranaike Airport was, for a number of Sri Lankan Tamils, the first sight of home in many years. Forty two people, who had fled to Tamil Nadu in boats as asylum seekers during the civil war, were finally able to return to Sri Lanka. There’s quite a story in the numbers ...
The following is the first of a two-part amusing insight into the myriad types of Lankans you’d find in Australia, by our very own Australia Correspondent, contributing writer Kelum Wijewardena. Over the years, droves of Sri Lankans have migrated to Australia, making the land Down Under home to one of the largest Sri Lankan communities outside of you know where. ...
If you’re the sort of person who, when we tell you what to do with long, flowing hair, shout “But my hair won’t grow!” ‒ then read on. We are fully aware that some people have serious issues growing their hair, and we are not ignoring your concerns. You’ve heard all the lines: ‘oil your hair’, ‘trim it’, ‘don’t colour ...
Sri Lanka’s eighth parliament saw the formation of a unity government between a faction of the SLFP and the UNP-led coalition which started proceedings on the 1st of September 2015. Although debates over the budget, the UN resolution and the partisan squabbling grabbed headlines, the people’s representatives did also debate on some important matters that’s worth highlighting. Here we take ...
Gone are the days when we had to offer water to the Sri Maha Bodhi tree in the hopes that the sun would take the hint and make way for rain. The nearly 36 hours of nonstop rain which flooded roads (and homes) all over the island has made many of us wish the sun would return, even for just ...
Today marks the 33rd anniversary of Black July, a massacre that triggered the most violent period in Sri Lanka’s modern history. Black July, or කළු ජූලිය, refers to a series of widespread anti-Tamil riots aimed at the massacre and persecution of Sri Lanka’s Tamil community. The riots are classified as ‘pogroms’ as it is believed they were intended to ‘cleanse’ ...
During the early hours of 31 December 2015, while the world was preparing to usher in a new year, the Muthurajawela lagoon was struck by disaster. Oil, approximately 52,000 litres of it, leaked into the lagoon from a corroded pipeline, choking the area with kerosene. Muthurajawela is known as Sri Lanka’s biggest saline wetland, “home to purple herons, cormorants and ...
Driving on Sri Lankan roads can be a nightmare, especially during the morning rush hour, the after-school rush hour, and the evening rush hour. Also, yes, we have three rush hours, because this is Sri Lanka. Speeding buses, annoying tuk tuks, and road-rage-inducing bikes aside, it is occasionally also possible to spot an outrageously good looking car on the streets. ...
A few months ago, Google’s Project Loon wan the talk of the town. Excitement peaked when it was reported that the first balloon had entered Sri Lankan airspace to begin feasibility tests. Although the excitement appeared to die down after a while, the fact of the matter is: Google Loon is finally here. A Little Background Project Loon is one ...
Architecture is one of those professions that gives life to your dreams. Those who had the absolute joy of growing up playing with Lego will understand the simple pleasures of building blocks that evolve into structures. Architecture, although in reality way more complex, melts down to the basics of playing with building blocks to give formation to one’s creativity. With ...
There was a lot of controversy last week over one particularly thorny chapter of the ETCA (the revamped CEPA) agreement between Sri Lanka and India. One that is said to spell certain doom to the local IT industry. But will it, really? Is there a real threat to Sri Lankan IT professionals here or is this a whole lot of ...
Humans have constructed buildings since the New Stone Age, starting with simple structures built for shelter using natural materials. For many centuries later, the construction of buildings was almost one with nature, using rocks, rubble, and naturally occurring substances, until the Iron Age, when construction and tools became more sophisticated, leading to more exploitation of natural resources. This was the ...
