The Sri Lankan New Year (Avurudu to the Sinhalese, Puthu Varudam to the Tamils) is perhaps the country’s biggest cultural celebration: a coming together of two different races and religions; the Sinhalese Buddhists and the Tamil Hindus, as they observe the spiritual customs and traditions of this two-day festival. There are varying religious observances in both the Sinhalese and Buddhist ...
For a compact island, there are infinite things to do here. To start, we’ve put together a list of 101 experiences that most people in Sri Lanka have either tried, thought about trying, or should try after reading this. 1. Take the train. Image credit: Nazly Ahmed Up the hills. Down the coast. Through the Kelani Valley. Across to Batticaloa. ...
Sri Lanka prides itself in its street food, and not surprisingly. It’s the most egalitarian grub in the world, bringing together plebeian, patrician, and whoever in-between, to savour something different from our everyday run-of-the-mill fare. Who, after all, isn’t fascinated by the solitary hawker who, every now and then, could be still seen ringing a bell to entice little kids ...
By now, I have brushed past the forests in south-eastern Sri Lanka a couple of times. Unlike fellow foreign travellers, my trips there weren’t carried out with the hope of spotting a leopard at the Yala national park. Both times, I have chased a far more revered figure, one that many Sri Lankans know as the ‘warrior god’. The more ...
Sri Lanka’s Burgher community, as we know, is an ethnic group of people with mixed European and Lankan heritage, and they have been present on the island for centuries. Over the decades they have contributed immensely to Sri Lankan culture, and some of their customs have been integrated into modern Sri Lankan society. Here’s a look at some of their ...
Little do we realise that names are the foundation of all knowledge. Naming people and things makes it easier for us to make sense of our world. In the Muslim creation story, for example, we are told how God taught Adam the names of all things, thus giving him knowledge of matters even the angels could not fathom. The names ...
Every year, millions of Buddhists across the world celebrate the birth, enlightenment, and death of Gautama Buddha. In Sri Lanka, where Theravada Buddhists make up around 70% of the population, the celebration of Vesak is particularly exuberant, with lanterns, Buddhist flags, and pandals adorning every street corner. In fact, it was Sri Lanka who played a key role in bringing ...
Colpetty, the small yet plush ward of downtown Colombo, still has a certain charm to it. It’s a mini town of sorts, with a cinema, shopping complex, municipal supermarket, ice cream parlour, a plethora of restaurants, some choice schools, finance houses, and a variety of small businesses, hobnobbing with high-rise developments that are slowly but surely changing its skyline. Yet, ...
For Muslims around the world, the month of Ramadan means more than fasting from dawn till sunset. Visiting mosques and observing spiritual activities are key, while iftar, the meal at which the fast is broken, also makes Ramadan special. While in some parts of Colombo restaurants break out fancy iftar menus, other areas witness an increase in the number of ...
Sri Lanka is a massive hothouse of plants and vegetables that nobody else in the world has ever heard of, let alone consumed. These include an incredible array of edible green leaves that are chock-full of nutrition. Not only do these greens have a wide variety of health benefits, but they can also be made into highly appetising dishes which ...
Not everyone knows this, but Sri Lanka is home to as many as 200 varieties of edible green leaves, some of which are exclusive to the island. As far as leafy greens are concerned, the island has so much more to offer than the usual gotukola, nivithi, mukunuwenna and kankun often found in local supermarkets. There are, in fact, some leaves ...
“They usually set off after the monsoon with the onset of favourable winds, their boats oiled, often for several months at a time… they went to Porbunder and Aden, to Sri Lanka in search of trade in precious materials…” – Sindhi Sufi Scholar, Shah Abdul Latif, mentions the community’s adventures in his epic, Sur Samundi. Making up less than 1% ...
While the University of Ceylon was Sri Lanka’s first independent degree awarding institution, the concept of higher education in the island wasn’t entirely alien. The university’s antecedent of 20 years was the Ceylon University College, a degree awarding body affiliated with the University of London. This connection was terminated when the University College merged with the Ceylon Medical College and ...
Since November 2011, many people in the country have been enjoying the remarkable ease of the E01 Southern Expressway: a clear, smooth ride between Kottawa and Pinnaduwa, conveniently linking Colombo and Galle in a little more than an hour, covering 95.3 kilometres. On the journey, most would have marvelled at the achievement of the road’s construction, as one glides along ...
In Sinhalese, the ‘coming of age’ of a girl is known as kotahaluweema. While the term may be unfamiliar to some, the rituals it entails are all too familiar to a majority of Sri Lankan women. What Are The Origins Of Sri Lankan Puberty Rituals? Our puberty rituals are ancient, and as such, their historic origins are hard to establish. ...
Travelling along the Colombo-Kandy road, you may have heard stories of bandits from days of old. Narrated in awed tones, the storyteller would have pointed to a monolithic hill—Utuwankanda—in the distance, and told you of Saradiel, the highway-man who robbed coaches at gunpoint and then distributed his stolen goods among the poor, before disappearing into his hide-out in the forest ...
Little is it known that the Arabs of old were a great maritime trading power. Their influence was far-reaching both in East and West. They played a very important role in the maritime silk route of the East that connected Africa with Asia, while their role in supplying prized merchandise to Western markets impacted European culture in more ways than ...
When Roar Media started the #CelebrateSriLanka competition, we wanted it to be about more than just good photography: we wanted it to be a snapshot and celebration of Sri Lanka’s very essence. Whether it is lifestyle, culture, tradition or landscape, what sets these six photographers (and winners of Roar Media’s #CelebrateSriLanka Photo Competition!) apart is their keen eye for unique ...
The Nallur Sri Kandaswamy Kovil, one of the most significant Hindu temples on the island, is located in the town of Nallur in the district of Jaffna. The Nallur festival is Sri Lanka’s longest festival, spanning 25 days of processions and rituals, all carried out in honour of the god Skanda. During the festival, Jaffna town is completely transformed—roads around ...
Ella was once a quiet village in the Uva Province. In recent times however, the town has transformed into one of the island’s upcountry hotspots. The influx of tourism has seen Ella morph into a backpacker hub, effectively positioning itself as the “Hikka of the Hills”. Travellers flock here for the cool climes, stunning views, and adventurous hikes, but many ...
