Sri Lanka

The Pearl of the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka, a jewel suspended like a pendant by an invisible thread from the Indian sub-continent, can trace its history back through the mists of time. Legend has it that the island was the original Garden of Eden and that Adam left an impression of his foot on the mountain known as Adam’s Peak. Pilgrims climb the steep path to the summit every year during the dry season. From the north, where once the trading town of Jaffna prospered, to the Bay of Trincomalee, through to Galle in the south, history abounds. In the 6th century B.C an Indo-Aryan Prince, Vijaya, the founder of the Singhalese people came down from northern India. Claiming descent from a lion, Singha, these ‘lion people’ settled on the island and proceeded to build impressive cities, canals, lakes and, indeed, a whole culture.

The island was first colonised by the Portuguese in the 16th, then by the Dutch in the 17th century. Their time-forgotten fort still stands proudly on the Galle Peninsula. The British arrived in the 1790s and all these cultures have left their imprint on the island, the people and their traditions. The colonial grandeur of the British period is most evident in Colombo and Kandy. The sweeping arcades and the Government buildings attest to the importance of the island in the 19th century.

Kandy is the old capital of Ceylon and the seat of the last Singhalese kingdom. This picturesque city, nestling amongst rolling hills and set around an ancient, man-made lake, is the site of the Temple of the Tooth, the most venerated Buddhist temple in the country. Annually, during the period leading up to the full moon between July and August, one of the world’s oldest pageants, the Esala Perahera is held. At this time, a procession of hundreds of elephants caparisoned in lights, brocades and batiks and thousands of ceremonially dressed dancers, drummers and fire-eaters parade in the streets. These colourful events build up to a frenzied climax, during which the Tooth Relic is carried triumphantly through the city by the Temple’s grandest elephant.

Leaving Kandy and travelling into the hills, the landscape changes to forested mountains, waterfalls and manicured, undulating tea plantations speckled with brightly cloaked tea-pickers. These misty hills are where the British took refuge from the summer heat and their legacy remains in Nuwara Eliya, the island’s highest town, with its mock-Tudor cottages, golf course, horse-racing and country clubs.

It would be difficult to find a land more fertile than Sri Lanka. Myriad hues of green form a picture of overwhelming beauty. From the rice paddies to the tropical forests there is abundance everywhere.

The surrounding seas vary from opalescent greens to deep blue, clear waters edged by long, empty, white sand beaches. Along the coastline are some exquisite boutique hotels, fully-staffed private villas and islands where guests are pampered and indulged in warm, luxurious, tropical surroundings.

For the discerning traveller there is much to see and experience in Sri Lanka and one trip will probably not be enough. In the words of one Dutch East India Company employee, who wrote: “Last night I dreamt of Ceylon and I could smell the spices and I could feel the warm breeze on my skin. Would that I was there once again”.

Have a look at our suggested itineraries to find a holiday to this enchanting jewel...

A Private Paradise | Fun for the Family | Of Kerala and Kings | Retreat to Ceylon | Romantic Retreats | Seductive Ceylon | Sun, Sea and the Sands of Ceylon | Taste of Sri Lanka | Tee for Two and Two for Tea | The Best of Both Worlds | The Coasts and Culture of Ceylon | The Great Escape |The Nature of the Spice Isle | The Path of the Planters 

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