Sri Padaya - Sri Lanka

The climb to Sri Padaya or Adam’s Peak Mountain in Sri Lanka’s hill country is just a magical experience. It’s a magnificent creation of nature that has been respected for centuries. The sunrise here is absolutely spectacular. To witness this breath-taking site, you will have to start the climb at midnight and continue it all night long to be there by dawn. People of all ages in Sri Lanka climb the Adam’s Peak Mountain as a yearly pilgrimage, and they never get enough of this amazing experience. Visitors to Sri Lanka admit that it could be the most amazing sunrise view in all of Sri Lanka, or perhaps even in all of Asia….

The top of the mountain has a huge “footprint”. The Buddhists of Sri Lanka believe that it’s the footprint of Lord Buddha’s left foot. The Hindus claimed that the footprint belonged to Lord Shiva. Its English name – Adam’s Peak – stresses the belief of the Muslims and the Christians that it’s the first place that Adam set foot on Earth after leaving Heaven.

All these legends make it all the more exciting for visitors of this amazing place…

Adam’s Peak has become a significant pilgrimage place for several faiths, resulting in large numbers of locals making the 5,000-stair climb to the peak at 2,243 meters (7,359 feet) over 5 kilometers, during the months of November to May along a well-lit path. During off season which is from June to October, the area is usually cloudy, rainy and misty and the place is isolated yet some adventure lovers opt to climb Adam’s peak during off season, mostly during day time.

Access to the Adam’s Peak is possible by 6 trails: Hatton-Nallathanni, Ratnapura-Palabaddala, Kuruwita-Erathna, Murraywatte, Mookuwatte and Malimboda.

The view of sunrise from the peak is magical. All sense of community wash over you as you wait for that anticipated moment of the sun appears over the hills.
#Srilanka #Sripadaya #Ademspeak #Ceylon 

C O L O M B O

C O L O M B O 

Colombo, Sri Lanka‘s bustling commercial hub, is located on the country’s west coast and with a population of between 800,000 and one million (estimates vary) is by far the country’s biggest city, as well as the most developed. Its natural harbour at the mouth of the Kelani River was a magnet for successive traders and conquerors – initially the Arab merchants, then Portuguese, Dutch and British imperialists.

The city is a jarring mix of old and new, with a central cluster of high-rise office blocks and hotels overshadowing red-tiled colonial-era buildings and sprawling street markets which overflow with high-piled fruit and vegetables, colourful silks and cottons, and deliciously fragrant spices. On its crowded streets stand places of worship, symbolic of Sri Lanka‘s multiethnic heritage: graceful Buddhist viharas (temples), for instance, stand close to extravagant temples encrusted with Hindu statuary, along with Muslim mosques with minarets scattered along Colombo’s streets. Its population is swollen by some 400,000 plus commuting workers during the day and is virtually empty after nightfall. There is a lively nightlife at a number of International standard hotels, clubs, pubs and dining venues while it is limited mainly to the high end customer. During the day, Colombo’s colourful street markets, colonial-era buildings, museums and galleries, churches, mosques and temples, and the lovely Viharamahadevi Park with it beautiful trees, makes it a great place to explore on foot.

Originally named Kolomthota, Colombo was the main seaport of Kotte, the country’s 15th and 16th century capital. Known to Arab traders as Kalamba, the city attracted the rapacious Portuguese as early as 1505 and became the bastion of their rule for almost 150 years. Surprisingly little remains to attest to this era, apart from a scattering of Portuguese surnames in the telephone directory and a handful of Roman Catholic churches and seminaries depicting their architecture.

The central area of the city is still known as Fort, but the remnants of the colonial battlements have long since been demolished, or incorporated in newer buildings. There are more mementoes of the British period, including the neo-Classical old parliament building, the Victorian-era President’s House (still often called ‘Queen’s House’), and the grandly mercantile brick facade of Cargill’s, a splendid 19th-century department store that has changed little since the 19th-century heyday of Sri Lanka‘s British tea planters.

when foreigners are visiting sri lanka their first location is colombo. Since this is first popular city to visit near by katunayaka international air port.

Travel to Sri Lanka

Location of Sri Lanka.

Located in the continent of Asia, Sri Lanka covers 64,630 square kilometers of land and 980 square kilometers of water, making it the 123rd largest nation in the world with a total area of 65,610 square kilometers.Sri Lanka became an independent state in 1948, after gaining its sovereignty from The United Kingdom. The population of Sri Lanka is 21,481,334 (2012) and the nation has a density of 332 people per square kilometer.The currency of Sri Lanka is the Sri Lanka Rupee (LKR). As well, the people of Sri Lanka are referred to as Sri Lankan.The dialing code for the country is 94 and the top level internet domain for Sri Lankan sites is .lk.Sri Lanka does not share land borders with any countries.

History of Sri Lanka. 

According to the Mahavamsa (text written in Pali of the Kings of Sri Lanka), a traditional date of ancient Sri Lanka is the landing of Vijaya, who arrived in Sri Lanka (because he was banned by King Vanga of India) with 700 followers with him and ruled Sri Lanka from 543 BC – 505 BC (Modern time now: 38 years!). Vijaya played an important role in Sri Lanka, such as the establishment of the Kingdom of Tambapanni. Vijaya played an important role in the country's ancient history.

Another annual date of ancient Sri Lanka is the arrival of Buddhism from Devanampiya Tissa, son of monarch Mutasiva of Anuradhapura. Though another source states that Buddhism was founded by a man named "Mahinda", which then integrated into Sinhalese culture. Epigraphic sources show the appearance of Buddhism around the 3rd century B.C.

The entire ancient period of ancient Sri Lanka is dominated by the Anuradhapura Kingdom, which includes Sri Lanka's ancient history in one place. The Sri Lanka Kingdom moved into Anuradhapura in 380 B.C.. From there onwards, the city of Anuradhapura stayed as the capital of Sri Lanka for more than 1000 years, until the fall of the kingdom in 1017 A.D., when Rajendra I sent a large invasion on the kingdom. Thus, the capital then moved to Polonnaruwa.

After more than a century under Chola control, Vijayabahu I of Polonnaruwa successfully drove off the Chola Empire, thus, reuniting the country back together once again. Also, reuniting the country back in Buddhism culture too when Vijayabahu I, in request, sent monks from Burma to Sri Lanka. Though Sinhalese king Vijayabahu I was a strong leader who fought off the powerful Chola empire out of Sri Lanka, after his death, weak rulers took over after him. Eventually, Sri Lanka broke into independent states.

A statue in Polonnaruwa that is known in Sri Lanka to be off the Great ParakramabahuThough, in 1153, a Sinhalese king named Prākramabāhu I, also called Parākramabāhu The Great, reunited Sri Lanka and repaired the irrigation systems that were made for water to be easily used in Sri Lanka. Prākramabāhu I also reformed Buddhist establishments (made new temples), and allowed Hindus to worship.In the 13th century, Sri Lanka suffered from Indian invasion. The irrigation system was damaged, and the capital of Sri Lanka (Polonnuwara) was abandoned (in 1255). Sri Lanka was then divided into 3 areas, one for the Tamils (north; City of Jaffna) and two for the Sinhalese (south and east; City of Kotte and Kandy).