Tolin's 2024 World Cruise blog posts, Day 75 Mar 24, 2024,Colono, Shri Lanka, Colombo City by Tuk-Tuk
Sri Lanka, historically known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian peninsula by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. It shares a maritime border with the Maldives in the southwest and India in the northwest.
Sri Lanka has a population of approximately 22 million and is home to many cultures, languages and ethnicities. The Sinhalese people form the majority of the population, followed by the Sri Lankan Tamils, who are the largest minority group and are concentrated in northern Sri Lanka; both groups have played an influential role in the island's history. Other long-established groups include the Moors, Indian Tamils, Burghers, Malays, Chinese, and Vedda.
Sri Lanka's documented history goes back 3,000 years, with evidence of prehistoric human settlements dating back 125,000 years. The earliest known Buddhist writings of Sri Lanka, known collectively as the Pāli canon, date to the fourth Buddhist council, which took place in 29 BCE. Also called the Teardrop of India, or the Granary of the East, Sri Lanka's geographic location and deep harbors have made it of great strategic importance, from the earliest days of the ancient Silk Road trade route to today's so-called maritime Silk Road. Because its location made it a major trading hub, it was already known to both East Asians and Europeans as long ago as the Anuradhapura period. During a period of great political crisis in the Kingdom of Kotte, the Portuguese arrived in Sri Lanka and sought to control its maritime trade, with a part of Sri Lanka subsequently becoming a Portuguese possession. After the Sinhalese-Portuguese war, the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of Kandy took control of those areas. The Dutch possessions were then taken by the British, who later extended their control over the whole island, colonizing it from 1815 to 1948. A national movement for political independence arose in the early 20th century, and in 1948, Ceylon became a dominion. It was succeeded by the republic of Sri Lanka in 1972. Sri Lanka's more recent history was marred by a 26-year civil war, which began in 1983 and ended in 2009, when the Sri Lanka Armed Forces defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
Sri Lanka is a developing country, ranking 73rd on the Human Development Index. It is the highest-ranked South Asian nation in terms of development and has the second-highest per capita income in South Asia. However, the ongoing economic crisis has resulted in the collapse of its currency, rising inflation, and a humanitarian crisis due to a severe shortage of essentials. It has also led to an eruption of street protests, with citizens successfully demanding that the president and the government step down. The country has had a long history of engagement with modern international groups; it is a founding member of the SAARC, the G77 and the Non-Aligned Movement, as well as a member of the United Nations and the Commonwealth of Nations.
More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Lanka
Notable wild animals on Sri Lanca
Since 2020, the Sri Lankan leopard has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, as the population is estimated at less than 800 mature individuals, and is probably declining.
The Sri Lankan leopard has a tawny or rusty yellow coat with dark spots and close-set rosettes. Seven females measured in the early 20th century averaged a weight of 64 lb and had a mean head-to-body-length of 3 ft 5 in with a 2 ft 6.5 in long tail, the largest being 3 ft 9 in with a 2 ft 9 in long tail; 11 males averaged 124 lb, the largest being 170 lb, and measured 4 ft 2 in with a 2 ft 10 in long tail, the largest being 4 ft 8 in with a 3 ft 2 in long tail. The Sri Lankan leopard has possibly evolved to become a rather large leopard subspecies, because it is the apex predator in the country. Large males have been suggested to reach almost 220 lb, but evidence for this is lacking.
Melanistic leopards are rare. Few records exist, including from Mawuldeniya, Pitadeniya, and Nallathanniya. In October 2019, the Department of Wildlife Conservation recorded live footage of a melanistic individual for the first time, a male.
More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Lankan_leopard
The Sri Lankan elephant is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian elephant. The 2011 elephant census estimated a population of 5,879.
Cristian Connection to Sri Lanka
Adam's Peak is a 7,359 ft tall conical sacred mountain located in central Sri Lanka. It is well known for the Sri Pada ("sacred footprint"), a 5 ft 11 in rock formation near the summit whose name is also used for the mountain itself. In Buddhist tradition the print is held to be the footprint of the Buddha, in Sri Lankan Hindu tradition that of Hanuman or Shiva (means "Mountain of Shiva's Light"), and in some Islamic and Christian traditions that of Adam or St. (Doubting) Thomas.
The mountain is also known as Mount Malaya in Buddhist sources, particularly the Mahayana Lankavatara Sutra, which states that the Buddha preached this sutra on top of the mountain. According to this sutra, the mountain was the abode of Rāvanā, overlord of the Raskshasas and ruler of Laṅkā. Other names in Sanskrit sources include Mount Lanka, Ratnagiri (Mountain of Gems), Malayagiri (Mount Malaya) or Mount Rohana.
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More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam%27s_Peak
Tomorrow we will visit a Tea Plantation
Tomorrow late afternoon we depart Sri Lanka and an overnight cruise to Cochin, India. Diane and I, along with 160 fellow passengers, will stay two nights in a Marriott hotel before flying to Delhi. After spending a night there, we will ride a bus four hours to Agra. Around 4 PM will will ride in battery busses to the Taj Mahal to watch and take pictures of the sunset.
After a late supper, we will sleep a few hours, rising at 4:30 AM to return to the Taj to observe sunrise. After breakfast, we will tour the area by bus until 3 PM when we drive four hours back to Delhi. The next day we will tour the old and new Delhi, including the Qutub Minar with 230-foot tall Minaret.
The final morning we will check out of our hotel at 3 AM! for a bus ride to the airport. We will fly to Mauritius to reboard our cruise ship. Fortunately there will be three sea days so we can rest-up from our GO-GO Taj Mahal excursion!
Needless to say, with this tight schedule, we may not have Internet and time to produce too many posts for a while.
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