M A P  O F  S R I L A N K A

Special Places to Visit   World Heritage Sights ..     1 Anuradhapura 2 Polonnaruwa 3 Dambulla 4 Sigiriya 5 Kandy 6 Galle 7 Sinharaja Rain Forest       Wild Parks       1 Yala (Ruhuna) National Park 2 Wilpattu National Park 3 Maduru Oya National Park 4 Gal Oya National Park 5 Bundala National Park 6 Horton Plains National Park 7 Uda Walawe National Park 8 Wasgamuwa National Park       Beaches       1 Mt. Lavinia 2 Negombo 3 Beruwala 4 Hikkaduwa 5 Unawatuna 6 Trincomalee 7 Nilaveli 8 Kalkudah & Passekudah 9 Batticaloa

Country Name Conventional long form: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka conventional short form: Sri Lanka former: Ceylon   Size 65,525 sq km   Capital Sri Jayawardenepura   Commercial Capital Colombo   Population 19 Million   Population density 309 people per sq km   Life expectancy at birth 74 Female, 64 Male   Literacy rate 91.8%   Languages   Sinhala & Tamil English is widely spoken throughout Sri Lanka, with the exception of remote villages.   Ethnic mix   Sinhalese- 74 percent; Tamil- 18 percent; Muslim -7 percent; Burgher (descendants of Dutch and Portuguese colonist) and others- 1 per cent   Religion Buddhism- 70 per cent; Hinduism- 16 per cent; Christianity- 7 per cent; Islam-7 per cent   Climate   Low Lands – tropical, average 27C Central Hills – Cooler, with temperatures dropping to 14C. The south-west monsoon brings rain to the western, southern and central regions from May to July, while the north-eastern monsoon occurs in the north and east in December and January. Sri Lanka has a good climate for holiday-makers throughout the year.   Location An island off the south-eastern cost shores of India, 880 km north of the equator, in the Indian Ocean.