sri-lanka-13-full-pdf-ebook.pdf

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History

The north has always existed a bit apart from

the rest of the island; even under colonial

regimes the region remained highly autono-

mous. Jaffna, especially, has always been an

important city, and one of the defining mo-

ments on the path to war came in 1981 when a

group of Sinhalese burnt down Jaffna’s library.

This was seen as a violent affront to the Tamils’

long and rich intellectual tradition.

The war began two years later, and Jaffna

continued to be a hotspot for violence. For

two decades the North was synonymous with

death and destruction as the Liberation Tigers

of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and Sri Lankan mili-

tary contested control. With the war’s ending

on the shores of Mullaittivu in 2009, a sense

of calm and stability is at last returning to the

North, though there is still much rebuilding to

be done, both in terms of infrastructure and

community relations.

Climate

The north is made up of two distinct areas: the

low-lying Jaffna peninsula and its islands, and

the vast Vanni, a flat scrubby area. The region

is extremely dry most of the year, except after

the October to January northeastern mon-

soon, when the green erupts.

Vavuniya

%024 / POPULATION 78,000

A transport hub, the bustling town of Vavuni-

ya (vow-nya) has few sights but an afternoon

spent here isn’t unpleasant. With road and

rail links to Jaffna much improved, few travel-

lers stop in Vavuniya these days, though there

are adequate hotels and restaurants.

1 Sights

The town arcs around an attractive tank

that’s best observed from Kudiyiruppu

Pillaiyar Kovil, a sprawling Ganesh temple.

Archaeological Museum MuseuM

(%222 4805; Horowapatana rd; h9am-5pm)

F This museum is unlikely to impress if

you’re arriving from the ancient cities, but

some of the pinched-faced terracotta figures

from Kilinochchi (4th to 5th century) are de-

lightfully primitive, while the central hexago-

nal chamber has some fine 5th-to-8th-centu-

ry Buddha statues in Mannar limestone.

Madukanda Vihara BuDDHIsT

(Horowapatana rd) The quietly charming

Madukanda Vihara is a Rs 200 three-wheeler

ride from central Vavuniya, beyond the 3km

post southeast on the A29. It was reputedly

the fourth resting point in the journey of the

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