I embarked on a 4-month long journey on February 1 in the midst of concerns about the new coronavirus 19 that was spreading like a wildfire, not only in China but also in Singapore and in several other countries. Fortunately, the countries that I was scheduled to travel to were reported not to have any serious issue. Thank God.
The first destination was Sri Lanka. It was an opportunity to travel with Joseph Choi who has been serving Sri Lanka for the past 4-7 years on and off. While Joseph was following up on his previous visits, my purpose was to explore ane discern if SfK should serve in Sri Lanka.
We took the same flight in Bangkok to Colombo on Feb 1. A brother in Christ, called Condred Manuel, came to pick us up. We were to travel together in his car. He lived in Korea for 17 years or so and our conversation was done all in Korean. Amazing.
Sri Lanka's official name is Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. Its former name was Ceylon called as such from 1948 when it gained independence from the UK and changed its name from the British Colony of Ceylon. In 1972, its name was changed to Sri Lanka when it became a member of the Common Wealth. But, Sri Lanka's history was marred by the 26-year long civil war that ended in 2009. It was a conflict between Singali-majority army and Tamil-minority Liberation Tigers of Tamil..
It is located in the Indian Ocean to the southwest of the Bay of Bengal and to the southeast of the Arabian Sea. It is geographically separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait.
The legislative capital is Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, which is a suburb of the commercial capital and largest city Colombo.
Ceylon is well known for its quality tea. Its climate makes the tea taste unique and attractive. This island nation looked small on a map, but once we started driving up the mountain area, we felt the island was huge. Also quite diverse in elevations and microclimates.
The name Sri Lanka came from the combination of the island's ancient name Lanka and Sri meaning resplendent or attractive and impressive through being richly colorful. Indeed, Sri Lank maintains colorful garments, architecture and decorations.
Its history spans 3,000 years with the evidence of pre-history human settlements dating back to at least 125,000 years. Sri Lank is known to have the first known Buddhist writings dating back to the Fourth Buddhist council in 29 BC. Its location is strategic as part of the ancient Silk Road and even the Chinese ambition of Belt and Road Initiative.
For a week, we drove around the island nation and thoroughly enjoyed the diverse beauty of this country, the 93rd country to visit for me.. - Jeffrey
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