Floods, Cyclone winds, Power cuts. Welcome to Sri Lanka!

Floods, Winds and Landslides batter Sri Lanka

In January, Sri Lanka experienced it's hottest January on record due to Global Warming and El Nino. Droughts resulted in power cuts as the country struggled to create enough hydro electricity to feed the increased demand for fans and air conditioners. People passed out in the street from heat stroke and bottled water supplies ran dry.

 

Monsoon Batters Sri Lanka

In April people prayed for the arrival of the monsoon. They were disappointed and Sri Lanka remained hot and dry, with daily temperatures in the mid to high 30"s.  This week extreme Monsoon rains have finally arrived causing havoc across the country. Sri Lanka is being battered by Cyclone force winds and torrential rain. 8 people have already died and 2 people narrowly escaped death when a large rock fell on top of their house in the ADAMS PEAK region. The Civil Defence Force have been kept very active in this highland area where there is a high risk of flooding and landslide. Already up to 31000 people have been displaced in this region and worse is to come as the bad weather continues (source http://www.dailynews.lk)

Major Flood Areas 

Colombo, Kalutara, Ratnapura, Kegalle and Nuwara Eliya have seen major flooding. Jaffna will be hardest hit on Wednesday. Colombo had 350mm or 13.90 inches yesterday and there's a lot more to come. Now is the time to seriously examine your tour itinerary and perhaps head further south and sit it out.


AVOID ADAMS PEAK
There have been a number of  LAND SLIDES in the Adams Peak region, so it's better to stay away and find another activity to add to your Back packing tour as torrential rain will be battering Sri Lanka for the next week or more.

Unpredictable Weather

Global Warming is having a huge impact on Sri Lanka. Temperatures are rising year on year and weather patterns are being disrupted it is now harder to plan your tour of Sri Lanka with any degree of certainty. For more information on planning your tour of Sri Lanka and for useful tips on Backpacking, check out my guide book for the best information.

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Find Out What Gem is For Birthdays in May

 

Birthstones for May

According to the Gem association of Sri Lanka the precious stone representing the month of May is the beautiful green Emerald that the Greek’s called “Smaragdos” literally translated to mean ‘green coloured stone’.

"Who first beholds the light of day 
In spring's sweet, flower month of May 
And wears an Emerald all her life
 Shall be a loved and a loving wife."

Sri Lanka is famous for its Blue Sapphires (Ceylon sapphires) and Pink/Red Rubies which come from the mining district in Ratnapura. Ratnapura is a difficult place to backpack to and a very uninteresting place once you get there! To find out better tour options and discover more about Ratnapura and  Sri Lankan Gems check out my Backpacking Sri Lanka guide book below.

Celebs Born in May

Audrey Hepburn, George Clooney, David Beckham all have emeralds as their birthstone.

Celebs Who Love Emeralds

Royalty such as Queen Elizabeth 11 of UK, who reportedly has a massive emerald collection, have always favoured emeralds and former icons such as Elizabeth Taylor also loved the stone.

However, it was Angelina Jolie who caused the biggest stir when she strutted her stuff  at the 2009 Oscars. The fashion world certainly took notice as she walked down the red carpet wearing huge emerald tear dropped earrings designed by Lorraine Schwartz. Since then emeralds have been a firm favourite with fashion conscious celebs.

Famous Jewelry Pieces

The Crown of Andes made by the Incas weighs over 100lbs and is decorated with 453 emeralds that are approx. 1500carats.

Biggest Emerald Stone in the World

The Devonshire emerald is one of the largest emeralds in the world, it’s a whopping 1386 carats and was given to the 6^th Duke of Devonshire by the Emperor of Brazil in1831. It’s now in the Natural History Museum London

Healing powers

Emeralds were thought to be so beautiful, so dazzling that their brilliance could restore sight. A true believer in this was the short sighted Roman Emperor Nero, who was seen to use an Emerald eye glass to watch the gladiator games.  Other healing properties include fertility, spine, headaches and enhanced mental ability.

History

Emeralds were loved by the Peruvians, Romans, Incas and the Spanish. The Romans used emeralds as lie detectors, they believed the emerald would become lighter in colour if someone was lying or up to no good. The Incas were big time collectors of emeralds, especially the priests, who believed they had magical powers linked to the goddess Esmerelda. Some say the emeralds were as large as ostrich eggs. Many of the emeralds were stolen the Spanish who ransacked the temples and looted from the priests. The Spanish explorer Pizzaro ordered his soldiers to steal huge emeralds from the Mexicans. However a priest had the last laugh, he told the stupid soldiers that if they wanted to be sure the stones were real they must put them on an anvil and bash them with a hammer to see if they broke. So they bashed all there big stones with a giant hammer and ended up with lots of tiny little emeralds :)

Urban Myths: Hebrews believed that the stone was so brilliant and dazzling that it could turn a serpent blind if it looked at one, Peruvians believed that demons and griffins guarded the emerald mines and the Romans believed that you would have very bad luck if an emerald fell from its setting.

Investment Value: Emeralds represent excellent investment value as they have a stable market price.

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Mayday Madness in Sri Lanka causes travel chaos.

May Day In Sri Lanka = Traffic Nightmare!

It's May Day - a public holiday in Sri Lanka, this former British colony kept some of it's links to Old Blighty and May Day is one of them. Think May Day in the UK and most people will think of something like this.

Girls in white dresses skipping around the May pole is a typical image for many people but not in Sri Lanka, in fact most people in Sri Lanka wouldn't even know what a May pole is. Swap the May pole and ribbons for placards and protesters and then you will have a better idea of May Day in Sri Lanka.

Placards not May poles in Sri Lanka

May Day is the day when protesters head to the streets in their 100's especially in the big cities like Colombo. Every year they take to the street to demonstrate against lousy pay or poor workers rights or whatever else takes their fancy. If you happen to be on a tour of Sri Lanka and have time to kill then it's interesting to watch the protests for a while.

Chaos and Delays to Travel in Sri Lanka

The large crowds of marchers who arrive in the bus loads result is organized chaos on the streets of Sri Lanka. Good luck to all those with a planned Sri Lanka  tour that passes through any of the cities, or any one expecting to travel smoothly around the country by bus or train, the chances are that just ain't going to happen. As city streets are likely to look like this-

(photo credit to the great www.news.cn)

Beach Madness

Yes May Day is a time of Madness in Sri Lanka in many ways, those who aren't on the streets protesting will be heading off towards the beach, where the parties will begin. Dancing, singing and drinking Arrack or extra strong beer is a definite favourite for many people on May day. The atmosphere on the beaches can be really good to start with and it's a great way for tourists to check out the real Sri Lankan way of life but be WARNED, you will get harassed, you will get asked for money, to buy gifts you don't want or give them sex or asked to buy drugs etc etc and as the evening approaches and the Arrack kicks in, fights are likely.

About Sri Lanka
For those of you wondering about Sri Lanka, it is a beautiful tear shaped island that sits of the southern tip of India, it's hot and tropical weather means the sun shines 365 days a year. For years the former British colony was isolated from the rest of the world because of the bloody civil war between the Tamil tigers and the native Singhalese, but now all that has changed and Sri Lanka has opened it's doors to tourists.  It has some great things to offer, beautiful countryside, great wildlife such as elephants and leopards,  ancient ruins, sandy beaches and warm seas.

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