Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia, located in the Indian Ocean to the southwest of the Bay of Bengal and to the southeast of the Arabian Sea. The island is historically and culturally intertwined with the Indian subcontinent, but is geographically separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. The legislative capital, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, is a suburb of the commercial capital and largest city, Colombo.
Transport in Sri Lanka is based on its road network, which is centred on the country's capital Colombo. A rail network handles a portion of Sri Lanka's transport needs. There are navigable waterways, harbours and two international airports: in Katunayake, 22 miles (35 km) north of Colombo, and in Hambantota.
Colombo is the commercial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo metropolitan area has a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 in the city proper. It is the financial centre of the island and a popular tourist destination. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to the Greater Colombo area which includes Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, the legislative capital of Sri Lanka and Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. Colombo is often referred to as the capital since Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is within the urban area of, and a suburb of, Colombo. It is also the administrative capital of the Western Province and the district capital of Colombo District. Colombo is a busy and vibrant place with a mixture of modern life and colonial buildings and ruins. It was the legislative capital of Sri Lanka until 1982.
Galle is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, 119 km from Colombo. Galle is the administrative capital of Southern Province, Sri Lanka and is the district capital of Galle District.
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, population 245,974 (2012) is the largest suburb of the City of Colombo, and covers an extent of 2109 hectares. It lies south of the Colombo Municipal Council area and separated from it by the Dehiwala canal which forms the northern boundary of DMMC. Its southern limits lie in Borupana Road and the eastern boundary is Weras Ganga with its canal system and including some areas to its east. This town has extensive population and rapid industrialization and urbanization in recent years. It is home to Sri Lanka's National Zoological Gardens, which remains one of Asia's largest. Colombo South Teaching Hospital, Kalubowila and Colombo Airport, Ratmalana are some important landmark in this area. Dehiwela-Mount Lavinia and Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte being two large suburban centers of the city of Colombo function together as one large urban agglomeration in the Region. The overspill from the City in residential and commercial uses of land have rapidly urbanised these suburban centers. Dehiwela-Mount Lavinia and Sri Jayawardenpaura along with Colombo Municipal Council form the most urbanized part of the core area of the Colombo Metropolitan Region. Dehiwala and Mount Lavinia lie along the Galle Road artery, which runs along the coast to the south of the country.
Moratuwa is a large suburb of Colombo city, on the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka, near Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia. It is situated on the Galle–Colombo main highway, 18 km south of Colombo city centre. Moratuwa is surrounded on three sides by water, except in the north of the city, by the Indian Ocean on the west, the Bolgoda lake on the east and the Moratu river on the south. According to the 2012 census, the suburb had a population of 168,280.
The Southern Expressway(Sinhalese: දක්ෂිණ ලංකා අධිවේගි මාර්ගය, translit. Dakśina Laṃkā adhivēgi mārgaya; Tamil: தென்னிலங்கை அதிவேக நெடுஞ்சாலை) is Sri Lanka's first E Class highway. The 126-kilometre-long (78 mi) highway links the Sri Lankan capital Colombo with Galle and Matara, major cities in the south of the island.
The Sri Lanka Railway Department is Sri Lanka's railway owner and primary operator. As part of the Sri Lankan government, it is overseen by the Ministry of Transport. Founded in 1858 as the Ceylon Government Railway, it operates the nation's rail and links the capital, Colombo, with other population centres and tourist destinations.
The Second Battle of Elephant Pass, was a battle fought in April 2000 for the control of the Sri Lankan military base in Elephant Pass, Jaffna.
The Sri Lanka Ports Authority Maritime Museum, commonly known as the Colombo Maritime Museum, is located at 19 Chaithya Road, Colombo, adjacent to the Colombo Port. The museum is operated and maintained by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority.
The Northern Province is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. Between 1988 and 2006 the province was temporarily merged with the Eastern Province to form the North Eastern Province. The capital of the province is Jaffna. The majority of the Sri Lankan Civil War was played out in this province.
The Colombo Outer Circular Expressway is a highway in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was opened in sections, with the latest one between Kaduwela and Kadawatha having been opened on 17 September 2015. The 29 km (18 mi) long outer circular road network links the Colombo - Matara Expressway with Colombo - Katunayake Expressway and the proposed Colombo - Kandy Expressway and will provide an orbital beltway to bypass the city of Colombo and reduce traffic congestion. The project is funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) The expressway is named "Arthur C. Clark Expressway" in honor of Arthur C. Clarke, a famous science fiction writer and futurist who lived in Sri Lanka from 1956 to his death in 2008.
The Ministry of Highways, Ports and Shipping was a Sri Lankan government ministry responsible for the governance,implementation,creation and development of Ports including Colombo, Galle and Trincomalee ports, Highways including Southern expressway, Colombo Outer Circular expressway, Katunayake exprssway and their transport services. It was reorganized as two separate ministries, the Ministry of Ports and Shipping and Ministry of Higher Education and Highways following the formation of the Sirisena cabinet in January 2015.
The Ceylon Tea Museum is located in the former Hanthana Tea Factory, which was originally constructed in 1925. It is situated 3 km (1.9 mi) south of Kandy.
The Central Expressway (E04), is a proposed road project that will link the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, with Kandy. It will essentially duplicate the route of the A1 Road.
National railway museum is the national railway museum of Sri Lanka, located in Kadugannawa. The railway museum is owned by Sri Lanka Railways.
Temple of the Tooth Museum is a museum of the Temple of the Tooth. It is located on the first and the second floors wing of the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, Sri Lanka.
Postal museum is a Sri Lanka's national museum of post that located at the Postal Headquarters in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Firstly, the postal museum was functioned at the Central Telegraph Office during 1918–1925, and moved to General Post Office in 1994. Again, a national postal museum was opened on 6 July 2010.
