印度洋臉頰滑落的淚珠

Once one of the jewels in the crown of the British Empire， the tropical teardrop island of Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean and provides a 1)vibrant destination of colour and contrast. Discover this fascinating Indian sub-continent country， boasting beautiful beaches， tropical rainforests and wildlife， 2)lush hill plantations and 3)astounding mountains and waterfalls.

The multi-religious and multi-ethnic population includes many Buddhist monks with official languages being Sinhalese and Tamil， and English being widely spoken.

Sri Lanka boasts seven 4)UNESCO World Heritage sites， including the town of Galle and its Dutch-inspired 5)fortifications， the sacred cities of Sigiriya with its magnificent rock fortress， and the royal city of Kandy in its lakeside setting.

This is Kandy， where I’ve come for the Esala Perahera， the biggest festival in the country. Hundreds of elephants are dressed up in honour of Buddha’s tooth relic and paraded around the city for ten nights.

The point of this Perahera is to call Sri Lankan Buddhists to come and pay 6)homage to the tooth relic， which is supposedly one of Lord Buddha’s teeth， that was plucked from his ashes by a monk when he was cremated in 583 BC.

Buddhism is practiced by 70% of Sri Lanka’s population and has greatly influenced the country’s literature， art and architecture. Basic beliefs include the lack of need for material possessions and the birth and rebirth of your being until you reach enlightenment.

Before the procession begins， the dancers and elephant handlers7)congregate in the temple grounds and finish getting ready. Each night the chief elephant， called the Maligawa Tusker， will carry a 8)replica of the tooth relic from here， although the tooth itself remains at the temple. The casket is carried on the very last elephant of the Dalada Temple. It’s paraded around for the entire city to see. It takes three or four hours for the whole procession. Basically it lasts until it’s gone full circle and has been returned back to the temple where it started.

Sri Lanka enjoys a tropical climate with miles of palm-9)fringed sandy beaches from which traditional 10)stilt fishing can be seen， and larger sailing boats enjoying the refreshing sea breezes.

The island is famous for its production of spices， gems and 11)Ceylon Tea， the plantations for which are in the cool dry uplands.

12)Marvellous settings， breathtaking scenery， magical experiences and warm friendly service are trademarks of Sri Lanka， the “Isle of 13)Serendipity.”

斯里蘭卡位于印度洋，這個地處熱帶，形如淚滴的島嶼一度曾是大英帝國皇冠上的一顆明珠。如今，它是一個色彩斑斕、豐富多采、充滿生機(jī)的旅游勝地。在這個讓人著迷的南亞次大陸國家，你可以發(fā)現(xiàn)讓它引以為傲的有風(fēng)光旖旎的海灘、熱帶雨林與野生動物;此外，丘陵上有郁郁蔥蔥的種植園，它的高山和瀑布會讓你目瞪口呆。

在這個眾多信仰共存的多民族國度里有許多佛僧，它的官方語言是僧伽羅語和泰米爾語，而英語也被廣泛使用。

被聯(lián)合國教科文組織的世界遺產(chǎn)名錄收入的斯里蘭卡遺跡多達(dá)七處，其中包括加勒市由荷蘭人修建的城堡、壯觀巨石堡壘上的西吉利亞圣城、位于湖邊的康提王城。

這里就是康提，我來這里就是為了體驗佛牙節(jié)，這可是這個國家最盛大的節(jié)日。在節(jié)日期間，數(shù)以百計的大象被盛裝打扮，向佛祖的佛牙舍利表示敬意，它們會連續(xù)十個晚上在城內(nèi)巡行。

舉辦佛牙節(jié)的目的就是讓斯里蘭卡的佛教徒來到這里，瞻仰佛牙。據(jù)說，這顆佛牙是佛祖在公元前583年被火化后，一名僧人從他的骨灰中撿回的。

斯里蘭卡有70%的人口信奉佛教，該國的文學(xué)、藝術(shù)和建筑也因此大受影響。他們信仰的基本內(nèi)容包括對物質(zhì)享受無欲無求，相信轉(zhuǎn)世輪回，直至達(dá)到涅槃的彼岸。

在游行開始之前，舞師與大象的馴養(yǎng)者都在廟前聚集，完成準(zhǔn)備工作。每一個晚上，領(lǐng)頭叫馬里加哇的大象會馱著佛牙的復(fù)制品從這里出發(fā)，而真正的佛牙則留在廟里。……