Geography  
Sri Lanka is located in the Indian Ocean, between 6-10 North Latitude and 80-82 of East Longitude. It is separated from the Indian Subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. The island has a maximum length of 432km and maximum breadth of 224km. The land area is 65,525 Sqkm. The area excluding the inland water is 62,336 Sqkm. The pear shaped island consists mostly of flat – to – rolling coastal plains, with mountains rising in the central and south –central part. Time difference is GMT +5.30 hours.

Climate
Sri Lanka’s climate can be described as tropical and quite warm. The temperature ranges from a low of 16 C in Nuwara Eliya in the central highlands to a high of 32 C in Trincomalee in the northeast coast. The average yearly temperature for the country ranges from 28 – 30 C during the day and 4 – 7 C at night. January is the coolest month while May is the hottest month. The rainfall pattern is influenced by the monsoon winds of the Indian Ocean and the Bay of  Bengal, which encounter the slopes of the central highlands. They unload heavy rains on the mountain slopes and the south western sector of the island. Annual rainfall range is 2,540mm to over 5,080mm in south western of the island. Less than 1,250mm in the north western and south eastern parts of the island.

“Sri Lanka, the finest island of its size in the world” - Marco Polo