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Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!hookup!news.kei.com!eff!cs.umd.edu!mojo.eng.umd.edu!dharma From: Prasad Dharmasena <dharma@eng.umd.edu> Newsgroups: soc.culture.sri-lanka,soc.answers,news.answers Subject: Sri Lanka FAQ - Monthly posting to soc.culutre.sri-lanka Followup-To: soc.culture.sri-lanka Date: 15 Mar 1994 14:23:11 GMT Organization: Project GLUE, University of Maryland, College Park, MD Lines: 1264 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu Distribution: world Expires: Thu, 13 Apr 1994 00:00:00 GMT Message-ID: <2m4gcf$41r@mojo.eng.umd.edu> NNTP-Posting-Host: taylor.src.umd.edu Summary: Sri Lanka FAQ answers common question for Sri Lankans Living outside of Sri Lanka. It has information on where/how to get more information. Contains some tourist information as well. Originator: dharma@taylor.src.umd.edu Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu soc.culture.sri-lanka:3659 soc.answers:979 news.answers:16405 Archive-name: sri-lanka-faq Soc-culture-sri-lanka-archive-name: sri-lanka-faq Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list on Sri Lanka Last update: March 14, 1994 This list should not be construed as an endorsement of any of the products or services mentioned herein. I will take no responisibily for hardships caused due to incorrect or inaccurate or even accurate information presented. Those who wish to use the information are strongly encouraged to use common sense and consumer doubts if and when applicable. I have tried not to list any illegal or illicit activities. If the services or persons mentioned here are engaged in such activities, it is by their own discretion. I neither endorese nor condone such activities. You may freely distribute this FAQ list as long as: (a) This notice is attached to the full or partial FAQ list (b) You do not make money (or other equivalent compensation) by doing so. I would like to thank everyone who helped me in the compilation process. Compilation (c) Copyright Prasad Dharmasena <pkd@frb.gov> ======================================================================= ======================================================================= Administrative: <0 - 9> <0> What the heck is a FAQ? <1> How do I get the latest copy of this FAQ? <2> How do I make changes to the information in the FAQ? General Information on Sri Lanka + <10> Where is Sri Lanka? What are the general information? + <11> How do I get tourist information on Sri Lanka? + <12> So what's so great about Sri Lanka? Passports/Visas/Immigration/etc: <10 - 19> + <20> Where is of the Embassy of Sri Lanka in <country>? + <21> Where is the Embassy of <country> in Sri Lanka? <22> How do I get my SL passport renewed? <23> What are the US Immigration announcement phone numbers? <24> Does Sri Lanka allow dual citizenship? Electronic/Computer/Network related: <20 - 29> <30> What are the electronic forums on Sri Lanka? <31> Does Sri Lanka have e-mail? <32> Is there a Sri Lanka related FTP site? <33> Are there any Sinhala fonts? <34> Are there any Tamil fonts? <35> Are there Sinhala/Tamil word/text processors? News: <30 - 39> <40> What are the SL publications in <country>? <41> Can we get SL newspapers in <country>? <42> Are there any SL radio programs in North America? <43> What are the SLBC shortwave frequencies? <44> What are the BBC frequencies for North America? <45> What are the All India Radio frequencies? Services and general information <40 - 59> <50> Are there any Sri Lanka related organizations? <51> Who's the best airline ticket agent? <52> From where do I get Sri Lankan spices? <53> How do I get my wedding tape converted from PAL to NTSC? <54> How do I send flowers to SL? <55> How do I send money to and from SL? <56> How do I send misc big items to and from SL? <57> What about parcels to SL? Misc. <70> Are there any quality books on Sri Lanka? ======================================================================= ======================================================================= Subject: <0> What the heck is a FAQ? FAQ stands for Frequently Asked Questions. This FAQ list tries to answer some of the common questions. Some newsreaders will allow you to go to the next subject with a ^G. Else, do a search on the string "<xy>" to go to the question numbered xy. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <1> How do I get the latest copy of this FAQ? An up-to-date copy of this FAQ file can be obtained by sending an e-mail to <dharma@eng.umd.edu> with the subject line containing the words "send sri-lanka-faq" (no quotes). I will try (try being the keyword here) to update the list once a month. So, if your copy of the FAQ has a date which is within the last 30 days, chances are that you *are* reading the latest version. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <2> How do I make changes to the information in the FAQ? You can't. Only I can change the FAQ file. If you find any errors, omissions, or otherwise incorrect information, please point them out to me. Your feedback is greatly appreciated. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <10> Where is Sri Lanka? What are the general information? Sri Lanka is an island in the Indian Ocean. Official name: Democratic Socialist Repubic of Sri Lanka. Short: Sri Lanka, Former: Ceylon Location: Latitude 5'55" - 5'51" Longitude 79'42" - 81'52" Length: 432Km, Width: 224Km, Area: 65,610Sq.Km. Capital: Sri Jayawardenapura, Commercial Center: Colombo International Airport: Colombo (Katunayake), Intl Seaport: Colombo Literacy Rate: 87%+, Total Population: 18 million, Population growth rate: 1.2% Life expectancy: 68 (male), 73 (Female) Average temps: Max C(F) Min C(F) Elevation m(ft) Colombo: 30.4(87.7) 24.0(75.2) 0(0) Kandy: 28.7(83.7) 20.2(68.4) 305(1000) Nuwara Eliya: 20.2(68.4) 11.4(52.5) 1890(6200) Languages: Sinhala, Tamil, English Currency: Sri Lanakan Rupee (US$1 ~= Rs. 50) Telephone Country code for Sri Lanka: 94 (From US) Time Difference: GMT+ 0530 hrs -- ======================================================================= Subject: <11> How do I get tourist information on Sri Lanka? Book: Lonely Planet Travel Survival Kit, Sri Lanka 5th Edition, 1993 ISBN: 0-86442-169-9 [Thanks: Erik Futtrup <futtrup@daimi.aau.dk>] -- Book: Insight Guides - Sri Lanka APA Publications -- ** Sri Lanka Ceylon Tourist Board Travel Information Center 78 Steuart Place c/o Ceylon Tourist Board Colombo 3 72 Victoria Drive Sri Lanka Kandy, Sri Lanka Tel: +94(1)437059, 437060 Tel: +94(8)22661 437952, 437954/5 Dept of Wildlife Conservation Cultural Triangle Office 82 Rajamalwatte Road 212/1 Bauddhaloka Mawatha Battaramulla, Sri Lanka Colombo 7, Sri Lanka Tel: +94(1)867086 Tel: +94(1)587912, 500733 [Note: 94 is the country code for Sri Lanka from the US] -- ** Australia Ceylon Tourist Board W.Au office F. P Leonard Advertising Pte Ltd. 439 Albany Highway 241 Abercrombie Street Victoria Park Chippendale West Australia 6100 NSW Australia 2008 Tel:(09)362-4579 Tel: (??)698-5266 -- ** Germany ** Denmark Ceylon Tourist Board - Eu. Office Ceylon Touristrad 6000 Frankfurt Main Sollerodgardavej 38 Kaiserstrasse 13 D K 2840 Holte Germany Tel: 280-010, 283-750 -- ** Japan ** Thailand Tourist Board Representative Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Tourist Board AMO 1/18 Soi 10 2/1 Atago 1-chome Sukhumvit Road Minato-ku, Tokyo Bangkok, Thailand Nippon Tel:433-6377, 433-6378 -- ** USA ** UK Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Tourist Board Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Tourist Board 609 Fifth Avenue, Suite 308 52 High Holborn New York, NY 10017, USA London WC1V 6RI Tel:(212)935-0369 Tel: 01-405-1194 -- Contact the nearest Sri Lankan embassy/high commission/consulate/ or Air Lanka office as well. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <12> So what's so great about Sri Lanka? Famous sci-fi writer Arthur C. Clarke, who resides in the island, once wrote "It may well be that each of Sri Lanka's attractions is surpassed somewhere on Earth; Cambodia may have more impressive ruins, Tahiti lovelier beaches, Bali more beautiful landscapes (though I doubt it), Thailand more charming people (ditto). But I find it hard to believe that there is any country which scores so highly in all departments - which has so many advantages and so few disadvantages, especially for the western visitor." For a country of that size (about the size of West Virginia or Ireland) things one can do is amazing: surfing, wind surfing, scuba diving, rock/mountain climbing, to searching for ancient ruins, wildlife, corral reefs, gemstones, spices, rituals, ... read: trip reports archived on <amil.eng.buffalo.edu>:/pub/slnet/. <ftp.cc.umanitoba.ca>:/rec-travel/. -- Colombo: All the modern inconveniences. Most people speak a strange dialect of English. Not being from the area, my advise is this: "Leave Immediately." Kandy: Still has good spots. But try to go see the country side. Peradeniya campus, one of the best looking campuses in the world, is nearby. Try not to get ragged. See Colombo. Kandy Parade: "Perahera" is in July (?). Elephants (both kinds), traditonal dancers, drummers, "Gini Keli" (fireworks- no, not the July 4th stuff), etc. Mt. Piduruthalagala: Because it's there. Highest mountain top. 8100+ ft. Yala/Kumana: National Park/Bird Sanctuary. Can stay overnight. No Camping. Guided tours on vehicles. Chances of seeing wild elephants, leopards are good. (reservations: wildlife dept.) Katharagama: Religious place Buddhist/Hindu. Crack a coconut on god's stone. See fire walks, needles through the cheeks (face!). Anuradhaputa, Polonnaruwa, etc: Religious/Cultural/Historical. See the ruins. Excavate your own. Ancient artwork in temples. Beaches: The beach is always less than 70 miles away. No crowds, even on long weekends. Plenty of free parking. Adam's Peak: Religious/Adventurous. Said to have a 6 feet long foot print of Adam/Buddha/Allah/David Koresh. At sun rise, you can see the sun jumping up and down taking a bow or is it a bath? Top is 7500+ feet. ?? Zoo: Dehiwala (suburb of Colombo) Zoo is one of the best in the world. Pinnawala: Elephant orphanage. How to catch a wild elephant in .... Dambulla: `gala uding "coming water" thamba ha^liyata ta~ng ta~ng.' Ancient artwork on the walls of seven caves. Buddhist temple. Sigiriya: See the ancient erotica. Gaffiti? We invented it. ("King Kashyapa slept here" "with ....?") -- ======================================================================= Subject: <20> Where is the Embassy of Sri Lanka in <country>? ** Australia High Commission of Sri Lanka Consulate of Sri Lanka ??? Somewhere Street 191 Clarence St., 7th Fl. Canberra ?? Sydney, NSW 2000 Tel: ? Tel: (2)262-5944 Fax: ? Fax: (2)290-2335 -- ** Canada Walter E. Fernando High Commission of Sri Lanka 85 Range Road, Suites 102-104 Ottawa, Ontario Tel: (613)223-8449 Fax: (613)238-8448 [Thanks: Thushara Amaranayaka <amarana@server.uwindsor.ca>] -- ** UK Sri Lanka High Commission 13 Hyde Park Gardens London W2 2LU Tel: 071-262 1841 -- ** USA Amb: Dr. Ananda Guruge Perm Rep: Dr. Stanley Kalpage Embassy of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Mission to the UN 2148 Wyoming Avenue, NW 630 Third Avenue, 20th Floor Washington, DC 20008 New York, NY 10017 (202)483-4025 (212)986-7040 (202)483-4028 (212)986-1838 (Fax) (202)232-7181 (Fax) Passport Office: Ext. 120 -- -- ** Sri Lanka Ministry of Foreign Affairs Republic Building Colombo 1 Sri Lanka Tel: (1)325371 Fax: (1)446091 -- ======================================================================= Subject: <21> Where is the Embassy of <country> in Sri Lanka? Australian High Commission 3 Cambridge Place Colombo 7 Tel: (1)698767 thru 69 Fax: (1)686453, 698332 -- Canadian High Commission 6 Gregory's Road Colombo 7 Tel: (1)694851 thru 53 Fax: (1)687049 -- French Embassy 89 Rosmead Place Colombo 7 Tel: (1)698815, 699750,1 -- German Embassy 40 Alfred House Avenue Colombo 3 Tel: (1)580431 thru 34 Fax: (1)580440 -- Indian High Commission 36-38 Galle Road Colombo 3 Tel: 421605, 422788,9 Fax: 446403 -- Japanese Embassy 20 Gregory's Road Colombo 7 Tel:(1)693831 thru 33, 698628 692154, 693015 Fax: 698629 -- Netherland, Embassy of 25 Torrington Avenue Colombo 7 Tel: (1)589626 thru 28 Fax: (1)502855 -- Norwegian Embassy 34 Ward Place Colombo 7 Tel: (1)698936, 692263, 699457, 687534 Fax: (1)695009 -- Swedish Embassy 315 Vauxhall Street Colombo 2 Tel: (1)328822, 329261 -- Switzerland Embassy 68 Gregory's Road Colombo 7 Tel: (1)695117, 695127 695148, 695176 -- UK High Commission 190 Galle Road Colombo 3 Tel: (1)437336 thru 43 Fax: (1)437344 ** USA Amb: Mrs. Teresita C. Schaffer Sri Lanka Desk Embassy of the United States Department of State 210 Galle Road 21st and C streets Colombo 3 Washignton, DC 20551 Sri Lanka USA Tel:(01)448007, 421271 Tel: (202)647-1450 Fax:(01)437345 -- ======================================================================= Subject: <22> How do I get my SL passport renewed? There are two types of renewals. (1) If your passport is less than 10 years old, you can simply renew the existing one. (2) If the passport is more than 10 years old (ie. it has been renewed once before) OR it has run out of pages (stop traveling so much) then you have to obtain a new passport. Naturally, there are two types of forms that you have to fill out. (I guess one form with two boxes to tick off makes too much sense.) So when you call the embassy, (phone numbers are under <10>) be specific. You may also need to give them the National ID number and the current passport number before they can send you the form. Why? Why ask why? There is a $130 surcharge for getting a new passport through the SL embassy in Washington DC as they have to send the paperwork to Sri Lanka. As far as I know, the five-year renewal doesn't cost that outrageous $130. If you get your passport renewed in Sri Lanka, there is no $130 surchage. Your mileage may vary for SL embassies in other countries. For emergencies, the embassy can issue an one-time temporary passport which is good only to enter Sri Lanka. You will have to obtain a regular passport while in SL. Moreover, you may have problems of getting visas (ie: transit visa -- to have the privilage of sitting on a lousy chair at Charles de Gaulle airport.) with this temporary passport. To get a new passport for a lost/stolen passport, you are required to send a police report, national ID and/or original birth certificate and/or citizenship certificate, documents to prove the legality of your stay in the country (valid visa)... etc. For more info, call the embassy. See <20> -- ======================================================================= Subject: <23> What are the US Immigration announcement phone numbers? These are the numbers for Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) of the United States, Washington, DC office. Toll calls. Visa Cutoff Date Announcement (202) 663-1541 Visa Information (202) 663-1225 Immigration Lottery Info (202) 663-1600 Online Visa Information (202) 647-9255 (Modem/Data) Also check with your local INS office. -- alt.visa.us FAQ "us-visa-faq" is available (along with many other FAQs) from <rtfm.mit.edu>: /pub/usenet/news.answers/ If you do not have access to FTP, send an e-mail to <mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu> with "send usenet/news.answers/us-visa-faq" (without quotes) in the body. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <24> Does Sri Lanka allow dual citizenship? [Thanks: Vicumpriya Perera <vperera@silver.ucs.indiana.edu> for sending me a copy of the "Citizenship Act of Sri Lanka"] Yes, Sri Lanka allows dual citizenship. A "Dual Citizen" is a legal citizen of two countries. Other countries that allow dual citizenship are: US, UK, Canada, ...? -- If your child was born outside of Sri Lanka and you want it to have the Sri Lankan citizenship, the law requires that the child's *father* (not mother) be a citizen of Sri Lanka at the time of the it's birth. The father has to register the child at an embassy/high commission/consular office/etc. within one year of the date of the birth. Such a child will become a "citizen of Sri Lanka by decent" and, therefore, may not be restricted under articles 21 and 24. These children may also have (automatically) the citizenship of the country of birth. -- Current understanding: A Sri Lankan citizen who eventually becomes a citizen of aother country has to make an application to the Minister [of what, the "Citizenship act" doesn't spell out.] to resume the Sri Lankan citizenship. Moreover, the Ministry will charge Rs. 100,000.00 for such an application. [Rs. 125,000.00 per married couple] Now, if you are not particularly inclined to pay them Rs 100,000 and think that it is ridiculous to have to pay them to "resume" the citizenship which you never gave up in the first place, you are encouraged to go through legal means to get what *I consider* rightfully yours. Here is why I consider that: Article 19 of the "Citizenship Act" says: "If a citizen of Sri Lanka of full age and of sound mind makes a declaration of renunciation of citizenship of Sri Lanka in the prescribed manner, the Minister shall cause the declaration to be registered; and, upon registration thereof, the declarant shall cease to be a citizen of Sri Lanka." [I replaced Ceylon with Sri Lanka] Some countries such as the United States does *not* require you to renounce your current citizenship in the *prescribed manner according to the laws of the country of your current citizenship* at the time of obtaining the citizenship of that country. In other words, if you have not notified the Minister [of no particular portfolio :-)], he or she has *not* declared you as having ceased to be a citizen of Sri Lanka. As such, you are still a *lawful* citizen of Sri Lanka. Hence, there is no need for an application to the Minister for the "resumption" of your Sri Lankan citizenship. However, if you are not a "citizen of Sri Lanka by decent" but by "registration" the above argument doesn't hold as according to Articles 21 and 24, if you voluntarily become a citizen of another country, you lose the citizenship of Sri Lanka. Yes, I have looked at the amendments made to the article 19 and others. However, all the amendments are there to allow you to retain the citizenship of another country while "resuming" or registering as a citizen of SL. Rich Wales has looked at the issue of dual citizenship from the United State's perspective. Latest update of his article can be obtained by sending an e-mail to <richw@mks.com> with the subject line containing the two words "send dualcit." Remember, this article is only useful for those who are already citizens or permanent residents of the US. (It's *not* an article on how to get the green card) -- ======================================================================= Subject: <30> What are the electronic forums on Sri Lanka? SLNet: A moderated electronic mailing list. To get a copy of the application form, please send an e-mail to <dharma@eng.umd.edu> with "send slnet-form" (no quotes) in the subject line. -- Sawnet: South Asian Women's NET is a forum for south asian women, and those interested in issues relevant to south asian women. Membership is limited to women only (not necessarily South Asian). To subscribe to Sawnet, send a message to <kher@cadse.enet.dec.com> with the subject "Sawnet subscription request." -- LaRC: Lanka Ribald Classics is an electronic magazine aimed at archiving unwritten humor from Sri Lanka. Rated R. To become a member of the mailing list, send an e-mail to <wpd@eng.umd.edu> Send contributions to the same address. -- GASSHO: A bimonthly electronic journal seeking to promote communications and community amongst Buddhist scholars, laypractitioners, monks and nuns. GASSHO is a non-sectarian publication and does not represent any particular school of Buddhism. <dharma@netcom.com> or <GASSHO@f33.n125.z1.FIDONET.ORG> Review Editor, GASSHO [ This list and the following list are not P.O. Box 4951 directly related to Sri Lanka, but Buddhism Berkeley, CA 94704-4951 is a major religion in the country ] -- BUDDHA-L: Buddhist Academic Discussion Forum. To subscribe send an e-mail to <LISTSERV@ULKYVM.BITNET> with "subscribe buddha-l your-name" in the message body. Text archives maybe found via FTP/Gopher on coombs.anu.edu.au or its mirror sites under /coombspapers/otherarchives [Thanks: Vicumpriya Perara <itqu500@indyvax.iupui.edu>] -- CricInfo: This is a gopher. [Cricket is the second religion for all.] Path is: <Other Gophers/North America/USA/Oregon/CricInfo Gopher> -- soc.culture.sri-lanka: A newsgroup on Usenet. Other relevant news groups include soc.culture.tamil, soc.culture.indian, soc.culture.asian.american, rec.sport.cricket, rec.sport.cricket.scores, misc.news.southasia, alt. visa.us, alt.I.am.holier.than.thou. -- BBS': Your local BBS' might carry full Usenet and Internet mail, in which case you can subscribe to any news group or a mailing list on the Internet. -- Veronica: On most gopher servers, veronica feature is able to do a keyword search. I was surprised to find this FAQ via veronica. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <31> Does Sri Lanka have e-mail? Lanka Academic Network (LAcNet), a not for profit organization created by overseas Sri Lankans, provides an electronic mail service to the following institutions in Sri Lanka. mrt.ac.lk U. Moratuwa cse.mrt.ac.lk Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering ent.mrt.ac.lk Dept. Electronics & Telecom. Engineering elect.mrt.ac.lk Dept. of Electrical Engineering acc.ac.lk Arthur Clark Center ifs.ac.lk Inst. of Fundamental Studies ices.ac.lk International Centre for Ethnic Studies pdn.ac.lk U. Peradeniya eng.pdn.ac.lk Engineering Fac. agri.pdn.ac.lk Agriculture Fac. ugc.ac.lk University Grants Commission kln.ac.lk U. Kelaniya sjp.ac.lk U. Sri Jayawardenapura nbro.ac.lk National Building Research Inst. ict.cmb.ac.lk Inst. of Computer Tech., U. Colombo cmb.ac.lk U. Colombo pharm.cmb.ac.lk Pharmacology Dept. parasit.cmb.ac.lk Parasitology Dept. dscs.cmb.ac.lk Stat. & Comp. Sci. Dept. ou.ac.lk Open U. of Sri Lanka ef.org.ac.lk Environmental Foundation (NGO) fdasl.ac.lk U.S. Food & Drug Administration cisir.ac.lk Ceylon Inst. of Scientific and Industrial Research limm.ac.lk Lahmeyer Int. (company) its.ac.lk Inst. of Technological Studies cintec.ac.lk Computer & Info. Tech. Council If you need more information, you may contact <postmaster@blah.blah.blah.lk> where "blah.blah.blah" is the institution domain of your interest. Since e-mail to Sri Lanka goes over international telephone services, please do NOT send long, useless, frivolous (huh?) or test messages. ***** If you find e-mail services to Sri Lanka valuable, please make a ***** ***** small monetary contribution towards keeping the e-mail link alive. ***** You may send your tax deductible contribution (payable to LACNET) to: Priyantha Samaratunga Treasurer 3249 Blackstone Av. St. Louis Park, MN 55416 -- ======================================================================= Subject: <32> Is there a Sri Lanka related FTP site? Check the anonymous FTP site <amil.eng.buffalo.edu> (128.205.21.5). The directory /pub/slnet/ contains the following directories/files: README - Read this first doc/ - documents, reports, papers, etc. images/ - gif and tiff images from SL + space shuttle photos of SL info/ - information of all kinds misc/ - chicken curry recipe, guitar cords, sinhala mac font ***** Please restrict your FTPing to non-business hours ***** ***** (6:00pm - 7:00 am US Eastern Time). ***** Those of you who cannot ftp directly can use a mail server. Send the word "help" in the message body to <ftpmail@decwrl.dec.com> For more info on FTP, e-mail, gopher, WAIS, etc. read the O'Reilly & Associates book "The Whole Internet - User's Guide and Catalog" by Ed Krol. No, I don't get a commision on the book sales. -- Another SLnet related file archive is <dharma@eng.umd.edu> To get a listing of available files, please send an e-mail to the above address with "help" (no quotes) in the Subject line. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <33> Are there any Sinhala fonts? There is a bitmap font for Macintosh available as a shareware at the Sri Lanka FTP site (see <22>) as a binhex'd file. Contact Sunil Koswatta <skoswatt@mcs.kent.edu> for more information. -- Vasantha Saparamadu <vasa@ee.uts.edu.au> has sucessfully converted the above to a LaTex font. -- No Sinhala Metafonts that I know of (yet). If you are interested in developing a sinhala Metafont, you may want to contact Wijesuriya Dayawansa <wpd@eng.umd.edu> at University of Maryland. -- Ecological Linguistics Sinhala Font for Mac and PCs. P.O Box 15156 Price: US$80.00 Washington, DC 20003 (202)547-7678 -- Ethno Multimedia They sell five Sinhala PostScript fonts for 2055 Dundas Street West PCs, Macs, Amiga and NeXT. Price US$300/font. Toronto, Ontario Canada M6R 1W8 (416)588-7193 (416)925-6319 -- S.T. Nandasara Fonts for Xerox Ventura (Rs. 30,000) Institute of Comp Studies WadanTharuwa SP (Rs. 20,000) University of Colombo E-mail: stn@ict.ac.lk Tel: (1)581245 [Thanks: Rasika Suriyaarachchi <rasika@kln.ac.lk> for the info] -- S.P. Mahanama Fonts for Aldes Page Maker (PC) 145/1 Gramasanwardena Rd Four styles (Rs. 50,000) Polwatte, Pannipitiya Sri Lanka Tel: (72)46918 [Thanks: Rasika Suriyaarachchi <rasika@kln.ac.lk> for the info] -- It is possible to make new Mac fonts with the package Fontographer on the Mac. The package costs about $250.00 <hint><hint> -- ======================================================================= Subject: <34> Are there any Tamil fonts? [ There is a "Tamil Software Information FAQ" prepared by Ravi Sundaram <sundaram@utacfd.uta.edu> being posted to soc.culture.tamil and soc.culture.indian.info. Please check that FAQ for more (detailed) information on Tamil fonts and Tamil WP software. ] -- ITRANS package made by Avinash Chopde comes bundled with wntml Tamil meta font made by the Humanities and Arts Computing Center of the University of Washington. Latest version I fould was 3.20. It comes with instructions to install on PC or Unix. The package can be FTP'd from: <cs.duke.edu> (128.109.140.1):/dist/sources/itrans32.tar.Z -- Macintosh fonts for Devanagari and Tamil are available for FTP at <mac.archive.umich.edu>:/mac/system.extensions/font/type3/indianfonts.sit.hqx -- Another Mac Tamil font (Palladam Tamil Font, Version 2.1) is available. I was not able to find the FTP silte info on this. The developer is T. Govindaraj <tg@chmsr.gatech.edu>. He also has a mailing list about the font. (Please send mail to <tamil-palladam-request@isye.gatech.edu> if you would like to get on/off the mailing list) -- Adami Tamil font - I don't have any info on this. Supposedly a very nice font. -- Ethno Multimedia (see <23>) also sells PostScript Tamil fonts. Price: US$???? per font. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <35> Are there Sinhala/Tamil word/text processors? [ See note under <24> ] -- With the Mac fonts, any Mac word/text processor can become a Sinhala/ Tamil word processor, instantly. See <23> and <24>. {same is true of PCs and TrueType fonts???} -- WadanTharuwa Contact: S.T. Nandasara Computing Services Center Dot Matrix - 24pin (Rs. 20,000) Inst. Comp. Studies, U of Colombo Laser (Being developed) Colombo, Sri Lanka Tel: (1)581245 E-mail: <stn@ict.ac.lk> [Thanks: Rasika Suriyaarachchi <rasika@kln.ac.lk> for the info] -- WordPower Laser version: Rs. 20,000 S.P. Mahanama Tel: (72)46918 145/1 Gramasanwardena Rd Polwatte, Pannipitiya Sri Lanka [Thanks: Rasika Suriyaarachchi <rasika@kln.ac.lk> for the info] -- Thibasa Developed by IFS (?) Dynamic Ramy, Haylese Group Laser: Rs. 25,000 Poster Lane, Deans Road Dot Matrix: Rs. 18,000 Colombo 10, Sri Lanka Tel: (1)699087, 699100 [Thanks: Rasika Suriyaarachchi <rasika@kln.ac.lk> for the info] -- ADAMI94.ZIP - Tamil word processer for MSDOS (IBMPC) The package is shareware requiring a registration fee. It is available on the following site as well as other Simtel mirror sites. For a list of Simtel mirror sites, check MSDOS FTP documents. <oak.oakland.edu> (141.210.10.117): /pub/msdos/editor/adami94.zip -- Pulavan - For PCs 386 and up. Developed by Dr. Vasu Renganathan (vasu@u.washington.edu) at U Washington. It is a Tamil Teaching, Learning, Translating software. There is a translation software which translates a restricted number of sentence types from English to Tamil. Source is available. <wuarchive.wustl.edu>:/doc/misc/tamil/pulavan/ -- PCTAMIL - Transliteration tool for PCs. PC based programs in this package can beused for reading Romanized Tamil text in Tamil script. <oak.oakland.edu>:/pub/msdos/editor/pctamil1.zip -- ======================================================================= Subject: <40> What are the SL publications in <country>? ** Australia Thorathuru: Newsletter of the SL Assoc. of NSW Ed: Dr. Harold Gunatillaka 2 Liffey Place Woronara NSW 2232 -- ** UK Silver Arrow??? -- ** USA Sri Lanka Express news; ads; marriage proposals; 12922 Osborne Street English; Bi-weekly; $24.00/year; Arleta, CA 91331 Ed: Mr. Deeptha Lelaratne Tel: (818)897-7035 Fax: (818)841-9576 -- The Lankan - Newsletter of SLANY (See <50>) -- Sri Lanka Update - News according to the government. Published by the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washigton DC. (see <10>) -- ======================================================================= Subject: <41> Can we get SL newspapers in <country>? Lake House International Edition Upali Group Intn'l Editions Sri Lanka News ?? Island The Circulation Manager Circulation Associated Newspapers of Ceylon, Ltd. Upali Newspapers, Ltd. P. O. Box 1198, Colombo 223 Bloemendhal Road, Colomb 13 Sri Lanka Sri Lanka news;English; Bi-weekly?? Monthly??; news; English; Bi-weekly; air:$58.75/yr; sea:$29.50/yr; price ?? -- *** These two are highly recommended. Counterpoint (A Ravaya publication) Pravada (Pravada Publications) P. O. Box 66 129/6A Nawala Rd Mount Lavinia Colombo 5 Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Tel:(1)501339 political analyses; news; political analyses; news; English; monthly mag; $24.00/yr; English; monthly mag; $38/yr -- ======================================================================= Subject: <42> Are there any SL radio programs in North America? Sravana Ramani 530 and 790 AM KPSK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles programs and times?? news; music; interviews; Voice of Lanka for programming information 14 London Street call Deeptha Leelaratne (see <30>) Toronto, Ontario M6G 1M9 Canada (416)925-5131 (416)538-3382 -- ======================================================================= Subject: <43> What are the SLBC shortwave frequencies? Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) Radio Broadcasts 2000-2130 UTC 11835, 15120, 17805 KHz 0600-1000 UTC 6005, 9720, 17805 KHz SLBC North American Service 2330-0000 UTC - 15425 KHz Monday 0445-0515 UTC - 15425, 9720 KHz Tuesday Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation P.O. Box 574 Torrington Square Colombo Sri Lanka news???; music????; -- ======================================================================= Subject: <44> What are the BBC frequencies for North America? {try these and let me know if they work} Eastern US/Canada Central, Mountain, Pacific US/Canada Time (GMT) Freq. (MHz) 1400-1615 17.84 1400-1615 17.84 1400-1745 15.26 1400-1745 15.26 1100-1400 15.22 1100-1400 15.22 2100-0030 9.59 1300-1400 11.82 1300-1745 9.515 1400-1500 11.82, 9.74 (Sat/Sun) 2200-0430 7.325 1200-1400 9.74 1100-1200 6.195 0500-0815 9.64 2300-0430 6.175 2300-0230 9.59 1100-1400 5.965 2300-0430 7.325 2300-0430 5.975 0000-0730 5.975 world news; -- London Calling, PO Box 76, Bush House, Strand, London, England, WC2B 4PH monthly magazine; program journal of the BBC World Service; 12pounds/year; For a free copy of London Calling call/write BBC, 630 5th Avenue, N.Y, N.Y 10111-0002 (212) 581-7100 -- Check the following anonymous FTP site for radio frequency listings <nic.funet.fi>:/pub/dx/text/schedules/ -- ======================================================================= Subject: <45> What are the All India Radio frequencies? 0000-0115 9910 English 0130-0250 15120, 11830 News in various languages 1300-1500 15020, 9700 Sinhalese 1300-1610 11620 News in various languages 1330-1500 9565 English 1330-1450 10030, 9950 News in various languages 2030-2230 11620 English -- ======================================================================= Subject: <50> Are there any Sri Lanka related organizations? ** USA SL Assoc of New York (SLANY) SL Assoc of Washington DC (SLAW) 755 Webster Ave PO Box 65380 New Rochelle, NY 10804 Washington, DC 20035-5398 -- Our Heritage Sri Lanka Ranga Kala Kavaya Foundation for the restoration of 700 7th Street, SW, Apt. 407 democracy in Sri Lanka Washington, DC 20024 P. O. Box 1214 (703)527-3659 Hyattsville, MD 20785-0214 To promote the Sri Lankan Culture -- Sri Lanka Association of Los Angeles Take your pick. Many divisions and factions. (Evidently, LA's Sri Lankan population has exceeded the "critical mass.") -- Royal College Old Boy's Association of North America (R-COBANA) Call Raj Gowrinathan (310) 271-9678 (Los Angeles) -- Trinity Old Boy's Association Call Samy Thirunavukarasu (213) 874-8030 (Los Angeles) -- Other Sri Lanka related organizations ?????? -- Following is a list of religious organizations. Temporary accomodations maybe available at some of these places. Buddhist Vihara Buddhist Information Center Ven. Maharagama Dharmasiri Ven. Katugastota Uparathana 5017 16th Street NW P. O. Box 13504 Washington, DC 20011 Silver Spring, MD 20911 (202)723-0773 (202)832-9393 -- America-Sri Lanka Buddhist Assoc. Bhawana Society Ven K. Piyatissa Ven. Henepola Gunarathana 84-32 124th Street Rt. 1. Box 218-3 Kew Gardens, NY 11415 High View, WV 26808 (718)???-???? (303)856-3241 -- Houston Buddhist Vihara Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara 8727 Radio Road Ven. Dhammarama Houston, TX 77075 ??? Beachwood Drive (713) 944-1334 Los Angeles, CA 90027 ?? (213)464-9698 -- Hindu Temple (in Malibu) 1600 Las Virgenes Cyn Rd Calabasa, CA 91302 -- The other two buddhist vihara's in LA ???? -- Any other church/temple/etc owned by Sri Lankans ????? -- ======================================================================= Subject: <51> Who's the best airline ticket agent? There are way too many ticket agents (just like lawyers) and they all give competitive prices (just like lawyers??). Make sure that *all* your flights are confirmed. You may have to call the airlines yourself. Don't take a two week layover in Bosnia no matter how great it is going to be according to the ticket agent. There is a file containing comments from people who have bought tickets from travel agents. To get a copy, send an e-mail to <rajiv@coos.dartmouth.edu> or look in the FTP site <amil.eng.buffalo.edu> Some European countries such as UK, France, etc require transit visas if you carry a Sri Lankan passport. Some autorities/airlines may take your passport. If they do take, insist on an official receipt for it. -- Listed below are some of the airlines which fly to Colombo. Air Lanka NY office (phone ????) Aeroflot British Airways Gulf Air KLM (800)374-7747 Korean Air (800)223-1155 Kuwait Airways Royal Jordanian (800)223-0470 Singapore Airlines (800)742-3333 UTA French Airlines Air Jordan temporarily grounded -- ======================================================================= Subject: <52> From where do I get Sri Lankan spices? *Mail order places* (hence not geographically challenged) will be listed here. Please help fill this void. Here's a chance to advertise your booming home business... and it's free. -- ** USA Lanka Link India Emporium 18613 Pioneer Blvd 6848 New Hampshire Ave Artesia, CA 90701 Takoma Park, MD 20912 (310)860-2840 (Los Angeles) (301)270-3322 (Wash DC Local area) spices, groceries, arts, SL Marketing Dept canned food, spices crafts, jewelries Sinhala/Tamil movies/CDs -- Paradise Imports, Inc Sailon, Inc. 10438 Paradise Court 44 Arcadia Court Manassas, VA 22110 Harrington Park, NJ 07640 (703)330-8645 (Voice/Fax) (201)768-4327 (703)968-5524 (Wash DC area) Fax: (201)768-4882 Canned goods, spices, shipped Canned goods; Shipped via UPS. via UPS. Any import needs, large Orders below $25 add $5 handling fee. or small, maybe included in the shipment from Sri Lanka. -- Vijaya Imports and Exports 36 Hamilton Ave Staten Island, NY 10301 (718)720-7538 (718)883-1092 Whole-sale; SL Marketing Dept (MD) canned goods, their own brand; -- ======================================================================= Subject: <53> How do I get my wedding tape converted from PAL to NTSC? Sri Lankan TV format is called PAL whereas that of US is called NTSC. These are not compatible with each other. Hence, PAL video tapes need to be converted to NTSC before you can play them on a normal VCR in the US. (Vice versa for US tapes taken to Sri Lanka) Conversions can be done in numerous ways (analog, digital, studio quality (super-VHS), low quality, etc) Quality of the converted tape may depend on how much you are willing to shell out. There are way too many video places which can do this. -- Check with your school's video/broadcasting/television/ department. They might be able to do it for free. -- Multi-system VCR/TV combinations can play all tapes. Following VCR is a special case as it doesn't need a multi-system TV. See input/output. AIWA HV-MG360 VCR will do the conversions on the fly. Input format: PAL, NTSC, Secam, Mesecam Output: PAL or NTSC (i.e can hook upto Sri Lankan or US TV sets) Tuner: NTSC tuner (will record off the air from US broadcasts) Operating Voltage: 110-240V (50 -60 hz) [ Thanks for this info: Nimal Gamage <gamage@paradox.colorado.edu> ] -- ======================================================================= Subject: <54> How do I send flowers to SL? No one actually sends flowers from here. A florist or a company would call up a florist in Sri Lanka and place an order on your behalf. So, if you know of a florist in Sri Lanka, it would be cheaper to call them directly rather than going through these middlemen. {let me know of any florists in Colombo, Kandy, etc who will accept credit card/money order/ COD/ etc payments.} -- (800)FLOWERS Order + $26.99 surcharge. [Price check:8/24/93] Takes 2 - 3 days -- An FTD Flower shop (most florists are members of FTD) quoted $56.80 [Price check: 8/24/93] for an arrangement or a bouquet delivered in Colombo. Look in your local yellow pages under florists for an FTD member. Takes 1 - 2 days -- ======================================================================= Subject: <55> How do I send money to and from SL? International Money Orders -- Personal Checks; I believe most banks in SL accept personal checks in US Dollars. -- Western Union can do wire transfers. Ask them where to pick up the money in Sri Lanka. -- ======================================================================= Subject: <56> How do I send misc big items to and from SL? A 20ft. container costs about $2,000 - $2,500 from a US sea port to Colombo -- Ceylon Shipping Corporation (CSC) CSC - Katunayake Office 6 Sir Baron Jayatileke Mawatha Unit 6, Upper Fl, Plaza Building Colombo 1, Sri Lanka Investment Promotion Zone Tel:(1)328772, 328773, 326194, 423214 Katunayake, Sri Lanka Fax:(1)447547, 449486 (Fax) Tel:(1)452907, 453672 -- CSC - CA Office CSC - NY Office Ceylon Shipping, Inc. Ceylon Shipping Inc. Circle Business Center 2 World Trade Center #2228 4500E Pacific Coast Highway, #290 New York, NY 10048 Long Beach, CA 90804 (212)514-8780 (213)493-1450 (Area code maybe 310) (212)514-8908 (Fax) (213)494-4886 -- CSC Subsidiaries: Ceylon Shipping Lines, Ltd. Colombo Dockyard, Ltd. Ceylon Port Services, Ltd. Amalgamated Lines -- Blue Star Shipping in NY (800)532-4320 or (718)297-4320 $5.50/cu.ft from Newark, NJ to Colombo, SL $1.50/cu.ft from local home to Newark, NJ [Price check: early 1993] -- Forwardair Clearing & Forwarding (pvt) Ltd. 24 Rotunda Gardens Colombo 3 Sri Lanka Phone (1)27373, (1)430067 ~1.5 cu.meters to Canada: Rs.20,000.00 [Price check: late 1992] -- ======================================================================= Subject: <57> What about parcels to SL? Following prices are for a 1 pound letter/document from Washington, DC to Colombo, SL. Prices for boxes may vary depending on the size as well as the weight. (They also asked for my zipcode) -- US Mail (Express Delivery) UPS Go to a local post office (800)247-4747 $14.00, takes about 4 days $39.00, takes about 4 days [Price check: 02/01/94] [Price check: 8/24/93] -- Federal Express DHL (800)247-4747 (800)225-5345 $52.50, takes about 7 days $71.00, takes about 3 days [Price check: 8/24/93] [Price check: 8/24/93] -- Emery ???? -- ======================================================================= Subject: <70> Are there any quality books on Sri Lanka? This will be archived in a different file. More info later. -- ======================================================================= =======================================================================