CultureShock! Sri Lanka

Chock-full of useful tips and information, this book covers a wide range of practical issues, such as how to get your blue card, ways to get settled into your new home, and how to conduct business in the Sri Lankan environment. Find out how to communicate with the Sri Lankans and how to enjoy their delicious curries without needing a fire extinguisher! Discover what lies beneath the Sri Lankan profile and how religion, caste, and politics influence the lives of the locals. The book also guides you on the customs and cultural ways of the Sri Lankans and how you can integrate seamlessly into their society. Written in an easy-to-read style, CultureShock! Sri Lanka is the guide you must have to truly enjoy your stay in this country.


Robert Barlas was born in England, but has always had the wanderlust in his veins. At the age of 19, he migrated to Canada. A retired teacher, Bob has made a career out of working in international education all over the world, concentrating mainly in Asia. While teaching in the Oversea's Children's School in Colombo, Bob and his family travelled all over Sri Lanka and made a large number of Sri Lankan friends. The Barlases left Sri Lanka in 1989 and returned to their home in Canada. Bob enjoys reading, writing, skiing and sailing, and, of course, travelling!

Nanda Pethiyagoda Wanasundera was born near Kandy, in central Sri Lanka. She had a conservative upbringing until she attended teacher training college. She married Suriya Wanasundera, hers being a love marriage, unlike her siblings’, all of whom consented to proposed matches. After 20 years of teaching, she obtained professional qualifications and shifted to librarianship. She has two sons and is now a grandmother of two boys. The abiding passion in her life is her love for her country and she has been to many parts of rural and remote Sri Lanka. Her main interests are meeting people, films and the theatre and reading about them. She is a practising Buddhist and strives to accept both the good and the unsatisfactory in her life and in her country with equanimity