Jaffna Sri Lanka
Activities

Arriving in Jaffna can come as a culture to the uninitiated, and it is difficult to miss the profound Indian influence made obvious by the gradual switch from the singsong cadences of Sinhala to the quick-fire intonations of Tamil, as well as a listof other details like the Indian pop music which blares out of shops and cafés, and the hordes of kamikaze cyclists who fill the congested streets.

Nallur Kovil
Jaffna, in northern Sri Lanka is populated by a majority of Hindu Tamil’s. Nallur Kovil (also known by its full name Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil), is the most famous Hindu temple complex in Jaffna.

Nainativu Island
If you are up for a day trip out of Jaffna, one of the popular things for locals to do is to make the pilgrimage to Nainativu Island. The island is one of the holiest sites in Sri Lanka for both Buddhists and Hindus.

The Buddhist temple is known as Nagadipa Purana Vihara (Naga Vihare) and the Hindu temple is the Sri Naga Pooshani Amman Kovil.

Cathedrals
Though Jaffna is predominantly Hindu, there are quite a few Roman Catholic churches especially around the beach side area of town.

Some of the most famous cathedrals include: St. John’s, St. Mary’s, Our Lady of Refuge Church, St. James’ and John the Baptist.

Jaffna Market
The central part of Jaffna is as busy these days as parts of Colombo. Near the bus station is a lively market that is stocked with all necessities one could possibly want.

From Tamil style clothing to tools and dvd’s and music cd’s, the market will always have you excited.