Sri Lanka operates on Sri Lanka Standard Time (SLST), which is 5 hours and 30 minutes ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC+5:30). The entire island follows a single timezone and does not observe daylight saving time.
Major cities including Colombo, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte (the capital), Kandy, Galle, and Jaffna all follow SLST. Sri Lanka shares its timezone with India.
Sri Lanka was formerly known as Ceylon and is sometimes called the "Pearl of the Indian Ocean." The country is one of the world's top tea exporters, with "Ceylon tea" being a globally recognized brand. Sri Lanka has eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites and is home to the sacred Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, which houses a relic of the Buddha.