07 Feb2019
Similarities and differences between Sri Lanka vs India
Since 2015 to 2018 I spent 3 months traveling around Southern India (Kerala, Maharashtra and Goa) and one month around Southern Sri Lanka. It’s funny to see that in both countries so far I’ve only been to the South, and not the rest of the countries. It’s a coincidence, though. After my 4 months in these 2 countries I noticed some similarities and differences between Sri Lanka vs India.
In this article I’d like to point out to some of the things I found similar, and also some that were different in my opinion. Please bear in mind that I love both countries very much for many reasons so the aim of this blog post is NOT to insult any of the countries, nor their inhabitants. Just to compare a bit to help travelers to know what to expect during their visit.
Thanks to many similarities between the two countries, Sri Lanka is sometimes called ”Little India”.People of India are called Indians in English. However, in many European languages we use the word ”Indian” to denominate Native Americans. When I say Indians in this article, I mean the local inhabitants of India.
one of many cool sunsets in Palolem, India
Similarities and differences between Sri Lanka vs India
- I’d say that people are more mellow, more polite and more shy in Sri Lanka than in India. Sometimes Indians can be too annoying, too pushy or too traditional. Sri Lankans can be nicer and easier to deal with and they don’t try to scam you as much as in India. At least that was my experience but the truth is, I spent 1/3 of time in Sri Lanka out of the time I spent in India.
- Cities in India seemed more colorful to me. There’s more diversity.
- In both countries they drive on the left side.
- To us Westerners, traffic is crazy in Sri Lanka. But in India it’s even taken to another level. Crazy is an understatement when speaking of Indian road traffic.
- What they call rickshaw in India is called tuk tuk in Sri Lanka (similarly to Thailand where they are also called tuk tuks).
- You won’t ”get assaulted” million times in Sri Lanka to buy something. They might ask you once but then close their mouth.
- It felt much safer and easier to travel around Sri Lanka than it did in India. I still found Southern India easy to travel around as a solo female traveler, but less safe than in Sri Lanka.
- The food is spicier in Sri Lanka than in India. At least that is my opinion. Most traiditonal dishes in Sri Lanka contain a lot of garlic, onion, black pepper, chilli and other spicies and it was hard for me to explain not to use those ingredients that much.
- There’s less pollution in Sri Lanka than in some cities in India. In Mumbai it was horrible for me to breathe because of the air pollution. I remember how I saw so much smog above skyscrappers in Mumbai very early morning from my hotel room. It might look interesting for photos but not so much for breathing.
- I saw nicer sunsets in India than in Sri Lanka. Most probably it had to do with the weather as it was mostly cloudy in Sri Lanka and mostly sunny in India when I was there.
tuk tuks in Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan vegan curry with coconut milk
- Sri Lankans usually don’t ask tourists to take photos with them. In India I was asked all the time :D
- Religion – people in India are mostly Hindus while Sri Lankans are mostly Buddhist.
- Temples in Sri Lanka are not very decorated, and to me they looked rather modest. Temples in India are full of decorations, statues, paintings and colors, and are usually also bigger in size.
- Many Indian women wear sari (sometimes spelled as saree). In Southern Sri Lanka I also saw some, but very few.
- English – you will always recognize a person from India when speaking in English. They have this unique way of speaking, mostly with a rare ”r” pronunciation. The same does not happen when Sri Lankans speak in English. For many people Sri Lankan English is easier to understand than Indian English.
- More traditional meals are vegan in Sri Lanka than in India. In Sri Lanka many curries are made of coconut milk so if they say the meal is vegetarian, it’s usually vegan. In India this is true only in some places in South. While you should always double check if coconut milk or cow milk/ghee were used for curry in both countries, in Sri Lanka you have a bigger chance to hear coconut milk, thus making it easier to find vegan meals.
- Cricket is popular in both countries but in Sri Lanka I’ve seen it more. At sunset time people play on the beach.
kids leaving school in Sri Lanka
- I found quite a lot of rubbish on the streets and along the road, but more in India than in Sri Lanka.
- In India I did not dare to drink tap water while in Sri Lanka it was completely fine.
- Ayurveda, Ayurvedic products and massages are popular in both countries (speaking of South I visited). However, in Sri Lanka massages and Ayurvedic products are more expensive than in India. Massages even a few times that much.
- In general, Southern Sri Lanka seemed more expensive to me than Southern India.
- Both countries in South are very green which I really appreciated. It made me feel closer to nature even when on the beach or in a town.
- Loads of coconuts and exotic fruit are sold in both countries. However, I found mostly king coconut (of orange color) sold in Sri Lanka while in India I usually saw green young coconuts.
- Sri Lankan beaches looked nicer to me than those I visited in India. However, they mostly had big waves so not so good for swimming. In Sri Lanka surfing is very popular, in Southern India not so much.
king coconuts in Sri Lanka
Hikkaduwa beach Sri Lanka
Palolem beach India
Once again I repeat my intention was not to offend anyone nor to speak badly about India or Sri Lanka. They are both one of my favorite countries I’ve been to.
TIP: Here you can fnd out more about things you should know about Southern Sri Lanka.
TIP 2: Here’s my other posts I wrote about India.
Have you visited both countries, too? What other similarities or differences did you notice between Sri Lanka vs India? Share in the comments below :)
Ravi
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You should visit Andhra and telengana states of southern indian to taste spicy. You missed a lot.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks for the tips ;) If you mean spicy = hot/chilli, I don’t like that. But I do enjoy different spices though :)
Pavan
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Very good article with a lot of information. Thanks for sharing this post and images. I am from India :)
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Well, it took me some time to take notes and compare both countries so hopefully it’s fine :)
Kathryn
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Thanks for this. I have been to South India several times but never to Sri Lanka.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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You definitely should go to Sri Lanka as well :) It’s an amazing country ;)
Chitra Pandey
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Very nice article with so much information! Thanks for sharing this post with us. I am from India and have to agree with most of your points :)
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks a lot, Chitra for reading :)
David Rainey
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Thanks for the comparison. Both countries are on my agenda.
Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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They are both amazing places to visit and I can highly recommend them :)