But this vacation paradise was devastated by the Asian tsunami of 26 December 2004. The waves killed more than 30,000 people and destroyed 70 % of Sri Lanka's coastal villages.
2004 年聖誕節翌日，南亞海嘯讓這個浪漫的渡假天堂哀鴻遍野，全國 7 成海岸村落頓時成為廢墟，3 萬多人冤死惡浪。