Anuradhapura

 

Anu-radha-pura Kingdom lasted one thousand and five hundred years from 380BC. This city is home to many of the earliest grandest monuments of Sri Lanka. A popular destination of Sinhalese Buddhist's prilgimages because of its many ancient Buddhist monuments. Anuradhapura has been made royal capital by the king Pandukabhaya in 380 BC. It remained residence and royal capital for 119 successive Singhalese kings till the year 1000 AD when it was abandoned and the capital moved to Polonnaruwa. You will see some of the most famous as well as the tallest dagoba of Sri Lanka, remains from palaces, temples, monasteries, ceremonial baths and the temple of the holy Bo-tree. This tree was grown from a sapling of the very tree under which more than 2500 years ago the Buddha found enlightenment.

Aukana Buddha The 13 meter high statue carved out of solid granite, goes back to the 5th century, to the reign of King Dathusena. (about 50km south of Anuradhapura) On a rainy day, it is said, that one can see droplets of water falling off the tip of the statue's nose hitting the ground exactly between the toes.- a testament to the architectural accuracy of the sculptor. The brick enclosure around and above was built recently to protect it from weather.	Guard stone at Thuparama Thuparama Temple Thuparama is considered to be the oldest dagoba in Sri Lanka and is believed to enshrine the collar bone relic of Lord Buddha. The guard stones like these are generally found in pairs at the entrance to temples, palaces and other revered sites.
Isurumuniya Lovers Isurumuniya temple built in the 3rd century B.C. is noted for its rock carvings. The best known among these is the "Lovers". Many a poet and song writer has taken inspiration from this carving to write their masterpieces. It is believed that the carving may represent Saliya the son of the great king Dutugamunu and the low-caste maiden whom he loved.	Ruwanveli Seya Popularly regarded as the greatest, and certainly the most popular among the Buddhists, of the stupas at Anuradhapura, Ruwanveli Seya, is the pride of the Great Emperor Dutugamunu. Raised in the 2nd century B.C. this dagoba is supposed to have the perfect water bubble shape. Among the many statues in the courtyard there is one that is of a larger-than-life man. This is considered to be the king himself watching his work from a respectable distance.
ElephantWall Abhayagiri Stupa and Monastery Abhayagiri is the largest monastery complex in the Anuradhapura kingdom. Founded in the second century BC by king Valagamba(also known as Vattagamini Abhaya) was an international institution by the first century AD. Covering an area of 200ha the monastery include full components of a Buddhist temple as well as other buildings. The stupa at Abhayagiri is 108m tall and one of the tallest brick buildings of the ancient world. The finest Buddha sculpture in Sri Lanka the Samadhi Statue (3- century AD) is among its many fine stone carvings. Ruwanweli Seya Museum The Folk Museum has a collection of artefacts illustrative of the rural life of the North Central Province and the near by Archaeological Museum display what is excavated from Abhayagiri temple explorations. Ritigala A beautifully paved footpath, several elevated platforms, ruins of an old hospital and remains of a terraced pond are what is unearthed at this 180 BC Buddhist monastery at the foothill of 600m high Ritigala Rock. Dating back to around 350 B.C is one of the oldest historical places mentioned in the ancient chronicles. (about 50km south east of Anuradhapura)	Mihintale The temple of Mihintale is where Thero Mahinda, the son of Great Indian Emperor Asoka introduced Buddihism to the king of Sri Lanka Thissa. Mahinda's sister Theri Sangamitta carried a off shoot of the the ', the holy Bo tree that gave shelter to Buddha to attain Nibbana. Sri Maha Bodhi' The Bo tree was planted at Anuradhapura, where it still grows as the oldest tree with a recorded history in the world. Jethawana Monastery The monastery complex is built where it is believed to be the cremation grounds of the Mahinda Thera who introduced Buddhism to Sri Lanka. Founded by King Mahasena (276-303AD) the stupa at 120m high was the third tallest monument in the world at the time of the fall of Roman Empire. Distances Other Cities in km . Colombo 206 Habarana 57 Polonnaruwa 101 Kandy 138 Dambulla 66 Sigiriya 80

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Yala National Park

YALA NATIONAL PARK, one of Sri Lanka 's premier eco tourism destinations, lies 24km northeast of Tissamaharama and 290km from Colombo on the southeast coast of Sri Lanka, spanning a vast 97,878 hectares over the Southern and Uva Provinces.

The vegetation in the park comprises predominantly of semi-arid thorny scrub, interspersed with pockets of fairly dense secondary forest. Small patches of mangrove vegetation also occur along the coastal lagoons.

The park is renowned for the variety of its Wildlife (most notably its many elephants) and its fine coastline (with associated coral reefs). It also boasts a large number of important cultural ruins, bearing testimony to earlier civilizations and indicating that much of the area used to be populated and well developed.

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Sigiriya (The Lion Rock)

Sigiriya The Palace & Fortress in The Sky

Sigiriya, the spectacular 'Lion rock' fortress, stands majestically overlooking the luscious green jungle surroundings, and is one of Sri Lanka's major attractions.
This was built by King Kasyapa, a son of King Dhatusena, by a palace consort. As legend goes, King Dhatusena was overthrown and walled in, alive by Kasyapa in 473 AD. Mogallana, Dhatusena's son by the true queen fled to India, vowing revenge.
Kasyapa fearing an invasion built this impregnable fortress at Sigiriya.
When the invasion finally came in 491, Kasyapa rode out to battle in his war elephant.In an attempt to out-flank his half-brother, Kasyapa took a wrong turn, where his elephant got stuck in the mud. His soldiers, thinking Kasyapa was retreating fled abandoning him, and he took his own life.
Sigiriya later became a monastic refuge, but eventually fell into disrepair.

 

Water Gardens

The beautifully and elaborately landscaped water gardens, contain a complex network of underground water distribution system, which provides water to the Royal baths, the many little moated islands & fountains, some fountains still work during the rainy season! A superb view of the Gardens could be had from halfway up the rock.

Frescoes - The Sigiriya Damsels

About halfway up the rock is a sheltered gallery of frescoes painted on the sheer rock face. The 'Heavenly Maidens' are similar in style to the paintings of Ajantha in India. Some of them are still in remarkably good condition. Only 22 out of an estimated 500 pictures now remain. Flash photography is not allowed at this site.

The Mirror Wall with Graffiti

Beyond the fresco gallery, the pathway circles the the sheer face of the rock, and is protected by a 3m high wall. This wall was coated with a mirror-smooth glaze, in which visitors over 1000 years ago noted their impressions of the women in the gallery above. The graffiti was mostly inscribed between the 7th and 11th Century AD. 685 of them have been deciphered and published. The graffiti are a great source for the scholars to study the development of the Sinhala language and script.

Lion Platform

The Northern end of the rock the pathway emerges to a platform, from which the rock derives its name Sigiriya (the Lion Rock). At one time a gigantic brick lion sat at the end of the rock, and the final ascent to the summit was between the lions paws and into it's mouth! Today the lion has disappeared, only the paws and the first steps are visible.

The Summit

Covering an area of around 1.6 hectares, the remains of the foundations show that the summit would have been completely covered with buildings. The design, layout and magnificent views that it still enjoys to this day, suggest Sigiriya would have been more of a royal palace of pleasure than a fortress. A pond scooped out of solid rock measuring 27m x 21m, looks like a modern rooftop pool. A smooth slab of flat stone, often referred to as the kings stone throne, faces the rising sun.
 

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Nuwala Eliya ( The Little England )

Nuwara Eliya is high up in the mountains of central Sri Lanka.

 

The drive to this area is full of winding roads with beautiful scenery, rolling green hills and lots of tea plantations.  The climate is much different than the coastal region with temperatures getting quite cool in the evening.

A journey to this area is highly recommended 

  

 

 

 

Places of interest in and around Nuwara Eliya

 

Gregory's Lake - Nuwara Eliya

This lake was fashioned under orders of British Governor Sir William Gregory in 1873. A boat yard now allows visitors to go boating and rowing.

Hakgala Botanical Gardens

The Gardens was firs established in 1861 under the curatorship of three British of the same name - William Nock, JK Nock and JJ Nock. It lies under the Hakgala Peak, between 5000 - 6000 feet in elevation - the highest set Botanic Gardens in the world. It boasts 100 year old Monetary Cypress trees from California, Japanese Cedars, Himalayan Pines and English Oak.

Horton Plains

Horton Plains is a National Park and the highest plateau in the island consisting of grassland interspersed with patches of forest, with some unusual high altitude vegetation. The Plains are a beautiful, silent, strange world with some excellent walks.
The most stunning place is the World's End, where the southern Horton Plains suddenly ends, and drops off to nearly 700 Metres, which is an awesome sight indeed. This is a favourite place for trekkers, as there are plenty of soft and hard trails.

Laksapana Falls

Laksapana Falls rise from the Laksapana estate and plunges into the Maskeliya Oya via Maoussakelle. Viewing this fall is easy if you camp down at Upper Glencairn, Dick oya.

Lover's Leap - Nuwara Eliya

This is off the Nuwara Eliya - Kandapola Road. The waters are taken to brew the famous Nuwara Eliya Beer. It is said how an eloping couple, pursued by an irate father, threw themselves over the falls.

Devon Falls

Devon Falls drops 97 metres and is named after Devon, a pioneer coffee planter. It is 6 Km west of
Thalawakelle and there is a special parking and viewing spot at the 20th mile post.

 

 

Oliphant Estate - Nuwara Eliya

A visit to this estate, entrance from the road at the Ramboda end of Nuwara Eliya, is significant because it was here that the first thirty tea plants sent from China to Sri Lanka were planted by Mr. Laurence Oliphant, increasing his tea acreage to 100 acres.

The Ceylon Breweries - Nuwara Eliya

The brewing of beer was started in Nuwara Eliya by Sir Samuel Baker in 1881 at Lover's Leap. It is an interesting visit, for the brewery is one of the finest in the island. It's been in business since 1884.

Adam's Peak - The Pilgrim Path

This is through Gampola and Ginigathhena and you will find the story of this old path carved on two rocks off the 28th milestone on the Nawalapitiya - Ambagamuwa road. The spot is called Akuruketupana and the inscription dates to around 1100AD. Today there are four other roads to the peak, the shortest being via Maskeliya and the most popular. Other roads are on the Sabaragamuwa side.

 

 

The Nissangala Lena on the road to Adam's Peak

This is believed the cave in the mountainside, where King Keerthi Sri Nissanka buried a great treasure, including his regalia. It is only after one passes this cave and enters the forest that one comes to the Sita Gangula, a holy river of ice cold water, where pilgrims bathe and put on white garments, before continuing their journey to the peak.

 

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