Sunday, June 24, 2018

Sri Lanka - the Beautiful and Historic Island-Nation


 Our 10-day trip to Sri Lanka can be described as one beautiful holiday.  We got up close to the Sri Lankan way of life -their food and cultural flavours, their rich history and relics, the amazing temples, Buddhist shrines, the picturesque locales both on the mountains and near the sea. It was a great pot-pourri of experiences.

Colombo 

Near the Independence Hall - statue of SriLanka's first Prime Minister - Don Stephen Senanayake

Our Mihin Lanka flight from Chennai landed into Colombo  which is a fairly large city with beautiful, broad roads.  It had a Victorian feel to it, with a blend of modern buildings and the typical British structures with wide open spaces and plenty of trees.  In fact, it reminded us of the quieter and beautiful Bangalore of yester years.  We visited the
·       Independence Memorial Hall which was constructed to commemorate the gaining of independence from the British in 1948.  It is a multi pillared hall that stands majestically.
·       Surrounding the Hall is the Cinnamon Gardens -  a great open park with plenty of greenery and situated right in the heart of the city.  One can take a stroll, jog, cycle or just ramble around.
·       Galle Face Promenade - This is a beautiful stretch of road right beside the sea and is ideal for taking a leisurely walk while enjoying the sea breeze.  The vendors with push-carts provide local street food –a  unique way of trying out new cuisine.  
·       House of Fashions – A great store to buy branded clothes at decent prices.
·       Opel Store -  A good place to pick up Sri Lankan knickknacks and gift items.


By the Galle Face Promenade

The famous Galle Face Hotel

In the Cinnamon Gardens

The Colombo Town Hall


Pinnawala Elephant Sanctuary 

At Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage
While proceeding to Kandy from Colombo, we stopped at Pinnawala to visit the Elephant Orphanage.  There are more than 50 elephants here and the place is well-maintained.  We got a chance to feed the elephants, give them a shower with a hose-pipe and also watched them enjoying themselves in the river.   We witnessed almost 40+ elephants walking down in a procession to the river close-by.  We had balcony seats in the restaurant beside the river and had a ring-side view as the pachyderms played and frolicked in the river.    

Elephants bathing in the Maha Oya River


Feeding time! The young calf enjoys its drink!

Kandy -

The Botanical Garden, Kandy


We arrived in Kandy, the second largest city in Sri Lanka.  It is also considered as the administrative capital.  It is a very old city with a lot of history and religious importance. It lies at an altitude of 1600 ft. above sea-level and hence has a more pleasant climate.   Being a hill town, its roads are narrow; traffic jams are very common and frustrating.  Kandy has dense trees - plenty of rubber plantations are found on the road from Colombo.   We visited the following in Kandy  

  •  Royal Botanical Garden – is a vast space of greenery right in the heart of the city.  It is beautifully maintained and has several attractions like the Hanging Bridge, the colourful orchid park with flowers of several sizes and shapes, an artificial lake, rubber trees.
  • Temple of the Tooth Relic – is a prominent and sacred Buddhist temple.   It houses the tooth of the Buddha.  We don’t actually get to see the tooth - it is kept secure and covered in a jewel-box of sorts – but the temple itself is a big attraction.  It is well maintained and exudes serenity. The vast building and grounds of the temple were earlier part of the royal palace.
  •  Lake – the Lake lies right in the heart of Kandy, next to the Tooth Relic temple.  Similar to most hill-stations in India that were developed by the British, this is also a man-made lake.  Several well-known administrative buildings can be found adjacent to the Lake. 
  •  The Sri Lankan Cultural Performance – This 2-hour dance and music programme is a great way to learn about Sri Lankan customs and culture. 
 
A Sri Lankan breakfast - String Hoppers with Sambol

At the Orchids Section of the Royal Botanical Garden in Kandy


Temple of the Tooth Relic, Kandy



On the roads of Kandy



Sigiriya and Dambulla


Sigiriya - The impregnable rock
From Kandy, we set out early in the morning around 5:30 AM to Sigiriya. Our Air BnB host was good enough to pack sandwiches for us which we had before reaching Sigirya.  It took us two and a half hours to reach Sigiriya.  We wanted to start the climb of the fortress before it became too hot.  Sigiriya is an imposing huge rock-fort that looks impregnable.  When King Kashyapa built it in 300-200 BC, his intention was just that -  a strong-hold that could not be breached.  Apart from the actual climb, the technology used by him is mind-boggling.  He built gardens and water storage tanks to make good use of the rain water.   His keen sense of art is displayed by the beautiful paintings created on the cave walls and a huge set of lion’s paws cut out from the rock surface.  He built his ancient palace and other dwellings on the flattened area at the top of the rock summit.  The climb is a little arduous but definitely doable.  The view from the top is breath-taking and well worth all the effort.

After getting down from Sigiriya, we then proceeded to the Cave temples in Dambulla, also known as the Golden Temple.  In the foreground, there is a huge temple with the seated Buddha’s golden sculpture rising mightily into the sky.  Towards the rear, a  climb up a series of steps leads to the cave buildings.  There are 5 sections or levels in the caves and all of them are covered with beautiful paintings and Buddha statues of different sizes and in different poses.  A huge 15-metre long reclining Buddha statue is a magnificent piece of sculpture dating back to more than 2200 years.

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An imposing back-drop


The climb up the rock fortress



Huge set of lions paws engraved in stone


The Lotus Temple in Dambulla


Statues and paintings inside the caves


Nuwara Eliya

Tea estate in Nuwara Eliya - with the tea-pluckers
This is a cool and pleasant hill-station filled with tea estates.  It reminds one of our very own Munnar, with beautifully manicured tea gardens.  It is a great place to escape the sultry climate of the sea-side towns. The British built a lake right in the centre of the city called the Gregory Lake.  We visited
·         The quaint colonial building that houses the Post office. 
·         The Seetha Amman temple – on the rock beside the stream, Hanuman’s big foot print is seen.  Seetha is believed to have stayed here – near the Ashoka vanam.
·         A 10km walk through the Norton Plains with beautiful view points and waterfalls.
·         Tour of the Ambewala Dairy Farm – we got to see the milking of cows using machines, the huge male studs, the cheese factory




Aim and shoot - at a view point


The iconic Post Office in Nuwara Eliya



The Norton Plains - before the start of the walk

On top of the world!


World's End - a beautiful View Point


The Hills are alive!


Baker's Falls



Galle - 

At the Turtle Farm in Galle



Galle is a beautiful sea-side town to the south-west of Sri Lanka.  It is famous for its lovely and clean beaches.  It instantly reminds one of Goa and the carefree spirit can be felt in the air. Of all the places we visited in Sri Lanka, I think Galle remained the favourite.  It is a great place to unwind and relax - walking and playing in the sands, feeling the salty breeze on our faces, and watching the waves lap around our feet.   We did the following in Galle
·     Visited the Fort area which is a little walled town, built first by the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch. No automobiles are allowed inside and the place can be explored by walking around the clean but narrow lanes that are lined with offices, quaint shops selling antiques, and pretty little cafes.  View from atop the fort is breath taking.  We also get a good view of the picturesque Cricket stadium.
·         Had a slow and lovely dinner sitting on the beach and facing the sea.
·         Visited a Turtle Farm.  Saw several s varieties of turtles that were bred in the farm.  Also got a chance to let a newly hatched Oliver turtle back into the sea.
·         Japanese Peace Pagoda


View of the International Cricket Stadium in Galle
The Fort walls and the light house with the sea beyond
A shop selling curios within the Fort



On the walls of the Fort

The Indian Ocean!



    
Walking through the streets of Galle


Beach time in Galle

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