Around The World - Sri Lanka

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Kandy Sight Seeing

Kandy Procession : Kandy is the venue of the Esala Perahera, easily the most colourful pageant of Asia, held in July/August each year, in honour of the tooth Relic.
As the pagentry of the Esala Perahera unfolds through ten nights each year, the city takes on the air of a torch-lit dreamland, complete with a hundred or more colourfully caparisoned elephants, drummers,
dancers, and chieftains in the rare colourful trappings of the old kingdom. A pageant of great and aesthetic and socio-cultural value,

The Kandy Asala Perahera has been the subject of much scholarly study and intense artistic appreciation. There are several theories and interpretations regarding the origin of the pageant which are really complementary and not exclusive of each other. It is quite evident that the Esala (Sri- Esala) festival, which in the course of its evolution has assumed complex proportions, originated in India and continued throughout in Sri Lanka in the month of Esala (July/August) with royal patronage and intense religious fervour.

Gadaladeniya Temple :Gadaladeniya Viharaya Pilimatalawa, Kandy Built almost exclusively of stone in 1344 by the Gampola King Wicramabahu, situated on a hilltop, commanding views of the surrounding countryside. The architecture is Dravidian. The entrance porch features large stone pillars which support a roof of huge stone slabs.cted food offerings for centuries.

Udawatte Kele : Above the Dalada Maligawa lies one of Kandy�s hidden treasures; seldom visited Udavattekale was the �Forbidden Forest of the Kings of Kandy�.
The forest is still a primeval forest, as it had been preserved in that state by the Sinhalese Kings as a �Tahansi Kale� a sequestered forest from which all civilians were barred on pain of execution not even firewood was allowed to be collected.The forest today is only a fraction of its former size now just over 200 acres, but still boasts trees of its former glory such asTalipot trees, cinnamon, olive, rattan cane, betel, bo-trees, kitul palms, jak, mara, betelnut and arecanut access is obtained behind Trinity College High School.

Peradeniya Gardens : Situated in the Hill capital Kandy. Visit to this garden will provide spectacles at extraordinary beauty and absorbing interest for any nature lover and casual visitor. 68 miles off-Colombo, 4 miles off Kandy this garden dates from 14th century reign of king Vikrama Bahu III. Peradeniya is well know for it's large variety of plants ornaments, useful machine and other creepers that produce the special spices at Sri Lanka. The great lawns highlight huge tropical trees and variety at bamboo can be found in one place.The best know attraction of the garden is the orchid House, which houses more than 300 varieties of exquisite orchids. A spice garden gives you a first hand introduction to the trees and plants used for the traditional Ayurvedic medicine.

Mahaweli river, Sri Lanka's longest river surrounding this garden gives an added beauty to this garden. It wont be wrong to say that this garden is one of it's best kind in the world and the best in Asia.

Lankatilaka temple : is built on the summit of the rock called Panhalgala. This is in the village of Rabbegamuwa, Udunuvara division of Kandy district, approximately 12 km. from the Peradeniya bridge. It can be approached from two directions, one from the Colombo-Kandy Road and another from the Gampaha-Kandy Road. Lankatilaka, together with another Buddhist shrine at Gadaladeniya and the Embekke Devale dedicated to God Kataragama, all dating from the fourteen century.Overlooking the eastern escarpment of the rock, the surroundings provide a magnificent panorama with distant hills ,paddy fields and diverse vegetation . Apparently the site had been selected as usual for its beauty and peaceful environment , at a proper distance from bustling village life.

Nuckles : Its name describes its outline. The Knuckles Range consists of the Knuckles massif, the Knuckles range and the Knuckles peaks. The Knuckles massif is about 90 square miles in extent and is a detached block of the central highlands separated from the main highlands by the the Dumbara Valley. There are 35 peaks rising to more than 3000 feet (915 m) in the Knuckles range. It has a rich variety of plant and animal life.

Mammals include leopards, sambhur, mouse deer, barking deer, sloth deer, leaf monkeys, toque monkeys, wild squirrels, giant squirrels, wild boar, otter and lorries.

Besides these, many species of amphibians, reptiles, butterflies, spiders, fish and birds can be found here.

Hanthana Mountains : Hanthana is a range of mountains spread on the outskirts of Kandy from which many glorious rivulets and streams flow. One such stream flows past the village of Udaperadeniya and the University.

Ambakke : Here is a small village called "Arathtana" which was, many moons ago in Sri Lanka, well known for its dancers and drummers. In this village lived a drummer who had a skin disease. He tried every possible treatment to rid himself of his problem, but none of them worked. Every medicine failed to cure him. He decided to go to the "temple of Katharagama", a temple in the southern part of Sri Lanka. This temple was built for the god of Katharagama.

He went there and asked the god of Katharagama to cure his illness, promising to worship the temple annually. Then his illnesses were cured, and he kept his promise to Katharagama for many, many years.
It was a long, tiresome journey to the south and finally the time came when he knew his body could no longer make the trip. For the last time he traveled to the temple and praied the god that he could no longer continue his annual ritual, as he was too old. The sad drummer returned home and that night, the god of katharagama spoke to him in his dreams. He made a prediction. The god said, "in few days, a miracle will happen! You must go there and perform your traditional drumming!" As predicted by the god the miracle happened.
There was a flower garden known as Ambakka, which belonged to the wife of King Wickramabahu- Queen Henakanda Bissobandara.

When the gardener was working in the garden he tried to remove a "Kaduru" tree from the garden. When he cut it a stream of blood began to flow from the tree. The drummer heard of this miracle and so went to the flower garden to perform the rituals as he was ordered to do by the god. He built a small temple out of tree branches around the tree. It has been called the "Ambakka Devalaya" ever since.
After some days the king of "gangasiripura", "gampola" king Wickramabahu, was informed about the event. The king ordered to build a three story building in the land. He gave land and elephants as gifts to the temple. His queen's jewellery was also given to the temple as a gift. Since then the temple of ambakka is worshipped by thousands of people every year. They say, even today, the drummer's ancestors' perform rituals in the temple.

Ambakka is very special because it owns some of the gratest carvings in Sri lanka. the temple is situated in the central province. there are several ways to get there. the road map is as shown bellow.
here are total of eight buildings built for the temple of Ambakka. Six buildings are in the inner temple, and two of them outside. The structures that are inside the surrounding wall are known as the 'inner temple'. The structures that are outside the wall are known as the 'outer temple'.

Kandy Museum :

The latest institution added to the Dalada Shrine is the ` Sri Dalada Museum '.Ever since the Tooth Relic shrine was established in Kandy, different grades of visitors and devotees, ranging from the Roylty and Heads of States to the poorest of the general public, have been offering various gifts to the Sacred Tooth Relic, and these were preciously protected in specially built store-rooms by the successive line of Diyawadana Nilames.THE DALADA MUSEUM is located on the first and the second floors of the new wing called the Alut Maligawa set up by one of the past Diyawadana Nilemes, T.B.Nugawela. The display on the first floor consists of historical records from the time when the Tooth Relic was brought to Sri Lanka to the time of the British rule.The 1765 Dutch Plan of the Palace Complex, Lists of the Chief Prelates of the two monastic establishments of Malwatta and Asgiriya, who were responsible for the protection of the Tooth Relic, Lists of Kandyan Kings and the portrait busts and lists of the long line of Diyawadana Nilames, the Royal garments of king Kirti Sri Rajasimha, the Pingo used by the king in the Buddha-puja service.

Mahiyanganaya : Duruthu Poya which falls on Monday marks the Buddha's first visit to Sri Lanka over 25 centuries ago, nine months after His Enlightenment. On this occasion He visited Mahiyangana to restore peace among the warring Yakkha tribes, one of the legendary inhabitants of this island at the time. According to the Mahavamsa, the Buddha arrived in the beautiful Mahanaga park on the right bank of the Mahaweli as the battle gongs were sounded and the battle drums beaten and the Yakkhas poised for combat.Noticing a stranger in yellow robes appearing in their midst, the Yakkhas it is said, fled to the nearby jungles.Later however, a few of them returned and listened to the Buddha's discourse, having laid aside their battle axes and paying reverence to Him. Having preached His message of peace and restored calm among the Yakkhas, the Buddha returned to India from where He had come. So much for the Mahiyangana episode.