On the way to the Cultural Capital of Sri Lanka....

Day 4: 2nd Mar, 2015

After a heavy breakfast at Paradise Inn, we left for Kandy. Kandy is just 100 kms from Sigiriya. Kandy was the last capital of the King's era. Kandy also comes in the cultural triangle consisting of Sigiriya and Anuradhapura as well. The route is scenic with forest cover and spice gardens. En route our driver stopped at a spice garden where you are taken on a spice garden tour by walk. A guide takes you all around the plantation showing you various herbs and spices and their uses. There is no entrance ticket here. At the end you are taken to a shop where you can buy products made from the spices and herbs. We felt the rates of the products were a bit on the higher end. But do remember to tip the guide who takes you on a walk as that is what everyone does. we again stopped at a temple on the way - Muthumariamman temple. It looked like a Tamilian temple with the main temple belonging to a goddess and various other small temples of different deities. After this we continued with our journey to Kandy.

Muthumariamman temple

It was almost 12:30 PM when we reached Kandy and we had booked Hotel Hilltop. The hotel is located on a small hillock with some rooms having a Kandy Railway station & the city view and some others having the pool view. We had our rooms facing the pool. The rooms were spacious and artfully done. The hotel details can be found in my last post.

Room at Hotel Hilltop

We relaxed for a while and then went for Kandy sightseeing. The driver took us to a view point from where you could see the whole city. Then we went to a Batik workshop. The Batik process was explained in detail and we were shown the various baths in which the cloth is dipped to get the different colors and designs. Then we were taken to a shop where we could buy Batik work fabrics. The Sri Lankan way of draping the Indian Saree is entirely different. I wanted to try one and I was discussing the same with my mother when one of the employee of the store, offered to drape the saree so that I could take a snap. It was a really sweet gesture and I was more than more than happy to do so..!! The lady draped the saree and I was happy posing for a snap..!! The people in Sri Lanka are really sweet and do their best to help you enjoy your stay in Sri Lanka. After lunch we were back at the hotel.

View point from where the whole city is visible

In the evening we were off for a walk around the Kandy lake. Kandy has a beautiful lake situated in the heart of the city. You can go for a walk around the lake. It is situated next to the Sri Dalada Maligawa temple. You can also spot some ducks and birds like Cormorant, Kingfisher etc.

Kandy Lake

Then we visited the famous Tooth Relic Temple (Sri Dalada Maligawa) which has Lord Buddha's tooth. This beautiful temple is the most sacred place for Buddhists worldwide. It is also believed that whoever holds the relic, holds the governance of the country. There are beautiful golden carvings inside the temple. Also, the upper floor door is made of ivory. The temple provides you with a CD containing interesting videos on the temple and Kandy.

Tooth Relic Temple

Inside the Tooth Relic Temple

Kandy being the cultural capital, Kandyan dance is very famous and do visit the cultural centre near the temple to watch this dance form. Also Kandyan drumming is well known.We walked past the government souvenir shop, Laksala and I couldn't resist the temptation of shopping! We shopped for some masks which are very famous in Sri Lanka and they are really artistic. We also got a painting of Lord Buddha and some key chains. Laksala is a good place to shop for with an assurance that the products will be genuine and worth the price. It has a vast variety of souvenirs ranging form key chains to leather chairs as well. Time just flew around the beautiful Kandy lake and it was the end of another day in Sri Lanka. 

In awe of SIGIRIYA ROCK FORTRESS......

Day 3: 1st Mar, 2015

The day started with a lot of excitement as we were heading towards Sigiriya to visit the famous rock fortress. It is said that this rock fortress is the 8th wonder of the ancient world and the history behind this fortress is really amazing.

The vehicle booking was already done with Malkey rentals and the driver was supposed to reach the homestay at 8. Being the punctual guy he was, he was there at sharp 8. We bid good-bye to the lovely host at Palm Nest and headed towards the Malkey office to sign some documents. Travelling around Sri Lanka with a rented vehicle is very easy. Also you can rent a car without a driver but make sure you have an international driving permit. Some formalities and you would be done.

We left from Malkey office at around 8:45 and stopped at Sri Vihar for breakfast. Sri Vihar is a vegetarian restaurant where you would find Indian cuisine. So we had some dosas and idlis. After the breakfast we were all set for Sigiriya.

Once you cross the city limits, the scenery on route is really good. At some places, you see a huge river flowing on one side of the road and railway tracks on the other side. The roads were under construction at some places but otherwise it was a nice journey with Buddha statues, the greenery, the river and all other things natural..!! We passed through Dambulla International Cricket stadium on the way. The stadium is located amidst a lot of greenery. And I was left imagining how lucky must the cricketers be to play here..!!

We reached Sigiriya at around 2. According to the reviews on trip advisor, Ahimsa restaurant is the best one. We tried it and it was certainly worth the visit. There are some 5-6 restaurants located on the small strip. We had veg kottu, rice and curry and banana rotti. The banana rotti was the too good and how I wish I could have one even now..!!

After the meal, we left for the rock fortress. The entrance for the rock fortress is at $30 but for SAARC nationals it is half the price. We were left mesmerized by the first look of the rock which has been declared as world heritage site. There are huge water gardens, moats and fountains all around the fortress. Kasyapa, the kings's son from a non-royal consort, seized the throne from King Dhatusena. The rightful heir, Mugalan, fearing his life, fled to South India. The site was selected by King Kasyapa for his new capital from the previous capital of Anuradhapura, fearing an attack from Mugalan. He built his palace on top of this rock and decorated its sides with beautiful frescoes and the lawns with beautiful gardens. Halfway up the rock, he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. In India, Mugalan raised an army with the intention of returning and retaking the throne in Sri Lanka which he considered rightfully his. Mugalan finally arrived and declared war. After King Kasyapa's death in the war, Mugalan became the King and the capital was returned to Anuradhapura while the palace on the rock was converted to a monastery.

Sigiriya rock

It takes around 3-4 hours to climb the rock, get to the top and see all the remains and the descent. It would be ideal to start the climb by morning 10 or by noon 3 to avoid climbing up hill while the sun is at its peak. Half way up the wall are the world famous frescoes which are a must visit if you are in Sri Lanka. The frescoes of are very beautiful and have stood the test of time.

The beautiful Sigiriya frescoes

After the frescoes, you get to see the huge lion paws after which the final climb begins. Once you reach the top, the view of the dense forest cover appeals to the eyes and you wish to spend as much time as possible. There are many remains like the king's throne, the pool and the place where the palace once stood. There are 2 huge tanks which might have been used for bathing and storing drinking water but some articles suggest that during King Kasyapa's reign, there was a pumping system to get the water from a lake at the bottom of the rock. There are many such fascinating things on the top which make it a must visit. After going around all the places, we started the descent and were down by 6 pm.

Top of the fortress

Lion's paws where the final climb begins

We had booked Sigiriya Paradise Inn which is a homestay very near to the fortress. The hosts were very warm and welcoming. The rooms were air conditioned and clean. Definitely a place to be at in Sigiriya. The evening was spent in discussing the marvellous structure and a wholesome dinner at Ahimsa restaurant.

Ayubowan Sri Lanka....

It was in December 2014 that my family wanted to go for a long vacation. We went through a lot of options and finally chose to go to Ceylon. We started with all the search for good stays, travel, restaurants, places to visit and everything else. The best season seems to be from January to April and we chose to go in March. It was very exciting as we had just 2 months left for the vacation..:) We had booked the flights from makemytrip.com and it was SpiceJet on 28th Feb, 2015. Also Sri Lanka requires you to get an e-visa before you arrive at Sri Lanka. Its pretty much easy to get it done. You just need to log in to their website and follow the instructions. And be sure to use a credit card for the transaction.

We traveled for 10 days in total with 2 days in Chennai from 27th Feb to 8th Mar, 2015 visiting the cities Jayawardenapura, Sigiriya, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Unawatuna, Galle and Colombo. This post is a detailed account of our trip. The information provided here will be useful for those who plan a trip to Sri Lanka.

Day 1 and Day 2: 27th Feb, 2015 - 28th Feb, 2015

We were 7 of us including me, my husband, my parents, my brother and my husband's parents. The day finally arrived and we left from Bangalore to Chennai on 27th Feb, 2015. The flight was to depart from Chennai International Airport at 00:40 am. We reached Chennai at around 3:00 pm, had lunch and started for the airport. The local trains are a good transport in Chennai to reach the airport. Just opposite to the central station, is the Chennai Park station. Tickets cost you Rs. 7 per person and the destination station is Tambaram. We reached airport pretty early and had to wait there for a while before we could go in. At around 9:00 pm we were informed that the flight had been delayed due to bad weather and we were all a bit disappointed. But delays are a part of journeys..!! The flight was re-scheduled to 2:30 am. The check-ins and security check started. We were asked to fill in an embarkation form and submit it to the immigration officer at Chennai airport. The officer checked the form, asked us a few questions and stamped my passport. We boarded the flight and to my surprise it was a bombardier Q400.

When we landed at Colombo's Bandaranaike International Airport it was 4:00 am. We had to fill in a disembarkation form and hand it over to the immigration officer along with our e-visa and passport. The officer asked a few questions and stamped the passport. We also got a free sim of Dialog from the immigration dept.

We had booked a rental van from Malkey - Rent a Car. You can contact them and share your itinerary and they will arrange a car/van for you. They also have self-driven cars. The driver was there to pick us up at 5:30 am. It was still too dark and probably all of us were too tired by a long journey we had from Bangalore. It din't take us longer than 10 mins to doze off..!! The airport is around 25kms from Colombo and it takes approximately an hour to reach Colombo.

We had booked Palm Nest home stay based on the reviews on Trip Advisor. We reached there by 7:00 am. The host was a lovely lady called Anomi and she received us with great warmth. Since the rooms were occupied by previous occupants, we thought of going out for breakfast and coming back by 12:00 noon. So we freshened up a bit and left for breakfast.

Palm Nest

The driver dropped us at a lake place in Jayawardenapura.  Jayawardenapura is the legislative capital of Sri Lanka. On the way we saw the various legislative buildings. We all were very excited to taste Sri Lankan cuisine and we ordered for Rice and Curry, Kurakkan roti. Rice and Curry is a famous dish in Sri Lanka which is readily available everywhere and it consists of white rice with a variety of different curries. Kurakkan roti is made of finger millet and coconut which looks like a small roti and comes with Coconut Sambol and dal. The sambol is usually made of coconut, some spices and maldivian fish but since we are vegeterians, we took sambol without fish. The rice and curry consisted of white rice, dal, sambol, sides made of jackfruit and some other things. I had read that the side dish made of jackfruit is a must have dish of Sri Lanka and it was amazing. I simply was in love with this cuisine which would satiate my appetite for the next 9 days.

We then left for a park called Vihara Mahadevi park. We got a bus near the restaurant and reached there by say 20 mins. Buses are very easy to find and get into in Sri Lanka as the drivers are very friendly and help you in every way possible. It is the oldest and the largest park of Colombo. The park is named after Queen Viharamahadevi, the mother of king Dutugamunu. The park includes a huge Buddha statue and a series of water fountains. We relaxed a bit in the park and headed back to the homestay. A good nap was what was needed by everyone after a long journey.

Near Vihara Mahadevi Park

In the evening we went for a small stroll around the area and visited a Buddhist temple. The temple was huge with some stupa like figures and a huge prayer hall. The prayer hall had a large Buddha statue covered by a curtain where people were praying. In front of the statue were a colourful variety of flowers offered by the devotees. After spending some time at the temple, we finally tasted Sri Lanka's famous dish Kottu during the dinner. And the first day at Sri Lanka came to and end....

Temple near Palm Nest

Sri Lanka's famous Vegetable Kottu