Top 10 reasons why you should visit Sri Lanka

There are hundreds of reasons for you to visit Sri Lanka… But here’s my list of the top 10 reasons that would make you want to book your flight right now!

1) Heritage

 

The Vatadage in Polonnaruwa

Did you know that Sri Lanka has more UNESCO World Heritage sites than Egypt? That’s pretty impressive for such a tiny Island… Our rich history left us with an incredible collection of ancient ruins that date back to the 1800s. Most of which are adorned with some of the most intricate stone carvings you will ever see. Just that is enough reason for anyone to book a holiday to Sri Lanka.

2) Wildlife

Sri Lanka boasts of its ‘Big Five’ which include the Blue Whale, the Sperm Whale, the Asian Elephant, the Leopard and the Sloth bear. But it’s not just that, we’ve got a lot more to see here. Our jungles and forests are home to a varied collection of animals and bird life as well as insects and reptiles. You don’t have to be a wildlife enthusiast or a naturalist to be awed by what you see on a game drive at one of our many national parks and forests.

The Wildlife at Yala National Park

  

3) Beaches

Wadduwa Beach

Now this I’m sure you already know about. When someone mentions Sri Lanka, most people would immediately think of its beaches. Why wouldn’t they? We are an island after all and our beautiful country is surrounded by miles and miles of unspoiled beaches. And it’s not just that, you won’t be disappointed when snorkelling and diving off our coastlines because we are home to many beautiful coral reefs and some interesting ship wrecks.

4) Religions

The four main religions in Sri Lanka are Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam. Each of them hold a big place in Sri Lanka’s history and there are many beautiful establishments that you will love to see no matter which religion you follow. Kataragama, a religious town in the Southern part of the country has a few Hindu Kovils, a Buddhist Temple, a Mosque and a Church all of which are a short distance from each other. The Sita Amman Kovil in Nuwara Eliya is a place that plays a huge role in the famous story of Rama and Sita.

The art on the pillars of the Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy

   

5) Tropical Climate

One of the things I personally love about Sri Lanka is its climate. Being a tropical country, most of our days are sunny and bright. Most travellers love to show off their holiday tan once they go back home. Sri Lanka is the best place for that. If it’s rainy while you’re here…  that’s still pretty great because if you’re anything like me, I love a nice walk in the rain! It isn’t cold like the winter rainfall that I had to deal with when I was in England!

6) Arts and Crafts

Sri Lanka’s got a lot of art and handicrafts that been around for generations. Whether it is colourful mask [ves-muhuna] that is used to ward off the evil eye or a shopping bag woven out of straw… We’ve got some useful and decorative souvenirs for you to take back to decorate your home with. You’re definitely going to want something to remember the amazing time you had in Sri Lanka!

A Ves-Muhuna

A local form of crochet called Biralu

Purses made out of coloured straw woven together

 

7) Food

I’m a big time ‘foodie’… So you can trust me when I say, Sri Lanka has so many different and delicious dishes that everyone must try at least once in their lives. There are so many amazing curries, vegetables, fruits and ‘short eats’ that you could spend your entire holiday eating, but you still would not be able to taste all of it! It’s not just Sri Lankan food that you should try either. We’ve put our own spin on food from other countries as well. The Chinese food here might not taste anything like it does in China, but it is so good that you tend to over eat and open the top button of your trousers to give your tummy more space!

My Mom's delicious crab curry

 

8) People

I know that I’m biased when I say this, but Sri Lankans are very friendly and they most often go out of their way to be hospitable. They would always greet you with a warm Sri Lankan smile. If you’re planning on meeting some friendly people and making friends while on holiday, head down to Sri Lanka and you won’t be disappointed!

The warm Sri Lankan smile!

9) Cheap

One of Sri Lanka’s lesser advertised selling points is how cheap it is to travel here. The food, transport and shopping are far cheaper than most other countries and it is absolutely worth it. It’s only your flight expense that will weigh down your budget. Once you get here though, you’d be pleasantly surprised by how affordable things are.

10) Compact

Reading about all of these reasons to make Sri Lanka your next holiday destination, you might be thinking that it can’t all be done in one holiday. If that is the case, you’re wrong! Unlike India, where everything is so spread out, Sri Lanka is a tiny island. This allows you to see and experience almost all of the things I mentioned. You could be relaxing on a beach and in a few short hours be in the middle of a thick jungle or in the chilly hill country…

Sri Lanka is an amazing country with so much to offer. Come and experience it!

Wandering around Polonnaruwa - Part 2

I had to keep moving around in the vehicle to diminish my urge to sleep after the quick swim in the lake and the satisfying lunch because we had a lot more sites to visit before the end of the day. If you’re wondering what I’m going on about, you should probably read my previous post which takes you through the first part of my day in the ancient city of Polonnaruwa.

Our next stop was the Vatadage, not to be confused with the Hatadage and the Atadage! The Vatadage is a circular relic chamber built enclosing a dagoba.  There are stairways on four corners of it that lead up to a seated statue of Lord Buddha. There are intricately carved guard stones on either and a moonstone at the foot of each stairway. 

The stairway at one of the four entrances to the Vatadage

The beautifully carved guardstone and moonstone

A side view of the stone carvings on the stairway

 

We then visited the Atadage and the Hatadage which were relic chambers built to house the Sacred Tooth Relic [a tooth of Lord Buddha]. The Atadage, with fine stone carvings was built by King Vijayabahu in the 11^th century and the Hatadage was built by King Nissankamalla in the 12^th century. You need to remove your hats and shoes when entering these chambers and the other temple ruins, so a word of warning: if it’s a hot day - wear a pair of socks to avoid hopping around the hot stone floor.

The Atadage Relic Chamber

 

A close up of the stand Buddha statue inside the Atadage

The standing Buddha Statue inside the Hatadage

 

The Satmahal Prasadaya, which looks a lot like a seven storied Egyptian Pyramid was what we visited next. Like the Siva Devalaya, it was a different type of building structure compared to the others in the area and is believed to be a stupa built for Cambodian Soldiers who were working under the King. Right beside it is the Gal Potha which translates to ‘stone book’ which literally is a stone book! The 26 foot stone slab has inscriptions that tell us about King Nissankamalla’s reign including his genealogy and the wars that he fought against invaders from South India.

 

The Sathmahal Prasadaya

The inscriptions on the Gal Potha

  

Next, we walked up to the Gal Viharaya [stone temple] which is the most popular site in Polonnaruwa because it shows the peak of artistic achievement in that era. It is a Buddhist shrine that dates back to the 12^th century and has large statues carved out of streaked granite stone of the seated Buddha, the standing Buddha and the reclining Buddha. I was a little disappointed when I saw them though, because they seemed a lot smaller than I remembered. It was probably because I was a lot smaller the last time I visited!

 

The seated Buddha statue

The standing Buddha statue

The reclining Buddha statue

 

The sun was starting to set and we were running out of time to see all of the things that we had planned to during that day so we decided to finish our day in Polonnaruwa by visiting the Kiri Vehera and the Lankathilake shrine. The Kiri Vehera [Milk Stupa] is a milky white dagoba that is the best preserved out of all of Sri Lanka’s unrestored dagobas. Built by King Parakramabahu’s consort, Queen Subhadra, the dagoba is known for its perfect proportions.

The Kiri Vehera

Close to the Kiri Vehera is the Lankathilake Shrine. This 55 foot high structure with brick walls and a colossal standing statue of Lord Buddha is one of the most breath taking Buddhist shrines in Asia. Although only the ruins remain and the head of the Buddha statue isn’t there, you could can’t help but feel enchanted by it. Even the 80’s pop group Duran Duran was impressed as they featured the shrine and a few other parts of Polonnaruwa in their music video ‘Save a Prayer’.

The grand Lankathilake Shrine

The standing Buddha statue sans the head inside the Lankathilake Shrine

 

Wandering around Polonnaruwa - Part 1

My excitement before going on a trip has now become something of a ritual. As usual, I didn’t sleep the night before because I was so eager to get started on my journey. I remember lying in bed at 2 AM thinking ‘go to sleep… you need to be up at 5 AM’, but I couldn’t find a way to get some shut eye till much later.

Polonnaruwa was our destination this time because I hadn’t been to see the ancient city in years. I had passed through several times but hadn’t stopped to visit the ruins and soak in the rich history. We stayed at Galkadawala, a three storied nature friendly cottage close to Habarana which was bordering a quiet lake.

Galkadawala

Our day around the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Polonnaruwa, started with a visit to the Archaeological Museum which was where everyone has to get their entrance tickets to the historical sites in the city. I was slightly unimpressed by the museum but it was a good start to the day because it had scale models of what the temples and palaces would have looked like in their prime which gave me a better visualisation of how it all looked when I visited the sites.

The capital was moved to Polonnaruwa from Anuradhapura by King Vijayabahu I, the son of King Moggallana [remember him from my blog on the Sigiriya Rock Fortress?] after he defeated invaders from South India called the Chola’s. Although it was King Vijayabahu I that established the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa, it is King Parakramabahu the great who is better known. It was during his reign that the capital flourished. He expanded the city and constructed many irrigation systems and monuments. There is an impressive eleven-foot stone statue of King Parakramabahu close to the new town so we visited that first. Pothgul Viharaya, the oldest library complex in Sri Lanka is located near the statue. It is a circular building and has small stupas in each of its four corners. There are also ruins of housing in which bikkus [Buddhist monks] would have resided. It was a promising start to the day that lay ahead!

 

The stone carved statue of King Parakramabahu

 

Me at the Pothgul Viharaya

Ruins of Bikku Housing

We then visited the Audience Hall and the Royal Palace. The Royal Citadel built by King Parakramabahu used to have seven stories and walls more than three metres thick. Although the remnants of the palace still stand tall, it’s not easy to imagine the seven floors that once stood when you look at the ruins as they are today. But visiting the museum at the start of the tour helped me to see how magnificent it would have looked back then and standing there, I could almost picture the activity that went on in and around those walls.

 

The Audience Hall

The stone pillars of the Audience Hall

The delicate carvings on the stone pillars

The front view of King Parakramabahu's Royal Palace

The back view of the Royal Citadel

 

We next visited the Siva Temple and Thuparamaya. The Siva temple, with its hindu style of construction was a contrast to the other stupas and monastery ruins that surrounded it. Thuparamaya, which was built during the reign of King Vijayabahu I, is a brick built gedige or vaulted shrine that is very well preserved. It is one of the few ruins in the country that has its roof still intact. 

The Siva Temple

The Hindu style of construction

 

Thuparamaya

Walking around in the April heat was starting to drain our energy even though it was only half a day that had gone by. We decided to take a break from the ruins and indulge in some lunch. We got rice and curry lunches packed in banana leaves and found a scenic spot on the edge of the Parakrama Samudra. The Parakrama Samudra [sea of Parakrama] was King Parakramabahu’s greatest construction. One of the largest manmade lakes in the world, spreading over an area of 5940 acres, the sea of Parakrama is one of the city’s most remarkable features. After a short dip in the lake, we ate our tasty Sri Lankan lunch complete with fried weva-maalu [lake fish]. The rest of our day was filled with more heritage and culture and will be revealed to you on my next post! Till then; live, love, dream and travel!