Matale and Kandy--More Hospitality, Temples, and Scenery

In Matale, at the entrance to the
largest Hindu temple in Sri Lanka

We wake up every day not knowing exactly what has been been planned, other than what city we might be in.  We know that it will be good, but we are learning that it is always way better than expected.

And that was the case with Matale and Kandy.  It felt refreshing to get out of the muggy climate of Monkey Camp in Polonnaruwa and into the coolness of a higher elevation at Matale.  Sri Lanka is about a third the size of Oregon, but in that small size it is packed with huge a variety of scenery, culture, and history--and always friendly and hospitable people.

Sri Lanka's largest Hindu temple

In Matale, Sri, our Rotarian host and an electrical engineer, took us to the largest Hindu temple in Sri Lanka.  That afternoon, he and Rotarian plantation owner Sanjaya led us through through pine forests and tea plantations to a 5,000 foot high mountain with an expansive view, followed by a fun dinner of local savories and coconut whiskey.  Rotarian Suthagaaran (Sutha), who hosted us the past three days, joined us.

Detail of sculptures on the tower

Saturday, Sri and his wife treated us to a dosai breakfast (one of our favorites!), then he drove us on a tortuous one-lane rough road to a waterfall for an even better view, but the last 100 meters were socked in with a chilly mist.

We also toured a spice garden and some Buddhist caves.  Long day!

Saturday evening, Sutha's mom cooked a fabulous South Indian dinner, and we were joined by another Rotarian from the Matale club, a lieutenant with the police department.  We tasted tested Jonnie Walker Extra Dark and White Label, but they ended up being more than just tastes.

Our 2,000 foot climb through tea bushes to the top

We made it.  But many tea pickers climb this
height and distance every day.

Breakfast of Champion at Sri's home

It's fun when it bounces and swings!

The mountains are cool and beautiful

A fun and tasty dinner party

At the Buddhist caves in Matale

Sunday we were privileged to observe a special ceremony at his Hindu temple, the a cultural show at the Mahatma Gandhi Center.

A special puja ceremony at Sri's Hindu temple

Then on to Kandy, where we were met by Rotarian Tissa who took us to a Buddhist monastery for a private audience with a high level Buddhist monk who got us special VIP entry passes into the venerable Temple of the Tooth, a sacred pilgrimage for Buddhists from all over the world.  It is believed to contain a tooth from Lord Buddha.

An audience with His Holiness, but
we couldn't understand a word he
said over the course of 45 minutes
with tea and snacks

Inside the museum portion of the Temple
of the Tooth

Offerings on the outside of the inner temple

The tooth is on the upper floor of the structure
on the right

The Temple of the Tooth complex

The outer area in front of the vault that
contains tooth

Our room on the corner of  The Queen Hotel,
circa 1925, overlooking the lake and the
Temple of the Tooth. Nice, but a lot of traffic noise.

View from our balcony with
Sri

Today we head up into the hill country and the high plains where the colonial British cooled off and supposedly drank a lot of gin.  We know it will good, but it will probably be much better than we expect.

(Note:  I've posted additional photos and a video on Instagram and Facebook.  If you aren't on Facebook, you can still see almost everything by simply going to Instagram and seaching for @kelemenron.)

'What We Can, While We Can!"

Elephants, Temples, Monkeys, and Scotch, Oh My!

At the Hurulu Eco Park with Sutha, our

amazing and fun host for the past three days

The past four days have been a fun blend of scenery, wildlife, food, temples, and legendary Rotarian hospitality. Normally, the words flow when I write, but not tonight.  There is just too much to describe in a coherent narrative.  So, I’ll try to tell the story in photos with expanded captions.

"What We Can, While We Can!"

On an elephant safari in

Hurulu Eco Park

A lot of other tourists had the same idea

Breakfasts (and lunches and dinners)

of curry rice with dahl and veggies

Happy hour poolside with Jonnie Walker Black 

Label, Sutha, his coworkers, at Rotarian Lakmal's 

Vaana Resort near the wildlife refuge

Offerings and wishes at the cliff side temple

at Trincomalee

The Hindu temple on

 the East Coast

at Trincomalee

On our way to Bird Island on Lake Parakarama

close to our lodging at the Primate Center,

commonly called "Monkey Camp."

We hired Sinuli, a guide with he Smithsonian 

institution, stationed at "Monkey Camp" who 

gave us fascinating insights at colonies of

monkeys who have been tracked  for 52 years in the 

ancient city of Polonnaruwa.

 Bicycling along Parakarama Sanadura Lake, dam

 built 900-1,000 years ago.

Monkey see, monkey do

The ancient city of Polonnaruwa,

built in about 1100 AD, then

later abandoned

More ruins and temples

Sitting Buddha, about 30 feet tall

Temple lizard, on steps to a temple

These were at the base of most temple or palace

entrances

More ruins. The ancient city grounds were over

five square miles.  Glad  we had bikes!

Home sweet home at Monkey Camp

It should really be called mosquito camp

We went on a short night-time walking

safari in search of the cute nocturnal

and aboreal lorises, related to lemurs

Buying mosquito coils at a local stall. Sutha works

for Unilever and oversees hundreds of employees

who sell and deliver products to these shops.

Inside the  fascinating Ancient Technology Museum.

We learned how bronze was made, the techniques

used to build temples, how they built the huge

dam, sewage systems, and more.  The docents were

so helpful.

Recycling station

Downtown  Polonnaruwa,  about 3 km from 

Monkey camp.  We  rode bikes here for lunch and 

within to the ancient city.

These are EVERYWHERE!

There are over 700,000 of them in

Sri Lanka

Our Monkey camp is on the shore

What you don't see behind our happy

faces is the 85 degree heat, the 85%

humidity, our sore bare feet, emerging

sunburns and empty stomachs.  We 

spent over 5 hours in the ancient city,

but it was well worth it.

Sri Lanka--The Gem of South Asia

From the Sigiriya Fortress

What’s not to like about this place?  After getting over the mind fog of 40 hours of travel (with 26 of them on a plane), hot and humid Sri Lanka in January is downright refreshing.  We love the food, the ambiance, the predominately Buddhist culture, the scenery, and above all, the people.  While there are a few similarities with Malaysia, Bali, Thailand and India, Sri Lanka is unique in its own right.  The only downsides to it are chaotic traffic and a profound lack of land use zoning. 

Last October we hosted a Rotarian from Sri Lanka on a Rotary Friendship Exchange and cooked a South Indian dinner for some of his fellow travelers.  Since then they have relentlessly encouraged us to come and visit them.  So, here we are!

Kasun Attanayaka, a Chartered Accountant, met us at the airport and took us to our hotel for two days of jet lag recovery. 

Kasun  Attanayaka

Gihan Panditaratne, whom we hosted in Oregon, treated us to a dinner with his wife and daughter.  Then, for the past two days Kasun has driven us into the interior hill country, giving us the back story on all things Sri Lankan. 

Saturday we visited an elephant orphanage and a prehistoric burial ground.

Downward Dog at the Ibbnkatuwa burial grounds

Then we traveled to Dambulla for two amazing sites.  The first was the 2,000-year old cave temple complex of five caves carved out of solid rock, 160 meters and 1000 steps above the road.  With 150 absolutely stunning Buddhas, the climb was well worth it. 

Reclining Buddha in one of  the caves

Entrance to the caves with Kasun

Inside one of the caves

Just one of the 150 Buddhas in the cave

Yesterday we went to the amazing Sigiriya fortress straight up (2500 steps), high on a rock monolith.  

Aerial  view (not my photo)

Built in the 4^th century, and over four acres in size, it had a palace, gardens, water sources, and more.  It also has a lot of tourists from all over the world who managed to make it to the top.  This was truly one of the most amazing ancient man-made places we have ever seen, on a par with Machu Picchu in Peru or the Ajanta and Ellora caves in India.

the top was over 4 acres in size

Huge water tank on top

At least we had stairs. The builders
used notches in the rock

lots of people, lots of stairs

The Lion's foot, a Chinese tourist,
and the death march to the top.

Today (Monday), Rotarian Suthagaran and his wife are taking us further inland through a national park to their home on the east coast.   It’s great to travel in such a wonderful country, but it’s quite a heart-warming and educational  experience to do so through the eyes of incredibly hospitable and kind locals.

"What we can, while we can!"

curry breakfast with Kasun.  We enjoy curry for
breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Traditional Sri Lankan dinner with Gihan

Gihan (the organizer of our visit)and his family

Cooling off from the 87 degree heat/80% humidity

Our guest house in Dambulla