Kandy, Anuradhapura, and Colombo

From Tissamaharama we made our way to Kandy over the course of two days. The reason it took so long is not because of the distance, but because there was no direct way to get from one place to the other. We kept thinking that after getting to the next destination there would be a direct route from there, but this never seemed to be the case. We ended up taking three buses and two trains and finally arrived in Kandy after about 36 hours.

While we were en route, we arranged to stay with some new friends who live near Kandy. In fact, they were a host family for Peace Corps trainees back in 1989, so it was cool to have an immediate connection with them. In addition to the usual sight-seeing we would have done if we hadn't stayed with them, we had the pleasure of cooking meals together, going for a walk with them around their garden, and trading traveler/host stories. The grandmother was thrilled to be able play dress-up with Heather and we had a photo shoot with her sporting Indian and Sri Lankan style saris. It was loads of fun! They were a wonderful family and staying with them was one of the highlights of the trip.

The single biggest sight to see in Kandy is the Temple of the Tooth. It is said to contain the tooth of the Buddha which was found after he was cremated. Of course, we were excited to go to the temple and see this Buddhist relic. We were a little disappointed to find out that you don't actually get to see the tooth. Really, you don't even get to see the casket where the tooth is kept. What you do get to see is the door behind which is the casket in which the tooth is kept. I wasn't impressed, but all the people prostrating themselves outside the door seemed to be.

We took a day trip from Kandy to Pinnawala to see an elephant orphanage. It was by far the most elephants we've seen at one time, maybe two dozen or so. Some of these were injured or orphaned in the wild, but they have also started breeding the elephants and keeping them in captivity. This gave me some mixed feelings because that makes the place less of an orphanage and more of a zoo. Still, it was our first time seeing baby and juvenile elephants and we got to be there for feeding time and watch them take a bath in the river. Good fun, but this place had by far the most tourists we've seen so far in Sri Lanka.

After three days we said goodbye to our new Sri Lankan family and continued by AC bus to Anuradhapura. By this point in our trip we've traveled many ways, but this was our first AC bus. Now you'd think that since we're in Sri Lanka and it's 90+ degrees outside an AC bus would be a good idea, at least that's what we thought. It was the first time since we landed in Kathmandu that all the windows on our means of transportation were closed. That meant there was no air circulation from the outside and I was quite ill. The fact that we were in the hill country and traveling winding roads didn't help. It's the only time I've ever taken dramamine and still been motion sick (that stuff really works!) From here on out, no AC buses! Windows are great!

We came to Anuradhapura to see the old city and different collections of ruins and ancient stupas. We were not disappointed, there was lots to see and some were over 2000 years old! In the afternoon, we decided to travel off the map and went to see a place that isn't in any of the guide books. The reason for that is it's still under construction. 15 km outside the city, but the side of the road, in the middle of nowhere are 500 Buddha statues all standing in a line which meanders around a beautiful park. We would never have known about the place, but we'd seen pictures hanging in restaurants and hotels and asked the locals. The statues were person-sized, so having 500 of them was quite a feat even though the last several were still being painted and sculpted. In addition to the Buddhas we saw lots of wildlife including a really long snake, some kind of large squirrel, and a land monitor. We also ran across a guy who was washing each of the Buddhas individually. He wasn't just hosing them off either, but carefully rubbing his hand all over each statue to get the dirt off. It seems like a full time job, but he was a happy guy and let us take his picture.

The whole time we walked around we only ran into one Sri Lankan family that came to see the Buddhas, there were no other tourists at all. Not even an entry fee, only a small donation box. We made a small donation and asked the guy about the park and why there were 500 Buddhas (496 really, I counted). Sadly, he didn't speak much English and couldn't explain much. I'll have to look it up later to learn more.

After spending only about one full day in Anuradhapura we continued on to Colombo. We extended our time in Sri Lanka by a few days to see the Perahera which is a Buddhist festival that happens once a year. The big one happens in Kandy, but at a different time of year. By extending our time, we had just enough time to see the Colombo Perahera. I'm really glad we stayed for it. Basically, it was a really, really long parade. I don't have pictures uploaded for this yet, but look for them in the future. There were people dressed up in all different costumes, monks, elephants, guys dancing on stilts, fire twirlers, dancers, and more. The parade went on for well over two hours. I can't imagine what the Kandy Perahera must be like!

Today is our last day in Colombo and we're parting ways with my dad after traveling with him for about a month. We catch the red-eye to Singapore tonight. I'll post soon on our adventures there and in Malaysia.