Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a Buddhist Temple in the city of Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is located in the royal palace complex which houses the relic of the tooth of Buddha.
Kandy, which is a world heritage site, was the last ancient capital of the Sri Lankan Kings and its name brought up visions of splendor and magnificence. Many of the legends, traditions of folklores are still lovingly kept alive. You will be driven around the lake at Kandy, built by the last Sinhala King, Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe in 1798. The evening visit to the Temple of the Tooth Relic is truly breathtaking, followed by a visit to the famous Kandy cultural show featuring traditional Sri Lankan Kandyan Dancing .
The history of the Royal Botanic Gardens dates as far back as 1371 when King Wickramabahu III ascended the throne and kept court at Peradeniya near Mahaweli Ganga. Later, in the reign of King Kirti Sri Rajasinghe from 1747 to 1780 this was made a Royal Garden and from 1780 – 1798 King Rajadhi Rajasinghe resided therein, where a temporary residence was erected for him.
Anuradhapura & Polonnaruwa -
Anuradhapura, ancient capitals of Sri Lanka in Sinhala, one of the, famous for its well-preserved ruins of ancient Lankan civilization. The city, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, lies 205 km north of the current capital Colombo in Sri Lanka's North Central Province, on the banks of the historic Malvathu Oya. From the 4th century BC, it was the capital of Sri Lanka until the beginning of the 11th century AD. During this period it remained one of the most stable and durable centers of political power and urban life in South Asia. The ancient city, considered sacred to the Buddhist world, is today surrounded by monasteries covering an area of over sixteen square miles. Anuradhapura is also significant in legend as the fabled capital of the Asura King Ravana in the Ramayana.
Vijayabahu I, Polonnaruwa, the capital of the kingdom for over two centuries, produced two great kings. his nephew Parakramabahu 1 (1153-86 AD), not satisfied with the ouster of the ruling Sri Lanka chola 's southern India made by his uncle, not only brings the war directly on Indian soil, but went with a quick foray up in Burma. Caught by the demon at home instead of building, erected a large number of buildings in the capital and dig a large number of tanks across the country. However, the excesses in both the military and architectural wear down the country and probably the duration of Polonnaruwa as their capital.
Sigiriya The World 8th Wonder -
Sigiriya dates back from over 7,000 years ago, through Pre-Historic to Proto-Historic to Early Historic times, then as a rock-shelter mountain monastery from about the 3rd century BC, with caves prepared and donated by devotees to the (sangha) Buddhist monks.The garden city and the palace was built by Kasyapa 477 - 495 AD. Then after Kasyapa's death it was a monastery complex up to about the 14th century. However, there is also another version of the Kasyapa story, related by one of the most eminent historians of Sri Lanka, Prof. Senerat Paranavitana. He claims to have deciphered the story of Sigiriya, written by a monk named Ananda in the 15th cent. AD. this work had been inscribed on stone slabs, over which later inscriptions had been written. Till to date no other epigraphist has made a serious attempttoread the interlinear inscriptions.rock fortress citadel built by a fugitive king in the sky, acclaimed as the 8th wonder of the world. Marvels include the mirror wall, lion stairway, water gardens and glowing colourful frescoes.In a cave on the steep west wall of Sigiriya, beautiful girls smile still incredible frescoes. Around the foot of the rock, siadagiano The oldest gardens of 'Asia, dotted with pretty lakes and huge boulders fallen from the walls of the fortress.
Spice Garden , Matale -
During Past history Sri Lanka known as Taprobane, was world renowned for its Quality Spices. During ancient times the Greeks, Romans and the Arabic maintained their links with Sri Lanka through the spice trade. In the 16th century Ceylon, as it was then known, was discovered by Portuguese who soon began trading in cinnamon and other spices. The Dutch and British followed bringing with them their own history and influences, forming a strong Western presence which created a history of food expressed with spices which can be tasted in the dishes today.
Spices are an essential element of the cuisine of Sri Lanka and the Ayurvedic tradition and a visit to a garden specializes in the cultivation of these substances and an excellent way for purposes of new uses of certain ingredients that perhaps though they knew well. Find cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, vanilla, cardamom and black pepper, to name a few. Europeans can buy the products in their natural state or in the form of oils and potions that are used by Ayurvedic medicine, during the Dutch, very famous spices of Sri Lanka and we export to different countries. That has earned the country the name of "Island of the spices”.
National Parks "Yala" & "Wilpattu" -
The Yala West (Ruhuna) Ntional park includes a strictly protected natural reserve and a national park, which together form a total area of 126,786 acres preserved. This park is divided into five blocks, Quail of the most visited and one block (14,101 hectares).This game park has one of the highest densities of leopards. You may have the opportunity to spotted Deer, elephants, crocodiles, sloth bears and mongoose the Yala, Udawalawe and other 11 National Parks such as Wilpattu, Wasgamuwa, Kaudulla and Bundala are home to 92 species of mammals 14 of which are endemic to the island. Pride of place goes to the majestic elephant and other exotic species which include the leopard, sloth bear, sambhur, spotted deer, mouse deer, wild boar, porcupine, ant eater, civet cat, jackal, giant squirrel, and a variety of monkeys including the endemic macaque, purple faced leaf monkey, grey langur and the shaggy bear monkey. Also 427 recorded birds species make Sri Lanka an Ornithologist's paradise. Not forgetting 242 species of breathtaking butterflies, exotic and varied Flora and the mesmerizing Minneriya Tank and National Park.
Wilpattu National Park (Willu-pattu; Land of Lakes) is also a main park located in Sri Lanka. The unique feature of this park is the existence of "Willus" (Natural lakes) - Natural, sand-rimmed water basins or depressions that fill with rainwater. Located in the Northwest coast lowland dry zone of Sri Lanka. The park is located 30 km west Anuradhapura and located 26 km north of Puttalam (approximately 180 km north of Colombo). The park is 131, 693 hectares and ranges from 0 to 152 meters above sea level. Nearly sixty lakes (Willu) and tanks are found spread throughout Wilpattu. Wilpattu is the largest and one of the oldest National Parks in Sri Lanka. Wilpattu is among the top national parks world renowned for its leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) population. The leopard population in Wilpattu is not known.
Nuwara Eliya -
Nuwara Eliya, is the heart of the hill country. The Central Highlands of Sri Lanka offer a salubrious cool climate. The mountain slopes are covered with acres and acres of tea with its fragrant aroma mingling with the fresh air. Nestled among the mist covered central hills in a cool basin Nuwara Eliya, the hill resort, resemble a little English village. Road leading to this hill station winds through miles and miles of 'green carpet' of tea bushes where tea pluckers are seen busily picking the 'bud and two leaves' that go to form the most popular brew in the world, the 'Ceylon Tea'.
Devon Falls, St. Clares, Ramboda Falls and Baker's Falls are the main eye-catching water falls in Sri Lanka. The geographical formation of the Island with the central highland sloping down to the coastal plains has resulted in several rivers and streams in the hill country. Starting from the central region, flowing down the hilly slopes in a radial pattern they create beautiful waterfalls in several places.
Moon Stones Mine : Meetiyagoda-
The village of Meetiyagoda near Ambalangoda, is where moonstone is most commonly found, concentrated within an acre of land. believed to have been blessed by the moon.The mysterious gem, as captivating as the full moon gleaming in the night sky, is considered sacred and has been used in jewelry for centuries. The most sought after moonstones have a haunting blue sheen, an effect produced by the orthoclase feldspar, which is found almost exclusively in the gem mines of Sri Lanka. Here, you can even go down into the deep, narrow shafts from which the stones are mined and witness the process yourself.
Dambulla -
Dambulla Rock Temple, Climb up to the temple, which was donated by King Walagambahu in the 1st century BC to Buddhist monks. Dambulla is a world heritage site and is the most impressive of Sri Lanka's natural cave temples belong to the 3rd century B.C. meditation for Buddhist monks. The complex of 5 caves with over 2000 sq. meters of painted walls and ceilings are the largest area of paintings found in the world. These caves contain over 150 images of the Buddha, of which the largest is the colossal figure of the Buddha carved out of rock spanning 14 meters.
