Polonnaruwa, Sigiriya, Dambulla, Arugam Bay

From Kandy we traveled to Polonnaruwa, one of Sri Lanka's ancient capitals. Polonnaruwa was inhabited over 1000 years ago by a succession of Singhala and Chola (Indian) kings, who each built their own palaces, bathing pools and temples. We rented bikes from Mr Badulla the night we arrived and spent the next day touring the ruins. We spent most of the morning in the archaeological museum, which had interesting pictures of the restoration work that had been done and some great models of what the structures might have looked like in the past. However, the written information was a bit convoluted and probably would have benefited from a more skilled translator (ie. a 12 year old). The sights were beautiful, Dave's favorite was the 'Gal Vihara', a group of four Buddha images carved into one giant strip of granite. Mine was the 'Kiri Vihara', an enormous stupa which, after 700 years of neglect, was cleared of trees and found to still have it's original plaster exterior intact. There were dozens of other interesting structures, many were deserted (except for a German couple we saw everywhere we went- they're even here, in Arugam Bay-who we didn't make friends with). Near the end of the day, with two sights left, it started to pour with rain. Dave and I took shelter in a security hut and were just taking out our cards to resume our ongoing crib tournament when Mr Badulla appeared, driving a tuk tuk with a British couple in the back. He informed us the the rain wouldn't be stopping anytime soon, and that it was best we abandon the bikes and get a ride with him. We crammed into the tuk tuk, saw the remaining sights and were taken to a shop selling wood carvings for tea and a sales pitch. Despite the temptation of a large wooden elephant for my bedroom, we left without buying anything. While drinking tea we noticed that Mr Badulla was stomping around, throwing things and yelling- we learned later that he was upset because a man on a motorcycle, in an attempt to earn a commission at the carving shop, had punctured the tires on the German couple's bike, knowing they would have to stop at the shop before being able to return to Polonnaruwa. Fortunately, the couple was able to use our bikes and Mr Badulla reported the motorcycle driver to the tourist police.

A council chamber of one of the kings of Polonnaruwa-the lion was his throne

My favorite site at Polonnaruwa, 'Kiri Vihara'

Dave's favorite, the 'Gal Vihara'

The next day we took a bus to Sigiriya, an incredible rock mass that rises out of the flat fields and jungle. Sigiriya is believed to have been the ancient capital of King Kassapa (AD 477-495) who fled from Anuradhapura after murdering his own father. Others believe that Sigiriya was inhabited much earlier (the 3rd century BC) by monks who used it as a mountain hermitage, and was an important Mahayana and Theravada monastery by the 10th century AD. Either way, the complex was abandoned after the 14th century, and was only officially rediscovered in 1898 by a British archeologist. We spent time in the museum, which, opened only last year with financial assistance from Japan, is filled with interesting, clearly written information and artifacts-really well airconditioned too. The site is absolutely amazing- there are symmetrical water gardens in front of the rock, along with terraced and boulder gardens; halfway up the rock (at the top of a terrifying set of stairs) there are frescoes painted on a long sheltered wall; nearby, a long stretch of rock has been carved out, creating a smooth, polished wall which is covered with graffiti written between the 6th and 14th century. Further up another set of stairs, a giant set of lion paws guard the final ascent to the top of the rock. At one time the lion was complete, the mouth forming an arch which visitors would have walked through. On top of the rock there were the remains of various structures, a palace and bathing pools (incredible to think how they got water to the top). Dave and I did a crossword puzzle and ate biscuits before we were swarmed by local men who all wanted a picture with us (mostly Dave actually- they, like everyone else we meet, were fascinated by his tattoo). We were finally able to climb down the rock, and took a bus to Dambulla- a side trip with the sole purpose of finding chop suey. The guide book suggested a place, we searched up and down, only to find out, as we were about to die of hunger that the restaurant had been converted into a "communications shop". We did, eventually, find food, and after eating took another bus back to Polonnaruwa.

Sigiriya

One of the paintings at Sigiriya

The lion's paws and final staircase

On top of the rock

Also on top of the rock

The next morning we again boarded a bus, this time headed for our favorite beach in Sri Lanka, Arugam Bay. Unlike our last trip there, from Polonnaruwa it was a "quick" 8 hour journey on 3 different buses.

However, the story ends there because today is my birthday and the last thing I want to be doing is writing an essay on the history of Sri Lanka. Thanks for reading, we'll post pictures one day. Maybe soon.

xoxo Dallas