Busy Day at the Rock

Friday morning started quite well despite a less than desirable night of sleep. We had a nice, filling breakfast at the Earl's breakfast buffet, highlighted by a selection of fresh juices including mango, pineapple, woodapple, coconut, papaya, orange, and mixed fruit. I can say one thing for certain, the Asian hotels know how to do breakfast buffets. We set off very early as our main goal for the day was to head a couple hours north to Sigiriya to hike up Sigiriya Rock.

NOTE: I just realized I had my story all out of order. We actually did Dambulla the same day as Sigiriya since the Cave Temples were on the way. I guess Friday was pretty much spent driving to Kandy.

We got to Sirigiya right around 11:00am, not quite in the middle of the blazing heat, but it was definitely warming up. As with most attractions in Asia, tourists pay more than locals for admission, but at Sirigiya it was a bit out of control. The local entrance fee is 20rs, while the tourist fee is 2040rs. Seems pretty steep, but Harry explained to us that Sirigiya is maintained by a U.S. non-profit and they have a seemingly good record about putting the money to use. Also we agreed that Sri Lankans should be able to afford a visit to their own attractions.

Sirigiya Rock - the "8th wonder of the world" as some like to call it - is simply a huge rock among the mountains of Sri Lanka. It was used as a castle by King Kasyapa in the 5th century AD, who built a wall and moat around the perimeter and gardens along the base. At the top was the throne, offering magnicifent views of the country for miles all around. There was even a man-made lake at the top that looks very much like a swimming pool, and it is wondered how they managed to fill such a lake without pumps (most likely manual labor, slaves were free). On the way up there's remnants of a collosal carving of a lion in the side of the rock with its paws still in tact, which provides for a good midway rest point.

The hike takes about 2 hours up, and parts of it were quite congested. Sri Lankans of all shapes, ages, and sizes come to Sirigiya as its one of the best attractions in all of Sri Lanka. Nima and I climbed at a steady pace, stopping for plenty of water breaks and to take in the views. We spent about 45 minutes at the top, taking lots of goofy pictures and just relaxing at the summit. On the way down we moved quick so at to not get stuck behind large family groups. There were some steep parts of the climb, and portions of the stairs were wide enough for maybe one foot. Overall though the climb is very safe and plenty of people are around.

After the climb we were starving so we headed to a nearby hotel for a lunch buffet, which was surprisingly good. The hotel, Sirigiya Village Hotel, was a collection of bungalows and appeared to be a tranquil, peaceful hotel with a fantastic view of the rock. If I were to come here again I would stay at this place.

We started the journey back to Kandy after lunch and still had a couple more things to do along the way. Harry took us to a spice plantation, something I'd done last year in Kerala but Nima's never done. This stop was clearly a scam as the "guide" kept telling us he'd give us an Indian Brother special on herbal oils and medicine. I did discover though that Nima is a natural botanist, as she was able to identify an impressive number of plants just by smell. They offered to give us some strange massage with herbal oils, but we quickly passed on it and got out of there before enduring more mosquito bites than we already had.

We finally got back to Kandy around 4pm, just in time for the Temple of the Tooth. It is said that a tooth relic from the Buddha is housed in this temple, and that the tooth has been used in the past to perform miracles such as bring rain to a drought-stricken Sri Lanka. The tooth is housed in a secure case behind the main Buddha statue, and monks bring it out a certain times during the day and month for religious reasons. The temple also has a museum with some interesting artifacts and a pictoral explanation of the history of the Buddha. Sadly, in 1999 a terrorist attack on the temple severely damaged the enterance, and the museum contains a wall full of photos documenting the damage and rebuilding of the temple. Nima and I were foolish to leave out shoes outside the temple without cover, and were caught when a monsoon shower came as we were in the museum. We hurried outside to rescue the shoes and in the process got completely soaked since we didn't bring an umbrella. Harry hurried us back to the hotel for cover.

Back at Earl's, the hotel manager informed me that he was sorry for our subpar stay last night and that we were upgraded to an executive suite with a river view for the night. SWEET! The sweet was roomy, clean, and had nice big blankets on the bed. That made my day because I was previously in a sour mood regarding the hotel. Harry, I believe, also had something to do with the upgrade since he knows people at Earl's, proving the value of a good driver.

We decided to take it easy for the night, ordering room service (dinner for two, $15) and getting a good night's rest before a big day in Nuwara Eliya.