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Kandy perahera |
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 The
main attraction of the city and also the most sacred
Buddhist establishment in Sri Lanka is where one
of Buddha's tooth is being kept. Built in the 16th
century but improvements and additions have been
done to this structure until the fall of the Kandy
kingdom. A golden canopy was added recently. Daily
rituals are being carried out at various offering
times to the shrine. A dress code applies for entering
the temple. The magnificence has been enhanced by
the octagonal pavilion. |
| The
Old Royal Palace compound |
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 Old
place buildings are just beside the temple of the
tooth. Among them are the old royal palace, quarters
of the royal concubines; queen's chambers the council
chambers and the armoury. Some of these are now
being used as museums depicting the exhibits of
the Kandyan era. The council chambers built in 1784
is a unique example of wooden architecture of the
Kandyan period. The Kandyan Convention was signed
here ceding the country to the British in 1815. |
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Kandy perahera |
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 This
14 century temple is situated about 15Km from the
town. The structure of the temple is influenced
by the South Indian architecture and built on a
rock. The stupa is on a high stone platform. |
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 The
main attraction is the intricate wooden carvings
of this 14th century shrine dedicated to God Kataragama.
There is also a Buddhist temple on location. Almost
the entire structures of some wooden buildings are
decorated with dancers, musicians, wrestlers, legendary
beasts and birds. Nearby are the ruins of an ancient
rest house with similar pillars carved in stone. |
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 Kandy
is synonymous with arts and crafts of Sri Lanka
than anywhere else in the country. It is probably
because the Kandy is where all elite who patronised
these crafts survived during 300 years of war with
the Europeans. Kandy is probably the best place
to buy most of the handicrafts produced in Sri Lanka
because there are number of shops catering to the
tourists. Tourists could watch local crafts coming
into life at the At the Kandyan Art Association.
At Kundasale, about 4km from Kandy, a village
has been established recently to settle local
craftsmen and their families. Visitors could watch
craftmen at work and purchase their products on
site. |
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Mask Making |
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 Adjacent
to the Temple of the tooth are three of the four
major Hindu shrines taking part in the Kandy Perahera.
Shrines are dedicated to Gods Vishnu and Natha and
Goddess Patthini. The forth shrine is further towards
the town. Visitors to these shrines could witness
the Hindu religion customs though most of the worshipers
today are Buddhists. Hindu shrines taking part in
the Buddhist pageant is a good example of the Sinhala
and Tamil co-existence that lasted for centuries.
Four of the last Sri Lankan kings were of south
Indian origin. |
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 Kandy
is surrounded with many major Buddhist temples.
On the shores of the lake are Malwaththa and Asgiri
temples. Fine painted murals of Buddhist stories
in these temple buildings are a good example of
the arts in the Kandy period while paintings of
the Hindagala temple at Peradeniya are of the 7th
century. |
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 Lankatilake
temple is a magnificent building built on rock at
a scenic location which also has fine paintings.
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| The
Royal Botanical Gardens |
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 Once
a pleasure gardens of a Kandyan Queen this 40ha
land is a beautiful park with numerous tropical
foliage and the best in the island. The Commander
of the allied forces in Southeast Asia Earl Mountbatten
had the headquarters in the garden during the
Second World War. 
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Kandy is served by bus from almost all parts
of the county with many intercity busses. Travel
time from Colombo is about 2.5hrs and about 2
hours form Nuwara Eliya and an hour and a half
from Sigiriya.
Distances From Kandy in km
Colombo 116
Anuradhapura 138
Nuwara Eliya 77
Trincomalee 182
There is an intercity train service from the
Colombo fort railway station and the travel time
is approximately about 2 hours.There are several
car rental companies operating from Kandy should
your prefer to hire a car from Kandy. |
:: Related links ::
http://www.kandycity.org
http://www.sridaladamaligawa.lk
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Kandy,
the last royal capital of Sri Lanka is a major
tourist destination. ( 115kM from Colombo
at 465 meters above sea level). Famous for
the Temple of the Tooth and many other temples
the city could be called the cultural capital
of the island. 
