Horton Plains

One amazing place, most probably the coldest and windiest place in Sri Lanka!

Rich in flora and fauna. Located in the central highlands. About 30 km from Nuwara Eliya, 40kms from Haputale. Ones who come from Nuwara Eliya can reach to the entrance poin in Pattipola, while the ones from Haputale reaches the entrance point in Ohiya.

Herds, deers are very regular sights in Horton Plains.

There is a one special place called 'World's End' in here. As the name sounds, there is a sudden end of the path in that so called place! From there you can see a huge fall, and the sight runs to 10km ...

Due to the high variety of nature, Horton Plains was declared a UNESO World Heritage Site in 2010.

If you planing to visit Nuwara Eliya, this is the 1st place that you should add to your list :)

Even we Sri Lankans rarely misse this place when we are going trips to Nuwara Eliya!

Photo Gallery

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Sigiriya Rock Fortress

Another famous tourist destination. The best place to ensure the rich culture of Sri Lanka.

Little bit from the History (just leave this para, if you feel shiftless...)

This was built by King “Kashyapa”. He killed his father to get the kingship early. Kashyapa had a brother called “Mugalan” and he was very angry about this. He went away from the palace with challenging Kashyapa that one day he would come back with an army. Kashyapa knew that his brother had a great military knowledge and therefore he wanted to ensure his security. Then he built this fortress. (However it is said that his brother gained the victory later)

Sigiriya is situated in Mathale District, about 40 miles away from Anuradhapura. From far away, the rock seems like a lion standing in a jungle. One important thing about this place is that there are no more rocks near by. It brings more safety to the fortress; otherwise the enemy can easily attack with the help of another rock.

Sigiriya rock has a unique shape: the ones who know it well can easily recognize it from far away, even from the central province. (When you are climbing the Hill country, you will pass “Kadugannawa” and there is a ‘site watching place’ near Kadugannawa. You can recognize this rock even from there)

When you enter to the garden, don’t rush to climb! There are many things to watch first. Just take a 360’ turn! You can understand how biggy the garden is! Yeah, probably I could say a Garden Complex :). It is true if I say, this is one of the oldest landscaped gardens in the world.

As this is a fortress, the garden is not only for beauty! The garden can be divided to 3 sections and each of them is surrounded by drains. First section is just the beauty. Second one has few security features and the last section is totally a mess of Security! There were even some Crocodiles in the drains of the last section of the garden (Don’t worry, see I just used “were” :P )

When you are climbing, there are some places that you should wait and enjoy. Sigiriya Frescoes and The mirror wall are few of them.

 <Frescoes>

King Kashyapa was a fine artist. Sigiriya frescoes prove that.  These frescoes were drawn on the whole face of the hill. According to researches, these are painted in 8^th century and still in good form (even with colors). Researchers also said that there are many similarities between these and “Ajantha” Paintings in India. However the females depicted there are extremely beautiful. They are known as the daughters of King Kashayapa. (Some people say they are the wives of him).

One the way to top, there is a wall called mirror wall, a wall made with polished stones. Some say this was to cheat the invading armies. However the graffiti written on the mirror wall by visitors later are wonderfully composed and it seems like most of them had composed poems with the impression of Frescoes.

Before entering to the peak, you will come to some sort of floor. There you can see the paws of a huge Lion. You won’t see the head of the lion, because it was missing since a long time ago :(  .  Creep through those paws to climb up.

At the top of the rock you can see the ruins of a palace. Can you believe; how the building materials were taken to the top of the rock is still unknown, because even with the modern machinery it is difficult to reach such a rocky height :). That is the main reason to consider this as the 8^th wonder of the world.

Well, I think this place is really suitable for taking Panorama shots.. so try that too..

Location                         :  Central Province

Known for                      : Rock fortress, Frescoes, Graffiti,  

Geographical coordinates: 7° 57' 0" North, 80° 45' 0" East

Climate                           :  Sunny (usually)

Challenge from me          : I just mentioned above a spot in Kadugannawa where you can watch this rock clearly. When your car stops at that place… try to recognize it yourself :D

CAUTION: There are some hives of honey bees in few places in the rock. DON’T DO ANYTHING THAT CAN PROVOKE THEM. (even your drastic perfume or  a cigarette could stir up them)

Gallery

The rock from far away

Little bit closer..

The Garden Complex

A Section in the Garden

Paws of the Lion

  

Climbing up!

Peak

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Sri Pada (Adam's Peak)

This is the only mountain in the world that four religions worship. This is a holy place for Buddhists, Christians, Hindus and Muslims. In each of those religions, this mountain is interpreted in their own ways.

According to the Buddhism, Sri Pada was once visited by the Lord Buddha. There is a sacred footprint in the top of the mountain and Buddhists consider it as the footprint of Lord Buddha.

In the same manner, Christians believe Adam had visited here and kept his footprint as a signature, while Hindus consider it is the footprint of Lord Shiva.

Never mind the proprietor of it, this place has become a symbol of Peace and Harmony.

There is a certain period for climb this. Usually the term is from December to May (Full moon day of Dec. to the same day in May). 

Most of the people, start climbing at the evening to miss the effects of sun rays and at the dawn of the next day they could easily finish climbing. (The mountain is not that much high to climb around 10 hours, but with watching the beauty and having some rests while going may take more time) 

If you visit there, you may understand there is a culture of climbing it! (Yeah! I could say ‘a culture’). The climbers address the ones who are coming down in the same path with sweet poems. Then they also reply with a poem in return. There are some well known poems, but what is mostly done is making poems in real-time! The other teams that climb around you will exchange sweetmeats with you (well don’t worry if you have no sweetmeats, just give them some Chocolate bars or slices of Cheese and other ‘your country made’ food :P )

There are few paths to climb it. I’m sure that your guide knows all of those (it is such famous) and therefore you should tell him your desires: if you need to enjoy the flora and fauna while climbing or if you need to rush to the top as quick as possible or if you need the safest path, like wise.

If you are lucky enough, you will be able to see the colorful view of Sun rising. The Sun is just peeping from the ocean and lil by lil going upwards feeling quite shy! I’m sure this would be a busy time for your cameras :D

From May to December, the climate there is getting bad with rain, extreme wind and the thick mist.

But one of my uncles once visited there in August with a group of tourists, and he said although it was a risky task, that satisfaction you gain after climbing to the top is commendable! Therefore, if you are expecting such kind of special experiences you may ask your guide regarding this :D. But probably this is too risky, if you are traveling with children

Location : 40 km away from Rathnapura.  When you reach Rathnapura, ask for “Samanala Kanda”

    Coordinates for GPS    6°48′41″N 80°29′59″E

Altitude   : 2,243 m (7,359 ft)

Challenge from me :  Remember Colombo? Okay then, when you climb up to the top, try to recognize the

                                location of Colombo. Look out for some large buildings, so that is it! Just try this          

                                yourself and later get your guide’s help if you need :)

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