As you will have seen from the previous entry, our first day in Sri Lanka was eventful to say the least. It would take a lot to live up to the spectacle that was the days events, and surprisingly enough it did. Does that entice you read further? I hope so because I’m going to talk about it anyway.
The original plan of the day was to hire bicycles and ride around the ruins of the old part of Anuradhapura to make sure we saw all of it. A couple of minutes trying out the bicycles provided however put paid to the idea. They were made for people substantially smaller that us and were not very comfortable. When mixed with the chaotic state of the roads it would have made for a very unpleasant experience. Instead we decided to hire a tuk tuk instead, which I was fully on board with. I was less impressed however when it appeared without a driver and I was informed that my father would be taking the wheel. Needless to wha I was terrified but decided that it would make for an entertaining story so I did not object.
After a few months of learning how to change gear and make a bend without keeling over we made our way to the first stop with was the Anuradhapura museum. The tickets that we wanted to buy which were combined passes for all sites in the area turned out to be discontinued however, so instead we bought tickets for the same price put for fewer locations. It all appeared to be decided on the fly but thankfully he museum was very interesting so we raised no objections. The nearby stupa was also extremely impressive and the ruins stretched out for kilometres around us. A note of caution however: the practice of removing footwear when visiting religious places made for some very sore feet.
After the first two sites we took our trusty vehicle and drove through(!) the compound up the road towards the a statue of the Buddha and remarkable semi circular step called a moonstone, which pre-dated the arrival of Buddhism and was beautiful. En route we also stopped at win bathing pools that were pretty but not particularly stimulating. The most interesting event then was when a brave young boy came up to me and started talking English to me. I was rather pleased until he asked to take my necklaces to which I refused but he still seemed happy. I suspect there was a dare going on with his friends.
Following this we took a very circuitous route towards one of the old Wewas of the city. These are large artificial lakes used for irrigation purposes in the days gone by, and nowadays is used by local people as a place to go swim/bathe. We were too self conscious to join in so instead we went for a overpriced cup of tea at a tourist trap that was out of season and in desperate need of a clean. That disAppointment was nullified by our next stop which was another stupa, this time called Ruwanwelisaya. This was the last stupa to be built by king Dutugamunu in the second century B.C and he never lived to see it finished. It has been recently renovated and stood proud and tall over the worshippers who had come to pray in it’s shadow. At the time of building it was over. Hundred metres high and only second to the pyrAmids of Giza. The outer wall is covered in a frieze of elephants that is equally as fascinating. It was truly a thing of beauty, and it made me really happy to see it still in use. I was less impressed by the touters surrounding the monument trying to sell their wares to us. After that we visited the ruins of the royal palace but there was so little to see I won’t waste any time talking about it. After that we went home, only stopping to acquire a pair of SIM cards for the princely sum of 4 euros for 5gb of internet. My mobile provider has some explaining to do.
That was our last day in Anuradhapura. Tomorrow we move to a new location that I cannot remember the name of, but I will by this time tomorrow. Adventures await, so until next time.