THE HILL COUNTRY © LonelyPlanetPublications The Hill Country Country Hill The 160 and climbs,refreshing andhistoricsites. waterfalls upintothehillsareHigher avisit,andanabundanceofwalks manytownsthatare worth fortheLiberationTigers andthereas strict ismuchless support ofTamil Eelam (LTTE). here practiced is very theHinduism isnot different SriLanka; fromthatfoundinnorthern from IndiabytheBritishtolabourontea estates. The Tamil culture Country intheHill remains theSinhalese culturalandspiritualcentre.and thecityofKandy than 300yearsafter thecoastalregions inthe17thcentury, firstsuccumbedtothePortuguese resisted ofKandy European Country.The takeover kingdom ) andtotheHill formore the Polonnaruwadynastiesinearly13thcentury,powershifted southwesttoKotte (near green ofthetea plantations, withmontaneforest hugging thehigherslopes. Everything here isgreen andlush,muchoftheregion iscarpeted withtheglowing and heavyairofthecoastalregions plains. orthehotdryairofcentralandnorthern heat CountrylivesThe Hill inacool,perpetualspring,awayfromtheoften enervating „ „ „ „ HIGHLIGHTS „ „ „ „ The Hill CountryisarelaxedThe Hill area where it’svery easytofindthedaysjustdriftingby. Since the19thcenturyregion hasbecomehometoalarge numberofTamils, brought followingthedeclineof ofSriLanka, Although Sinhaleseculture wasborninthenorth Hiking through thecountrysidearound Hiking Rising earlytowalkthrough Rising Digging geminoneof uptheperfect Exploring thepristine throughthehightea Rattling plantationsina Slogging up Meanderingaround Watchingthethrobbingthrong of ( p217 ) whileenjoyingtheviews totheplains Ratnapura’s gem shops and Ella Countrytrain;thetripbetween Hill to berewarded sunrise byaperfect EsalaPerahera elephants, drummersanddancersatthe Reserve the evening stunning World’s End National Park ( p221 guide ) withanexpert ( p216 lovely) is particularly Adam’s Peak ( p205 ) andpeerover Kandy Sinharaja Forest (p167)

( p224) (SriPada; p194 ) Horton PlainsHorton 15) in (p165) Haputale Ella

Adam's Peak Ratnapura Sinharaja Reserve Forest Kandy Horton Plains National Park Haputale Ella The Hill Country The Hill to the of Pasyala, where there’s leading a turn-off time andaninterest inbotany. varieties. It’sworth astopifyouhave the today, alongwith around400otherplant rubber trees are stillinthe37-acre gardens tial wasproved –someof original those Asia were carefully grownandtheirpoten- was where thefirst rubbertrees planted in road about30kmnorthwestof Colombo, admission US$10) www.lonelyplanet.com tempt tobring to life a pre-1940 settlement road. Thisprivately owned venture isanat- The COLOMBO TOKANDY 2316) Botanic Gardens (15km) To Colombo Henerathgoda (15km) To Colombo THE HILLCOUNTRY Kalutara Some 47kmfrom Colomboisthevillage I N D I A N Beruwela Bentota near Gampaha,off theColombo–Kandy O C E A N Horana Henerathgoda BotanicGardens Induruwa A1 Pasgama tourism village Pasgama tourism Ahungala Pasyala

A4 Bentota Kelan Hanwella iya Cadjugama A8 , about1.5km fromthemain Ganga Pasgama

Tourism Ganga Village

Kalu Ganga Morgala Orphanage Pinnewala ὈὈ Elephant

Kuda Avissawella A6

A7 Ganga Kegalle A4 Kiriella A19 A6 A21 Rambukkana

Kudawa ( % Mawanella Kitulgala

033-228 5183; Carney Utuwankandu Norton Bridge Kalawana Estate ( Forest Reserve % Ratnapura Weddagala Maussakelle ὈὈ ὈὈ Sinharaja Reservoir Gilimale Bible Rock Adam’s Peak A7 033-222 Castlereigh A10 (Sri Pada) (798m) Reservoir A1 Kotapola (2243m) Mederapitiya To Akuressa(20km); Kadugannawa Dalhousie Pelmadulla Rakwana Galle (55km) A18 Peak Wilderness Maskeliya Mahaweli A5 Deniyaya Hinipitigala THE HILL COUNTRY •• Colombo to Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••ColombotoKandy Kothmale Reservoir

Sanctuary Ganga torists. At the48kmpost is beckonpassingmo- clad cashew-nutsellers cashew linetheroad,and brightly nuts.Stalls the nearest townto thePinnewala Elephant at roadside stalls. displayed forsale where allsorts of caneitems are woven and each way. the tourismvillage; itshouldcostRs150 Hire athree-wheeler fromPasyala toget to entry fee. There’s handicrafts. ashopselling commercialism –few are bythe delighted itascorny enjoy thisplacewhileothers see features of traditionalvillage life. Some showcasing craftspeople,dancers andother Pasyala is (1171m) Falls Kiruwananaganga Madampe Hatton Dickoya A9 Ramboda A17 Kegalle About 3km furthertowardsKandy from Falls National Park Horton Plains Pussellawa Kandy Uduwela A4 ὈὈ ὈὈ Ὀ ὈὈ ὈὈ Galaha Elkaduwa Wattegama Kirigalpotta Pidurutalagala Balangoda Ramboda , located 77kmfrom Colombo, is Totapola (2387m) (2361m) Reservoir (Mt Pedro) Victoria Cadjugama (2524m) A26 Hunasgiriya Belihul Oya Ohiya To Hambantota National Park Bambarakanda Uda Walawe Randenigala World's End A18 Reservoir (45km) Hakgala Falls Knuckles Range A5 Embilipitiya Ragalla (1863m) , avillage famous forits Randenigala

Weli Oya Sanctuary Victoria- Madugoda

12miles 20km 0 0 Diyaluma Falls Walawe Ganga Walawe Uma Oya Haputale Dunhinda Buduruwagala A16 Mahiyangana Falls Radawaduwa Handapangala Tanamalwila Wellawaya A4 Ella Tank

To Batticoloa

Arugam Bay; Monaragala; Badulu Oya Badulu A5 A23 National (100km) A2 161 Park

To

, THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY than not,you’ll end your tour atthe gar- habits. Atipwill beexpected and,more often andgrowth around, explaining their uses up unannounced andaguide willshow you are acouple of ably nottheplace foryou. with apointed tip–thenthisisprob- metal oftional use thegoad–anL-shaped tool have troubleaccepting the of theelephants.Ifyouthink you might son, fornowhere exceptat else andwithgoodrea- attraction inSriLanka, now grownintothemostpopularjumbo abandoned ororphanedelephants. their distress over the T-shirts, elephanttoysandsoon. snacks,camerafilm,elephant shops selling 1.15pm and5pm.There’s acaféandsome to 4pm,whilemealtimesare at9.15am, ing dailyfrom10amtonoonand 2pm elephants are ledtoanearbyriver forbath- residence, frombabiestoyoungadults.The ary area. elephants roamfreely aroundthe sanctu- don’t endanger anyone,butother the wise who ensure timesand theyfeed attheright under 12Rs500/250,videocamera This government-run Orphanage Elephant Pinnewala Gampaha, andKadugannawa. to theHenerathgoda Gardensat Botanic and Kandy. forgetting Thetrainisuseful travellingsible bybuses Colombo between gannawa are ontheA1andare allacces- Colombo–Kandy roadin1826. whobuiltthe Dawson, theEnglishengineer pillarerecteda tall inmemoryof Captain views southwesttothelarge railway make theirmostscenicclimbs–with cuted bytheBritish. on travellers andexe- untilhewascaught Saradiel, preyedHood–style highwayman, hill fromwhich the19th-centuryRobin can see Orphanage ( below ). Alittlefurther onyou 162 are controlled bytheir quarters.elephants atclose Theelephants (processions) are somany youlikely tosee 5.30pm) Near thePinnewala ElephantOrphanage A few readers have written toexpress There are usually60orsoelephantsin Pasyala, Kegalle Cadjugama, andKadu- At Kadugannawa, justafter and theroad THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy , nearKegalle, wascreated to protect Utuwankandu spice gardens , aprominentrocky mahouts’ orphanage mahouts

mahouts’ Rs 500; . You can turn . Youcan turn Bible Rock treatment (keepers),

peraheras h (adult/child

tradi- 8.30am- It has – is –is ant walks from the town and further afield. ant walks from thetown and further afield. is lush andgreen and there are many pleas- completed in 1831. Kandy they finally withColombo, atask British 11years tobuildaroadlinking and Dutch forthree centuries. Ittookthe ish in1815after defying thePortuguese kingdom, which fellSinhalese totheBrit- world awaydueto its500maltitude. climaticallyitisa inland fromthe capital, and atouch of urban buzz.Only115km a lottooffer –history,culture, forested hills ofeasy-going capital theHillCountryhas otherthanColombo.in SriLanka, The Some say Kandy istheonlyotherreal ‘city’ % KANDY the rest of theway. andtravel bythree-wheeler Rambukkana runegala, thenchange to anotherbus 2½ hours11.25am, arrivingroughly later. at10amandtrains leave Rambukkana at 1.55pm.Ifyou’re headingtoColombo, at 11.30amthatterminates inRambukkana and 2.25pm. Kandy at1.55pm leave fromRambukkana and 2.15pm(arrivingat3.43pm).Trainsfor at 8.21am),10.30am(arriving12.13pm) station at 6.45am(arrivingRambukkana going towardsKegalle. Trainsleave Kandy getorphanage. abus FromRambukkana Kandy railwayisabout 3kmnorthof the ColomboandKegalle.between Pinnewala. There are alsonumerousbuses tion, and10minutes fromthejunctionto It’s aboutanhourfromKandy tothejunc- andget atPinnewala. off to Rambukkana junction catch bus681goingfromKegalle Kegalle atKarandupona junction.Fromthe (CTB) bus662toKegalle –get before off TransportBoard a private busorCentral the Kandy side. FromKandy youcantake isjustoutofroad. Theturn-off Kegalle on kilometres northof theColombo–Kandy markets. you’d bemuch better shoppinginlocal off you’re interested spices inbuyingSriLankan den’s shop forahigh-pressure pitch. If sales The town, and the countryside around it, The town, andthecountryside aroundit, of asthecapital thelast Kandy served From Anuradhapuratake abustoKu- There isalsoatrainfromColomboFort ontheColombo– station Rambukkana The orphanage isonagoodroadfew 081 / pop 112,000 / elev 500m 081 /pop112,000elev www.lonelyplanet.com lag producesareasonable mapof Kandy. quality tends tobeabitdodgy.Nelles Ver- hasmapsaswellbutthe The touristoffice one of mapsof themost detailed Kandy. shops such asVijithaYapa ( right ), contains on thetown. arethe placestostay perched, lookingdown into thesurroundinghills,where manyof short walkfromthelake. Thecityspreads andstopsarevarious busstations justa themarketpoint. Thetrainstation, andthe lake, withtheclocktowerahandyreference tre isimmediately northandwestof the Maligawa) onitsnorthside. Thecitycen- ple of theSacred ToothRelic(SriDalada The focusof Kandy isits lake, withtheTem- Orientation callout. bound buses which iswhatsomeconductors onKandy- Nuwara (Great City)orjustNuwara(City), to justifyavisitatanytimeof year. attractions buthasenough (July/August), (full moon)attheendof themonthof Esala over 10daysleadinguptotheNikini great Kandy Perahera Esala ( p167 ), quiet. rants. As falls thecitybecomeseerily night ofselection andrestau- hotels, guesthouses specialists, abustlingmarket andavery good jumble of oldshops, antiqueandgemstone esque lake inabowlof set hills,isadelightful The towncentre, toKandy’s close pictur- www.lonelyplanet.com Cultural Triangle Office Office Triangle Cultural has acomprehensive library. monks sometimes give lectures here. Italso of thelake. Localscholars occasionally and Publication Society towardstheeastend visit thefriendlypeopleat Buddhist If you’re interested in books onBuddhism, BOOKSHOPS Information The MAPS monuments. information onthe ancientsites and good background Unesco and the CentralCulturalFund, whichprovides Also available here is isaninformative guidetothecity’s heritage. Seneviratna, books forsaleontheancient cities. of office,thishasaselection 4pm) Oppositethetourist Locally, Kandy isknownaseitherMaha Kandy isparticularly wellknownforthe A–Z Street Guide, The Cultural Triangle, ( h available atbook- 9am-12.30pm &1.30- Kandy, publishedby byDrAnuradha

poya held

service. thishospitaloffers good,efficient inKandy, need adoctor Ifyou 40SangarajaMawatha) [email protected]; andnonfiction. fiction and assorted newspapers(includingforeign papers)selling periodicals, Cultural Triangle Office. Cultural Triangle at itsofficeopposite the services international courier on presentation of a passport. on presentation ofapassport. exhibitions andplays. Nonmembersmayread newspapers thecouncilsometimesholdsfilmnights, main activity, isthe CDs, videosandDVDs. AlthoughEnglishinstruction newspapers, Tue-Sat) Thecouncilhasbackcopies ofBritish Vidiya; council.org; 178DSSenanayake POST HSBC Hatton NationalBank Commercial Bank Bank ofCeylon in town,andoffer ATM service. bankshaveMost major branches SriLankan MONEY Hospital Adventist Lakeside MEDICAL SERVICES Koffeepot Cyber Cottage Café@Internet where therate wasinexplicablytriple). was Rs60perhour(exceptatKoffeepot, town centre; thegoingrate lastwechecked There are five orsixInternet cafésinthe ACCESSINTERNET Council British welcome tobrowseinthelibrary. Goodcoffeeand periodicals. isavailable.Nonmembersare have Englishsubtitles),andhasbooks French, thefilmsoften southwest oftown,theAlliancehostsfilmnights(thoughin 642 Peradeniya Rd; Alliance Française CULTURAL CENTRES YapaVijitha Bookshop Mark DHL private communications bureaus intown. Vidiya.Senanayake There are numerous the intersection of Kande VidiyaandDS more includingoneat centralpostoffices, Therethe trainstation. are afew smaller, isoverThe mainpostoffice theroadfrom nonfiction. It’spokybutthestaffare veryhelpful. nonfiction. and aswellfiction Lanka, ofbooksaboutSri selection ( (KotugodelleVidiya) % 447 9684; 7 Deva Vidiya)offers447 9684;7 Deva domesticand (Groundfl,ThePub, 36DaladaVidiya) THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy (5KotugodelleVidiya)Goodbookshop (1stfl,154KotugodelleVidiya) ( (77KotugodelleVidiya) (DaladaVidiya) (151/1DaladaVidiya)Hasagood % h ( (KotugodelleVidiya) % 223 4634;enquiries.kdy@british 8.30am-6pm Mon-Sat) To the 8.30am-6pm Mon-Sat)Tothe (DaladaVidiya) 222 4432; [email protected]; 222 4432;[email protected]; ( % 224 6295; h 9.30am-5pm

163 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Kandy 164 0 500 m KANDY 0 0.3 miles THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy 38 To Mahaweli Reach Hotel To Forest Glen (1km); A B ὆὆὆C (2.5km); Matale (22km); DFBlue Haven Guest Dharm E Dambulla (72km)ὈὈὈὈHouse (2km) a Lad Green soka ὆὆὆ Gallop Mw y

Matale Rd Gordon's a Mw 1 ὆὆὆ Old 1 asen Katugastota Rd Rd Ganga arm Dha Lady Horton's Dr Dh ὆὆὆ mmadassi Mw

gala Mw AA ὆὆὆ Train

atte Suman Stataion Mahaweli Mw w Sri ὈὈὈὈ

Rat 33

Kuda 22 23 W 36 ariy Lover Srimath ap o St) la Kande Vidiya (Hill s' 2 Entrance to Walk 2 Sri DS Senanayake Vidiya18 Suma 66 Udawattakelle 62 nga Mw Yatinuwara Vidiya Sanctuary 9 4 Haras Vidiya ὈὈKotugodelle Vidiya ὈὈὈὈ 12 24 7

DS Senanayake Vidiya 34 Rukkarama Mw Yatinuwara Vidiya 6 Kotugodelle Vidiya 42 Vidiya Raja Vidiya 21 Bennet Soysa Vidiya (Cross16 St) hpada Sri Pus na Mw Bennet Soysa Vidiya (Cross St) 68 26 10 30 28 25 San 20 45 Clock 32 29 gami 69 55 8 Tower Temple St tta

64 Palace Sq Temple St Lake Rd Mw 72 19 3 3 58 ὈὈ77 ὈὈὈὈDalada Vidiya 3 Dalada Vidiya 73 15 17 See Enlargement Victoria Anagarika 0 200 m 70 65 63 11 74 Hewaheta Rd 0 0.1 miles 75 Island 60 67 Rd Muslim Kandy Lake Dhar 48 76 Palliya Rd 49 14 mapala 27 53 Dharmaraja Rd Mw Sangar Anniewatta Station Rd aja Mw

80 2 Sar 78 79 31 www.lonelyplanet.com New Rive Hillwood 57 Rd anan 5 Rajapihilla To Gem Inn II (1km); 46 Rd

ὈὈὈ k Louis Peiris Nittawella Rugby Kandy 50 ara Stadium (2km); rdale Rd Mw 40 anda 37 Earl's Regency 41 47 wak R a Bogambara Mw (5km) ir d 44 4 rge E Grounds Rd Keer 4 De Bah Bandaranaike Mw) 13 To Amaya Hills (5km); Geo Mw Silva Hanthana Rd thi 52 71 (8km); Railway Approach 61

Sri 54 Dhamma Kuta Vipassana Mw 1 Reservoir Mahamaya Mw Meditation Centre (10km); 56 To Tea Museum (4km); Raja Dream Cottage Holiday Home Negombo (99km); Bandaranaike Rajapihilla 35 (10km); Nilambe Meditation singh To Ampitiya (3km); International Airport (99km); m Gopallawa Centre (13km) Mw Sri Jemieson International Colombo (115km) e 59 Meditation Centre (4km) Peradeniya Rd (SirimavoWillia Ὀ Ὀ www.lonelyplanet.com Kandy Mw 43 51 Ampitiya Rd INFORMATION SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES 39

Alliance Française...... 1 B4 Archaelogical Museum...... 21 D3 Mw Assistant High Commission of Asgiriya Maha Vihara...... 22 C2 Rajapihilla India...... 2 D4 ...... 23 C2 Comfort Lodge...... 39 E5 Queens Hotel...... 58 B3 Pub...... 72 A3 Bank of Ceylon...... 3 A3 Bahiravakanda Vihara Buddha Freedom Lodge...... 40 D4 Royal Tourist Lodge...... 59 E4 Pub Royale...... (see 58) 5 British Council...... 4 D2 Statue...... 24 C2 Glen...... 41 D4 Senkada Rest...... 60 F3 5 Buddhist Publication Society...... 5 E4 British Garrison Cemetery...... 25 D3 Golden View Rest...... (see 41) Sharon Inn...... 61 D4 ENTERTAINMENT Café@Internet...... 6 A3 Devale...... 26 A3 Green Woods...... 42 E3 Swiss Residence...... 62 B2 Blackout...... (see 62) Commercial Bank...... 7 C2 Malwatte Maha Vihara...... 27 D3 Helga's Folly...... 43 E5 Kandy Lake Club...... 73 E3 Cultural Triangle Office...... 8 B3 Natha Devale...... 28 B3 Highest View...... 44 D4 EATING & Cyber Cottage...... 9 C2 National Museum...... 29 D3 Hotel Casamara...... 45 A3 Bake House...... (see 72) Cultural Centre...... 74 D3 DHL...... 10 B3 Pattini Devale...... 30 B3 Hotel Hilltop...... 46 B4 Cargills Food City...... 63 A3 Hatton National Bank...... 11 A3 Royal Palace Park...... 31 C4 ...... 47 E4 Delight Bakers & Sweet SHOPPING HSBC...... 12 C2 Office...... (see 23) Hotel Thilanka...... 48 E3 House...... 64 A3 Laksala...... 75 C3 Koffeepot...... (see 72) Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic Hotel Topaz...... 49 A3 Devon Restaurant...... 65 A3 Market...... 76 C3 Lakeside Adventist Hospital...... 13 E4 (Sri Dalada Maligawa)...... 32 D3 Lake Bungalow...... 50 D4 Flower Song Chinese Main Post Office...... 14 C3 Udawattakelle Sanctuary...... 33 D2 Lake Mount Tourist Inn...... 51 E5 Restaurant...... 66 C2 TRANSPORT Mark Bookshop...... 15 A3 Devale...... 34 D3 Lakshmi Guest House (Palm Lyon Café...... 67 C3 Clock Tower Bus Stop...... 77 C3 6 Nation's Trust...... 16 B3 Wedamedura Ayurveda...... 35 E4 Garden 2)...... 52 D4 Paiva's Restaurant...... 68 A3 Goods Shed Bus Station...... 78 B4 6 Police Station...... 17 C3 Mahanuwara YMBA...... 53 C3 Rams...... 69 B3 Malik Tours...... (see 56) Post Office...... 18 D2 SLEEPING McLeod Inn...... 54 D4 White House Restaurant...... 70 A3 Private Buses to Airport & Post Office...... (see 55) Burmese Rest...... 36 C2 Olde Empire Hotel...... 55 B3 Negombo...... 79 C4 Tourist Information Centre...... 19 B3 Castle Hill Guest House...... 37 D4 Palm Garden Guest House...... 56 B4 DRINKING Private Buses Within Kandy Vijitha Yapa...... 20 A3 Citadel...... 38 A1 Pink House...... 57 D4 Kandy Garden Club...... 71 E4 District...... 80 C4 Kandy area, and also has some information on places to stay. area, andalsohassomeinformationonplacestostay. Kandy andthingstodointhe helpful forinformationontransport pavilionbesideOldeEmpire Hotel,thisis empty-looking h information on these tickets, see information onthesetickets, p228 . formore detailsontheseplaces. Formorein thissection later insistsonone.See while theArchaeologicalMuseum ticket, costsRs100toenterwithoutatriangle Museum TheNational ticket. toproduceaCulturalTriangle be asked On the south shore infront of the Malwatte parapet around theperimeter of thelake. munition store andaddedthefortress-style a barge. it asanam- theBritish used Later ha’s personal harem, on towhich hecrossed centre asSri WickramaRajasin- wasused at stakes inthelake bed. Theislandinthe labouring onthe project, were putto death protested theirpeople objected to because small-scalelocalchiefs,Kandy. who Several the lastrulerofRajasinha, the kingdomof was createdLake in 1807bySriWickrama A lovely centrepiece for thetown,Kandy KANDY LAKE Sights bars, gamblingdensandthehomeless. avoiding after dark–they’re hometosour The backalleysof thetowncentre are worth Dangers &Annoyances InformationCentre Tourist Office Triangle Cultural TOURIST INFORMATION special mealdisappears. hotel, andanymoneyyougive him fora dinner. workatyour hedoesn’t Ofcourse your hotel, shoppingfortonight’s who’soff neat heworksat trick isthemanwhosays won’t paythemcommission). Another place (presumably those patronise because thatyoushouldn’t ries aboutguesthouses erally have awell-rehearsed stockof sto- andthelake.the trainstation Theywillgen- at the adonation(usuallyRs50andupwards) customary tomake Itis andtheArchaeologicalMuseum. National Museum the andMalwatte), (Asgiriya Vishnu), twomonasteries Natha,Pattini and for worshippingdeities;Kataragama, coversthefour Hindu ticket round-trip the of thesitesancientcitieshere. WithinKandy buy thatcovermany tickets round-trip Cultural Triangle ( p163 Youcan displayedisin stock. ) thoughnoteverything office.Booksare availableforsale road fromthetourist building acrossthe 4pm) Locatedinanoldcolonial-era Touts are particularlynumerousaround 9am-1pm & 1.30-4.45pm Mon-Fri) Housed in a rather Housedinarather 9am-1pm &1.30-4.45pmMon-Fri) devales and monasteries, though you are unlikely to thoughyouare unlikely andmonasteries, THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy ( h ( % 9am-12.30pm &1.30- 222 2661;Palace Sq; devales (complexes

165 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Rs 150/350; cred cred Tooth Relic Just northof thelake, the (SRI DALADAMALIGAWA) TEMPLE OFTHESACRED TOOTH RELIC strolls. for early-evening encircles thelake andisafavourite venue that isthemonks’bathhouse. Maha Viharathere’s acircularenclosure 166 aged in the1998 bomb blast. ofthis section the temple was heavily dam- manuscripts.However, leaf) (talipot-palm collectionof animportant tohouse used and was built bySriWickrama Rajasinha towerinthemoat moat.The octagonal deep imposing pinkstructure surroundedbya part of theKandyan royalpalace. Itisan and, infact,theentire temple complexwas from 1687to1707 andfrom1747to1782, constructed mainlyunder Kandyan kings the toothkept here isareplica. tooth ishiddensomewhere secure, andthat Even todaythere are rumours thatthereal tooth andthereal incisorremained safe. withareplica fobbedoff hadbeen tuguese thePor-Goa. theSinhalese; ‘Notso’,say in fervour away andburntitwithCatholic moods, apparently thetooth,tookit seized inoneofPortuguese, theirworst spoilsport to ruletheisland.In16thcentury the had custodyof thetoothrelic hadtheright sovereignty; thatwhoever itwasbelieved more andmore asasymbol of importance again byKingParakramabahu III. back invading armybutwassoonbrought In 1283itwascarriedbacktoIndiabyan place before endingupatKandy. eventually historyitmovedof SriLankan fromplaceto , butwiththeupsanddowns the hairof aprincess.Atfirst itwastaken to duringthe4thcenturyAD,hiddenin Lanka into Sri andwassmuggled pyre in 543BC, from theflamesof theBuddha’sfuneral repaired.been entrance inearly1998,butthescars have cording tothegovernment –nearthemain the LiberationTigers of Tamil ac- Eelam, damaged whenabombwasdetonated –by relic – atoothof theBuddha. Thetemple was Buddhist mostimportant SriLanka’s houses A cementfootpathdotted withbenches The Temple of theSacred ToothRelicwas Gradually, thetoothcametoassume tohaveThe toothissaid snatched been THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy h 6am-5pm, puja5.30am,10.15am&7.15pm)

(admission Rs500,still/videocamera Temple oftheSa- ola floors of the AlutMaligawa the contain of The upper two King Kirti SriRajasinha. ordination lineage during thereignLanka’s the factthat Thaimonks re-established Sri a ThaiBuddhist shrine hallasatribute to sign of thisfloorisintended to resemble Infact,thede- donated byThaidevotees. displaying dozens of bronzesitting Buddhas AlutMaligawa to thetemple guardians. into thetoothroom uponadvancerequest erous temple donations–maybeallowed ofnationals –because theircountry’sgen- look.Thaiand Japanese foracloser sanctum VIPssee beinginvited to enter theinner side of theshrine room.Occasionallyyou’ll thein- more tosee than10or15seconds keep thequeue moving sothatno-onegets around 3mfromtheactualaltar. Guards dagboa casket from thedoorway,which is tooth itself. kets of diminishing the sizeandeventually of aseries which sixdagobacas- contains a goldcasket shaped like adagoba(stupa), thetooth. It’skept in you don’tactuallysee andtourists.However, is opentodevotees heavily guardedroomhousingthetooth the entrance). (which areshoes kept minders near byshoe legs andyourshoulders andremove your Wearclothesthatcoverthe evening. your with fewer touristsinthemorning thanin flow of worshippers andflocksof tourists, measurably. toimproveis thought one’skarmiclotim- their lifetime. Worshipping atthetemple at leastonepilgrimage tothetemple in theymustcompleteBuddhists, whobelieve of portance thistemple tomostSriLankan and variousJataka (Buddhalife stories). century paintingsdepictingthe reveal atleastthree layers of 18th-to20th- partof1998 hasexposed thefrontwallto for byJapanese donors. Thebombblastof Premadasa andpaid President Ranasinghe roof over therelic chamber wasaddedby paved courtyard.Theeye-catching gilded hitina Maligawa –occupies thecentre of a rectangular buildingknownastheVaha- Behind the shrine stands thethree-storey theshrine stands Behind Most visitors are onlyallowedtoviewthe During receivesThe toothshrineitself aconstant It isimpossibletooverestimate the im- The maintoothshrine –atwo-storey pujas ,

a newerandlarger shrinehall (offerings orprayers), the www.lonelyplanet.com perahera

Sri Sri for the event. This document announces a major reason over theKandyan provinces toBritish rule. a copyof the1815agreement thathanded pre-European life. Sinhalese On displayis royal regalianow houses and reminders of ters forKandyan royalconcubines and Kandy Perahera, Esala above ). the Maligawa tusker whodiedin1988(see remainsyou canviewthestuffed of Rajah, Adjacent tothis,inthe tolooklike woodenpillars. umns carved Hall Tooth Relic,isthe19th-century accessible onlyviatheTemple of theSacred damage bythetruckbomb in1988. caused also asoberingdisplayof photographs of the reliquaries andgiftstothetemple. There is a stunningarrayof gildedandbejewelled Rs 150; www.lonelyplanet.com This NATIONAL MUSEUM Dalada Museum To thenorthinsidecompound, and of the EsalaPerahera.Kandy back inthestandsquite cheaply. youmaybeabletogetseatsabouthalfwayrange fromRs3750to4750.Oncethefestival starts, sential tobookroadsideseatsforthe on the on theNikini the Sacred ToothRelic. ending Itrunsfor10 daysinthefull-moonmonthofEsala(July/August), This KANDY ESALAPERAHERA Robert Knox inhis1681book Robert the mostfamousinAsia. Ithasbeenanannualevent formanycenturiesandisdescribedby that hedoesnotstep inthedirt. replica ofthesacred relic Acarpet-way ofwhite cask. linenislaidinfrontoftheelephantso all –decorated fromtrunktotoe,hecarriesahugecanopythatshelters, onthefinalnight, a 50 ormore ofthem.The isthemostsplendidofthem brilliantlycaparisonedMaligawatusker banners. Then comelongprocessionsofelephants – whipsandwavingcolourful drums, cracking right throughtheroof. lengthens, theprocessionbecomesmore andmore splendidandaccommodationpricesgo these 10daysofincreasingly frenetic activity. splendid andPattini. oftheBuddha):Natha, Vishnu,devotees Kataragama andservants The fifthandmost the fourKandy , anopen-airpavilion withstonecol- There’s adaylightprocessiononthefirstdayofNikini The is the most magnificent annual spectacle in Sri Lanka, andoneof EsalaPerahera inSriLanka, The isthemostmagnificentannualspectacle Kandy dancersanddrummersbeatingthousandsofThe processionisledbythousandsofKandyan The acombinationoffive processionisactually separate The firstsixnightsare relatively offastheroute totake ontheseventh low-key; thingsstart museum h perahera 9am-5pm Sun-Thu) poya perahera

dayinJune,andspecial (adult/child under12Rs 100/50,camera

(admission Rs100; (procession) is held in Kandy tohonourthesacred toothenshrinedintheTemple (procession)isheldinKandy of poya devales isthatoftheSriDaladaMaligawaitself. (full moon). The big night of the year in Kandy comesattheculminationof (fullmoon).The bignightoftheyearinKandy wasoncethequar- (complexes for worshipping Hindu or Sri Lankan deities, whoare (complexes also orSriLankan forworshippingHindu Rajah Tusker Hall Tusker Rajah h An Historical RelationofCeylon. 9am-5pm) Audience Audience peraheras perahera with , atleastaweekinadvance;pricesforsuchseats may be put on for important occasions. It’ses- maybeputonforimportant ‘vested in...theBritish Empire’. ‘dominion of theKandyan provinces’ was of fromoffice ‘fallen anddeposed king’ and and mostsacred dutiesof asovereign’, tobe clared, ‘by thehabitualviolationof thechief wasthereforeSri WickramaRajasinha de- the kingdom to Britain in1815. the kingdomtoBritain convention of Kandyan chiefs thatceded lars supportingits roof, wasthesite forthe cred –together make Tooth Relicitself up monasteries –but nottheTemple of theSa- behind the temple, four less-interesting Archaeological Museum enormous andintolerable. haveall civilrights, become flagrant, eral contempt andcontravention of possibility of acrime, andinthegen- orthe sometimes withoutaccusation and painsof deathwithouttrial,and unjust inflictionof bodilytortures Malabar ruler,inthe arbitrary and …the crueltiesandoppressions of the The audience hall, notable for the tall pil- forthetall The audiencehall, notable The National Museum, along withthe The National Museum, peraheras There isalsoasmallerprocession poya THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy month,whichmarkstheend . Fourofthemcomefrom devales andtwo

167 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY riding apeacock. six heads,12hands wieldingweapons,and war (alsocalledSkanda), appears here with Kotugodelle Vidiya. Murugan, thegodof for attentionway fights withthebustleon the others painted towergate- –abrightly inthe stand sculpture) gateway. Bodhitrees anddagobas three great Hindugods. Buddhist beliefs,sinceheisalsoone of the indicator of the intermingling of Hinduand andan Vishnu istheguardianof SriLanka steps andfeatures carved adrumminghall. on theothersideof Vidiyaisreached Raja by to thegoddessof chastity. The isthe simple Devale icon inthemainshrine. NexttotheNatha pamphlets andtheoldcemetery records. which ultimatelyquitoes, proved deadlier. but disregarded instructionsgiven onmos- thebattleof Waterloo McGlashan survived ofCargills supermarket fameliehere. James sunstroke, orelephants, orjunglefever. The Some of were thedemises duetosudden vide informationabout manyof thegraves. than happytoshow peoplearoundandpro- The amusingandfriendlycaretaker ismore cared forbythefriendsof thecemetery. here,probably 500burialsintotal lovingly Theretional Museum. are 163graves and Mon-Sat) terrace withafine Devale Sacred ToothRelic.The14th-century four Threedha andwhoprotect of SriLanka. the deities) tothegodswhoare followers of Bud- for worshipping HinduorlocalSriLankan There are four Kandyan DEVALES This BRITISH GARRISONCEMETERY ( tourist office p165 ). ticket acrosstheroadfrom attheoffice You canbuyaCulturalTriangleround-trip CulturalTrianglesites.one of SriLanka’s 168 high priests ofhigh the twobest known, Malwatte in Kandy have –the considerable importance The principal MONASTERIES The The office, oncethechapelThe office, of rest, has THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy devales cemetery istheoldest.Itperches onastone isashortwalkuphillbehind theNa- Kataragama Devale Kataragama devale stand close totheTemple close stand of the

viharas (donation appreciated; grounds,andthere’s afine vahalkada Pattini Devale (Buddhist complexes) isalittlewayfrom devales (solidpanelof Vishnu Devale Vishnu (complexes , dedicated h 8am-5pm Natha Natha

This recently opened TEA MUSEUM forest North of thelake isthiscoolandpleasant UDAWATTAKELLE SANCTUARY Pinnewala ElephantOrphanage ( p162 ). Park ( p191 ) aswell. are elephants intheRiver side Elephant along thelakeside nearthetemple. There the Sacred ToothRelicele phant chained up anywhere, andyoumaycatch theTemple of Kandy. bespotted Workingelephantsmight Elephants canoften inandaround beseen ELEPHANTS reclining Buddhaimage. northwest of the towncentre, andhasalarge WariyapolaSriSumangaMawathaoff tothe while the from theTemple of theSacred ToothRelic, Vihara Maha watte Temple of theSacred ToothRelic.The in theadministrationandoperationof the role The headmonksalsoplayanimportant two of themain Nikayas(orders of monks). temples are These Lanka. theheadquarters of and Asgiriya, are inSri themostimportant Taylor andThomas Lipton. the lives and work of tea pioneers James exhibitson contains the museum settings, cal tea-factory equipment intheir original 19th-century rollers, dryers andothertypi- Inadditiontoagood collectionofLanka. Board andthePlanters’ Association of Sri Tea bytheSriLanka bished asamuseum Abandoned forover adecade,itwas refur- 4km southof Kandy ontheHanthana road. pies the1925-vintage Hanthana Tea Factory, at theentrance. but it’sworthpayingattention tothemap sign atthejunction).There are clearpaths, Vidiya (there’s onDSSenanayake office a you reach after the post byturningright thegate,priced. Youenter which through cially shouldtake care. but notunknown,andsinglewomen espe- they’re alone. Muggers are rare inSriLanka are tobecareful advised inthiswoodland if lifeinsect andmanymonkeys, butvisitors There are lots of huge trees, much bird-and 280 3204;admissionRs 250; From Kandy it’safairlyeasytriptothe Entry to the sanctuary is seriously over- isseriously Entry tothesanctuary

(adult/child under12Rs600/300; Asgiriya Maha Vihara Maha Asgiriya isdirectly acrossthelake museum h www.lonelyplanet.com 8.15am-4.45pm) (Map p189; (Map is on the hill isonthehill h 7am-5pm) % occu- Mal- 070- . il (p193) Hills turmeric maskandsteam. Amaya Although treatment includesamassage, sandalwood/ the bathis oil massage andsteam bathtakes 1½hours – should costRs800return. morning) of it.Athree-wheeler fromKandy with adrink,andmake anafternoon (or relax aroundthepoolafter thetreatment treatment centre at accommodation andfood,are alsoavailable. residentialWeek-long packages, including facility withbothmaleandfemale masseurs. treatment lake, Ayurveda isafullylicensed Mawatha; Mawatha; Rs 1000,oilmassage&steambath2500) Heerassagala;facial 3521; [email protected]; Wdmdr Ayurveda Wedamedura AYURVEDA Activities theleafygreenflows through campus. time. TheMahaweli Ganga() students are typicallyenrolledatanygiven 8km southof Kandy. Todayaround7800 university (Map p189 ) moved toPeradeniya, versity in Colombo,thebulkof of the Ceylon Ten years after the1842foundingof theUni- OFPERADENIYAUNIVERSITY www.lonelyplanet.com tion Society the Kandy area. Ask atthe placesinand studyBuddhism atseveral Visitors canlearn orpractise meditation MEDITATION 18 holes. in thesubcontinent,it’safairlychallenging views. Claimedtobethebestgolf course justtosavour the lunch attheclubhouse a backdrop,it’sworthcomingout here for as andwiththeKnucklesRange Reservoir Surrounded onthree sidesbythe Victoria The GOLF and accommodation in Sri Lanka. Forand accommodation inSri Lanka. you’d normally bepaying per dayfor food ously appreciate a donation.Give what centres offer free courses but they’dobvi- by thelake, about courses. Many for details caddy perroundRs350) green fees US$35,clubhirewww.srilankagolf.com; Rs1000, Rs 800,2½hrfulltreatment Rs4000) 1hrmassage Mawatha; dawedamura.com; 7Mahamaya You could also splurge at the Ayurvedic You couldalsosplurge attheAyurvedic Victoria Victoria Golf &CountryResort h

( 9am-4.30pm Mon-Fri, 9am-12.30pmSat) 9am-4.30pm Mon-Fri,

% very is a bit far from town you can is abitfarfromtownyoucan 223 7283;www.bps.lk; 54Sangharaja hot. The 40-minute facial hot.The40-minute facial is20kmeastof Kandy. Amaya Hills

( % 074 479484;www.ayurve , southeastof the Buddhist Publica-

Mp p189; (Map

. The body . Thebody ( % 237 5570; % 223 223 , fee Rs100) 30 Sangaraja Mawatha; poolfee Rs150) 30 SangarajaMawatha; mission Rs50; Heerassagala; poolfee Rs200) Kandy, including at: some stunninglypositionedpoolsaround an OKpoolandapretty garden.There are the countryside. terrace yougetfrom whose great viewsover race lookingdownonthelake; cated inagarden.Inthetown, thepool(towelsincluded),lo- guests touse See See p192 fordetails. views they are to get there. worththeeffort of locations and because theiroutstanding 3km ormorecases fromthecentre –but on thehillssurrounding thetown–insome number of goodhotels. Many placesare set lovely, andanincreasing luxurious houses the middleandtop brackets there are some Kandy hasheapsof In goodguesthouses. Sleeping Kandy, such asuptothe There are manywalksaroundthecentre of WALKING ( ( South of Kandy lake, SWIMMING courses, see p192 . ofdetails someof thecentres thatoffer room pricesin Kandy can treble orquadruple; unremarkable. are is noviewsfromthetopandstatue eniya Rd.Save yoursweatandmoney–there onPerad-uphill fromnearthepolicestation Swiss Residence Swiss Residence 2429; 3 Mawatha; poolfee Rs200) 2429; 3SanghamittaMawatha; Rs 150) Amaya Hills Amaya Hills Mawatha, thatheadupintothehills. a coupleof paths, alongfromRajapihilla the moodforalonger walkthere are also stretching Ifyou’re farintothedistance. in of inaseries which gentle disappear ranges lake, thetownandsurroundinghills, watha there are better even viewsover the lake. Ma- FurtherupthehillonRajapihilla overlookingby SriWickramaRajasinha, the Bahiravokanda Vihara BuddhaStatue Vihara Bahiravokanda % % At the timeof the Kandy Perahera, Esala Looming over Kandy, thehuge concrete 222 4162; 200/21 Bahirawakanda; poolfee Rs150) 222 4162;200/21Bahirawakanda; 223 3290;DaladaVidiya;poolfee Rs150) canbereached bywalking20minutes , theleastexpensive intown; and ( h THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy % 8.30am-4.30pm) 223 3521; [email protected]; 223 3521;[email protected]; ( % 447 9054; 23 Bahirawakanda; pool pool 447 9054;23Bahirawakanda; Hotel Suisse Hotel , southwestof Kandy, Hotel Thilanka Hotel Royal Palace Park , alsoconstructed charges non-

Queens Hotel Hotel Hilltop Hotel ( %

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THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Rd; rRs800-1500) 57/1/1 Saranankara 2154; www.lakshmipg2.lkguide.com; ers are very friendlyandhelpful. and onewithaprivate bathroom.The own- roomswithsharedfrom seven bathrooms are basic andtheroomswell-worn.Choose bungalow aroundacourtyard.The facilities by occupiesaquaint,one-storey rambling .com) .lk; 22/2B Sangaraja Mawatha; r Rs550-880,apt2500) .lk; 22/2BSangaraja Mawatha; with/without bathroomRs700/400) available forhire. access toInternet. andmotorcyclesare Cars terrace overlooking thetown.Guestshave on a Reasonably pricedmealsare served are available; sixhave attached bathrooms. from relatively smalltolarge, allvery clean, refurbished. rooms,ranginginsize Eleven of Palm completely Garden andhasbeen recently taken over bythefriendlyowners bathroom Rs700/500) 2) Lakshmi GuestHouse(Palm Garden BUDGET the room atall.Ifyou’re intent oncomingtosee worse, youmaynotbeableeven tofinda 170 room Rs1300/1000) rwith/withoutbath- Mawatha; sltnet.lk; 195ARajapihilla this area andbeyond. at theclocktowerbusstop)willget youto Mawatha’698 (orjustaskfor‘Sanghamitta Dharmapala Mawatha; 654,655and buses Anagarika alongorjustoff places tostay you amore reasonable price. garden for use of garden foruse theguests. the placeare apretty friendlyandmaintain with private bathroom.Thecouplewhoown rooms, twowithshared bathroomand one available ifyou calluponarrival. is transport fromthe busortrainstations and somequiet, tidylounge areas. Free wife, thisinn features avarietyof rooms by aSriLankan–Japanese husbandand school. In fact,there’s apreschool on the in a multistorey building thatlooks like a This place offers sixclean,cheerful rooms in thecity. on midrange andtop-endaccommodation Glen Pink House Kandy Hoteliers Association Hoteliers Kandy concentrationofYou’ll findthehighest Lake Mount Tourist Inn MountTourist Lake Lake Bungalow Lake THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy perahera, maintains a useful website withdetails auseful maintains

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.com; 30 Saranankara Rd;rRs1000-1250) .com; 30Saranankara ciation; The food isexcellent,too. rooftop terrace dedicated tobird-watching. from the balconyandhas recently addeda kindly ownerkeeps alogof birdlife spotted tuary andispopular withbirders. The on thegreen verge of Udawattakelle Sanc- guestrooms (only twowithhotwater) sits are very welcoming. price. There’s asmallgardenandthehosts stairs hasabalconyandattracts ahigher rooms, allwithhotwater. The doubleup- by Tamil hasthree spotless,bright Catholics) the othersideof theroad,thisplace(owned prepared forextraattention. may wanttogive itamissunless they’re males,andsolofemale travellersLankan restaurant here. Theclientele tends tobeSri looking thelake. There’s agood,dirt-cheap with oldchairs atthefront,over- andtables are alittledingy,butthere’s agreat balcony bathroom. Someof theroomsatback rooms (coldwater only);twohave attached are very basicandcomewithshared bath- has oodlesof fadedambience. Mostrooms family forover acentury,thiscolonialhotel gardenkandy.com; 8Bogodawatte Rd, Suduhumpola; gardenkandy.com; water Rs1000/800) rwith/withouthot net.lk; 34ASanghamitta Mawatha; eureka.lk; 21Templeeureka.lk; St;rRs400-500) just onestreet alongfromSaranankaraRd. hara. It’sonalaneoff Sangaraja Mawatha, of theheadabbotof theMalwatte Maha Vi- apartment. Theroomslookoutover thevilla can rent afloorwiththree bedroomsasan and have hotwater andkitchenettes. You All roomsare decorated withfloralprints ground floor–here’s hopingyoulike kids. japihilla Mawatha; rwith/withoutviewRs950/1300) japihilla Mawatha; bathroom Rs1150/690) steady following. loungewith pleasant areas, goodfoodanda with stunningviews,thisisamodern place turing sixcleanroomswithhotwater, some small, inexpensive cafeteria onthepremises. room) inathree-storey building.There’s a basic rooms(onlysixwithattachedbath- and towncentre, thelocalYMBA offers 32 Palm Garden Guest House Palm Garden Woods Green Mahanuwara YMBA YMBA Mahanuwara Olde Empire Hotel Hotel Olde Empire Freedom Lodge Freedom McLeod Inn % 223 3444; 5 Rajapihilla Mawatha; 223 3444;5Rajapihilla

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r with/without r with/without Fea- r crumbling courtyardhasitscharms. The monkslivinghere are friendly,andthe thekitchen toprepareuse yourownfood. ities. Withadvancepermission youmay with better shared toiletandshower facil- tic buckets. Upstairs are fourlarger rooms bathrooms –noshowers, justsmall plas- very basicroomsdownstairs withshared the cheapest inKandy, placeto stay hassix your arrivalpoint,withadvancenotice. happy toarrange free transporttoorfrom well-kept spacious rooms. Theowners are and offers acombinationof helpfulservice Rest building tucked intoahillside,Senkada an Ayurveda treatment a room andeven an Ayurveda food,email access,quiet rooms, Chinese offersfamily-owned house ninevery clean, 108 Hewaheta Rd; rRs1500-1750) 108 Hewaheta 300) Rs 1000-1500) www.lonelyplanet.com Sharon Inn MIDRANGE &TOPEND apt with/without air-conRs3000/1800) Rd;r with/without viewRs1000/800, .lk; 46Saranankara Rd;rinclbreakfast Rs2200; kara nightly Sri Lankan buffets (Rs400). buffets SriLankan nightly little more serves spacious.Theguesthouse while theolderroomson1stfloor are a newer roomsupstairs have better views, scrupulously cleanandare very helpful.The couple,keep everything Lankan–German managed Theowners, guesthouse. a Sri Saranankara Rd,thisisaparticularly well- bar withcityscape views. and minibar,plusarooftop rooms withTV features modern the Casamara comfortable near thetowncentre, restaurants andlake, s/d Rs2500/3000; of town,ontheroadtoPeradeniya. a Rs400three-wheeler ridefromthecentre tourspersonalised anywhere It’s inSriLanka. offers reliable carhire (Rs2750perday) and farehouse inKandy. also Theguesthouse dian andWestern –maybethebestguest- In- spot torelax, andthefood–SriLankan, street. Therooftop restaurant-bar isagreat at thebackare facingthe quieter thanthose rooms, each withitsownbalcony.Therooms offers guesthouse comfortable 12spacious industrious Kandy family,thismodernand Hotel Casamara Hotel Senkada Rest Rest Senkada Golden View Rest Rest Golden View Burmese Rest This former pilgrims’ guesthouse, still Thisformerpilgrims’guesthouse,

( Ownedbyavery friendlyand % 222 2416;[email protected];59Saranan-

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(DS Senanayake Vidiya; s/dRs150/ (DS Senanayake ( % ( ) % 222 9291; www.senkadarest.com; 222 9291;www.senkadarest.com; Conveniently located 222 4688;12Kotugodelle Vidiya; 223 9418;goldenview@sltnet i Amultistorey ) Atthetopof Thislarge .lk; 22 Rajapihilla Mawatha; rRs2750) Mawatha; .lk; 22Rajapihilla that they’re abitsmall. balconies are cheaper; the onlycomplaintis cony withgoodviews.Theroomswithout decorated roomswithhotwater, andabal- 2000; rRs1250- Mawatha; 201Rajapihilla lodge.srilankaads.com; Rd; rRs600-1200) individually ortogether asanapartment. TheroomscanberentedFinnish sauna. a shared pantry,outdoordiningarea and cently addedthree newair-con roomswith piano. Onthetopfloorowners have re- /comfort; 197 Rajapihilla Mawatha; s/dRs 1300/1800) Mawatha; 197Rajapihilla /comfort; turned-guesthouse withfourrooms,all turned-guesthouse ing thelake, thisisalovely artdecovilla- roof gardenandcookingfacilities. and telephone. There’s alarge sittingarea, a with allmodcons,includinghotwater, TV This placehassixmodern,smallishrooms if youorderinadvance. and allhave hotwater. Meals are available The more expensive roomhasabalcony, middle-class homewiththree guestrooms. Royal Tourist Lodge Royal Tourist Highest View Highest Castle Hill Guest House Hill Castle Comfort Lodge Comfort .ccom.lk; DaladaVidiya;s/d/trUS$30/40/50; equally antique Pub door. Royalenext with acold Three Coinsatnight atthe Relic andRoyal Palace back compound. Kick walk from theTemple oftheSacred Tooth cum-seedy towncentre, plusit’sonlyashort quaint- basefor exploring Kandy’s a perfect (see rahera p167 ), butanytimeofyearitis is andmodern bathrooms. This telephone, TV your grandmother would probablylove), floorboards, old-style furniture (bedspreads accountants. The large roomshave polished kok’s Orientallongagorelinquished tothe time feel thatYangon’s Strand andBang- franchise, theQueensharbourslost-in- and gussiedupbyaninternational hotel overHaving thusfarescapedbeingtaken compares withthis165-year-old relic. Raj but forambienceandlocationnothing else offers yetblandoptions, several comfortable If you’re assessingcomfort-per-rupee, Kandy Queens Hotel THE AUTHOR’S CHOICE i the ) place Thislodge modern isacomfortable, THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy

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THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY as s/dinclbreakfast US$42/54; 200/21 Bahirawakanda; as s/d/trinclbreakfast US$50/ 23Bahirawakanda; .lanka.net; and balconyorterrace. are equippedwithIDDphone,satellite TV roomhasagreatally every view.Allrooms atop oneof hills,sovirtu- thecity’shighest healthcentre. urvedic clean swimmingpoolandamodestAy- hills, apeacefulgardenwithgood-sized, great viewsover thetownand surrounding Rd, theHilltophas81colourfulrooms, rather busy. ans host weddingparties here, itcanbe a finegarden. Onweekends, whenKandy- public areas, including asnooker roomand lake tothetowncentre. There are spacious the towncentre, onecan strollaroundthe abitfarfrom pillows ratherflat. Although the bedstend tobe rather hardandthe forewarned that,for such apalatialspot, furniture Be forthefull colonialattack. six roomshave antiqueorreproduction minibarandcomfychairs, but satellite TV, 1840s. Theroomshave updated with been hotel. The originalwingdates backtothe billiards roomsandturningintoa rambling beforehouse sproutingextraballroomsand the lake, thiswasonceaBritishgovernor’s 30 Sangaraja Mawatha; s/dUS$55/67; 30 SangarajaMawatha; doors tothegardens. the lounge roomhasapianoandFrench bathroom. Theroomsare and immense, 172 where merely curiousnonguestscandine. andarestaurantrounded byfairystatues, and private balconies.There’s apoolsur- banned. Allroomshave bathrooms attached too manyguests,andpackage touristsare hotel in theworldthatdiscourages having here.memorable stay It’spossiblytheonly thesong‘Madamecomposed Helga’ after a the post-WWIIera;Stereophonics bras. Alonglistof here celebsstayed in and partiallylitbywax-drippingcandela- withcomfycushions tial furnishings,puffed eccentricplacecrammedwithpala- deeply 3 Sang s/dUS$40/45; hamitta Mawatha; as rUS$75-100,steUS$130; EdeSilvaMawatha; 32 Frederick Hotel Suisse Hotel SwissResidence Hotel Thilanka Helga’s Folly Hotel Hilltop Hotel THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy ) ) ) Off Rajapihilla Mawatha, Rajapihilla Off thisisa Thismultistorey, 40-roomhotel sits Afive-minute Peradeniya walkoff

( %

( ( ( % % 223 2429; % 223 3024; [email protected]; 223 3024;[email protected]; 282 2416; [email protected]; 282 2416;[email protected]; 223 4571;www.helgasfolly.com;

( % www.hotelthilanka.com; www.hotelthilanka.com; 447 9054;jethot@sri s as ) Southof ) This 55/60; US$101/115; s/dwithair-con Mawatha; KudaRatwatte .com; 124Srimath watte; s/dUS$58/66; Kandy costsRs400. from swimming poolisworthavisit.Ataxi with balconiesoverlooking theriver. The of thetowncentre, has121rooms Citadel sort besidetheMahaweli Ganga,5kmwest Rs 60-120; Lyon Café Eating view over thetownandlake. ture. Fromthe poolarea, guestshave agood features, includingeleganttilesandfurni- tion hall,stillboastssomeof theoriginal oldest partof thehotel, includingtherecep- offers airyroomsandgreat light, views.The dark andneglected, whilethenewerwing looks thelake. Theolderroomsare abit rather large butvery welcoming hotel over- patrons fromdowningoneplatter each). stopmostSriLankan thatdoesn’t (though plate willeasilyfeed twoor three people andyourchoice One eggs of meats. devilled Special’, ahuge platter of friedrice,boiled ‘Lyon orderseveryone theSino-Sinhalese butfordinnerjustabout third SriLankan, About two-thirdsof a themenuisChinese, floorscon roomsontwoseparate upstairs. fancier,air-downstairs andtwoslightly are three diningrooms,afan-cooled room of Kandy’s mostfamousrestaurants. There floor to see Sri Lanka’s first ‘show kitchen’. SriLanka’s floor tosee As youclimbthe stairs, stop offatthe1st 2nd floor of tothelake. anewbuilding close dishes. The restaurantItalian occupiesthe lectic varietyof European,Thai, Malay and decorate itswalls.The menuoffers anec- 1860and1960–that year periodbetween and-white photos–taken duringthe 100- History isnamed forthehundreds of black- andPub, family that ownsBake House same restaurantA high-concept ownedbythe Dharmapala Mawatha; mainsfromRs300; Dharmapala Mawatha; pool helpjustifytheprices. bland butthesuperbviewsandswimming has 75rooms(mostwithair-con). It’srather about 2kmupfromPeradeniya Rd,Topaz a hilloverlooking thetown fromthewest, Hotel Topaz Hotel History Restaurant Restaurant History Citadel h

as (Map (Map pp164-5 ( 8am-11pm) %

( % 222 3073;27Peradeniya Rd;dishes ais ) Amostlypackage-tour re- 223 2326; [email protected]; Annie- 223 2326;[email protected]; Among localsthisisone ( % % (Continued on page 185) www.lonelyplanet.com 223 4365/6;htlres@keells 220 2109; 27A Anagarika 220 2109;27AAnagarika ) Wayupontopof h 8am-11pm)

Rs 75-150) inexpensive lunchtime riceandcurry. like surroundingsupstairs. There’s alsoan downstairs or theoffice- airy, busysection rant offers choice the between aseating menuandbakery,Chinese Paiva’s Restau- any timeof day. rollisagoodbet ies). Thebacon-and-egg (platesshort eats of pastriesandsavour- placewithpastriesandcounter-service ownership, isaquick the same Bake House 137 KotugodellaVidiya;dishesRs400-700) h Rs 70-300) Rs 100-250) inclean,air-con surroundings. service withold-fashioned Chinese Lankan–style local familyfavourite, Sri FlowerSongdoes to march outthedoor. and shorteats, dozensof waiting sweets hasreasonablelight bread, pastries,cakes 172) page from (Continued www.lonelyplanet.com dishes Rs60-150) Rs 70-150) Sri Lankan dishes. Sri Lankan fers awiderange of Western and Chinese, of- Restaurant chrome-and-Formica Devon Popular withbothvisitors andlocals,the where some of Kandy’s food istobe tastiest aged meals here. can shop forgroceriesor cheap prepack- ting featuring Hindu devotional art. ting featuring Hindudevotional pancakes) inawonderfullycolourful set- dosas of curries andpappadams)avariety table can-eat’ mealsconsistingof ricewithvege- food, includingvegetarian thalis goodSouthIndian continuestoserve Rams cious riceandcurry,lunch packets. deli- hall isfullof character andstillserves noodles and sweet-and-sour chicken.noodles andsweet-and-sour meals such asmixed friedrice,chicken fried drinks andicecream, oryoucanfillupon restaurant butcheap. istacky Ithassnacks, Rams Devon Restaurant Devon Flower SongChineseRestaurant Olde Empire Hotel Olde Empire Cargills White HouseRestaurant White Many people eatin theirguesthouses, Delight Bakers &SweetHouse Delight Bakers Bake House Bake Paiva’s Restaurant 7.30am-10pm)

Thishotel’s ( p170 ) modestdining Downstairs fromPub,andunder Featuring aNorthIndian menu, (11 DS Senanayake Vidiya;mainsRs150-250; (11 DSSenanayake

Down the street from Devon, this Downthestreet fromDevon,

(paper-thin rice-andlentil-flour Food City

Similar to Bake House, De- SimilartoBake House, ( % Inanew,larger location, 223 4868;36DaladaVidiya;dishes

( % (Dalada Vidiya) (Dalada Vidiya;dishesRs80-350)

(37 Yatinuwara Vidiya;dishes 222 4284;21Temple St;dishes

(Dalada Vidiya;mains Self-caterers Self-caterers

(Dalada Vidiya; ( %

Another (‘all-you- 222 3628;

Heerassagala; around. to make sure there’s foodtogo enough guests are welcome,butshould callahead thing of amale bastion. inthebilliardsroom,stillsome- old tables cashews.Forafee, rackuponthe devilled the veranda andfried withaLion Lager fee (Rs100)youcanrelax in thebaroron visitors, andforatemporary membership this venerable gentlemen’s club isopento one in shorts, sandals or baseball caps. or baseball one inshorts, sandals dresshotel. Expect codesto turnawayany- no entryallowed formenfromoutsidethe couples Rs400to 500,andthere’s usually At both,entryforwomenisfree, formixed Kandy’s are twonightclubs foundinhotels. NIGHTCLUBS Entertainment all have bars. well astheplaceslisted below,thetophotels looks downonrecreational drinking.As the typicalKandyan tobedearly,and goes for pubs,bars anddiscosisvery strict– In this sacred citythezoningandlicensing Drinking Rest Golden View had. Particular kudosgotothekitchens at open Friday and Saturday nights only. open Fridayand Saturday nights (Rs 500), theAmaya Hills discois wheeler minutes’ drive southwest of townbythree- is theonlydance clubwithincitylimits. arrive. quality, yetoverpriced –andratherslowto we foundthefoodtobeof below-average onourlastcoupleof andcocktails; visits beer othertravellersmeet over abeer. Stickto street below,isagoodplacetounwindand This pub,withabalconyoverlooking the Sharon Inn watha; House Rs 400) quiet drink,withrelatively lowprices. with old-fashioned flavour. It’saplacefor Hotel,side Queens thisisalarge airybar 8 BogodawatteRd,Suduhumpola) hirawakanda) hirawakanda) Blackout Pub Le Garage Pub Royale Kandy Garden Club Garden Kandy ( h , ( % % Palm Garden GuestHouse Palm Garden 5pm-late) 232 4868;36DaladaVidiya; 222 2154; 57/1/1 Saranankara Rd) 222 2154;57/1/1Saranankara ( THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy Located inSwissResidence, this h (

% % Mp p189 ; (Map (Dalada Vidiya; 9pm-2am Fri, to 3amSat) 9pm-2am Fri, 222 2416; 59 Saranankara Rd;buffet 222 2416;59Saranankara 447 9054; Swiss Residence, 23Ba- 447 9054;SwissResidence, ( Atthefarendof thelake, %

223 9418; 46 Saranankara Rd) 223 9418;46Saranankara ( % % 222 2675;SangarajaMa- 223 3521-2; Amaya Hills, 223 3521-2; AmayaHills, h and 5pm-midnight) h Lakshmi Guest ( 4pm-midnight) % . Twenty 223 3903; . Non- Be- 185

,

THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY watha; admissionRs300) early. Kandy Clubisalsoacasino. Lake turnupatleast20minutes to get goodseats, forgroupsandifyouwant usually reserved a displayof fire-walking. are Thefrontseats show at7pm.It’svery popular; thefinaleis Mawatha, its up Sanghamitta thisclubstarts Cricket office Cricket the to amonthinadvancethrough up seats day, oryoucanbookgrandstand cost Rs120.Tickets are alsosoldonthe roominthepublic areaswhile standing will cancostup toRs2000, in thegrandstand matches are Sri Lanka themostvalued;seats popularity of the twoteams. Indiaversus test matches. Ticket pricesdependonthe cheering fansat international one-dayand town centre, hostscrowdsof upto10,000 The modest Asgiriya northof Stadium, the SPORT each atthree night localesaroundKandy. theirathleticroutines themgothrough see pally atheatricalperformance,butyoucan The famedKandyan dancers are notprinci- KANDYAN DANCERS&DRUMMERS 186 people working onthe spot. in a patina of age. There are some crafts- items inacolonial-era showroom covered lacquerwork, brassware and other craft ( Centre above of) has agoodselection local The Kandyan ArtAssociation &Cultural Shopping ern lake shore. than atKandy Club.It’s onthenorth- Lake torium makes iteasiertotake photographs which culminate infire-walking. Theaudi- start andfinishofstart thedaily rounding it–theirdrummingsignalsthe Relic ( p166 ) andtheothertemples sur- dayattheTempleevery of theSacred Tooth at 5.45pm. YMBA ( guesthouse p170 ) hostsdanceshows details onwho’s playingwhen. details grounds. Check with thetouristofficefor rugby in agameortwo attheNittawella Maybetween youcantake andSeptember, dium oronline. mission Rs300) Kandyan Art Association & Cultural Centre Centre &Cultural Association Art Kandyan Kandy Lake Club Lake Kandy Mahanuwara YMBA Mahanuwara You canalsohearKandyan drummers If you’re arugbyfanandare inKandy THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy

( There are showshere at6pm, % 223 8533;sl.cricinfo.com)

(admission Rs300) Southwest of thelake,

( % 223 3444; 5 Rajapihilla Ma- 223 3444;5Rajapihilla puja Located 300m Located 300m . atthesta- Sri Lanka Sri

the (ad-

including generaltiques andcuriosinthesame vicinity, an- showroomspurveying You’ll findseveral by the colourful items. Youcanalsobuycraftsinandaround ing antiquejewellery,silver beltsandother inColombo.nothing onthebigLaksala Association butithas &CulturalCentre, has cheaper of prices thanthose theArt and craftsshoptothewest express bus. for the CTBbus and Rs 140for theair-con for thethree- to3½-hour journeyisRs 64 20 to30minutes.when full, every Thefare the lastat about 5.30pm. Theytend toleave intercity busdeparts at about 6.30am and leavebuses from theGoodsShed. Thefirst leave Rdbusstop.CTB from the Station naike International AirportandNegombo Private intercity express toBandara- buses International &Negombo Airport leaveordinary buses No1. fromstand average 45 minutes). every Theexpress and and leave theday(on whenfullthroughout at5.15am start three hours); bothservices con intercity express (Rs140,2½to buses (Rs80to120,three hours),buses andair- 3½ hours). There are alsoordinaryprivate till8.30pm(Rs70, half-hour every station runfromtheGoodsShedCTB buses bus Colombo askapasser-by.still confused, Ifyou’reclock towerandthetrainstation. ample) leave the Rdbetween fromStation airport, NegomboandColombo, forex- some private intercity express (tothe buses leave fromneartheclocktower. However, Peradeniya, Ampitiya,Matale andKegalle, such asto whilelocalbuses, buses, distance following isthattheGoodsShed haslong- which onetoheadto. Aruleof thumbworth the clocktower. Itcanbehard toworkout Goods Shed) of andaseries bus stopsnear Kandy (themanic hasonemainbusstation BUS &Away There Getting tures madeby the bestandmostoriginalare the batik pic- a numberof batikmanufacturers; someof Central Central Kandy hasanumberof shopssell- There’s agovernment-run arts Laksala Fresco Batiks Fresco Dharshana Lanka Arts Dharshana Lanka main market Upali Jayakody

(Peradeniya Rd) www.lonelyplanet.com

(Station Rd) outsideKandy.

(Peradeniya Rd) of thelake that

(Peradeniya Rd) . Kandy has and and . private buscostsRs40. less. ThetriptoDambullaonanordinary but youmustpaythefullamountregard- Anuradhapura-bound bustoDambulla, cost Rs75.Youcanalsocatch anair-con take about30minutesbuses longer and three hours andcostsRs150.Ordinary until6.30pm.Thetriptakes half-hour every running atabout 4.30amanddepartroughly tion. Air-con intercity express start buses leaveBuses fromtheGoodsShed bussta- Anuradhapura to 3.45am;thefare isRs67. Goods Shed 45minutes, every from5.30pm leave fromthe toRatnapura Ordinary buses Ratnapura destinations. atNuwaraEliyafortheseChange buses Haputale &Ella 5amand5pm.Thefarebetween isRs125. the GoodsShed half-hour every busstation Nuwara EliyaforHatton). Theyleave from some goontoHatton (oryoucanchange in Private air-con gotoNuwaraEliya,and buses Nuwara Eliya&Hatton www.lonelyplanet.com auOa 82a,1.0m 1 4 8 4 6 289 — 2½ 1½ 225 94 5½ 245 — 135 51 268 2½ 64 — 8.24am, 11.10am 121 3 250 35 6 5.20am 13 5.10am, 7.05am,10.05am, — 125 70 Nanu Oya 8.24am, 11.10am 270 via Matara 114 8.24am, 11.10am 80 141 Matale Hatton 61 1.40am,6.40am,10.30am, Haputale 76 6.25am,3pm Ella Colombo via 8.24am,11.10am Colombo Bandarawela ae R) ae R) ae R) (hr) (Rs) fares (Rs) fares (Rs) fares Badulla Destination Departure MAIN TRAINSFROMKANDY time 3rd-class 2nd-class 1st-class Duration 2.25pm,5.20pm, 6.55pm (Podi Menike) (for Nuwara Eliya) Bentota &Galle (Podi Menike) 3pm,4.10pm (Podi Menike) Rambukkana (Intercity Express) (Podi Menike) (Podi Menike) (Podi Menike)

82a,1 .0m 2 5 30 6½ 310 8.24am, 152 82 11.10am .4m 11a 9 11 4 7½ 341 171 92 8.24am, 11.10am with adriver andpetrol,forapproximately chaps. cangenerallythese Cars behired, get acheaper dealifyouorganise itthrough toursorganise taxi butyoumaybeable to orhotel can ing forwork.Yourguesthouse the Temple of theSacred ToothRelic,wait- Many drivers taxi long-distance hangaround TAXI another busthefinal9kmtoSigiriya. get off attheSigiriyajunctionandtake frequent -bound then buses, Rs 52.Youcanalsotake oneof themore- ple of perdayfor ordinaryprivate buses returns at5.30pm(Rs45).There are acou- Goods Shed at10.30am,which busstation There’s aCTBbustoSigiriyafrom the and costRs150. times dailyat9.30am,11.30amand1pm the ticket price).Air-con leave buses three change of businDambulla(included and thejourneytakes three hours, witha 20 minutes until6pm.Tickets are Rs90 every from4.30amandgoroughly station leaveOrdinary buses theGoods Shed bus Polonnaruwa THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kandy

187 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY similar costs Rs1250 perday, discounted kilometres. AHonda 250cc motorcycle or rollas for Rs2500perday withunlimited hires Co- Charadesor Toyota outNissan watte Rd,Suduhumpola) Palm GuestHouse,8Bogoda- Garden gardenkandy.com; tower. andKegalletale leave from neartheclock towns such asPeradeniya, Ampitiya,Ma- tooutlyingpartsofBuses Kandy andnearby BUS You canhire bicycles from BICYCLE Around Getting fortourists. ity torelease furtherseating with thestationmaster,whohas author- attheticket window,it’sworthcheckingseat mere Ifyou’re a fourseats. unable toreserve allocation forKandy boardingislimited toa Nanu Oya,Haputale andElla,yettheofficial Kandy stopsinHatton (nearAdam’sPeak), train, which originates inColomboandafter ontheBadulla-bound saloon observation 5.30am to5.30pm. fromcounter station 1,which isopenfrom up to10daysinadvanceatKandy’s train see p187 . Tickets andreserved canbebought fromKandy ofFor details thetrainservices TRAIN about Rs3200. port costsaboutRs4000andtoColombo –andsafer –option. would beasaner in Anuradhapura,SigiriyaorPolonnaruwa manic driving.Atleastoneovernight stay and passengers, andonethatencourages this isanexhaustingitineraryforbothdriver giriya, AnuradhapuraandPolonnaruwa)but all three CulturalTriangledestinations(Si- per day. you shouldexpecttopayaroundRs2800 Rs 2000to2500perday.Forawholevan 188 drive from You canhire cars and motorcyclesforself- CAR &MOTORCYCLE hire, as well. canarrangeday. Someguesthouses bicycle House, 8BogodawatteRd,Suduhumpola) Palm Guest Garden 3513; www.palmgardenkandy.com; Seats are verySeats popularinthe1st-class toBandaranaike InternationalA taxi Air- advertise daytripsto Some guesthouses THEHILLCOUNTRY••AroundKandy Malik

Tours .

This ( %

well-run company Malik 220 3513;www.palm for Rs150per

Tours ( % 220

200; The PERADENIYA BOTANIC GARDENS Sights &Activities you couldtake theday. afternoon tripor–ifyou’re notinarush – Kandy thatcanbedoneinamorningor There are around afew thingsworthseeing % AROUND KANDY get thelocalprice. than this,butifyousticktoyourgunsyou’ll ers willaskforeign touristsformuch more bit furtheroutsuch asGreen Woods.Driv- and asmuch asRs120to200placesa southeast endof thelake isRs60 to100, toplaces towardsthe from thetrainstation costtotake athree-wheeler The standard THREE-WHEELER 3322) With metered air-con taxis, TAXI the islandandisfluentinFrench. company. Malik alsoleadstours around insurance –butdouble-check with the or more. Thepriceincludesahelmetand to Rs1000perdayforhires of five days The snake by isalso well creeper close nutmeg, cinnamon, clovessee andmore. garden, near theentrance, allowsyouto nut weighs from10kg to20kg.The spice coconut palms palms. Don’tmiss theavenue of double cannon balltrees andanotherof cabbage it covers 1600 sqm.There’s anavenue of giant Javan fig tree onthegreat lawn– planted in1950.Amajor attraction isthe avenuea stately of royalpalms thatwas tiful andwellworthavisit. loop of theMahaweli Ganga. They’re beau- hectares andboundedonthree sidesbya covering gardensinSriLanka, botanic 60 pleasure gardens;todaythey’re thelargest theBritisharrived wereBefore these royal average, costRs40to45perkilometre. taxis on apricebefore yourjourney.On youstart (vans)thatareWith taxis notmetered, settle cially ifit’sraininganddemandisheavy. have towaitsometimeforyourcab,espe- beawarewheelers. However, thatyoumay There’s afinecollection of orchids and 081 h is a comfortable alternative isacomfortable tothree- gardens 7.30am-4.30pm)

(adult/student/child under12Rs300/200/ (coco de mer) are 6kmfromKandy. www.lonelyplanet.com Radio Cabs Radio –each coco-

( % 223 223

Around Kandy www.lonelyplanet.com 0 4 km AROUND KANDY 0 2 miles

A B To Kurunegala C D E F (36km) A10 16 To Matale (20km); Katugastota To Wattegama (5km); Knuckles Range SIGHTS & ACTIVITIES Dambulla (70km); Dam Sigiriya (92km); Elkaduwa (27km) Dhamma Kuta Vipassana Anuradhapura (138km); Meditation Centre...... 1 C4 Polonnaruwa (140km) 1 Embekka Devale...... 2 B4 Gadaladeniya Temple...... 3 A3 Kandy Garrison Cemetery...... 4 C2 11 14 Lankatilake Temple...... 5 B4 Riverside Elephant Park...... 6 C2 Sri Jemieson International Udawattakelle Meditation Centre...... 7 E2 Sanctuary Tea Museum...... 8 D3 Ganga KANDY University of Peradeniya...... 9 C3 Mahaweli To Digana (10km); A26 Mahaweli Victoria Golf & Country Resort (16km) SLEEPING Kandy Ganga Amaya Hills...... 10 C3 Footbridge ὈὈ Blue Haven Guest House...... 11 D1 2 Dream Cottage Holiday 13 A26 6 See Kandy Map (pp164-5) Kundasale Home...... 12 E4 See Peradeniya 15 Earl's Regency...... 13 E2 Botanic Gardens 4 Ampitiya Forest Glen...... 14 D1 Map (p190) Gem Inn II...... 15 E2 Mahaweli Reach Hotel...... 16 D1 Am Peradeniya 7 pitiya Botanic -Talatu ENTERTAINMENT Gardens 8 THE HILL COUNTRY •• Around Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••AroundKandy Le Garage...... (see 10) A1 Ὀ Oya

Embiligama Rd 10 Talatu Oya Sarasav Uvana Perideniya To Hanguranketa (15km); Junction 3 9 Mahiyangana (60km) To Paramita International Buddhist Centre (6km); 3 Kegalle (30km); Colombo (105km) Ὀ

Mahawe A5 Uduwela

li 1 5 4 Ganga

Embekka To Gampola (3km); Nuwara Eliya (65km); 12 Hatton (75km);

2 Ella (133km); To Nillambe 189

Ratnapura (142km); Meditation Centre

Haputale (206km) (2.5km); Galaha (3km) THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Peradeniya Botanic Gardens 190 4 (110km) To Colombo 6 1 3 2 5 PERADENIYA BOTANICGARDENS THEHILLCOUNTRY••Peradeniya BotanicGardens To Gampola ὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ AC (8km) ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ 25 Collection Woodlands (Fruit Bats) Ficus 11 ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲᝲ ᝲᝲᝲᝲ ᝲ ᝲ ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ

26 Ὀ Ὀ Ὀ ὈὈὈ Ὀ ὈὈ ὈὈ Cook's Pine Ave Pine Cook's 3 Lake 28 16 22 4 32 Students' Garden

23

Cycads Ganga Mahaweli 33 8 Ave Palm Royal 1 B

Double Coconut Palm Ave 21 9 ᝲ ᝲ 14 29 Lawn Great Pines Circle Great 20 ὈὈὈ Ὀ 38 15 2 ᝲ in abo...... B5 Giant Bamboo...... Mahogany Tree...... Java Fig...... Java Almond...... Japanese Garden...... Jackfruit...... Grasses...... Giant KauriPine...... Flower Garden...... Fernery...... Cloves...... Ceylon Ironwood...... Cannon BallTrees...... Calabash Tree...... Calabash Nutmeg...... Cactus House...... Bread Fruit...... Baobab Tree...... Bamboo Collection...... Assam RubberTrees...... Aquatic &MarshPlants...... SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES Memorial 10 12 Trees 7 18 13 27 37 39 35 ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ ᝲᝲ 36 Ὀ Ὀ Ὀ

Palmyra Palm Ave 30 Colonnaded Walkway Covered 24 Rest House Peradeniya 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10

Fruit Trees

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Cann C4 C4 B2 B6 B5 B6 B3 B4 C4 C4 D4 B6 B4 C4 C4 B2 C3 B2 B3 C3 5 6 19

ᝲ ᝲ ᝲ

0 0 on Bus Stop...... Cafe...... Spice Garden...... Snake Creeper...... Sausage Tree...... Satinwood Tree...... Rockery...... Red CottonTree...... Plant House...... Pagoda...... Pagoda...... Pagoda...... Pagoda...... Pagoda...... Orchid House...... Museum &Herbarium...... Medicinal Garden...... TRANSPORT EATING Royal BotanicalGardens C5 Ticket Office&Entrance.... 17 Ba ll Tree Ave www.lonelyplanet.com

31 Cabbage Palm Ave 34 D 0.1 miles To Kandy 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 200 m (6km) C5 B4 C5 C4 D3 B2 B5 D4 C5 B5 B5 C3 B2 A1 C4 B4 B5 veni Rajasinghe; donationsaccepted; veni Rajasinghe; cost Rs1000. about Rs600(return trip)andavan will of Kandy youback tothegardenswill set Rs 4.50.Athree-wheeler fromthecentre in Kandy will take youtothe gardensfor available too–alldecentlypriced. thegardens.Therethrough are otherbooks dens, the locally madeclothesandfabrics. veranda. Insidethecaféisagiftshop with onaroofed attables ern andSriLankan) goodàlacarte meals(West- trance, serves Rs 300to600),about500mnorthof theen- gardens. around these can easilyspendawholedaywandering resist tree? huntingdownthesausage You boo andAssam rubbertrees, andwhocould Thenthereworth seeing. are thegiant bam- www.lonelyplanet.com 1-6pm) This beautifullykept garden KANDY GARRISONCEMETERY west of Kandy. the River SideElephant Park, 2kmsouth- cholera in1824. Kandy in1815and thensuccumbed to planned thebloodless British capture of is SirJohn who D’Oyly,a colonial official mous permanent resident of thecemetery 203 graves date fromWWII.Themostfa- many 19th-century grave sites, mostof the Graves there Commission.Although are managed by the CommonwealthWar ment of British-era colonistsandistoday Bus 654fromtheclocktowerbus stop At theentranceyoucanbuyacopyof (dishes GardenCafé The RoyalBotanical This peaceful, rather sad place is close to placeisclose This peaceful, rathersad only paint them in at an auspicious moment, painstakingly charted outbyastrologers. charted only painttheminatanauspiciousmoment,painstakingly aBuddhaimage,craftsmenleave the In making PAINTING THEBUDDHA’S EYES is thenceforwardaGod.’ are made,itisnotaccounted aGod,butlumpofordinarymetal…theeyesbeingformed,it netra pinkama Therewhich canbehitwithastick. isquite afear ofdire consequences ifthere’s aslip-upinthe his firstgaze canbeuponsomethingthatsymbolicallydestroyed,suchasapoolofwater, mirror. Whentheeyesare finished, thepainter isblindfoldedandledoutsidetoaplacewhere directly atthefaceofimage,painter thanlooking addstheeyesusingasistant. Rather intotheshrine withanas- from theSittarusubcaste islocked oftemple craftsmen andartists, Illustrated Guide,RoyalBotanic Gar- which hasamapandsuggested walks The ofcreating act theeyesconsecrates theBuddhastatue. Forthe wasfoundedin1817fortheinter- . In the 16th century Robert Knox explainedtheritualthisway:‘Before. Inthe16thcenturyRobert theeyes

cemetery h 10am-noon,

(De- netra pinkama ence hallinthe city,are tobe thefinest said to havethought come froma royalaudi- woodenpillars, the 14th century. Itscarved stroll of about 1kmtothe temple, builtin the village you’ve countryside got a pleasant a rideof aroundanhourfromKandy. From ing kilometres gardens, beyondthebotanic twisting andturn- Embekka isabout seven about three timesan hourandthevillage of the clocktower in Kandy. run Thebuses 643 (toVatadeniya viaEmbekka) fromnear river. workataroundnoonandbathe inthe off back costsRs2000.Theelephantsknock ticular. toKandy An‘elephantsafari’ and visitors inpar-popular withSriLankan ride, whileRs1000buysalonger ride,very hand. Theadmissionpriceincludesashort our lastvisitthere were sixelephantson west of Kandy ontheMahaweli Ganga. On sion Rs100) to payRs15001800fromKandy. listed trip toallthree; ortake ataxi expect down yourvisittooneortwoof thetemples you’re notinthemoodyoucouldnarrow There’s quite abitof walking involved soif gardens. temples andback,viathebotanic you tothree 14th-centuryHindu-Buddhist loop willtakeThis particularlypleasant culture. SriLankan life aswellobserve Kandy gives alittlerural youachance tosee Visiting someof themanytemples around A TEMPLELOOPFROMKANDY (admission Rs400; encounters withpachyderms atthis Elephant Orphanage canengage inclose whodon’tplantovisitthePinnewala Those PARK ELEPHANT RIVERSIDE The first stopisthe THE HILL COUNTRY •• Around Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••AroundKandy , forwhich tocatch youneed bus (eye ritual)untillast,andthen h netra pinkama, 7.30am-4.30pm) Embekka Devale Embekka thepainter, 4km south-

(admis- park 191

THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY plantations (or a three-wheeler may beat plantations tion you have tea 3kmwalk through asteep torch. Toreach Junc- Nilambefrom Office ing bag. There’s noelectricity, sobringa are suppliedyou maywish tobringasleep- blankets day (includingfood), andalthough about 40people. forRs400per You can stay and basicaccommodationfor classes, tation great views.There’s adailyschedule of medi- takes aboutanhour). It’s apretty spot,with Junction; the trip Galaha andget off atOffice be reached bybus (catch busvia aDelthota Junction about13kmsouthof Kandy, can eniya Botanic GardensorontoKandy.eniya Botanic almost anybuswilltake youtothePerad- stroll,andfromthemainroad It’s apleasant you reach tothe105kmpost. theroadclose than 2kmfromGadaladeniyaTemple – will behappytoshowyouaround. have nicelyrestored. been Aresident artist shrine’s muralsandsomeof thestatues stone ‘doorstep’) markstheentrance. The Amoonstone(carved Embekka Devale. to thatof Temple theLankatilake andthe Hindu annexe dates fromasimilarperiod into therock.ThisBuddhisttemple witha temple isreached of byaseries steps cut outcrop andcovered withsmallpools,the others, willtake you there). Builtonarocky catch abusfromKandy (bus644,among iab Mdtto Centre Meditation Nilambe MEDITATION Temple Gadaladeniya held here inAugust. shrine ifit’snotalready open.A elephant figures. Acaretaker willunlockthe paintings, rock-face inscriptionsandstone featuring aBuddhaimage, Kandy-period temple withfineviewsof thecountryside, It’saBuddhistandHindu Embekka buses. stopasthe busfromthesame Pilimatalawa ple onbus666ortake aKiribathkumbaraor you cangodirectly Tem- totheLankatilake blue temple loomontheleft.FromKandy the thericepaddiesuntilyousee through here in September. women. Alocalelephant swans, eagles,wrestling menanddancing include in theKandy region. The carvings 192 mission Rs100) [email protected]) The mainColombo–Kandy roadisless It’s afurther3kmwalkfromhere tothe From here tothe THEHILLCOUNTRY••AroundKandy isa1.5kmstrollalongpath , close to Nilambe Bungalow toNilambeBungalow , close

(admission Rs100) Lankatilake Temple Lankatilake

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(ad- is taxi or three-wheeler is never faraway. orthree-wheeler isnever taxi easy toget into townshould you wantto –a justout ofhills, then stay Kandy. It’salways along shaded tracks,with viewsof rolling If youwant quietdays spent wandering Sleeping ( Mowbray, Hindagala) ( ( the than asedan. wanttosummonavanrather so youmight the centre track, isanarrow,partiallysealed to/from Kandy costsRs750.Theroadupto the junctiontotake youforRs150).Ataxi a windingtracktothecentre. Talatu Oyaroad.There’s a1.2kmwalkup hand sideabout3kmalongtheAmpitiya– in Kandy. Lookforthesignonright- latu Oyabusfromtheclocktowerstop here duringtheday.Toget here catch aTa- butare welcometomeditate off-campus monastery andtemple. Womenmuststay rooms formalestudentsonly–thisisa There starts. when thenextcourse are eight five- and10-daycourses. Phone tofindout from Kandy shouldcostRs400to500. catch athree-wheeler forRs 150. Ataxi tre. It’savery 2kmwalk,oryoucan steep sign atthebottomof thetracktocen- and get atthelaststop.There’s off asmall from theclocktowerbusstopin Kandy in Kandy. Take aMahakanda-bound bus posted attheBuddhistPublicationSociety and female quarters. Retreat schedules are male for about90students,withseparate turn up.There’s dormaccommodation butyoumustbook–can’tjust tation, system offollowing theSNGoenka medi- train or bus stations willcostRs50. train orbusstations three-wheeler from here toKadugannawa’s A Vipassana. lead courses in SNGoenka’s teachers, includingaDutchSeveral monk, and alibrary.Atypical daykicksoffat4am. 15 people(menandwomen),lush gardens Saturday. Ithascleanaccommodation for second every grams permonth,starting pro- two free meditation fortnight-long centre.road, isanothermeditation It runs 1km pastKadugannawa ontheColombo % % % Near Ampitiya,4kmsoutheastof Kandy, Dhamma Kuta Vipassana Meditation Centre Meditation Dhamma KutaVipassana The 257 0732) 222 5057;AmpitiyaSamadhiMawatha) Sri Jemieson International Meditation Centre Meditation International Jemieson Sri 223 4649;www.beyondthenet.net/dhammakuta; Paramita International BuddhistCentre Paramita International atthetopof theBolanaPass, offers free 10-daycourses www.lonelyplanet.com runsfree

There’s alarge gardenandgoodfood. a bittired; mosthave theirownbalcony. ThereRange. are rooms,alllooking seven over theMahaweli GangaandtheKnuckles is perched onahillsidewithwonderfulviews east of Kandy’s towncentre, thisguesthouse heta Rd,Talwatta; rRs600-1400) 1500; rRs900- DaladaThapowanaMawatha; Lady Gordon’sDr,Sri 1200; [email protected]; 30/2PoornaLane;sRs500-800,d1000- Gem InnII Gem BUDGET www.lonelyplanet.com Dream CottageHolidayHome Dream MIDRANGE &TOPEND Knuckles Range. Knuckles Range. and walksaroundKandy andintothe Theownercanarrangesetting. roadtrips large airybalconyoverlooking thejungle rooms hasfloriddécor,hotwater anda takelle SanctuaryinKandy, each of thefive Rooms withbalconiescostthemost. rooms andviewsover aleafylittlevalley. roomsfeatureThe eight fans,spotlessbath- withgood food. is awelcomingguesthouse the edge of Udawattakelle Sanctuary,this Uduwela seems tohaveUduwela seems heard of theplace. Estate, soaskforthatnameifno-one in on thesite of the formerMetiyagulla Tea from there athree-wheeler costsRs350.It’s fromtheclocktowertoUduwela; minibuses Thereit hasroomforeight. are frequent can rent outthewholeplaceforRs5000 – huge boulders, andare three rooms, or you intriguing architecture, incorporatingtwo side atthefootof Ithas theUragalaRange. inthecountry- tea estates), set leads through villa is10kmsouthof Kandy (theroadhere music, typically). sometimes hosts concerts (jazz orclassical tional cricket here, teams stay andthehotel particularly niceswimming pool.Interna- restaurants, tennis andsquash courtsanda renovated.been Facilities includeelegant town. The115spacious roomshave recently the banksof theMahaweli Ganganorthof white buildingoccupies abeautifulspoton of beingKandy’s besthotel, thispalatial ste US$250-500; s/dUS$135/150, haweli.com; 35PBAWeerakoon Mawatha; sltnet.lk; Uduwela;s/dRs1500/1800) Blue Haven GuestHouse Blue Haven Forest Glen Forest Mahaweli Reach Mahaweli a i ) ) Tucked awayonawinding roadon Onthenorthsideof theUdawat-

( %

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222 2239;[email protected]; 150/6 Hotel Hotel ) Vyingforthehonour ( About 2.5kmsouth- %

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www.ma US$120/140; .com; Heerassagala;r/steUS$96/184; is open Saturday nights only. is openSaturdaynights Garage, also opentononguests.Adisco,Le centre, which is well-equipped Ayurvedic an invitingpoolwithsuperbviewsanda ated with Kandyan craftwork,andthere’s southwest of Kandy. Theroomsare decor- inthehills,20minutes’ driveslope high imposing, V-shaped hotel sitsonagrassy all are reachable bybusfromKandy. onthe east coast; further north,Batticaloa GalOyaNationalParkto ArugamBay, and, Hill CountryandMonaragalaontheway ontheedgeyou willfindBadulla of the to goeastMahiyangana, beyondwhich the rest of theHillCountry.It’salsopossible ombo, northtotheancientcitiesorsouth Most travellers fromKandy gowesttoCol- OFKANDY EAST that nowliesinthe junglebeneath. one 4WDortruck thatdidn’tmake itand about thebrakes. Youusuallypassat least and onthewaydown youtrynottothink the wayupyou worry about overheating one of thecountry’shairiestbus rides –on Project.haweli Development It makes for top youhave amagnificentviewof theMa- lowlands andthedry-zoneplains. From the exit fromtheHillCountrytoMahaweli no lessthan18hairpinbends,a dramatic toMadugoda, before ervoir twistingthrough the VictoriaGolfCluband Res- past TheA26northroadgoes Reservoirs. Ganga andtheVictoriaRandenigala hiyangana, oneithersideof theMahaweli mark thespot.There are tworoadstoMa- Mahiyangana andthere’s adagobahere to however, because wild elephants from the because however, better atdusk, condition. This road closes which ismuch faster andinReservoirs, ern shores of theVictoria andRandenigala yourself queuing for buffet meals. yourself queuingforbuffet are no restaurants nearby,youmayfind popular withtourgroups,andsincethere cony. Theonlydrawbackisthatit’svery polished floorboards,andmosthave abal- rooms have aslickblackbathroomand great viewsandimmaculate rooms.The hotelis asubstantial withallmodcons, Amaya Hills Hills Amaya Earl’s Regency The Buddha is said tohaveThe Buddhaissaid preached at Drivers prefer the roadalongthe south- THE HILL COUNTRY •• East of Kandy THE HILLCOUNTRY••EastofKandy ais ( %

( % 223 3521;amayahills@amayaresorts 242 2122; [email protected]; s/d242 2122;[email protected]; ) Near Kundasale, this Kundasale, Near as ) This

193 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY s/d Rs1000/1400) three-wheeler ride from the bus station. three-wheeler ridefromthebus station. outdoor restaurant anda bar. It’sashort place has10fairlyordinaryrooms,plusan will do for a night. will doforanight. The cleanblandrooms(coldwater only) storey buildingwithslowcountryservice. tion ontheAmpararoad,thisisamulti- gala may need tochangegala mayneed atBibile. buses Travellers from Mahiyangana toMonara- Kandy (private busRs45,three hours). bus Rs70),Monaragala(CTB 49)and vate bus Rs64),Ampara(CTBandprivate (CTBRs45),Polonnaruwa(pri- to Badulla hub forthearea, andthere are regular buses it’sagood,quietchoice.during theweek for weddingreceptions onweekends, but restaurant andbarisa popularlocaloption Rd; rRs500-1200,withair-con1400-1800; holidays.com; rRs500-1700; parts) there are acoupleof hotels. passable primitive peoplewhotheninhabited these preacheddha onhisfirst visittoLanka tothe dagoba the Besides very settled. densely rigation districts,soit’ssprawlingandnot thenewir- The townwaslaidouttoserve % Mahiyangana via NuwaraEliya. thantogo then theroute southtoBadulla Haputale), it’s quicker totake thisroadand Province (includingtownssuch asEllaand To travel fromKandy tothehillsof Uva arenature attracted reserve toheadlights. 194 fee is collected atHunasgiriya, 27km from Area. The Rs575 entry tage Conservation declaredhas been aUnesco WorldHeri- The area, which offers walks, somepleasant is home to pockets of rare forest. montane massif like fist,this1500m-high aclosed therange’sSo namedbecause peakslook Range Knuckles than thefanrooms. The roomswithair-con are more spacious buildinginreasonablyrise cleancondition. banks of theMahaweli Ganga,thisisalow- Rs 1800-2500,withair-con2500-3000; Tharuka Inn Tharuka Mahiyangana Rest House Rest Mahiyangana Mahiyangana issomethingof atransport Venjinn GuestHouse Sorabora Village Inn Sorabora Village 055 THEHILLCOUNTRY••Adam’sPeak Pada) (Sri (where, accordingtolegend, theBud-

About 1kmfromthebussta- ( % 225 7631;89/1Padiyathalawa Rd;

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( % ( % ) This 15-room hotel, This15-roomhotel, 225 7151; 42 Rest House 225 7151;42Rest

225 7149;info@vanity ( % /fax 2257099;r Mahiyangana Mahiyangana a a ) Onthe ) This US$160; rUS$120,stefrom www.hunasfallshotel.com; Elkaduwa; this place has been apilgrimagethis place has been centre for ofIndia, or even LordShiva. be thatof StThomas,the earlyapostle of ‘footprint’ onthetopof the2243mpeak to butterflies thehuge gotodie).Some believe manalakande (Butterfly where Mountain, orSa- dha asheheaded towardsparadise) Pada (Sacred Footprint, leftbytheBud- on earthafter beingcast outof heaven), Sri Peak (theplacewhere foot Adamfirst set turies. Itisvariously knownasAdam’s peak hassparked theimaginationforcen- of thesouthernHillCountry,thislofty Located inabeautifulandfascinatingarea 2243m elev (SRI PADA) PEAK ADAM’S .lk; canorganise guidedhikingtrips. Range Kandy. Hotels and resorts intheKnuckles and thencatch anothertoElkaduwa. tegama (from neartheclocktowerinKandy) cost Rs800.Alternatively, take abustoWat- plenty of walksinthesurroundinghills. a tennis court,awell-stocked fishpooland Elkaduwa. Ithasallthemodcons,including 27km outof Kandy, upinatea at estate high inthe country,it’s settings most spectacular pool onthepremises issolar-heated. ingredients Alarge purchased. swimming way youpayonlytheactualcostsof theraw have theresident cookdothework;either meals inthelarge Western-style kitchen or a fireplace. Guestscanprepare theirown bath, pluslarge livinganddiningroomwith three doublerooms,each with attached sconced onasteepforested hillsidecontains This formertea planter’s bungalow en- the train or bus stations inKandy.the trainorbusstations arrangement theowners canpickyouupat good, andreasonably priced.Byadvance farealso available. here TheSriLankan is network of trails nearby.Nature tours are larly goodspotforwalksasthere isagood valley, withricefieldsbelow.It’saparticu- viewsintoaforestedspectacular mountain 1200) sRs800-1000,d1000- Rd,Elkaduwa; net.lk; Elkaduwa

Whichever legend youcare to believe, View Green A taxi fromKandyA taxi toElkaduwashould Hunas Falls Hotel Rangala House Rangala 92B Bobebila Rd, Makuldeniya, Teldeniya;92B BobebilaRd,Makuldeniya, villaUS$340) This seven-room hillsidelodge offers Thisseven-room as )

Aluxuryhotel withoneof the ( %

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077 7811881;bluehavtravels@slt ( % 081-240 0294;anewman@sltnet 081-247 0041,6402; www.lonelyplanet.com

peak, eventually disappearing into its base. intoitsbase. disappearing peak, eventually triangular shadow racesbacktowardsthe the coast.As thiseerie higher thesunrises peak ontothemistycloudsdown towards dawn. Thesuncastsaperfect shadowof the pièce derésistance ful asthedawnis,Adam’sPeak saves its drals of thehumanrace’. of thevastest andmost reverenced cathe- on weary pilgrims)upthemountain. vided King MallaNissanka of Polonnaruwapro- over 1000years. King Parakramabahu and www.lonelyplanet.com them), andwith plenty of rest stops you’ll is up steps mostof theway (about 5200of Theclimb can wait tillabout 2amtostart. you warm overnight atthe top –oryou bag tokeep atleastagood sleeping need sie soonafter you’ll dark– in which case the7kmclimbfromDalhou- You canstart Activities book der thatEnglishauthorJohn Stills,in his easily visibleonaclearday.It’slittle won- Colombo,65kmaway,is away tothesea. to theeast,whilewestland slopes extremely fineview–theHillCountryrises you’reup theholymountain treated toan Asgrims seek. thefirst raysof dawnlight merit thusgained. of Estate, because thegreatervia theCarney climbfromRatnapura and lit–seven-hour much more tiring–butequallywell-marked Many pilgrimsprefer tomake thelonger, atorch.still dothewalk;you’lljustneed you can up themountainside. Outof season whichlights, lookvery pretty astheysnake byastringofroute isilluminated inseason Kandy–Nuwara Eliyarailwayandroad.The town of Hatton, which isontheColombo– house offrom thesmallsettlement Dalhousie (del- up thecountless steps tothetop.Theyleave grims (andtheoddtourist)makes theclimb asteadypilgrimage stream season of pil- by cloudsformuch of thetime. Duringthe Maytween andOctoberthepeakisobscured andbe- temple onthesummitisunused, January andFebruary. Atothertimesthe Vesak festival Interesting astheascentis,andbeauti- begins daysthepilgrimage season These It’s notonlythesacred footprintthatpil- poya Jungle Tide ), 33kmbyroadsouthwestof thetea ambalamas dayinDecemberandrunsuntil inMay. Thebusiestperiod is , describedthepeakas‘one (resting placestoshelter forafew minutes after THE HILLCOUNTRY••Adam’sPeak Pada) (Sri which is around 6.30am. Start on a which isaround6.30am.Start willeasilygetstart youthere before dawn, get tothetopin2½fourhours. A2.30am throughout SriLanka. throughout and isavailable inDalhousieandindeed forvampires.does Itcostsonlyafew rupees whatgarlic forleeches would thinkitdoes climbers enthusiastically smeariton,one Fromtheway Hospital. dhalepa Ayurveda balmproduced by Sid- is anAyurvedic of littlebeasties unpleasant deterring these pay aroundRs500foraguide. to dothehike atleastinpairs. to Expect many peoplearound,travellers are urged pathway isn’tilluminated andthere aren’t you’ll belimpingforthenextfew days. remember tostretch yourlegmuscles,or morning sungets strongquite fast.Tryto too. It’sagoodideatotake ahat –the don’t fitwellthentoe-jam tohurt, starts shake andifyourshoes thestrongest knees, coming downagain.Theendless steps can heat), soitpaysnottolinger too long. the (asdoes scend, butthesunquicklyrises to make amorning offering before theyde- with you.Somepilgrimswaitforthepriests to thesummit,andbringplentyof water including somethingextraforwhenyouget shivering. Bringwarmclothes in anycase, fore the dawnandthenhaving tositaround ingetting tothetoptoo longbe- little sense the atmosphere remains reverent. suitably cigarettes, meatandrecorded musicsothat The authoritieshave bannedlitter, alcohol, Ahandfularenight. openoutof season. top, someof which are the openthrough for rest andrefreshments allthewayto oftinuous flight stairs. There are tea houses steeper and untilitbecomesacon- Friendship Dagoba. Thepat entrance arch, thenbytheJapan–Sri Lanka orso.the first Youpassunder an half-hour addhoursmight toyourclimb. andthethrong ofday, though, pilgrims the best budget accommodation inthe area. theclimb, andit alsohas best place to start handful of Dalhousieis the placestostay. The area surrounding Adam’sPeak hasa Sleeping &Eating Leeches maybe about.Apopularmethod Leeches JuneandNovember, whentheBetween Many peoplefindthehardestpartis Since itcanget pretty coldontop,there’s From thecarparkslopeisgradualfor hway thengets poya 195

THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY .wathsalainn.net; rRs800-2000) water, and unlike most of theother Dal- bling placehas 14large rooms withhot the pilgrimage season. Adam’s Peak). Mostare openonlyduring (onyourleftasyouapproach guesthouses where stop,there thebuses are ahandfulof (beforea placetosleep theclimb). youstart to eat,buyprovisions fortheclimb,orget whereopen allnight, youcanget something there are afew tea shops,someof which stay near thebeginningof thewalk.Inseason stop square, the buses butduringtheseason may dumpyouinDalhousie’sbare main midrange andtop-endchoices. Head toDikoya(see right ) ifyou’re seeking 196 It’s open seasonally. accommodation, mealsandguidedclimb. package’ forRs2000 thatincludesanight’s ment offers an‘Adam’sPeak full-service for anaprès-pilgrimage soak.Themanage- host canprepare aherbal bath(Rs150) There’shouse. alsoapretty gardenand the simple cleanrooms inacharacterful little path, and,yes,it’spainted green. There are across thebridge of atthestart thewalking This oneisusuallyopenyear-round. the bestbutstairs are and narrow. steep hot water. Theroomsonthetop floor are a shop,Punsisihasninesmallrooms with tothebusstopandabovethe road,closer swim intheriver behindtheguesthouse. (Decemberto May).tourist season Youcan herehouses itopensonlyduringthemain Like manyguest- the peaktoRatnapura. visitors trekking downtheopposite sideof only leadAdam’sPeak climbsbutcantake rooms. Italsohasfriendlyowners whonot hasbasicbutclean this newerguesthouse yond theRiver ViewWathsala Inn rooms, which are openseasonally. this placenexttoSriPale offers 12basic Continuing withthecolour/name theme, pilgrimage season. farming family.It’sopenonlyduring the small river. Thehostsare acongenial local are very rusticbuthave anicelocationby White House White About 1.5kmbefore youget totheplace Out of thebusdriver pilgrimage season River View WathsalaInn View River Green House Green Pale Sri Punsisi Rest Yellow House THEHILLCOUNTRY••AroundAdam’sPeak

(s/d Rs400/600)

(

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(s/d Rs400/500) ( ( % % 070 521101;rRs400) 051-222 3956;rRs400) /fax 051-2223958;s/dRs400/500) Thefourroomshere Thismodern, ram-

( % About 100mbe- 051-222 5261; www Furtherup

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cost Rs600to700. train 46leaves at10.52pm. Menike and reaches Hatton at2.13pm; the Haputale through passes andNanuOya direction (toColombo)the ton at7.35amand4.20pm.Inthe other Eliya), asdothelocaltrainsthatleave Hat- trains continuetoNanuOya(for Nuwara 11.30am and2.15pm,respectively. These trains fromColomboarrive inHatton at handle thearrangements. bungalows can Local tea-estate Reservoirs. orMaussakellefishing on theCastlereagh and Maskeliya, ordoalittleboating and in necting tea plantations Dikoya, Hatton range easierhikes forests through and con- famous peak,visitors tothearea canar- Other thanmaking thepilgrimage upthe PEAK AROUND ADAM’S it terminates atDalhousie. touts on,in,above andbesidethebuswhen ture about 8.30pm).There are usuallyhotel another toDalhousie(Rs12,last depar- (Rs 12,lastdeparture about7pm), then to take abusfromHatton toMaskeliya youhaveRs 28/40,twohours). Otherwise, (CTB/privatethe pilgrimagebus season housie viaMaskeliya 30minutes every in ping inHatton, ifyouwish. Maskeliya, which enablesyoutoavoid stop- fromNuwaraEliyaandColomboto buses or NuwaraEliya. There are alsosomedirect Hatton fromCol ombo, Kandy (three hours) Hatton–Dalhousie road). Maskeliya (which isabout20kmalongthe first youneed togetwise, toHatton orto Other-ombo inthepilgrimage season. Shed NuwaraEliyaandCol- busstation), Dalhousie fromKandy (fromtheGoods you’ve gotalldaytoarrive. runto Buses simple, andifyou’re ascent makinganight ofReaching thebase Adam’sPeak isquite &Away There Getting trips canbearranged. noeing andca- popular withtourgroups.Rafting The recently expandedrestaurant here is cheapest roomshave shared bathrooms. housie placesit’sopenyear-round. The A taxi fromHattonA taxi toDalhousie should The There are fromHatton buses toDal- to theyearthereThroughout are service Podi Menike leaves Hatton at10.55am.Mail and www.lonelyplanet.com Udarata Menike Podi Menike Udarata

5000) Rd,Dikoya;cottagesRs2500- Bridge [email protected]; Norton ens andhotwater, and are nicelydecorated. room thatcouldfit sixto10.Bothhave kitch- ger onehasthree double rooms,plusakids’ bed andaroom with twobunks.Thebig- Reservoir. Thesmaller cottage hasadouble lyptus trees ontheedge of theCastlereagh The cottages are in a lovely spotundereuca- for thesignthisplacejustafter abridge. drinking houses. narrow, crowdedstreets, amarket andafew area, isabustlingtea-trading townwith and adjoiningtea plantations. cemetery viewsof andsweeping thereservoir architecture, tinybutatmosphericcolonial isworthavisitforitsquaintstone Reservoir on apromontoryoverlooking theCastlereagh charming 19th-centuryAnglicanchurch built offer tours andcuppings(tea The tastings). a collection of fourcolonial-style bungalows largest tea companies, Tea Trailscomprises owned by DilmahTea, oneof Sri Lanka’s and dinneraroundRs300perdish). available (breakfast Rs150,àlacarte lunch couches tosinkintointhelounge. Meals are water bathrooms.There’s abarandleather estate. Thefive roomsallhave attached hot- surrounded bygardensandaworkingtea away. but ratheratUpperGlencairn,ashort walk as are theviews.Meals here aren’t served Upper counterpart, butthegardenisnice, rather jadedandshabby compared withits to stay overnightto stay inDalhousie. Adam’s Peak fromDikoyawithoutneeding have yourowntransportitispossibletodo best avoided exceptasalastresort. Ifyou and oneortwoinMaskeliya, are butthese inHattonlocal innsnearthetrainstation bungalows. There are acoupleof grimy oftry’s bestselection converted tea-estate the area aroundDikoyahastheHillCoun- ofAt elevations around1200m to1400m, Sleeping &Eating www.lonelyplanet.com trails.com; Dikoya; r US$188-240,steUS$236-405) Rs 1250/1500) Rs 1250/1500) Tea Trails Hatton, themaintrainjunctionin A few tea districtsalso factories inthese Lower Glencairn Castlereagh FamilyCastlereagh Cottages Upper Glencairn FurtheralongtheroadtoHatton, look A grand old place, built in 1906, Agrandoldplace,builtin1906, Below themainroad,this oneis Below

( % 011-230 3888, 051-4920401;www.tea

( ( % % 051-222 2348;Dikoya;s/d 051-222 2342;Dikoya;s/d

( % 051-222 3607; Partially epic filmedhis1957Oscar-winningDavid Lean Peak, Kitulgala’s mainclaimto fame isthat Southwest of Kandy andnorthof Adam’s % KITULGALA around Rs700to900. any of accommodationsshouldcost these Kandy orHatton. fromHatton Ataxi to range pick-upforitsguestsinColombo, thus bereached bybus.Tea Trailswillar- Hattonroad between andDikoyacan reagh Family Cottages are alongthemain Upper andLowerGlencairnCastle- &Away There Getting tea. curing Ceylon involvedprocesses ingrowing, pickingand tea expertwhocanenlightenguestsonthe bungalow to(orbeyond),anda experienced guidewhocanleadhikes from are an teas. Alsoonstaff and single-estate dent chef, wines alongwith complimentary mealspreparedLankan byaprofessional resi- includesumptuous Western andSri Rates dens withviewsover Castlereagh Reservoir. dining andlivingareas, verandas andgar- large bedroomseach, along withspacious in 2005,thebungalowsfeature fourtosix pletely refurbished andopenedtovisit ors late 19thandearly20thcenturies.Com- built forBritish managers tea-estate inthe film you’llrecognise someof theplaces. eration fortheirtroubles.Ifyouknow the entourage of ‘guides’ whoexpectaconsid- head downthepathwithoutattracting an Adam’s Peak. Itisvirtuallyimpossibleto Hotelfrom Plantation inthedirection of is signposted onthemainroad,about1km banks of the Ganga. The pathway site where thefilmingtookplacealong can walkdownapaved pathwaytothe Plantation Hotel ( Plantation p198 ). Retreat Rafter’s ( this through p198 by specialarrangement. Youcanorganise ) or can optformore Class4–5rapids difficult transport andlunch. rafters Experienced in 7kmforUS$30 perperson, including Class2–3rapids typical triptakes inseven rafting water Plantation Hotel. Plantation swimming Kitulgala’s second claimtofameis Kitulgala’s second The Kelaniya Gangaalsohas somegood 036 Bridge on theBridge River Kwai THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kitulgala THE HILLCOUNTRY••Kitulgala spots –apopular hole isbeside along theKelaniya Ganga. The here. You white-

197 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY gala Rest House gala Rest rounding forest. 27 endemicbirdspeciesinhabitthesur- Retreat, cording toRafter’s 23of SriLanka’s .lk/kith.html; rwith/withoutair-conUS$48/36; .lk/kith.html; .com; r/cottagesinclhalf-boardUS$35/54) Hatton fromthemainroad(Rs40). When you’re over Kitulgala,flagabusto Hatton andget atKitulgala(Rs 32). off to change atAvissawella; catch thebusto you’llhaveyou’re comingfromRatnapura ifyouareKitulgala even travelling bybus.If ing andbirdingtrips. treat management canarrange rafting,hik- cottages facingtheriver. Re- TheRafter’s orin11rusticwood-plank adjacent house, butratherinthree roomsinan old house inthe cum-rafting outfit.Guestsdon’tstay asthecentre forthisguesthouse- serves 85-year-old colonialtea-estate bungalow 198 villages alongthe way. lets, not tomention Tamil and Sinhalese for plenty of stopsatwaterfalls andtea out- The80km of asphaltallows line reservoirs. jade green andpast crystal- tea plantations climbs nearly1400m asitwindsthrough The roadfrom Kandy to NuwaraEliya TONUWARAELIYAKANDY at stylish rooms theeight Kitulgala RestHouse, ranged here. water canbear- raftingandriver canoeing here hasaveranda facingtheriver. White- oforate thewalls.Each the20large rooms black-and-white photosof thestars dec- epic; a veritable shrinetotheDavid Lean .lk; Kalukohutenna; rwith/withoutair-conUS$48/36; .lk; Kalukohutenna; with day-trippers andtourgroups. and river views.Therestaurant ispopular of theriver. Allroomscomewithfireplaces rooms builtalongsidetheIngOyarapids of open-airdining areas andplushguest Resort trips canbearranged. beside theriver. Bird-watching andrafting ‘Western cusine andEastern’ ant serving are very there’s comfortable; alsoarestaur- wow.lk; EduruElla;s/dUS$48/60; One cornerof thediningroomat The area isalsofamousforbirding.Ac- It’s easy enough tohaveIt’s easyenough aquickstopat Further towardsAdam’sPeak thanthe Rafter’s Retreat Retreat Rafter’s Plantation HotelPlantation alsomanages Plantation Hotel Plantation Hotel THE HILL COUNTRY •• Kandy toNuwaraEliya THEHILLCOUNTRY••Kandy

(Royal River Resort; Resort; (Royal River

( %

( % /fax 2287528;www.ceylonhotels ( % 228 7575;hauschandra@wow % 228 7598;channap@itmin 272 4692;hauschandra@ a ) , acollection Abeautiful Plantation a Kitul- a ) is )

US$18) some cash. hairpin turnuntil (hopefully) youfork out youateach down apath tomeet andevery If youdon’t buytheirwares, theyhurtle you’ll come acrosschildren flowers. selling steep roadsideapproach toNuwaraEliya ported toColomboand abroad.Alongthe abundance are flowers, which are trans- grown inabundance today.Alsogrownin variety of vegetables here, andthey’re still summer retreat.a pleasant He introduced a the area in1846anddecided itwouldmake legacy of SamuelBaker, whofirst cameto overflowing withallmannerof vegetables, a chocolate cake. tea withaslice(ortwo)of theirdelicious tea cheaply here andenjoyafree cupof you around.Youcanbuyboxes of good willwilling the roadsideandstaff ly show convenient on factorytovisitasit’sright 120-year-old a 247 8397;ceylonhotels.lk; rwith/withoutair-conUS$35/25; in recent years. some localsforunusualclimaticconditions velopment Project, andpartlyblamedby place created aspartof theMahaweli De- from alittlefurtheruptheroad.It’slarge canbelooked downon Oya Reservoir) fine views. rooms inacolonial-stylebungalowwith the cool. inscrutably here, and there are photosof him looking Bachchansuperstar Amitabh oncestayed a lookbefore checking in.Indianmovie withbalconies,sodohaveairy andbright 16 roomsare abitmustybutothers are also anarrowpathtothefalls.Someof the able. Ifyouwanttoventure further,there’s Tasty andreasonably pricedmealsare avail- verandapleasant fromwhich to viewthem. andthere’s arestaurantmarvellous witha view youget of thefallsfromhere isquite asyoutravelyour right fromKandy. The isdownavery steep driveway to ervoir, boda Falls andneartheKothmaleRes- created by converging brooks. 1.5km fromtheroad,isadoublewaterfall Closer toNuwaraEliyaareCloser roadsidestalls At Pussellawa, 45kmfromKandy,At Pussellawa, the Ktml Reservoir Kothmale On theA5,5kmbefore NuwaraEliya, Ramboda Falls Hotel Ramboda ) hasfourreasonably well-maintained Labookellie Labookellie Tea Factory , about58kmfromKandy, byRam- Pussellawa Rest House Pussellawa Rest Ramboda Falls Ramboda (alsoknownasPuna

( www.lonelyplanet.com %

( h 052-225 9582;rfrom (108m),about 8am-6.30pm)

( % isa 031- www.lonelyplanet.com yourself needing to sleep withtwo blankets to sleep needing yourself In January andFebruary youmay find thanKandy.Nuwara Eliya ismuch higher gardening centres. main market-making thisoneof SriLanka’s many have turnedover been tovegetables, withlargecountry-style houses gardens– more itself. BritishthanBritain the 18-holegolf course allsomehow seem tures, mounted fishandhunting trophiesand HillClubwithitshunting pic- house–styled theEnglish country theracecourse, office, British governor calledthem.Theoldpost planters –the‘wildmenof thehills’asone was afavoured stompinggroundforthetea roofed names.It bungalows sportingtwee ish village, gardensandred- withhedges, rose still keep theatmosphere of amisplacedBrit- centre isaconcrete buttheoutskirts tangle than anyplaceinthesubcontinent. The town atmospherenial hillstation more completely iya, meaning‘Cityof keeps itscolo- Light’) The summerresort of Nuwara Eliya(nu- % NUWARA ELIYA Come prepared cool– for the evening Nuwara Eliyahas afairassortmentof teas homewithyou. fromplantationsorshopstotake number ofhotels, guesthousesandrestaurants willyougetaqualitycup.Butcanbuyfine blending varioustypes–abitofthisforflavour,thatbody. tea issomethingbetweenthetwo.Mid-grown Regularcommercialteas are usuallymadeby teasThe (over high-grown 1200m)growmore slowlyand are renowned fortheirsubtleflavour. teasgrown. The (under600m)growstronglyandare low-grown highin‘body’butlow‘flavour’. as flowery,pekoeorsouchong).Tea orhigh- mid-grown categorised intolow-grown, isfurther gradesto‘leaf’tea)cheap ‘dust’throughfanningsandbroken andbyquality(withnamessuch leaf. Toursoftea are plantationsandfactories readily availableallover SriLanka. in knowingwhentostopthefermentation, by‘firing’thetea toproducethefinal,brown-black leaves afermentation are process. thencrushed,whichstarts intea comes production The art the leaves are spread outonhessianmats,orinmodern mechanised troughs. dried The partly a fixed temperature throughthem)eitherin theold-fashionedmultistorey tea where factories, theleaves andbuds.bushes picking These are then‘withered’ (demoisturisedbyblowingairat to about1minheightandsquadsofTamil tea (allwomen)move pluckers throughtherowsof onebigteathe area plantation. isvirtually Country–andtodaywarm climate, descriptionoftheHill altitudeandslopingterrain –aperfect byoneJamesTaylor.1867 attheLooleconderaEstate, alittlesoutheastofKandy, Tea needsa tea wasgrownindestroyed byadevastatingdiseaseinthe19thcentury.The firstSriLankan asanemergency substituteLanka forcoffee whentheextensive coffee plantations were allbut Tea economyandamajorexport. remains acornerstoneoftheSriLankan Tea cametoSri THE TEAHILLS 052 / pop 25,966 / elev 1889m 052 /pop25,966elev Sri Lanka maygrowsomevery finetea OnlyinasmallSri Lanka butmostofthebestisexported. There isalarge numberoftypesandvarietiesteas, whichare gradedbothbysize (from Tea growsonabush;ifitisn’tcutcangrowupto10mhigh.Tea bushesare prunedback rel - Nuwara Eliya istheElysium of Ceylon.’ the eyes of theEuropean andtheinvalid, E Tennent wrote in torium’s reputation becamesuch thatSirJ adecadelater.for asanatorium Thesana- John Davy asthesite in1819and chosen having ‘discovered’ been bycolonialofficer Eliya becameasingularly Britishcreation, (aka MtPedro,rutalagala 2524m), Nuwara and meadowslying intheshadowof Pidu- Originally anuninhabited system of forests History then,too.elict racecourse races are heldonthepicturesque semider- theroof. through Horseany atall–goes cost of accommodation –ifyoucanfind NewYear.Lankan Atthattimeof yearthe for socialites duringApril,aroundthe Sri on rainydays.NuwaraEliyaisthe ‘inplace’ grey andgriminapeculiarlyScottish way and allyourclotheson.Thetown canbe where ‘English’ vegetables and fruitssuch as or hotel. gling toget acommission foraguesthouse Later the district became known as a spot the district became known asaspot Later The townhasanabundance of toutsan- THE HILLCOUNTRY••NuwaraEliya Ceylon in1859 that ‘In

199 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ

THE HILL COUNTRY Nwr Eliya Nuwara 200 4 6 1 3 2 5 NUWARA ELIYA

Course Bandaran Golf Kandy (80km) Factory (15km); Labookellie; Tea Pidurutalagala (5km); Guest House(4km); To PalmFoundation THEHILLCOUNTRY••NuwaraEliya

(700m) Lion Guesthouse To Rising

Unique

17 St. A St.

ndr aike ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ ews To Single 19 Tree Hill

(1.7km)

Mw

View Rd AC

Rd Grand Hotel Rd Hotel Grand 23 14

Golf Course Waterfield Dr Ka

Haddon Hill Rd n Lawson Rd Rd dy 8 29

21 Badulla Rd Badulla to Pidurutalagala Golf Course Cross St Walking Track 24

16 Unique View Rd View Unique 31 3 15 Chapel St 18 (5km) 20 Ὀ ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ 5 30 28 11 1 12 26 33 13 Hill St 27

Queen Elizabeth Rd (Badulla Rd) 7

25 New Bazaar St Bazaar New 10 32 2 B

4 Keena Rd Uda Puss Uda 9 6 Jayathilaka Mw Victoria

Park Gemunu Mw ellawa

Nuwara Eliya Race Course

Park Rd Park

Long

don Rd don

Rd

Grandstand Lady

Railway Station Rd Station Railway McCallum's Dr McCallum's

Wedde Nanu Oya Nanu Horton PlainsNational To NanuOya(9km); 22 Colombo (180km)

Park (32km); rbu Wedderburn Rd Kandapola (8km);

rn Badulla Rd Badulla Ragalla (12km); Estate (3.5km);

Rd Hotel (14km) To PedroTea

Tea Factory

ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ Uda Pussellawa Rd Pussellawa Uda Uda Pussellawa Rd Church Rd

Upper Lake Rd 400m 0.2miles 0 0 TRANSPORT DRINKING EATING SLEEPING SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES INFORMATION Private BusStation...... CTB BusStation...... Lion Pub...... Milano Restaurant...... Grand Indian...... De SilvaFoodCentre...... Central Market...... Cargill's FoodCity...... Windsor Hotel...... Single TreeHotel...... St Andrew'sHotel...... Hotel TreeofLife...... Hotel Sunhill...... Hotel Glendower...... ...... Heritage...... Hellenic HolidayHome...... Haddon HillHotel...... Grosvenor Hotel...... Grand Hotel...... Collingwood Hotel...... Ascot Hotel&Restaurant...... Alpine Hotel...... Entrance...... Pony Rides...... Nuwara EliyaGolfClub...... Alpine Adventurers...... (see11) Vijitha Graphics...... Seylan Bank...... Post Office...... People's Bank...... Hatton NationalBank...... Commercial Bank...... Bank ofCeylon...... Victoria ParkTicketOffice& King PrawnRestaurant...... (see20) To BoathouseRestaurant (1km); Seetha Amman Temple (8km); Hakgala Gardens(8.8km); www.lonelyplanet.com Badulla (56km) Lake Gregory D Pidurutalagala Forest Reserve 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 A5 B5 B5 A4 B5 B5 B5 B3 B5 A3 B2 B3 B3 B3 B3 B3 B2 B3 B3 B3 B3 A4 B3 B3 B2 B2 B5 A1 C4 A5 B4 A3 B4 what theplacelooked like previously. invisibletoanyoneunawaresince been of during 1983riots,butthedamage haslong Tamils. Thetownwaspartiallyransacked of and thelocalSinhalese tension between north, there have occasionaloutbreaks been of theethnicstrife endemictoJaffna andthe have out usuallystayed northern SriLanka) called todistinguishthemfromTamils in Tamils’‘plantation (astheyare sometimes thedescendantsof British. Although these Tamils, fromsouthernIndiabythe brought of thelabourers were onthetea plantations proudly borne. the HillCountry’s‘tea atitlestill capital’, becoming ful, thetownquicklyfounditself Kandy. As tea experimentsproved success- NuwaraEliyaand between in themountains were planted Lanka atLooleconderaEstate, to tea. Thefirst inSri tea leaves harvested thecolonistsswitched failed duetodisease, here, but after theisland’scoffee plantations nists. Coffee wasoneof thefirst crops grown fully grownforconsumptionbythecolo- lettuce andstrawberriescouldbesuccess- www.lonelyplanet.com long-distance phone callshere. letters andpostcards, youcan alsoconveniently make public holidays) Asidefrombuying stamps ormailing Post office People’s Bank Hatton NationalBank Commercial Bank Bank ofCeylon has anATM. travellers cheques, butonlyPeople’s Bank The major banksintown canexchange Information arehouses clustered nearby. Rd)–manyofas Badulla thecheaper guest- ElizabethRd(also known will enter Queen St,you alongNewBazaar the busstation onyourleft).Ifyouheadsouthfrom course the golf FoodCity(youcansee to Cargills you veer leftintoKandy Rd,youwillcome If ofsor Hotel andnearbyisBank Ceylon. eateries. Atthetopof thestreet istheWind- central market andacollectionof cheap Stisthe Further northalongNewBazaar theroadisVictoriaPark. St.Over Bazaar and fromtheprivate onNew busstation Rd Station leaveCTB buses fromRailway Orientation As elsewhere intheHillCountry, most (BadullaRd; (Park Rd) (LawsonRd) (Park Rd) h (Badulla Rd) 7am-8pm Mon-Sat, closed from Nuwara Eliya(take aWelimada-bound which means ‘jaw-rock’. The gardens growonarock calledHakgala, his jaw,hoping theherbwas growingonit. to bringachunk of theHimalayasback in which herbhewaslooking foranddecided find aparticular medicinal herb.He forgot by god, wassent totheHimalayas Rama fernsroses, andmedicinalplants. garden of over 27hectares, famed forits the 1940s.TodayHakgala isadelightful familyforthreethe same generations until plants tolife inthetropics,andwere runby periments inacclimatisingtemperate-zone the gardensweretracted. forex- Later, used which theantimalarialdrugquinineis ex- ofally aplantation cinchona, theplantfrom Eliya (andabout 200mlower),wasorigin- h dusk) 28 DailyFair Rd)Internetaccess. Trade Complex,Kandy you uptowhat’slocallyknownas brewery (alas,notours). Asideroadtakes you’ll passHawa Eliya,thesite of theLion inNuwaraEliya. bus station Onthewayout bus(bus743)fromthemain Ragalla-bound ing time. Alternatively youcouldhopona cost Rs400to500return, includingwait- A three-wheeler fromNuwaraEliyashould wheretea house youcanhave atea break. there’slooking theplantations a pleasant at,runforabout ahalf-hour.marvel Over- much to contains 19th-centuryengineering which wasoriginallybuiltin1885andstill to Kandapola. Guidedtours of thefactory, about 3.5kmeastof NuwaraEliyaontheway The lovely Sights Graphics Vijitha Bank Seylan view of thecountryside. ers actuallywere). Fromhere youget agood (there are various storiesastowhothelov- Estate cuppa comesfrom,headtothe and grey tit. cluding theKashmir flycatcher, Indianpitta number of HillCountrybirdspecies,in- and September. It’salsohometoquite a flowers aroundMarch toMay, andAugust The Hakgala Gardens is ashortbus ride hasitthatHanuman,Legend themonkey The If you’re where keen agood,strong tosee 7.30am-5pm) atthecentre of town comesalive with THE HILLCOUNTRY••NuwaraEliya

(admission Rs50; Hakgala Gardens Hakgala (Park Rd) Victoria Park Victoria , 10kmsoutheastof Nuwara ( % 223 4966;[email protected]; h

(admission Rs10; 8.30am-12.30pm &2-5pm) (adult/student Rs300/200; Lovers Leap Lovers Pedro Tea h dawn- 201

THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY 2300, caddiefee per3hrRs700) green &holidaysRs1900/ fees weekdaystill3pm/weekends GOLF the racecourse. like togive their children ponyrideson to 200perhour. HolidayingSriLankans guests canusuallyplayforaroundRs125 Glendower allhave snooker rooms;non- Grand Hotel, StAndrew’s Hotel andHotel Activities Hindu thecolourful the 83kmpost,stopofftosee tions nearby. bus). There are someaccommodationop- 202 (per day Rs500) canarrangehouses for outskirts of town.Most hotels andguest- trails radiating intothe hillsfromthe Fat-tyre fanswill find plentyof steepdirt CYCLING point tostophere for phant. Tamil weddingpartiesmake ita ele- tobethefootprintsofsaid Rawana’s stream are anumberof circulardepressions and rescue her. Ontherockface acrossthe where sheprayeddailyfor tocome Rama and captive bythedemonkingRawana, tomarkthespotwhere washeld said Sita chops withmintforaround Rs300. classic blandEnglish cuisine such asgrilled room. Dinnerin the diningroomincludes grounds are abadminton hallandbilliard inafaketo talk Oxbridge accent.Also onthe wood-lined barthatalmostencourages you ‘decent’ golfattire. Theclubhasaconvivial Womencanwear length), socksandshoes. with collarandslacksorshorts (of adecent dressThe clubexpectsacertain code: shirt forRs150perday. per dayandgolfshoes holes. Youcanhire golfclubsforRs400 3pm green fees droptolessthanhalfforsix after by payingRs100perday.Onweekdays holes. Youcanbecomeatemporary member rivers andstreams –comesintoplayonsix tothisday.Water –intheform of survives timesbut tough through The clubhasbeen town, andtheclubwasfounded in1889. land fordrives andputtsin theirholiday didn’t take thetea planters longtolayout from GrandHotel Rd,isbeautifullykept. It On thewayouttoHakgala Gardens,near THEHILLCOUNTRY••NuwaraEliya Seetha AmmanTempleSeetha .

( % , which spreads north pujas mountain-bike rental rental mountain-bike 223 4360;fax2222835; at Sita Eliya. It’s atSita . 2653; [email protected]; perhrRs250). 2653; [email protected]; 4 Haddon Hill Rd) 4 HaddonHill e p205. see For more information onthisdestination, fromHaputale.way. Itcostsabout thesame be andthetriptakes about 1½hours one cludes ballsandracquethire. don Hill Rd) don Hill based at based Rs 1700.Oneof thebetter 4WDtours is price foruptofivestandard passengers is Plains NationalPark andWorld’sEnd.The arrange daytripsbycaror4WDto Horton Most intowncan hotels andguesthouses Tours There are tennis courts atthe TENNIS then take theleft-handpath. Rd asfarthecommunicationstower and ElizabethRd,goup Haddonon Queen Hill To get here walksouthoutof Nuwara Eliya Hill someunfortunate pooch.and devour sometimes descendtotheedges of town are afew which leopardsonthemountain, into therare, indigenous cloud-forest. There keeps thetownsuppliedwithfirewood) and theexoticeucalyptusforestthrough (which Keena Rd,which leadsalongalittleravine zone. Followthepathfrom a high-security far asaconcrete beyondhere water tank; is the public.Youcanwalkabout4kmupas which meansthepeakisoutof boundsto transmitter, theisland’smainTV stands behindthetown.Ontop gala (2524m),rises mountain, highest Sri Lanka’s Pidurutala- WALKING atRs250. start races usuallybeginaround10.30am;bets held over theAprilNewYear The season. yearistheGovernor’s every event Cuprace, fanatics.Themostimportant horse-racing are IndianandArab filledwithSinhalese, thestandsand April–May seasons high andduringtheDecember–JanuaryCourse ing atthe1875-vintage NuwaraEliyaRace TurfClubsponsors The SriLanka horse rac- HORSE RACING the area. andrafting tours ining, mountaineering Alpine Adventurers An alternative walkistogo (2100m),which takes about90minutes. . The road is better than it used to . Theroadisbetter than itused Single Tree Hotel Single Tree specialises intrekking, specialises camp-

( % www.lonelyplanet.com

222 3500; Alpine Hotel, ( % 222 3009;1/8Had- Hill Club Hill Thefee in- Single Tree Single Tree

( % 222 hotmail.com; 5GrandHotelRd;r/ste Rs1800/3000; rooms have asmallbalcony. thekitchen. Someofand guestscanuse the chitecture buttheroomsare niceandclean The owners are very friendly. andallthe roomsnowhavestay hotwater. dirt frontyard,it’s basicallyanOKplaceto pensive innsin town.Despite anuninviting Elizabeth Rd;rRs950) The family room sleeps six. The familyroomsleeps home that’sfilledwithantiquefurniture. at thefrontare thebestinthiscolonial-era Rd; s/dRs1000/1200) from abroad. in Augustwhenpackage tours descend crease duringlong-weekend holidaysand times theirnormalprice. Pricesalso in- New Year inApril,roomsare three tofive monoxide poisoning(which canbefatal). or anopenwindow,youmayget carbon more. Make sure theroomhasventilation for which you’llbeasked topayRs100or ing warmistoget afire litinyourroom, Anotherwayof keep- hot-water service. it toheatup;onlyahandfulhave a24-hour hot water, butinmanyyouhave towait for the altitude. Allplacestostay atalmostanytimeofnight year,owingto blanketsside. You’ll need tokeep warm at as thebudget hotels canbeonthedreary being abitchoosy aboutwhere youlodge, Nuwara Eliyaisaplacewhere it’sworth Sleeping www.lonelyplanet.com Hotel Glendower Hotel MIDRANGE moresarily comfortable. the more-modern placesbutaren’t neces- antique furniture charge rates than higher withhistoricarchitectureGuesthouses and BUDGET Queen ElizabethRd;s/d/fRs750/1200/3000) rooms isadefinite cutabove itsrivals, with withsizable This rambling colonial house Rd; s/dRs900/1200) local andregional tours. helpful ownercanarrange allmannerof elling (upstairs roomsare best),andthe recently renovated withlotsof woodpan- Ascot Hotel &Restaurant Hotel Ascot Haddon Hill Hotel Haddon Hill During the ‘season’, around Sri Lankan aroundSriLankan During the‘season’, Single Tree Hotel Single Tree Collingwood Hotel Collingwood Hotel

Itwon’twinprizesforar- Thisisoneof theleastex- ( The10roomshere were %

( ( % % ( % 222 2501; hotel_glendower@ 222 3550;fax2234500;112 222 3009; 178 Haddon Hill 222 3009;178HaddonHill 222 3500; 8B Haddon Hill 222 3500;8BHaddonHill

( % 222 2708;120Queen claim Therooms tohave i )

ste US$70-85) incl breakfast Rs1650/1980) stand-bys like StAndrew’s andHillClub. inely friendlythanthatfoundattheoldposh abitbetter andmore seems genu- service and restaurant roundoutthepackage. The teak furnishings. Agoodbar,billiardroom offers large airyroomswithcolonial-style Course and opposite theNuwaraEliyaRace cently renovated hotel behindVictoriaPark the Britishgovernor’s mansion,thishuge, re- Rd; rRs1500) 485/5 Toppass-Kandy 2839; www.palmfoundationsrilanka.org; a goodsnooker room upstairs. and afireplace, acosyEnglish-stylebarand alargecroquet set, lounge withsoft couches apretty gardenwitha helpful, friendlystaff, 4042; 3 Sri Piyatissapura;4042; 3 Sri rRs 900-1800) 2 WedderburnRd;s/d/tr US$24/32/38; with advancenotice. a local NGOthatacceptsskilledvolunteers activitiesofdevelopment Palm Foundation, gotowardthehol proceeds istic community the surroundingforest and lime. Possibleadventures organic gardeninthefrontyardare sub- Eliya proper. fromthe andsunrises Sunsets hundredand several metres above Nuwara kilometresaccommodations several north on theroadtoKandy offers basic, homey tours forguests. arrange hiking,trekking andbird-watching hired forRs500perday.Thefrontdeskcan a large restaurant. bikes Mountain can be decentrooms and The innhas25passably rooms and a comfortable loungerooms andacomfortable room. nor, theGrosvenor has10spacious,simple old andoncebelonging toacolonialgover- weekend evenings. raoke machine andcanget rathernoisyon ter-value deluxe rooms.Thebarhasaka- place hasboxlike roomsbutbet- standard above town,this place hascheerfully odd .com; 4 Haddon Hill Rd;s/d/trRs3600/4300/5000; .com; 4HaddonHill faded rooms. a lovely gardenand sixwell-furnished but year-old colonial-stylebungalowfeatures 18 UniqueViewRd;rstandard/deluxe Rs1300/2000) Palm FoundationGuesthouse Heritage Hotel Sunhill Hotel Grosvenor Hotel Grosvenor Hotel Tree ofLife Tree Hotel Alpine Hotel Rising Lion Guesthouse Rising THE HILLCOUNTRY••NuwaraEliya Formerly Ceybank Rest, and once Rest,andonce FormerlyCeybank

Thisnewplaceoutsideof town ( %

222 3053; [email protected]; r US$45-55, rUS$45-55, 222 3053;[email protected];

( % (

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% ( % 222 3500;www.alpineecotravels 222 2878;[email protected]; 222 2307; 6 Haddon Hill Rd;s/d 222 2307;6HaddonHill More than100years 222 3684;hoteltreeoflife.com;

( % include hikes into into include hikes tea gardens. All All gardens. tea ( 222 2083; fax 223 s Perched high % ) 222 4033, 222 222 4033, This106- ia This 203

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THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Unique ViewRd;s/dRs1500/2000) cost Rs100. here should wheeler fromthebusstation peted roomsof reasonable quality.Athree- place hassuperbviewsand10modern,car- Rd; rUS$50) substantial thantheratessubstantial suggest. pensive andmore expensive roomsismore the beds.Thedifference thelessex- between offers hot-waterweather thestaff bottlesfor rooms are immaculate; duringboutsof cold room beneathapressed-copper roof. The inthedining European dinners are served white cast-ironfurniture, andfive-course planter’s club.There are terraced lawnswith looking thegolfcourse, thiswasoncea of over- townonabeautifullygroomedrise /andrews; 10StAndrew’s Dr;rUS$84-108; Hotel St Andrew’s TOP END or fromNanuOyaforRs200. forfree,pick youupfromthebusstation will views.Ifyouringaheadthestaff spiffy ready, andthemore expensive oneshave clean, homelyroomsallhave fireplaces interesting sidetripsinthearea. The13 very personable andhave lotsof adviceon taste infurnishingsandart. Thehostsare 204 .lk; s/d inoldwing US$74/92, innewwing US$101/127) i 29 GrandHotelRd;rUS$40-100,fUS$115,ste US$115-140; better atHeritage off orSt Andrew’s. Hence, thesuites you’llbe ifyoucan’tafford have furnishings given substandard theprice. charming buttheregular roomsare smalland gardens are immaculate. Thesuites are very to guestsandnonguests, andthelawns the tillsringing.Tennis courtsare available (Rs 100perday) are welcome tohelpkeep with Londonclubs. Temporary members the current members have reciprocal rights British colonialmaleprivilege –and, infact, nial tradition.It’slike of alivingmuseum women butremains very much inthe colo- and 1970, HillClubnowadmitsSriLankans Right by thegolf course, this isavast mock- Right isfriendly. the staff is more tasteful. Theroomsare cleanand bit jadedfromtheoutsidebut interior in themiddleof town,theWindsorlooksa Windsor Hotel Hellenic HolidayHome Grand Hotel Hill Club Hill ) A preserve of theBritishmaleuntil Apreserve THEHILLCOUNTRY••NuwaraEliya Oneof NuwaraEliya’slandmarks

( %

( %

222 2653; www.hillclubsrilanka.com; 222 2653;www.hillclubsrilanka.com; ( %

222 2881-7; tangerinetours@eureka ( % 222 2554; fax 222 2889; 2 Kandy 222 2554;fax2889;2Kandy 222 2445;

( % Thiswell-situated /fax 2235872;49/1

www.jetwing.net i ) North

and Chinese fare.and Chinese SriLankan along abusymainstreet serves s/dUS$106/141) pence.lk; Kandapola; tarians, aswell. tarians, available, andtherestaurant caters tovege- menuitems are standard All theChinese outside of Colomboandthebeach resorts. foodintown,perhapsChinese thebest thebest room of Hotel Glendowerserves mation available on what to see anddo.mation available onwhattosee from thefrontdeskthere’s plentyof infor- the walksarounditare very and pleasant of thedécor. Theviewsfromthehotel and bits andpiecesof factorymachinery aspart transformed intoa57-roomhotel, leaving tory, 14kmeastof NuwaraEliya,hasbeen Rs 120-250) choices inthisdepartment. Alpine Hotel andHotel Sunhillare allgood particularly inspiring.CollingwoodHotel, alone restaurants inthetowncentre aren’t drinking inNuwaraEliya,asmoststand- safest bets whenitcomestoeatingand andhotels areGuesthouses amongthe Eating &Drinking improvement.could stilluse of theiroriginalfeatures, andtheservice theroomshaveroom. However, lostmost ing lounge andawood-panelledbilliards Tudor pilewithimmaculate lawns,aread- corner pockets) boardsto passthe time. bles and air hockey –you flickdisks into are snooker, carrom(a cross between mar- and restaurant with anauticaltheme. There thisisa popularlocallakesideseasons, bar August, December–January andAprilpeak vegetarian thaliforRs210. withmince) forRs215,ora (dosa dosa southern dishes. Tryacone-shaped inexpensive Indianfood,with northernand excellentand glass-walled cafeteria serves Out thefrontof GrandHotel, thismodern, dishes Rs125-300) Hotel Rd;dishesRs250-500) and Chinese dishes. and Chinese and areliable Western menuof SriLankan, withfriendly service De SilvaFoodCentre, 350) Milano Restaurant Milano De SilvaFoodCentre Grand Indian Tea Hotel Factory King PrawnRestaurant King Boathouse Restaurant Thisisamore middle-class version of Thisinexpensive eatery located Openonlyduring theJuly–

(Grand HotelRd;dishesRs150-300)

( (94 NewBazaarSt;dishesRs150- %

Therelaxed dining

222 3600;ashmres@aitkens (90 NewBazaarSt;dishes

www.lonelyplanet.com (Badulla Rd, Lake Gregory; (Badulla Rd,Lake (Hotel Glendower,5Grand Thistea fac- kheema

tag, butmostpeopleenjoytheexperience.tag, especially withsuch arelatively price high live expectations, uptoeveryone’s doesn’t a Rs100temporary joiningfee. Thefood here, thenight you’llhavestaying topay wear.some turnupinevening If you’re not attiredbe suitably inadress ordress slacks; nationaldress. Womenmustalso Lankan on hand,buttheysometimesrunout)orSri must wearatieandjacket (there are afew Menand linentablecloths andserviettes. colonial panache: gloved waiters, candles, The wholethingiscarriedoff withfaded ably less,butyoustillhave toeatat8pm. order off theàlacarte menuforconsider- trimmings promptlyat8pm.Youcanalso withallthe rack of lamband thelike, served onroast beef, menufocuses five-course set Club ( opposite The initself. ) isanevent Food Cityforcanned goods. market forfresh produceandtoCargills lagerdraught atlocalprices. town centre isasgoodaspotanyfor and thisversion sittingatthe edge of the tohave seems a‘LionPub’, size inSriLanka few times daily,or more frequent departures to HaputaleCTB buses (Rs50, 2½hours) a express Rs220, sixhours). There are direct are to/fromColombo (intercity alsobuses leave 30minutes every to anhour. There climb.Buses bus orvan.It’sa spectacular and costsRs125in aprivate intercity express The tripfromKandy takes aboutfourhours BUS &Away There Getting Rs 400-600) mains Rs500-1100) nary pillars of theBritishEmpire. at thelatter, theemphasisisonstolidculi- membership anddress codeof HillClub.As at thishotel ( opposite ), minusthetemporary optionistheairydiningroom evening-out and backcostsRs700to800. herein thesurroundingtea estate. Ataxi can workupanappetite bygoingforawalk food.You Western andSriLankan passable quite is acosybarandrestaurant serving and green doors of thefactory-turned-hotel fromUS$5) dinner US$17,àlacarte St Andrew’s Hotel St Andrew’s Club Hill Self-caterers shouldheadfor thecentral Self-caterers Tea Hotel Factory Lion Pub Behind thecorrugated-iron walls Behind

( % (Lawson St) 222 2653;29GrandHotelRd;setcourse Another colonial nostalgia Anothercolonialnostalgia

( ( % % Almost every townof Almostevery 222 2445;10StAndrew’s Dr; 222 3600; Kandapola; mains 222 3600;Kandapola; THE HILL COUNTRY •• Horton PlainsNationalPark &World’sEnd THE HILLCOUNTRY••Horton DinneratHill 2nd/1st classcostRs51/94/240. ing ontoColombo. Fares toKandy in3rd/ reaching Kandy at4.35pmbefore continu- 9.35am; the not stoppinginKandy) leaves NanuOyaat filigree waterfalls andmistylakes. with patches of thick forest, rockyoutcrops, covered bywildgrasslandsandinterspersed form anundulatingplateau over 2000mhigh, edges of theplateau. The ‘plains’themselves (2359m),rearingand Totapola upfromthe (2395m) –Kirigalpotta mountains highest andthird- second- the shadowsof SriLanka’s strange worldwithsomeexcellenthikes in The WORLD’S ENDHorton Plainsisabeautiful,silent, PLAINSNATIONALHORTON PARK & 9.45am (via Kandy) reaches NanuOyaat1pm.The (Rs 250to300)fromthestation. in bytouts.Youcanalsoalwaystake ataxi themaintrains,sodon’tgetmeet sucked Colombo. (Rs13toNuwaraEliya) Buses 9km alongtheroadtowardsHatton and byNanuOya,about butisserved station, nothaveNuwara Eliyadoes itsowntrain TRAIN leaves each morningaround7.30am. hours) express toeight bus(Rs260,seven to Matara onthesouthcoast,oneintercity can change at Welimada. Toget localbuses of direct CTBbus (Rs 44,three hours) oryou youhaveSimilarly, forBandarawela achoice can change toaHaputale-bound bus(Rs22). to Welimada(Rs23,onehour),where you ally the clearest months, weatherwise. take a hataswell. January toMarch are usu- sweater, but the plainsquickly warmup,so longtrousers andamorning you’llneed andearly the clouds rollin.Inthe evening and 10am)isthe besttimetovisit,before tember. 6am Theearly morning(between fromApriltoSep- ing therainyseason often obscured bymist,particularlydur- fortunately theview from World’s Endis downfor880m.Un- drops almoststraight World’s End,astunning escarpmentthat west, the 3rd/2nd/1st classcostRs30/119/155.Going about 3.40pm.Fares in onwardstoBadulla (not viaKandy) reaches NanuOyaat The plateau comestoasuddenendat The 8.56am Udarata Menike Udarata Menike Podi Menike Podi Menike leaves at12.55pm, toColombo(but fromColombo fromColombo

205 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ ὈὈὈὈὈ

THE HILL COUNTRY that will contain educational displays. that willcontain rently beingconverted intoavisitors centre ranking British colonialofficials,iscur- asahuntinglodge for high- once served track toWorld’sEnd.Farr which Innitself, the ashy-headed babbler, the Ceylon hill the ashy-headed babbler, the Ceylon yellow-eared warbler, bulbul, thefantailed watchers. Endemic specieshere includethe the endemic toquemacaque. grunt).Youmayalsocomeacross wheezy woods aroundWorld’s End(itscallisa the Ohiyaroad, andoccasionallyinthe intheforest on langur) issometimes seen bear-monkeyThe shaggy (or purple-faced feeding inmeadowsatdawnand dusk. seen andwildboarareSambar deer commonly century, butthere are stillafew leopards. parted thearea inthefirst halfof the20th range of wildlife. Thelast few elephantsde- the HortonPlainsplayshostto awide year-roundfor several rivers andstreams, As watershed animportant andcatchment WILDLIFE Sights &Activities US$12/6; The hour walkuphillfromOhiyatrainstation. three- smaller cars not.It’sastiff might Eliya. Vans and4WDs canmake itup,but reachable byroadfrom Ohiya orNuwara tre, andthenearbynationalparkoffice are Farr Inn,alocallandmarkandvisitors cen- Information 206 Plains & Horton World’s End HORTON PLAINS&WORLD'SEND The area is very popular withbird- THE HILL COUNTRY •• Horton PlainsNationalPark &World’sEnd THEHILLCOUNTRY••Horton national parkoffice Diyagama (6km) To h Baker’s  Falls 6.30am-6.30pm) To PattipolaTrain World's End Station (6km); Nuwara Eliya (21km)

( is at the start of isatthestart the % Farr Inn   070 522042;adult/child National Park Little World'sEnd Office; Kiosk Camp Sites Horton National Park Horton Plains Plains Mahaeliya Lodge 30km Post ὈὈ ὈὈ Bambarakanda Falls get crowded. Guides at the national park office get crowded. Guides at the national parkoffice on Sunday and public holidays, whenit can on theway out.Trytoavoid doingthiswalk walkingearlierand pay you canactually start theticketthough gate isopen from6.30am after thistimeisaswirling white wall.Al- fromWorld’sEnd All youcanexpect tosee the mistusuallycomes down–andit’sthick. awarethree hours. thatafter about10am Be round tripis9.5km andusuallytakes around can walktotheentrance (another3.5km);the back toBaker’s Falls (2km),fromwhere you World’s Endisabout 4km,butthetrailloops own (ondesignated trailsonly).Thewalkto where visitors are permitted towalkontheir This isthe onlynationalparkinSriLanka WORLD’S END and thendies. Strobilanthes has blood-red blossoms.Thepurple-leafed species is Tolkienesque appearance. Anothernotable givingthemastrange,lichen andmosses, The stunted trees andshrubsare drapedin main canopyover forest montane areas. somed keena num). Theumbrella-shaped, white-blos- are hometocopiousbogmoss(sphag- covers thegrasslands,whilemarshy areas of prey hawkeagle. includethe mountain bluemagpie. Birds catcher andtheCeylon lon white-eyed arrenga, thedusky-blue fly- blackbird,white-eye, theCey- theCeylon Giniheriya Lodge A tuftyspeciesof grass called Tea Plantation Tunnel (out ofbounds) Udaviriya To Ohiya(4km); World's End Poor Man's Nuwara Eliya Rhododendron zelanicum, (32km) blossomsonceafter five years, (Calophyllum) To MainRd(A4)(2km); Belihul Oya(12km); Haputale (15km) Ohiya 22km Post 0 0 Shop To Haputale (17km) stand asthe stand Crosypogon 1 mile which 2 km

near the start ofnear thestart the World’s Endtrack). your ownrisk. ofalthough courseyoufollowtheadviceat without beingslugged withthe entryfees, sources forinnovative theplains waystosee Travellers’ hauntsinHaputale are good intheareacaught willget aRs10,000fine. fencedEnd, butithasbeen andanyone off World’s End,dubbedPoorMan’s World’s up toFarr InnfromOhiyatrainstation. therethough are toiletsontheroad coming There are notoiletsenroute toWorld’sEnd, litter, anditisforbiddentoleave thepaths. Theauthoritieshavecase. cracked downon chilly andmisty.Bringwarmclothingjustin minute itcanbesunnyandclear,thenext can change very quicklyontheplains–one who forget tobringsupplies.Theweather at theparkoffice makes akillingfrompeople water, aswellsomethingtoeat.Theshop (you canget really burntuphere) andlotsof Bringsunscreen ahatandsunglasses. shoes, consideration forsolowomentravellers. bea flora andfauna,hiringonemight Some guidesare wellinformedonthearea’s guides, butexpecttodonate asimilaramount. there’swalk –theysay nofee forthevolunteer expect aboutRs500toaccompanyyouonthe the and you mustbookaheadthrough staying, The lodges openup onlywhenpeopleare all of yourowndryrationsandkerosene. charge. Youmustbring per groupservice US$2 pergroupfor linenhire andaUS$30 US$24 perdayplus theUS$12parkentry, beds each, andthecharge forforeigners is haeliya Lodge. 10 Thebungalowscontain be knownasAnderson Lodge, and Ma- GiniheriyaLodge, to can stay: which used bungalowswhere you life Conservation There are twobasicDepartmentof Wild- Sleeping &Eating World’s End. also operate tripstoHorton’sPlains and inNuwaraEliyaandHaputaleGuesthouses arrange guidedhikes thepark. through Hill SafariEco-Lodge ( right ) in Ohiya can Tours pp84-5; Cinnamon Gardens, Col7) Cinnamon Gardens, There are two campsites (signposted There tobeafree alternative used to walking Wear strongandcomfortable Department of WildlifeConservation Department % 011-269 4241; .

www.dwlc.lk; 18Gregory’s Rd, THE HILL COUNTRY •• Horton PlainsNationalPark &World’sEnd THE HILLCOUNTRY••Horton

(Map (Map half-board perpersonRs1000) waiting time. should costaboutRs1000return, including getting toFarr Inn(40minutes oneway) Fromthere,ing attheOhiyatrainstation. the parkentrance,there isoften wait- ataxi If youdon’tfeel like walkinguptheroad to TAXI &Away There Getting charge perstay). Rs 600service plus thecamp-site fee (Rs600 perday,plus are obliged topaytheUS$12parkentryfee you are insidetheWorld’sEndparkyou Because youneed. must bringeverything is water atthesites you butnothingelse; Therepartment of Wildlife Conservation. canalsobebooked theDe- These through catch sight ofcatch sight monkeys. theforestand onthewaythrough youmay journey on theopenplains.It’sapleasant forestand turnsthrough before emerging intwists turn). FromOhiyatheroadrises Haputale toFarr Innbyroad(Rs1800re- Ohiya. ing alternative innearby wouldbetostay one way (around Rs 1800 by taxi). one way(aroundRs1800bytaxi). about 1½hourswara Eliya,atriptaking ably be impassable inwetweather.ably beimpassable It’sprettystation. andwouldprob- rough Oya) andemerges near Ohiyatrain Belihul Haputaleon themainroad between and FallsBambarakanda (the roadsignposted with some steep ascents – it’s for serious with somesteep ascents – it’s for serious End, butit’s a 30km by atleast 9.30am.Youcan walktoWorld’s End ataround 10am,you’ll wanttoget there Given that themistcomes downatWorld’s TRAIN &FOOT trekking itineraryinthenationalpark. Bray tea estate. HillSafarioffers aseven-day former tea manager’s bungalowontheLower with attached bathroomsandhot water. It’sa and windingroad,hasthree familyrooms Horton Plainsjunctiondownavery rough small kiosk nearFarr Inn. available here athalfthepriceof thatatthe has tworooms,ifyou’re desperate. Foodis It takes about 1½hours toget from A more frugalandpossiblymore fulfill- You canalsodrive toFarr InnfromNu- There pastthe isa4WDroadthatgoes Opposite the Ohiya train station thefirstOpposite theOhiyatrainstation shop Hill Safari Eco-Lodge Eco-Lodge Safari Hill

( % 0777 404658;rRs700)

round trip from Ohiya round tripfrom Ohiya , about 1.5km from the , about1.5kmfromthe

( % 071-277 2451; r incl 071-277 2451;rincl youcometo

207 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY .com/rivergarden/lodge.html; r US$18.50, tent perperson .com/rivergarden/lodge.html; Haputale Rd;rwith/without air-conUS$48/30; ton Plains–it’sa fairchallenge. There’s afour-hour trailfromhere toHor- may bereduced trickle. toadisappointing viewing thefalls;atothertimes water March andAprilare thebestmonths for At 240m,they’re inSriLanka. thehighest the busdriver atKalupahana.) toletyouoff lupahana, are the strenuous undertaking. can walkuptoHortonPlains,a seriously Fromhereand 57kmfromRatnapura. you Hill Country–it’s35kmfrom Haputale onyourway to/from the passing through Oyaisapretty hillsideregionBelihul worth % BELIHUL OYA hike, fromHaputale. start ( below ). Tomake thisalonger two-day about fourhours downhillfromtheplains Falls,a 4WDtrack),orfromBambarakanda north of Ohiya(awalkof about10kmalong Inn from Pattipola, thenexttrainstation find atoiletblock. won’t get lost.Nearthe27kmpostyou’ll with great viewsandyoucanbesure you toFarrtrain station Inn. after you’ve finishedthewalk. well back downtowardsOhiya. You’llsleep abouttwohours You’ll need forthewalk to World’sEnd.It’saslogbutitisdoable. Thenyou’veat night. gotanother1½hours atorch the road–you’llneed ifyoudoit Inn is11.2km,or2½to3½hours, along do thewalk.ThewalkfromOhiyatoFarr in Ohiyathedaybefore ifyoureally wantto have rolledin.Itwouldbebetter toarrive up toWorld’sEndonlyfindtheclouds are often delayedyouriskwalking15km the walkinearlyhours, butasthetrains sible tocatchtrainOhiyaandstart anight hikers only.Theoretically itwouldbepos- 208 near anatural rockpool– feel like adip? here andalounge packed withcomfy chairs from Horton Plains.There’s a restaurant perched besideastream that rushesdown 14 cleanbutageing rooms,andisexquisitely Belihul Oya Rest House Belihul OyaRest About 11kmtowardsHaputale, nearKa- Keen walkers canalsostrike outforFarr The tripupthemainroadisapretty walk fromOhiya You couldalsocatch ataxi River Garden Resort Garden River 045 THEHILLCOUNTRY••BelihulOya Bambarakanda Falls Bambarakanda

( %

( % 228 0222; 228 7599;Ratnapura-

www.ecoclub a . (Ask ) has .lk; Thambapillai Ave) Ceylon The townisn’ttoo smalltohave a Information and 4WDsto Horton Plains forRs1700. air.mountain arrange Guesthouses vans area, walksincool pleasant orjusttaking tional Park, exploringother places inthe forvisitingHortonPlainsNa- good base good cheap accommodation, andmakes a for interesting reading. road. Theheadstonesinitscemetery make church ( St Andrew’s) ontheBandarawela gardens. There’s alsoapretty littleAnglican bungalows,someoftation which have lovely are tea estates onhillsides,andtheoldplan- legacies of theBritish planters live on.There the ridge. dinary views.Therailwayhugsone sideof town quicklyrepays withextraor- theeffort fic andsmallshops, butashort walkoutof Hambantota maybevisible. lighthouse south coastfromthisridge, the andatnight allthe waytothe a cleardayyoucansee On the othersideallwaytosea. the foothillsof thelowerUva descendfrom lies tothenorthandeastof theridge, while peaks, aswelltheHortonPlainsplateau, rounded bytheIdalgashinnaandOhiya sides. Thebowl-shapedUva valley,sur- with thelandfallingawaysteeplyonboth ridgeclings toalong,narrowmountain Country, thelargely Tamil townof Haputale Perched atthesouthernedge of theHill % HAPUTALE incl half-boardUS$18.50,lodgeUS$24.50) the river. showers; somevisitors tobathe in choose The campsite alsohasshared toiletsand Oya. easy accesstoswimmingintheBelihul fers spacioustwo-tofour-person tents with inashadyareaset belowtherestaurant of- five.9km uptheroadsleeps Acampsite raced gardenabove astream. The‘ecolodge’ inashadyter-tages withspotlessrooms set arasinghe Guest House isinthecentreThe post office of town. cheques andget cards. cashadvanceson Visa where youcan change moneyandtravellers Haputale placewithsome isapleasant As inmanyplacesthe HillCountry,the The towncentre isasquallof itself traf- 057 / pop 4706 / elev 1580m 057 /pop4706elev (StationRd) and a has Internet facilities.

People’s Bank ( % www.lonelyplanet.com 226 8175; agh777@sltnet hasthree cot- (Colombo Rd) Bank of Bank of Am- , Haputale www.lonelyplanet.com third-highest waterfall,third-highest just 5kmbeyond the 171m-high Diyaluma Falls, SriLanka’s Heading towards Wellawayayou’ll pass DIYALUMA FALLS tenne to have visitors. Themostpopular, A few tea factories inthisarea are happy DAMBATENNE TEA FACTORY Sights is agreat walk,with wonderfulviews. about Rs350.Ifyou are fitandenergetic this Alternatively, there ataxi andbackcosts 25 minutesback againabout every (Rs10). tothefactoryand forBandarawela station workers)(for theestate fromthebus goes popular factoryis easilyaccessible. Abus TheTeaproduction, see Hills, p199 . about tea a centuryold.Forfurtherdetails of tea. Someof isupto theequipmentin use andgrading rolling, drying,cutting,sieving involvedthe processes inthefermentation, theworkseducatesthrough thevisitor on most famousfigures intea history.Atour in 1890bySirThomasLipton,one of the 1 3 2 HAPUTALE To Ohiya(15km) Although it’s11kmfromHaputale,Although the (7km) To Idalgashinna (36km) National Park Horton Plains Ohiya (17km); (14km); Pattipola (2km); Monastery (1km); Adisham To Tangamalai Oya (23km) Belihul Falls (12km); Bambarakanda Guest House(8km); To Mountfield

(admission Rs180; 7 AC

5 Temple Rd Temple

6 Beragala Junction Thambapillai To DiyalumaFalls(17km); St Andrew's...... Post Office...... Bank ofCeylon...... epesBn...... D2 People's Bank...... SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES INFORMATION Wellawaya (32km)

1km Ave h closed Sun) , wasbuilt 4 3 2 1 B D1 D2 C2 Damba- Sri LakViewHolidayInn...... Cuesta Inn...... Bawa GuestHouse...... oa o etIn...... C2 Royal TopRestInn...... House...... Amarasinghe Guest SLEEPING Depot

Colombo Rd visible fromtheroad. a poolbelow–very picturesque andclearly over faceandfallinonecleardrop to acliff off atDiyaluma(1¼hours). Thefallsleap fromHaputale andget Wellawaya service builds upafter adownpour. By bus,take a stream itquickly isfairlysmall,though escarpment of theKoslandaPlateau, the the townof downan Koslanda. Cascading good foracool swim. The pools above of set falls are the second falls, the left forktothetop of themainfalls. distinct) leads tothepools above themain branchtop thepath forks:theright (more thewrongturn!At you taking if theysee lucky, peopleinthe rubberfactorywillshout some white arrowson therocks–ifyou’re track isvery there indistinct,although are where youstrike uphilltotheleft.The off 20 minutes’ walktoa smallrubberfactory, back uptotheleft. Fromthere it’sabout and take trackthatturnssharply theestate down theroadfrombottomof thefalls at thetopof themainfall.Walkabout500m the ofbeautiful poolsandaseries minifalls If you’re energetic youcanclimb upto Haputale THE HILLCOUNTRY••Haputale 9 8 7 6 5 D2 A2 A2 A2 0.3miles 500m 0 0

Station Rd 8 1 Taxis...... Buses toBandarawela...... Sri VaniVilasHotel...... Sathosa Supermarket...... Risara Bakers...... Lanka TeaCentre...... uaaEia...... D2 NuwaraEliya...... Buses toWelimada& TRANSPORT EATING Approximate Scale 10 12 15 3 16

To Bandarawela Sh 2 D 14

13 e

r

w Dias Rest(3km); ood Rd White Monkey/ 11 (9.5km) 9 Lipton's Seat Dambatenne Tea Factory Tea Estate 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 Da

m 4 Kelburne bat (11km); (19km)

(2km); enne Rd 209 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2 D2

To THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY casion, bytheroadside. onoc- deer sambar manybirds,even to see you’llstillbeableto visitors, aroundsunset and natureit’sofflimits Although reserve. through passes Rs 300return, includingwaitingtime. shouldcost gardens andorchards. Ataxi producefromthemonastery’s lovelyselling a couplemore rooms.There’s asmallshop living roomandlibrary,occasionally ing. Inside,visitors the are allowedtosee including gardenwalls,steps andterrac- ous monkshave addedlotsof stonework, founded inthe13thcentury.Theindustri- fraternitya suborderof theBenedictine belonging totheSylvestrine Congregation, is oneof only18monasteries intheworld tea planter Villiers. SirThomasLester This stone-block monastery oncebelonged to reach the signattheAdishamturn-off. The Follow Temple Rdalongthe ridge untilyou school holidays) h the railway station, thisis afriendly place the railway station, the HortonPlains. andfromthereto Ohiyarailway station, to Pattipola you cancontinueviafootortaxi a torch forthelongrailway tunnels.From Ifyoudecidetodothis, bringalong Lanka. inSri day hike), railwaystation thehighest from Haputale to about 2½hours. From thetea factorytheascent should take tothelookout. lushtea plantations through from thetea factory,andclimb about7km free). Take the signednarrowpaved road rivals theviewsfromWorld’sEnd (andit’s ton’s Seat steeply foragreat onboth sides. distance theland fallsaway viewbecause spectacular walk backbesidethetraintracksenjoying a along therailwaywestof Haputale. Youcan the trainto If youcan’tget of enough theviews,take OTHER ATTRACTIONS This Benedictine ADISHAM MONASTERY 210 Royal Top Rest Inn Royal Top Rest Sleeping &Eating without bathroom Rs650/550) Before youreachBefore Adishamtheroad Some visitors hike alongthetrainlines Near theDambatenne tea factory,the 9am-12.30pm &1.30-4.30pmSatSun,poyadays THEHILLCOUNTRY••Haputale lookouthassomeclaimingthatit isabout3kmwestof Haputale. Idalgashinna Tangamalai

( % monastery Pattipola 226 8178;22 StationRd;rwith/ Ashort walk from train station, 8km trainstation, , a bird sanctuary , abirdsanctuary (14km, anall-

(admission Rs60; Lip- mulla; rRs750,wholelodge2000) formation initsguestbooks. 400) are available. There’s lotsof goodin- door. Inexpensive, fillingmeals(Rs250to vate bathroomsinthenewerbuildingnext original building,andtworoomswithpri- with tolerableshared bathroomsin the on thehillside. There are five cosyrooms nestled Muslim family,thisisabasichouse Ave; sRs250-350,d550-600) bedrooms and twobungalows withthree trimmings. There’s onebungalow with two (includinga cook) andallthe with staff made availablebeen tovisitors, complete for afew days.Three bungalows have estate gem andwouldbe afineplacetounwind Haputale this is anabsolute trainstation, arrange excursions aroundthearea. The hostsare welcomingandwillhappily room hassuperbviewsover tea plantations. with asmallbalcony,andthelarge sitting Rd; rRs750) and alittlesunnyshared balcony. There’s arestaurant, asmalloutdoorarea living roomandsimplebutcleanrooms. views,acheerfully gaudywith pleasant kitchenettes. Ithastworooms,bothwith tle plantation. totheroadinalit- stone lodge close stands Oyaroad,9kmfrom Haputale, this Belihul eka.lk; bungalows Rs4000-5000) eka.lk; the back way to Amarasinghe GuestHouse. the backwaytoAmarasinghe first; of afurtherflight steps willtake youin truck) forabout 250m.You’llcometoBawa and headalongthepath(past mangy Godownthefirst ofthe road. flight stairs signtothesouth,justoff thesideof House Temple Guest ayellowBawa Rduntilyousee by foot,follow GuestHouse or Amarasinghe advice. book withsomeinteresting commentsand ifyouring,andhekeeps aguest station willpickyouupfromthetrain arasinghe (meals Rs250to400)isvery good.MrAm- Thefoodhere(with balconies)inthehouse. ate blockandfourmodernspotlessrooms neat white home,hastworoomsinasepar- 660) sltnet.lk; ThambapillaiAve; rwith/withouthotwaterRs880/ Amarasinghe GuestHouse Bawa GuestHouse Cuesta Inn Cuesta Kelburne TeaKelburne Estate Mountfield GuestHouse If you’re GuestHouse arrivingattheBawa This terrific guesthouse, located Thisterrific ina guesthouse, Thisinnhasfive basicrooms,each

( % 226 8110; [email protected]; 118Temple226 8110;[email protected];

( % ( % www.lonelyplanet.com 226 8260;32Thambapillai About 2km eastof Runbyafriendly

226 8029;kelburne@eur ( ( % % Located onthe 226 8175;agh777@ 226 8463;Haldu- Tea Centre Vilas Hotel Vilas and the and NuwaraEliyabusstand, Rd; rRs800-1000) tion willcostaboutRs150. fromthetrainsta- must bookahead.Ataxi magazines. Meals costRs450to600.You bathrooms, overstuffed couches andlotsof bungalowcomeswithhugebedrooms. Each www.lonelyplanet.com utes toOhiya, 30 minutes toBandarawela Oya (3rd/2nd class, Rs22/40), 40 min- 5½ hours toKandy, 1½hours toNanu Eliya). It’s 8½toninehours toColombo, from Kandy orNanu Oya(for Nuwara so youcantravel directly bytraintoand Haputale line, isontheColombo–Badulla TRAIN Haputale toWellawayaleaves atabout 5pm. the hillfromHaputale. Thelastbus from change atWellawaya(Rs40),1½hours down toColombo(Rs265,sixhours). buses Thereinto theearlyevening. are alsoexpress are frequent (Rs18,onehour)thatrun buses there To/fromBandarawela onward service. (private busRs30,twohours) andget an you’llhave buses togoWelimada these and 2pm(Rs50,3½hours), butif youmiss There are direct toNuwaraEliyaat7am buses BUS &Away There Getting local hikes. enced guideandhaslotsof informationon at reasonable prices.Theownerisanexperi- so far. Meals (Rs200to400)are available withonecottage opened anewguesthouse inThotulagala,aTamilstation, familyhas Rs 500/700) Thotulagala;s/[email protected]; tion, ifyouwanttobuyyourownsupplies. ket tucked awayontheroadtotrainsta- There’sbus station. supermar- alsoaSathosa cakes) for shorteats,dosas, but there are anumberof OKplacesintown place isfull. ing year. Onlyrecommended other ifevery pass- todropwithevery seem standards down thebacksideof theridge, butgeneral this 11-roomlodge have unimpededviews White Monkey/Dias Rest Rest Monkey/Dias White For thesouthcoastyouusuallyhave to Sri Lak View Holiday Inn LakView Sri You’re best off eating in your guesthouse, You’re bestoff eatinginyourguesthouse, , and ricecurry,such asthe Three kilometres eastof thetrain

(Dambatenne Rd) (Temple Rd) (Temple Themore expensive roomsat ,

opposite the Welimada opposite theWelimada , near the Bandarawela , neartheBandarawela rottis

( ( % % 071 2591361;mailva (doughy pan- (doughy 226 8125;Sherwood Sri Vani Vani Sri Lanka Lanka cash advances on MasterCard andVisa. cash advancesonMasterCard ( p212 ) hasInternetaccess. centre .lk; 38/1CEsplanadeRd)Thisnonprofitecotourism to 500 return, including waiting time. should costRs 400 from Bandarawela taxi tell youwhento get or Athree-wheeler off. coming by bus,soaskthe busconductorto murals. The temple iseasytomiss ifyou’re Buddhist with excellentSri Lankan–style cave shrine, cutfrom solidrock,are covered face belowtheroad. Thewallsof adjacent Buddhacutintotherock standing 4m-high sideofright-hand the road,withabeautiful toastream situated close pleasantly onthe thecharmingto Badulla, Dowa Temple is About 6kmeastof ontheroad Bandarawela DOWA TEMPLE Sights &Activities Woodlands Network Hatton NationalBank Commercial Bank Bank ofCeylon access. located WelimadaRd,provides off Internet fices onthemainstreets. MicroServices, Hotel, andthere are plentyof telephone of- The mainpostofficeisneartheBandarawela Information morning thetownhasalively market. it’s apopulararea toretire to. Sunday Each rounding area. Duetoitsagreeable climate, that makes forexploringthesur- agoodbase noticeably warmer,isabusymarket town 10kmnorth ofBandarawela, Haputale but % BANDARAWELA (3rd/2ndclass,Rs24/44). Badulla (3rd/2nd class,Rs6/11)andtwohours to and taxi stops,headsdownhilltotheeast. and taxi Rd,withthemainbus a mosque;andBadulla Rd headsnorthwestthenturnssharply leftby here Haputale southwest;Welimada Rdgoes junction justnorthof From thetrainstation. Menike) tion thetrainsdepartat7.56am Udarata Menike 2.12pm (on dir ection are at4.29am,6.44am,12.16am, ata Menike mail)and9.30pm.The (on thenight The focalpointof thetownisbusy The dailytraindepartures intheBadulla 057 / pop 7188 / elev 1230m 057 /pop7188elev THE HILLCOUNTRY••Bandarawela , 10.51am doesn’t go viaKandy. doesn’t Podi Menike (BadullaRd)HasanATM. (BadullaRd)HasanATM. ). IntheColombodirec- ( % (BadullaRd)HasanATM; gives (Podi Menike) 223 2668;woodlands@sltnet ) and5.32pm(on , 8.09pm (Udarata Udar-

211 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Bandarawela range home stays for groups or individuals. range forgroupsorindividuals. homestays a few hostel rooms ( right ) andcanalsoar- spices, teas and localhandicrafts.Italsohas work isalsoavailable, andthe centre sells farmsandwaterfalls. plantations, Volunteer and visitstotemples, forest hermitages, tea Lankan cooking lessons, classes meditation canarrange localandjunglewalks,Sri staff intheHillCountry.Thefriendly services tre offers awiderange of alternative tourism Now headedbySarojinie Ellawela,thecen- social actionorganisations inSriLanka. most exemplary local-initiative tourismand [email protected]; 38/1CEsplanadeRd) Haas in1992, Founded bythelate Dutch priestHarry WOODLANDS NETWORK 212 treatment Rs2600; ( treatment centreurvedic called About 3.5km from isanAy- Bandarawela AYURVEDA sage, a steam anda herbal sauna. programme includes a 45-minute oil mas- place that caters totourists.The 1½-hour % Eliya (48km) (21km); Nuwara To Welimada 1 3 2 BANDARAWELA THEHILLCOUNTRY••Bandarawela /fax 2222504; BadullaRd;headmassage Rs600,full SLEEPING TRANSPORT Buses toHaputale& Buses toElla,Badulla& C2 Bandarawela Hotel...... Three-Wheeler Stand...... Taxis...... Taxis...... Long−Distance Buses...... Buses toWelimada...... Colombo...... Wellawaya...... Orient Hotel...... New ChineseHotel...... Hillside HolidayInn...... Chinese UnionHotel...... Bandarawela RestHouse...... 4 AC h Woodlands Network 8am-8pm) Play Field 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 17 C2 D2 D2 B1 C2 C3 D2 B1 B2 B2 C1 B1 . It’salarge, plush 9 ὈὈὈ Playground Children’s 11 isoneof the

Suwa Madhu ( 7 % B 12 13

223 2668; 223 2668;

Welimada Rd Welimada Esplanade Rd Esplanade 5 Haputale (10km) To

Mt

Dharm Pleas

apala M apala 10 w ant Rd; s/dRs850/1000) s/d/tr Rs850/850/950) vance noticemealscanalsobearranged. ( left thekitchen; withad- ). Guestsmayuse clean roomswithshared bathroom Woodlands Hostel Woodlands Hostel BUDGET Sleeping &Eating 260 perdish. food rangingfromRs130togood Chinese tle over thedecades.Therestaurant serves thathaschangedrooms inasetting lit- an old-fashioned placeoffering five clean immigrantovernese 60years ago,thisis lack incharacter. rooms thatmake upincomfortwhat they like structure spotlessmodern contains 38/1C EsplanadeRd;Rs500) ant Rd;rRs750,f1500) house doors. wooden cious rooms withfinely carved charming oldcolonial villahas clean, spa-

Rd Chinese UnionHotel New ChineseHotel Hillside Holiday Inn Hillside Senan ayake

Haputale Rd Mw

16 that contains thisecotourism centre that contains

20

Rd

W 8

elim 0 0 Bandarawela

6 ada 15 Just off Welimada Rd,this Justoff ( Tower % Clock Thisthree-storey motel-

( There are afew simple, ( % 223 2668; [email protected]; 223 2668;[email protected]; Woodlands Hostel...... People's Bank...... Micro Services...... Hatton NationalBank...... Commercial Bank...... Bank ofCeylon...... SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES INFORMATION otOfc...... C2 Post Office...... % 18

FoundedbyaChi- ( % 223 1767;32Esplanade Rd; www.lonelyplanet.com

222 2212;34/10 Welimada

Bad

222 2502;8MtPleas-

Poonagala Rd Poonagala ulla Dowa Temple(5.5km);

To MalindeeCountry Rd Suwa Madhu(3km); D Life Inn(1.5km); 3 Badulla (28km) 14 1

in 0.3 miles 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 19 500 m B1 B2 A2 D2 D2 D2 t he he 2 Rd, Bindunuwela;s/dRs900/1200) and bar. aswellarestaurantgarden withtortoises, spacious rooms.There isalittlecourtyard and bathroomswithlotsof hotwater in33 vast easychairs tosinkintointhelounge, furnishings aroundthe1930s.There are opened in1893andstoppedupdatingits planters’ club,thislarge chalet-style place lounge, fitness centre, restaurant andbar. rooms, alongwithabilliardshall,karaoke the OrientHotel provides 50comfortable popular hotel intownwithtourgroups, two decentfamilyroomsintheolderwing. cony withaviewover the town.There are rooms inthenewerwinghave ashared bal- Thefive cleanbutbland friendly service. spot withninerooms,apretty gardenand Orient Hotel Orient MIDRANGE www.lonelyplanet.com 10.20am (on leavetale) at 7.25am (on railway line. Trains toColombo (viaHapu- isontheColombo–Badulla Bandarawela TRAIN the southcoast. change toTissa atWellawaya forbuses or onEsplanadeRd.Youcan also station tance Tangalla andGalleleave fromthelong-dis- harama, Tangalla toTissa, andGalle. Buses to Colombo(Rs200,sixhours), Tissama- includeruns services (Rs 27).Long-distance Haputale (Rs18),Ella13)andBadulla from there. There alsoare regular to buses and continueontoNuwaraEliya (Rs21) more frequent toWelimada(Rs23) buses Eliya (Rs44)oryoucanhoponone of the There are infrequent direct toNuwara buses BUS &Away There Getting 2.20pm, 7.33pm and 8.56pm. Trains to Ba- .lk; 14WelimadaRd;s/dUS$47/59) from townshouldcostRs75. an intriguingplacetorelax. Athree-wheeler isniceand thefoyer–livingroomis The staff inn withlotsof marble andbrassondisplay. road, 2kmeastof town,thisisafamily-run 2718; s/d/fRs1200/1750/2100) Dharmapala Mawatha; Malindee CountryLifeInn Malindee Bandarawela Rest House Bandarawela Rest Bandarawela Hotel

( % Podi Menike, 222 2407;www.orienthotelsl.com;

s/d/tr US$27/30/32)

( % 222 2501;bwhotel@sltnet

Rather close tothe close Rather Thisisaquiet

Udarata Menike ( Formerly the tea Formerlythetea ( % % via Kandy), 222 2299;fax 222 3124;Badulla Themost

12 ), Rs 800/1000/1500) BUDGET them. so don’tbelieve acceptable, placewevisitedfact, every inEllawasquite expensive, down,orrat-infested. closed In thatthehotel oftales yourchoice istoo approachTouts might youonthe trainwith Sleeping more information,see p217 . side –theviewscanbespectacular. For want toexplore thesurroundingcountry- Ella isagreat forkeen walkers base who Activities of travel information. rigo Communicationsisalsoagood source both have Internet andIDDfacilities. Rod- and RMSCommunicationsonMain St RodrigoCommunications to Bandarawela. traveltown, butforbankingyouwillneed There’s inthecentre apostoffice of the Information received electricityin1984. totemplestations andwaterfalls. Ellaonly by hillsperfect tea plan- forwalksthrough views weren’t Ellaissurrounded enough, And asifthethe Great lighthouse. Basses coast where, youcansee onaclearnight, nearly 1000mbelow,andacrosstothe EllaGaptotheplain through ing straight villagesleepy isnestledinavalleypeer- ful views,and Ella hasoneof thebest.The isliberallyendowedwithbeauti- Sri Lanka % ELLA 2.38pm, 3pm,5.58pmand7.15pm. dulla (viaElla)leave at5am,7.15am,1pm, and Ella(3rdclassonly,Rs7). naruwa (3rd/2nd/1stclassRs76/210/356) wara Eliya;3rd/2ndclassRs24/67),Polon- class Rs7.50/19.50/34),NanuOya(forNu- (3rd/2nd/1stclass Rs31/85/149),Badulla Ella HolidayInn and Western food. good, inexpensive SriLankan room serves isfriendlyand thedining thestaff fortable, the main street. Roomsare clean andcom- town and isreached byafootbridge from this three-storey inn sitsinthemiddleof family thatrunsRodrigo Communications, Destinations includeKandy (3rd/2nd/1st 057 THE HILLCOUNTRY••Ella

Recently opened by the same Recentlyopened bythesame ( % 222 8615; [email protected]; s/d/tr 222 8615;[email protected];

213 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Ella hot water Rs550/650) Rs 600/1000/1500) is cheap. The rooms are andthefood cleanenough uphome-grown coffee. who likes toserve owner isaparticularly good-natured fellow one large bedroom andlotsof privacy. The cottage upthe hill,withakitchen, fridge, hasfivehouse rooms, aswellacute little 214 Rs 500/900) clean roomswithhotwater. cooking), ashady veranda, and10simple, spice garden(thesourceof much of thehome dirt track,thisplacehasahilltoplocation, a on themainroad,andreached on a200m inElla.running establishments Signposted pensive, soallinit’svery goodvalue. area. Rice-and-currymealshere are inex- The ownerhaslotsof infoonwalksinthe cleanbathroomsinafamilyhome.bright, This innoffers three simpleroomswith rents out five cleanrooms, each painted a 1 3 2 ELLA Lizzie Villa GuestHouse Lizzie Villa Rainbow Inn Rainbow Garden View Inn View Garden Beauty Mount Tourist Inn Beauty MountTourist Badulla (20km) Bandarawela (11km); Tea Factory(6km); (6km); UvaHalpewaththa To DowaTemple THEHILLCOUNTRY••Ella INFORMATION M omnctos.....C1 RMS Communications...... Rodrigo Communications..... Post Office...... Police......

5 Kitalella Rd Thisunpretentious little guest- AC Rawana Falls Lizzie’sisoneof thelongest-

( % The friendly familyhere

222 8788;s/d Rs500/600,with ( % 4 3 2 1 222 8792;s/dRs500/700) C1 B1 B1

(

% Ella ( % Stream 222 8799;r/cottages 222 8643;s/d/tr Approximate Scale 8 B 2 21 13 18 Police Station Rd 11 23 22

1 17 14 16 20

12

27km Post M 3 [email protected]; rRs800-1000) [email protected]; Lankan mealsare available.Lankan with superbviews of EllaGap. GoodSri well asupstairsrooms thatshare abalcony with verandas surroundedbyagarden,as d Rs800-950) 1000) there are viewstoEllaGap. around alarge livingarea. Fromthe terrace withfourcleanbutwornroomsset house andinexpensive.is tasty different colour(hencethename).Thefood The roomsare basic,withsmallbathrooms. you’ll get great viewsof thehillycountryside. track fromthemainroad,butit’sworth it– thisplace isahikein atea plantation, upthe a commonbalconyandguestkitchen. This isacleanlittleplacewiththree rooms, plus four less expensive interior rooms. The hotel sixbalcony rooms withviews, contains a hillside overlooking Ella,this family-run 19 St ain Ella AdventurePark(8km); Rawana HolidayResort Rawana Hill TopGuestHouse Hill Inn Ella Highest Soorya GuestInn Rock View GuestHouse Rock View 4 Rawana EllaFalls(6km); 24 Thisisalarge oldSriLankan–style 9

Passara Rd To EllaRock(4km); Wellawaya (27km) 6 15 HillTophasdownstairs rooms 0 0 7

( %

SLEEPING ilTpGetHue...... B2 Hill TopGuestHouse...... Bus Stop...... Udayanga Restaurant...... Ella ViewRestaurant&Bar...... Tea GardenHolidayInn...... Soorya GuestInn...... Rock ViewGuestHouse...... Rawana HolidayResort...... Ravana Heights...... Rainbow Inn...... Lizzie VillaGuestHouse...... Hotel CountryComfort...... Grand EllaMotel...... Garden ViewInn...... Forest ParadiseGuestHouse...... Ella HolidayInn...... Ella HighestInn...... Ella GapTouristInn...... Beauty MountTouristInn...... Ambiante...... TRANSPORT EATING ( % 222 8608;s/dRs550/750)

( % To LittleAdam's 222 8906;s/dRs500/700) Passara (29km) www.lonelyplanet.com

10 Peak (2km); (

% 222 8780;sRs600-700, ( Perched on high % 222 8561;rRs600- 222 8794; nalan D 300 m 0.2 miles 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 Set B2 B2 C1 C1 B1 C2 B1 D1 C1 B1 C1 C2 A2 C2 B1 B1 B2 C2 C2

ante/ambiante.htm; Kitalella Rd;rRs1200-2000) ante/ambiante.htm; Kitalella more comfort. Italsohasarestaurant. rooms. It’sagreat choice ifyouwantalittle of space,bay windows andmodernbath- positively gleams,andtherooms have lots the roomshere are smaller. Thenewerwing 60-year-oldbeautifully maintained villa,but a newannexe. Theoriginalbuilding isa rUS$45) [email protected]; s/dRs800/900) cellent foodand aleafy communal balcony balcony. There are also friendly hosts,ex- the more expensive rooms share aroomy rooms. The cheaper roomsare a bitsmall; sort, this placeoffers nineclean,spacious the twosmaller,newer rooms. rooms are larger and have more charm than gardens linkingthe rooms.Thefive older outdoorrestaurantvery andleafy pleasant from the train station shouldcostRs150. from thetrainstation from thecentre of town;athree-wheeler views downEllaGap.It’squite walk asteep here all have amplebalconiesandgood top of ahill,the motel-like rowof rooms Ravana Heights Ravana MIDRANGE a deliciousgarlic-based curry. specialityis cuisine. Thehouse Sri Lankan friendly, andthehusbandcooksvery good couplewhoownstheplaceis Sri Lankan www.lonelyplanet.com (minimum three people). Rs 1000perperson, includingaBBQ lunch into theNamunugalaHills,16kmaway,for vate bathrooms. Theownerarranges trips in ahandsomebungalowwithcleanpri- pine forest, hasfourrooms thisguesthouse US$7.50 per person. US$7.50 perperson. Western orThaidinnerhere Sri Lankan, for is lovely too–ifyouringaheadcanhave offer variousorganised excursions. Thefood veranda andapretty garden,andtheowners owners. There’s friendly SriLankan–Thai a and stylish, modernhomewithgreat service withfoursupercleanrooms.It’sa guesthouse Wellawaya road,thisisaterrific littleboutique 1500, dRs1500-2200) r Rs1600-2250) Rs 1700-2200) PoliceStationRd;roldRs800-100,new countrycomfort.lk; Ambiante Tea HolidayInn Garden Ella Gap Tourist Inn Tourist Ella Gap Forest ParadiseForest GuestHouse Hotel CountryComfort Hotel Opposite the27kmpostonElla– Thisisanolderbuildingwith

( % This seven-room innhas a Thisseven-room

( % 222 8867;hansasurf.tripod.com/ambi Near Rawana HolidayRe- NearRawana 222 8888;[email protected];

(

%

( ( % % 222 8528;Passara Rd;

222 8500;info@hotel 222 8860;sRs1000- ( % Backed ontoa 222 8797;forest Atthe .com; r/treehouses US$55/60) old US$51/56/63,newUS$72/82/91,allinclbreakfast) serves traditional Sri Lankan food. traditionalSriLankan serves includes allof activities.Arestaurant these part of package asix-night (US$1200)that camping andmore. Mostguestsbookinas rockclimbing,abseiling, gliding, canoeing, the top.Themanagement organises para- bit nicer,buttheper-day rates are bitover cute, are of inneed repair; thecabinsare a Thetreehouses,quiet bush though setting. décor, Flintstonesquestonefeatures anda hotels. Ithaslogfurniture, natural-toned is different tothe usualcardboard-cut-out of EllaontheWellawayaroad,thisplace and Western foodatlow prices. friendly andclean spothasgoodSriLankan nicest ambienceof anyplaceintown. cuisine,andhasperhaps the for SriLankan area atEllaGapTouristInnisespeciallygood Hotel CountryComfort.Thegardendining Heights, HolidayInn,Ambiante and Rawana vance notice. Ourfavourites includeRavana food, butmostaskforatleastfourhours’ ad- Allof andhotelsstay. serve theguesthouses restaurants outsideof intheplaces to those Ella offers very littlein thewayof decent Eating &Drinking Falls EllaGap). (anddecentviewsthrough viewstothesmallRawana with pleasant (syrup fromthe with localdrunks. it here are notvery clean andtend tofillup speciality, but,frankly, theshopsthatserve named ‘honey’)isamuch advertised local from localmen intheir cups. travellers mayattract unwanted attention the only places openpast 8pm. Solofemale with locals andtouristsalike, andisoneof This dark roadsiderestaurant ispopular dark buildingontheproperty’slowerlevel. here. Thelessexpensive roomsare inarather ifyourdriverbe surprised suggests youstay This placepaysheftycommissions sodon’t tends toberatheruninspired. and theservice Hotels Corporation, ernment-owned Ceylon Gap fromthefrontlawn.It’srunbygov- superb locationwithgreat Ella viewsthrough GrandEllaMotel has a merly EllaResthouse, Ella View Restaurant &Bar Restaurant Ella View Curd (buffalo-milk yoghurt) andtreacle yoghurt) Curd (buffalo-milk Grand EllaMotel Udayanga Restaurant Ella Adventure Park Ella Adventure THE HILLCOUNTRY••Ella

kitul ( %

( palm;sometimesmis- 222 8655; ceylonhotels.lk; s/d/tr 222 8655;ceylonhotels.lk; s/d/tr % About 9kmsoutheast

(dishes Rs120-180) 228 7263;wildernesslanka

(dishes Rs150-300) This For- 215

THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY 6.52am wellposted. and timetables isquaint, and thefaresElla’s trainstation 30mlower. atalevel tunnels underitself forms acomplete looparoundahillsideand north of Ella, atDemodara,thelineper- particularly lovely 10km scenery. Roughly from Haputale has Bandarawela) (through line. Thestretchon theColombo–Badulla Ella isanhourfromHaputale andBadulla TRAIN Bandarawela. for Monaragala(forArugamBay). totheSouthor change there foraservice ways catch abustoWellawaya(Rs21) and noon are usuallylessbusy.Youcan al- they reach around thebuses Ella,though arebuses likely tobequite fullbythetime from about 6.30amuntilabout 2.30pm.The hour Rs 80/150)stopatEllaaroundevery change againforKandy. catch theintercity toNuwaraEliyaandthen Alternatively, youcouldgotoWellawaya, or fromKandy youmustchange atBadulla. To WellawayaandBadulla. to Bandarawela, tocatch intercityis advisable express buses andchangeBandarawela there It forBadulla. youcanalwaysget although abusto Badulla, fairly frequent. There are infrequent to buses ets –don’ttrustthem. moneyfrompeopletobuybustick- taking asking forforeign coinsandoccasionally ple of oldrogues hang aroundthebusstop changeBuses schedule fairlyoften. Acou- roadabout9kmoutofBadulla Bandarawela. The roadtoEllaleaves theBandarawela– BUS &TAXI &Away There Getting 216 Menike) 7.55am, 1.47pm, 3.08pm, 3.28pm (2nd class Rs18)departures are at5.28am, Eliya; Rs 63)andHatton (Rs 92).Badulla Haputale (Rs23),Nanu Oya(forNuwara the Kandy (Rs13), lineincludeBandarawela tures at1.07pmand6.50pm. Destinationson to Kandy (2ndclassRs152) includedepar- 6.50am and8.23pm (2ndclassRs230);trains ahead. Othertrains toColombodepartat insidethecarshouldbebooked car; seats Menike) The maintrainstoColombodepart at from Ellato It costsRs400togobytaxi toMataraBuses (CTB/intercity express costRs13andare toBandarawela Buses THEHILLCOUNTRY••AroundElla (Udarata Menike) and 6.09pm have. These a1st-classobservation (Udarata Menike) and9.47am (Podi (Podi (Podi . Around Ella story.Youmayvisitthetemple, Ramayana temple approach Ella,asideroadtakes youtoalittle return, includingwaitingtime. cost Rs6andathree-wheeler willcostRs30 fromElla to pointout‘thewaterfall’. Buses and theinvariablearrayof ‘guides’wanting There are vendors foodandtrinkets, selling itmaynotflowatall. during thedryseason but to bethewildest-lookingfallinSriLanka, inwhatisclaimed down themountain-side ing rainymonths thewater comesleaping 6km downEllaGaptowardsWellawaya. Dur- from Ellawillcharge Rs250return. a 2kmwalktothefactory.Athree-wheeler near theHalpe temple. Fromhere you’ve got off justafter the27kmpost, Get to Badulla. at Kumbawelajunctionandflagabusgoing To get here get catch abustoBandarawela, off Halpewaththa Tea Factory from Ella; for more information, see from Ella;formore information,see p211 . Some peoplelike tovisitthe AROUND ELLA (6km) To Bandarawela Kumbawela AROUND ELLA Junction Further up the road and to your left as you Further uptheroadandtoyourleftasyou The 19m-high Another optionistovisita tea factory; Temple Dowa Halpewaththa Tea Factory anda Temple Uva Halpe cave cave See EllaMap(p214) that is associated with the thatisassociated withthe Ella Rawana EllaFalls Rawana Temple Ella A16 0 0 runs tours (Rs 150). runstours (Rs150). Cave Ella Falls www.lonelyplanet.com Rawana To Badulla (11.5km) Rock Ella Wellawaya (20.5km) Dowa Temple A23 To EllaAdventure are about are about Adam’s Park (1.5km); Little Peak 1 mile Passara (19km) 2 km Uva Uva To

Ceylon, Ceylon, the in total) takesin total) abouttwohours each way. ning views.Thewalk(approximately 9km Rock, where you’llberewarded withstun- a logbridge andfollowthetrackup toElla the bridge, turnlefttowardsthefalls, cross cave tobeadisappointment. itself grown andslippery.Mostpeoplefindthe the cave butthetrackissteep, over- starts, toshowyouwhereterialise thetrackupto captive. heldSita of Boysoften Lanka ma- tobethevery is said oneinwhich theking toEllaRock, thatrises cleft inthemountain your legsandarms.Thecave, located ina to remove andhat,tocover yourshoes which ispartof amonastery, butremember www.lonelyplanet.com (Bank Rd) You can change moneyat Information try fromColombo terminates here. theHillCoun- today. Therailway through changed theatmosphere quite drastically centre, theteeming roadshave although social For theBritishit wasanimportant pied itbriefly,thentorched ituponleaving. for blackmarketeers. occu- The Portuguese towns, andhasalocalreputation asabase oldest east coast.Itisoneof SriLanka’s the HillCountryandisagateway to the marksthesoutheastextremityBadulla of % BADULLA thesmall can see bridgeyou cometothemetal where you forabout2.5km until wards Bandarawela) manding. Head alongthetraintracks (to- offers inexpensive Internet access. about 45minutes each way. The approximately 4.5kmroundtriptakes Part atea estate. of through thispath passes andfollowittothetopofright thehill. Take paththatturnsofftoyour thesecond am’s Peak isthebiggest hillon yourright. left asyoufacethegardenshop; LittleAd- 1km post.Followthetrackthatisonyour justpastthe the plantshoponyourright, Go downthePassara roaduntilyouget to to whatislocallydubbed walking alone. Agentle walkwilltake you forwomen toheadoff would beinadvisable Ella isagreat placeforwalks Walking to 055 / pop 42,572 / elev 680m 055 /pop42,572elev

post office ,

Cybrain Computer Systems Cybrain Computer and buy stamps ormail lettersand buy stamps at

(Post Office Rd) (Post Office Ella Rock Rawana Falls Rawana israthermore de- . Opposite Bank of. Opposite Bank Little Adam’sPeak . After passing Bank ofCeylon

(40/1 Bank Rd) though it though .

27 Lower King St;d/fRs990/1650) 27 LowerKing River SideHolidayInn River Sleeping &Eating 63m-high Five kilometres northof are Badulla the DUNHINDA FALLS ale ama, SamanandVishnu. Uniquely,the veneration are of statues thegodsKatarag- around. tivals theresident elephantmay beparaded the southeastquarter of town.Duringfes- dagoba thatoccupiesspaciousgroundsin dhist complex,andincludesawhitewashed Devale. either Muthiyagana Viharaor Kataragama stopat visitingBadulla Most SriLankans PLACES OFWORSHIP Sights picting a wooden shrinehallpainted withmurals de- than SouthIndianTamil style,withalong Rogers, whowaskilledbylightning. commemorating theelephanthunter Major headstones. Insidethechurch isaplaque through town charges Rs350forthereturn trip. place canget packed. Athree-wheeler from public holidaysandweekends, whenthe on themainroadandalongtrail. Avoid of thepath.There are manysnackplaces spotattheend there’s agoodobservation alowerwaterfall onthewalk,and can see You of shoes. ascramble,so wear suitable along aclearlydefinedpath.Itcan beabit From thebusstopfallsare about1km leave (Rs16). 30minutes every fromBadulla for monkeys reflexes! withlightning Buses It’s agoodspotforpicnic,butwatch out July, butthey’re worthavisitatanytime. themis Juneand try. Thebesttimetosee to bethemostawe-inspiringincoun- most tourgroups stay. cuisine. Thisis where and Chinese Lankan good Sri and acheery restaurant serving lounge, a snooker room,plenty of parking ting. Also onthepremises are akaraoke are clean),sohave a lookbefore commit- good value,others all justso-so(although withavarietyofaffair rooms.Someare very runhotel isamodern and mostefficiently At If youare take alook ahistorybuff, wasconstructed inKandyan stylerather Kataragama Devale Kataragama Muthiyagana Vihara Vihara Muthiyagana St Mark’s Church St Mark’s THE HILLCOUNTRY••Badulla perahera. Dunhinda Falls ( % themainobjectsof 222 2090; [email protected]; 222 2090;[email protected]; and peruse theold andperuse

(admission Rs25) Badulla’s nicest Badulla’s is alarge Bud- , said , said

dev- 217 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY St; s/dRs500/750) s/d Rs500/700,rwithhotwater800) canteen. mealsare availableLankan inanadjacent around agrassycourtyard.Inexpensive Sri with shared bathrooms(nohotwater) set this colonial-erarest has fadedrooms house s/d Rs500/700) 218 darawela Rd; rwith/withoutair-con Rs1850/1250; available. MealsRs 100fromthetrainstation. are or costs aboutRs60fromthebusstation, Athree-wheeler RestHouse. than Badulla it’squieter rooms,although tatty slightly edge of town, this isamodernplacewith found about3km from thecentre of town ular ‘Holiday Inn’moniker, this onecan be bearingthepop- The third placeinBadulla Badulla woman feel uncomfortable. makeattracts aclientele that might a lone There’s alsoabarandliquor outlet,which aroundacourtyard.quaint roomsset Old St Bede 1 3 2 9 BADULLA Badulla Rest House Badulla Rest Peace Haven Inn Peace Haven Eagles NestHoliday Inn Green WoodsHoliday Inn Green Bandarawela (28km) Holiday Inn(2km); To GreenWoods

THEHILLCOUNTRY••Badulla

(230km) Colombo To Eladal 's

Med Rd

uwa ir

iya Rd Rd AC

Smackinthecentre of Badulla,

Thisisano-frills placewith Kap ati pola Rd Dunhinda SisilaLodge(7km) To DunhindaFalls(4.7km);

Shan HolidayInn(5km); (

% Hunukottuwa Path Hunukottuwa Bandarawela Rd Bandarawela

(Uda Rest House; (Uda Rest Rd Deiyannewela

222 2523;18OldStBedesRd; Oya Badulu (

% ( ὈὈ % 222 2841;159Lower Atthewestern 223 1358;301 Ban-

%

B King St King

Church Rd Tower Clock 7 222 2299;

6 Bazaar St Bazaar

Ward (Dewala) Post Office Rd 12 Rd Library Veall’s 4

Udayaraja Park a Lower King St 3

ὈὈὈ ὈὈὈ

)

Rd Cocowatta Lower King St King Lower

Bank Rd Badulupi

Mw

St for afurther2.3km.Meals are available. follow theDunhindaFalls roadpastthe falls by.Tofindit, natural swimmingholeclose room hasatree it. There’s pokingthrough a curious jumbleof buildingsbyariver –one r/cottages Rs2000/2500) Rd; s/dRs500/900) meals are available. andWestern Chinese Decent SriLankan, to get aroomtowardstherear of thehotel. The roomsbytheroadare abitnoisy,so try to thecountryside,andallhave hot water. have ceiling-to-floor windows lookingout Theroomson theroadtoBandarawela. Food City can buygroceries at St. Self-caterers Lower St, neartheintersection withBazaar tages withearthen walls. above the restaurant three stand simplecot- are three oldercement-walled rooms,while the valleybelow.Underneath therestaurant has alarge open-air restaurant withviews of entrance, thisrelatively newestablishment

὇὇὇὇὇ ὇὇὇὇὇ ὇὇὇὇὇ ὇὇὇὇὇ tiya

Shan HolidayInn Dunhinda SisilaLodge There are manylocal nosheriesalong Lower St Lower 1

10 Rd 8 2 Tower Clock

Railway Station Rd Cemetery

Muslim 11 (Post Office Rd) (Post Office To BadullaTrain Station (300m)

Passara 0 0

Vincent Dias Vihar Stadium Close tothefalls,thisisa Close

Rd 5

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Just300mpastthe falls ( % . TRANSPORT EATING SLEEPING SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES INFORMATION Muthiyagana Vihara...... Kataragama Devale...... Post Office...... Cybrain ComputerSystems.... Bank ofCeylon...... Bus Station...... Cargill's FoodCity...... River SideHolidayInn...... Peace HavenInn...... Eagles NestHolidayInn...... Badulla RestHouse...... tMr' hrh...... B1 St Mark'sChurch......

Race Course Rd ( 222 4889; Mahiyangana Rd; 222 4889;Mahiyangana % www.lonelyplanet.com 223 1302; Mahiyangana 223 1302;Mahiyangana ὆὆὆὆ ὆὆὆὆ ὆὆὆὆ ὆὆὆὆

D Gangaboda Rd Gangaboda 0.2 miles Cemetery General Cargills Cargills 12 11 10 400 m 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 C3 B2 B2 C3 C3 B2 C2 C3 A1 C2 B1 and stone the wordsforBuddha (Budu),images along a4kmroad. Badulla at5.55am Badulla toColombodepart The maindailyservices TRAIN leavebuses houruntil5.30pm. every 2pm. ForMonaragala(private busRs64), (CTB/intercity express Rs100/190)until city express Rs22)until10pm,andtoKandy 5pm. There are toColombo(inter- alsobuses Rs 23)approximately twohours every until 6am until4.50pm,andtoElla(private bus (private 20minutes busRs17)every from 40 minutes until4.30pm,toBandarawela runtoNuwaraEliya(CTBRs 52) every Buses BUS &Away There Getting www.lonelyplanet.com cut Buddhafigures of branches theTissa westoff roadtothe rock- About 5kmsouthof Wellawaya,asideroad Sights near thebusstation. ofand Bank Ceylon There are branches of Hatton NationalBank Information to Colombo. and thecoast;eastto the HillCountry;southtoTissamaharama EllaGapto thespectacular north through not much of interest inthearea. Roadsrun there’s the nearbyBuduruwagalacarvings, a smallcrossroadstownand,apart from kingdom of Ruhunu. Wellawaya issimply were once hometotheancientSinhalese try anddescendedtothedryplainsthat By Wellawaya youhave lefttheHillCoun- % WELLAWAYA sion Rs100) the centre stillbears traces of itsoriginal on theisland –in dha – at15m thetallest during this time. Bud- Thegiganticstanding which enjoyed abriefheyday in SriLanka belong to theMahayana Buddhistschool, to date fromaround the 10thcentury,and Rs 92/171/380. in 3rd/2nd/1stclass;tickets toKandy cost Tickets toColombo costRs152/268/580 sleeperettes) and7.15pm(aslowtrain). ( Podi Menike The nameBuduruwagala isderived from 055 . Asmallsignpost pointstheway (gala) viaKandy), 5.50pm(with . Thefigures are thought (Udarata Menike), the coast;andwest Buduruwagala 8.50am

(ruva) (admis-

from the bus station costsaboutRs50. from thebusstation sive mealsare available. Athree-wheeler a jolly,welcomingfamily.Good, inexpen- surrounded byricepaddiesandoperated by nouncing Wellawaya,thiscountry homeis south of town opposite theroadsignan- clean rooms,andanoutdoorcafé. to Ella,thisspothasbasicbutreasonably rama youmust change atPannegamanuwa wara Eliyaand change there. For Tissamaha- go toKandy you mustcatch abusto Nu- 30minutesevery until 6pm.Ifyou wantto toElla(Rs 24)runroughly 6.30pm. Buses hour), withthe last busleaving atabout are regular toMonaragala (Rs28,one buses the lastbusleaves atabout5.30pm.There runningataround5am,and (Rs 40)start here toHaputale untilmid-afternoon. Buses east coasts;youcan usuallyfindaconnection theHill Countryandthesouth tween pointbe- Wellawaya isacommonstaging &Away There Getting Little Rose Sleeping &Eating painted.suggests itwasonce brightly robe,andalongstreakstuccoed of orange Prince Sudhana. Local legend thethirdfigure says represents ure tobehisconsort, Tara. whoisthought this white-painted figure isafemale fig- ofBodhisattva compassion).Totheleftof hayana Buddhistfigure Avalokitesvara (the tobetheMa- isthought Buddha’s right left stands Vajrapani,left stands whoholdsa to beMaitreya, thefuture Buddha. Tohis figure atthecentre of the groupisthought be of aratherdifferent style. Thecrowned -hand sideappear,toaninexperteye, with/without air-conRs1500/850; joined byaguide,whowillexpecttip. the palm–abeckoninggesture. Youmaybe handswithtwofingersright bentdownto ofBrahma. thefigures Several holduptheir left maybeeitherVishnuorSahampath ThefigureBuddhism inSriLanka. tothe an unusualexampleof theTantric sideof hourglass-shaped thunderbolt symbol)– 450 return. about Rs250return Rs350to andataxi Wellawaya Rest House Wellawaya Rest The centralof thethree figures tothe The three figures ontheBuddha’sleft A three-wheeler fromWellawayacosts THE HILLCOUNTRY••Wellawaya

(101 Tissa Rd;rRs500-1000)

( % a 227 4899;EllaRd;r ) Ontheroad About 1km vajra

219 (an THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY with/without air-conRs1200/900; buses leavebuses 30minutes every (Rs180). cost abouttwiceas much. Colombointercity (Rs43);theintercity buses and Ratnapura toTangallabuses (Rs28),Matara (Rs44) Therefrom, ornear,thebusstation. are CTB costs Rs150. tothehotel fromthebus station wheeler tours costRs2000perperson. Athree- andmore.bolognaise UdaWalawe4WD there’s àlacarte riceandcurry,spaghetti offers when tours otherwise buffets stay, room andaninvitingpool.Therestaurant excellent –tiledfloors, balconies, billiards fashioned, ramblingair. Thefacilitiesare Guest House, Guest House, and 600msouthof Sarathchandra Tourist mum of three people). Walawe tours forRs2000perperson (mini- a friendly,well-runspot,andoffers Uda also arestaurant andabilliardstable. It’s cottages.There’sing aswellinseparate sortment of cleanroomsinthemainbuild- Sarathchandra Tourist GuestHouse Sarathchandra Tourist andopposite People’sthe busstation Bank, ATMs andcanarrange cashadvances. Visa allof andSampathBank, whichBank have People’s Bank, of Seylan Commercial Bank, the centre of town.You’llalsofindbranches plantations. ing irrigated paddyfieldsandsugar-cane thesurround- modern townbuilttoservice south of thepark’sticket office. It’sabusy, Walawe NationalPark, asit’sonly21km fortours to Embilipitiya isagood base Uda % EMBILIPITIYA express hours). Rs225,seven (Rs 54,three hours) andColombo(intercity Junction. There are toTangalla alsobuses 220 Reservoir, fed by theWalawe Ganga. Reservoir, hectares centre on thelarge Uda Walawe of Africa.savanna reserves The park’s30,821 national parkthatbest rivalsthe Sri Lankan andleopards, UdaWalawe is the bar deer sam- With herdsof elephants, wildbuffalo, UDA WALAWENATIONAL PARK as s/d/tr Rs3000/3300/3600;0514; [email protected]; Buses leaveBuses regularly formostdestinations Around 1.5kmsouthof thetowncentre, On themainroad,about200msouthof onthemainroad,in stands The busstation 047 THEHILLCOUNTRY••Embilipitiya ) ismodernindesignyethasanold- Centauria Tourist Hotel Tourist Centauria a ) offers anas- ( % 223 0044;r

( % 223 % US$24/28, allinclbreakfast; dialogsl.net; RBCanalRd;s/dUS$15/18,with air-con with/without air-conRs1400/1000; Park View Hotel Park View ple roomsandspaciousgrounds, Novembertween and April. northern migrantsjointheresidents be- varieties of snake andawealthof birdlife; and theoccasionalleopard.There are 30 monitor lizards,crocodiles,sloth bears bandicoots,foxes, mongooses, loes), water numbers boosted bydomesticated buffa- (their home are wildbuffaloes deer, sambar 6.30pm; they’re usuallynearwater. 6.30am to10amandagainfrom4pm elephantherdsisfrom best timetoobserve ting outandcattlefromgetting in.The of thepark,preventing elephantsfromget- elephant-proof fence aroundtheperimeter the parkinherdsof upto100.There’s an elephants–there areto see about500in except duringdrymonths. forest, canmake wildlife-watching difficult, pohon there’s littleforest inthepark.Thetall sold atabout5pm. people withdriver. tickets are Last usually foruptoeight pay Rs1500forahalf-day gathered outsidethegate, youcanexpectto a4WDfromoneofyou select themany orhotel, if organised bytheirguesthouse mostpeoplepreferAlthough totake atour and21kmfromEmbilipitiya.road turn-off, 12km fromtheRatnapura–Hambantota half-day. costsareasonable4WD safari Rs1500per from theparkonEmbilipitiya road.A Department ofWildlife Conservation Department awa Ganga. You mustprebook with the and theWal- camp sites along thereservoir cost Rs1200per half-day. Trips totheparkfromhereden setting. also The cleanandbasic roomscomeinagar- sign –and10km fromtheparkentrance. the Embilipitiya toUda Walawe–you’llsee south of asmalljunctiononthe roadfrom plus tracker pervehicleRs600; plus tracker The entrancetothe A reasonably goodlittlelodge withsim- Other creatures thatcallUdaWalawe This isoneof thebestplacesinSriLanka ofApart fromstands teak neartheriver, Walawa Safari Village Walawa Safari The park hasfourbungalows andthree 011-269 4241; grass,which growsinplaceof the

( www.dwlc.lk; 18 Gregory’s Rd, Col7) % 047-223 3312;Tanamalwila Rd;r

a ( % www.lonelyplanet.com park h ) a 047-223 3201;kinjou@ islocated 3km

6.30am-6.30pm) (per personUS$12, ) isabout8km

Mp pp84-5 ; (Map Walawa is

and Sinharaja was saved. Much of therest of theforest, the roads gradually grew over the machinery wasdismantledand taken out the government calledahaltto alllogging; hard for an endtothedestruction. In1977 lobbied chip millwasbuilt.Conservationists and trailssnaked intotheforest, andawood- notoccurnaturallyhere), roads does logging woods were replaced with mahogany(which Thelogged nativeselective logging. hard- loggers moved inandbeganwhatwas called atleastsomeof in1971 it.However, preserve were land andfromthattimeefforts madeto lion. of theSriLankan Forest. Itmayhave thelastredoubt been colonial records refer toitasRajasinghe andsome south. Itwasoncearoyalreserve, about 21kmeasttowestand3.7km northto of naturaland modified forest, measuring the westlanddecreases in elevation. the forest, Hinipitigala(1171m). Towards peakin tothehighest eastern border,close Estatemarks the past theBeverley that goes the GinGangainsouth.Anold foot track ers: theKoskulanaGangainnorthand tage Site in1989. aWorldHeri-Unesco declared thereserve totheisland’secosystem,its importance of Recognising southwestern Sri Lanka. soils andbalancewater resources formuch copious rain-cloudsthatreplenish itsdeep wet zone. Onmostdaystheforest conjures a broadridge attheheartof theisland’s occupies thisforest reserve est inSriLanka, The lastmajor undisturbedarea of rainfor- FORESTRESERVE SINHARAJA gate tothepark. press Rs37/80)andasktobedroppedatthe heading toTanamalwila (CTB/intercity ex- to organise atouratthepark, catch abus (kiddiesundersixare free). pay half-price dren aged sixand12years between of age charge pertrip.Studentsandchil- service sites costUS$6persite perday,plusaUS$6 your owndryrationsandkerosene. Camp charge. Youmustbringallofgroup service per groupforlinenhire andaUS$30 per per day,plustheUS$12parkentry,US$2 10 beds;thecharge isUS$24perperson in Colombo. Thebungalowseach contain www.lonelyplanet.com In 1840theforest becameBritish crown 18,899hectares comprises The reserve Sinharaja (LionKing)isbordered byriv- If you’re atEmbilipitiyaandwish staying THE HILL COUNTRY •• Sinharaja Forest Reserve THE HILLCOUNTRY••SinharajaForest Reserve Lanka’s rainforest areLanka’s foundin Sinharaja. of trees andwoodyclimbers endemictoSri dangered. More than65%of the217types subcanopy trees foundhere are rare oren- next layerdowntopping 30m.Nearlyallthe trees reach of heights upto45m, withthe which isstillbeingstudied.Thecanopy Sinharaja hasawildprofusion of flora, WILDLIFE Sights &Activities basic dormlike accommodation. on theMatara road. Thedepartmentoffers also soldasDeodawa,5kmfromDeniyaya Forest Departmentoffice atKudawa;they’re pulsory guideRs300)are soldatthemain Tickets (adult/child Rs575/290,pluscom- Information ridges withina20kmradiusof theforest. rainforestof onmountain stands SriLanka’s can be found onthe forest floor. Groups and wildboar cats. Sambar, barking deer Even rarer are rustyspotted cats andfishing seen. droppings andtracks,as it isseldom Its presence can usuallybegauged onlyby southeast. erapitiya (reached fromDeniyaya)inthe Kudawa inthenorthwestandviaMed- the mostrelevant totravellers are via those poaching of wildanimals. erosion.There mals andcause isalsosome adanger tohumans andani- open pitspose illegal gem abandoned miners too,whose demand for Sinharaja cane ishigh. attracts collectionisof more concern,asthe Rattan plants are collected duringspecificseasons. leaves forfuelandconstruction.Medicinal and treacle, andtocollectdeadwood and palms tomake jaggery (ahardbrownsweet) locals are permitted toenter thearea totap with humidityatabout 87%. which averages about24°Cinsidetheforest, variationinthe temperature,little seasonal of thedriestmonths. 50mmineven There’s 5000mm of rain annually,withaminimum as Sinharaja receives 3500mmand between downpour, drizzle,ifnotanoutright stant formostofstands theyearunderacon- Hinipitigala best timestovisitthereserve. ber, andJanuary toearlyApril) are the The largest carnivore here isthe leopard. There are parkaccesspoints,but several There are 22 villages aroundtheforest, and The driermonths (Augustand Septem-

221 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Kandyan-style frescoes. the toothrelic bythevillagers. The shrinehas VII inrecognition of theprotection given to Relic. Itwasbuilt byKingBuwanekabahu Kandy’ssembles Temple of theSacred Tooth proportions buthas auniquestructure thatre- (which is3kmfromDeniyaya),of modest KolawenigamaTemple ontheroadtowardsUrubokka.tapola The and upto60mwide),are 5kmeastof Ko- some of thelargest (60mhigh inSriLanka worth theclimb.The perb early-17th-century 6kmsouthofKotapola, Deniyaya, hasasu- DENIYAYA &AROUND plied totheextremities. carry antileech preparations thatcanbeap- allguides asmuch suffer because you needn’t all theotheranimalsputtogether. days These more caused claimed leeches casualtiesthan much more forested), andoneBritishwriter to conquerthehinterland (which wasthen astheirworstleeches enemywhentheytried armiesrated British, Dutch andPortuguese littlecritters. unpleasant Incolonialtimesthe forest andnotattractoneormore of these the would bemostunusualtowalkthrough here.20 endemicspeciesseen have recorded, been with18of SriLanka’s croakingisoften frog, whose heardatnight. quently foundamphibiansisthewrinkled lives ontheforest floor. Oneof themostfre- viper,andthekrait, which the hump-nosed the green pitviper(which inhabitstrees), of themendemic.Venomous snakes include Six speciesof bathave recorded been here. thefoliagedarting through duringtheday. theoccasionalmongoose you mayglimpse areets andmongooses nocturnal,though Civ- around theforest floor,mostlyunseen. squirrel. Porcupinesandpangolinswaddle striped junglesquirrel andthewestern giant the flame-stripedjunglesquirrel, thedusky- common. There are three kindsof squirrel: of 10to14purple-faced langurs are fairly 222 tion options. Kudawa hasbetter accommoda- although Deniyaya ifyoudon’thave yourownwheels, It’s more from convenient tovisit thereserve Sleeping &Eating Sinharaja inabundance. hasleeches It There isawealthof birdlife: 147species There are 45speciesof reptiles here, 21 THEHILLCOUNTRY••SinharajaForest Reserve Sena Serasinghe Sena , 3kmfromPallegama Kiruwananaganga Falls Kiruwananaganga rock temple

( % 071 200727) . It’s well . It’swell , a , a , Nonguests cantake histours, too. per person 4WDrideuptoMederapitiya. per day,plustheentryfee andaRs800 haraja with Palitha costsRs600perperson of informationonSinharaja. AtriptoSin- but there’s goodhomecookingandloads The sixroomsathishomeare fairlybasic, who isvery knowledgeable about theforest. with Palitha acertifiedguide Ratnayaka, hassle asyoucanarrange arainforest walk to the parkoffices where theroad ends. Rs 600) Rs 1000-1200) Rd; s/dRs600/900) which the family will cook for you. which thefamily willcookforyou. would be acourtesy tobringyour ownfood, but ifyouare coming withyourowncarit meal here –vegetarian, asthere’s nofridge – mation. Youcan get agoodriceandcurry ranger here foryears, and isamineof infor- an expertonSinharaja, having worked asa Martin Wijesinghe’s Martin KUDAWA Sinharaja Rest DENIYAYA local bed-and-breakfast accommodation. on tours of Sinharaja and canhelparrange local guide,isagoodsourceof information through Sinharajathrough Rest. arrange foreston thepremises. Staff tours dimly lit,andthere’s abarandrestaurant quaint roomsare infaircondition,ifabit the townandcountryside. Thelarge, town’s great overlooking views;inthiscase, place hasaplumpositiontocheck outthe Like mostrest inDeniyaya,this houses gala post office ( gala postoffice tin byleaving aphone message attheWedda- from theticket office. Mar- Youcancontact a basicbutcongenial place. It’sabout4km the park’sboundarynearKudawa, thisis should costRs150. 2km away.Athree-wheeler from Deniyaya group fortransport.There’s awaterfall about 600 perperson, plusentryfees andRs800per canarrange tours intotheforest staff forRs hot water addsRs200totheroomprice. The 10 modernroomswithprivate bathrooms; has Run byafriendlyfamily,theguesthouse home inavillage about3.5kmfromDeniyaya. Deniyaya Rest House Deniyaya Rest Blue Magpie Sathmala EllaRest This relatively newlodge close stands This is a handsome middle-class Thisisahandsomemiddle-class

(

% ( Staying here Staying % %

041-227 3368;fax227Temple (Forest View;rRs600) 045-250 9391; 115Pirivena Rd;r

045-222 5528).Martin is ( %

( % www.lonelyplanet.com 041-227 3481;Pallegama; r 041-227 3600;rRs850)

saves alotof Right on on Right

spare room)forRs400pernight. (one athishouse modation; youcanstay Handuwila isoneguidewhooffers accom- one of atKudawa. Sunil theguides based den.com; SinharajaRd,Koswatta;s/dUS$213/252; excellent. mealshere are SriLankan but comfortable. As atMartin roomsare Wijesinghe’s, basic www.lonelyplanet.com damaged by flooding. the roads areearly asyoucan because often Weddagala toaKudawa-bound bus. fore Kudawa,Rs 190),andthen change in from Colombo to Weddagala(4kmbe- For Kudawayou canget abusalltheway (Rs60foranexpress).from Ratnapura to Pelmadulla andchange there. Ella andNuwara Eliya youmustcatch abus Akuressa orPelmadulla andchanging. For want aCTBbusyou’re better goingto off from Colombo(Rs200,5½hours); ifyou from Deniyaya)andchange there. more frequent toAkuressa (Rs21 buses youcanalwayscatchalthough one of the to/fromGalle(CTBRs80), buses several 6.45am untiltheafternoon. There are also there hourfrom every are roughly buses toDeniyaya (CTBRs80) From Ratnapura BUS &Away There Getting taramulla) ( modation. Contact the modation. Contact some bungalowswithfairlybasicaccom- available gardenrestaurant. inabeautiful around 10hectares of rainforest. Meals are run bird-watching tours andhikingtrips built amongboulders andstreams. Thestaff rustic suites –twoof theminactualcaves – This brilliantlydesignedecoresort offers 10 here fromKalawana costsabout Rs200. haraja forRs1800perday.Athree-wheeler canarrange toSin- taxis water only.Staff rooms are there’s quite decent,though cold parts.The inthese the onlyentertainment andabar–thelatter isjustabout taurant rooms,ares-a countryhotel withseven 3kmfromKalawana,At Koswatta, thisis % It isfarsimplerandcheaper with tostay Singraj Rest Wherever trytoget youstart, moving as To reach Kalawana youcan take abus There’s anintercity express bustoand The Forest DepartmentatKudawa has Boulder Garden 011-286 6633; [email protected]; 82 Rajamalwatte Rd,Bat- 011-286 6633;[email protected]; 82Rajamalwatte , inColombo,forinformation.

( %

( % 045-225 5201;Koswatta;rRs1500) 045-225 5812; Forest Department HQ Department Forest

www.bouldergar s THE HILL COUNTRY •• Sinharaja to Ratnapura THE HILLCOUNTRY••SinharajatoRatnapura )

Deniyaya (Rs48,3½hours). and two hours), Rakwana andfourbetween (Rs27, andRatnapura Rakwana between and Haputale. of Pelmadulla, Ratnapura located between fore junctiontown hittingtheimportant ern spurof theHill(andtea) Countrybe- veranda, dininganddrinks. rooms,afine bungalow withfourpleasant Hill Country before ascending intothe hills. to Haputale skirtsthe southern edge of the elevation. preferred point–sits atahigher starting since theHattonmountain, side– nowthe appreciating of thefullheight the sacred In clearweatherit canbethebestplacefor pilgrimagestoughest uptoAdam’sPeak. dusk toprevent spiritsfromentering. evil as leaving candles outsidethefrontdoorat lagers traditions,such keep oldSinhalese and tea bushesgrowonthehills.Many vil- cloak thevalleyfloors, whilerubbertrees is often underappreciated –paddyfields ment forgemstones todevelop. beds, which are inturntheperfect environ- climate encourages theformationof river of gemstones. The region’s wetandhumid a tradehubforthearea’s ancientwealth (‘City of inSanskrit)isfamousas Gems’ busy Sinharaja Forest Reserve, Ratnapura watered Adam’sPeak valleys between and Sitting nearthecentre of anumberof richly % RATNAPURA House derness Sanctuarytothenorth. Park, withtheescarpmentof thePeak Wil- across theplainsof UdaWalawe National above thetowngives panorama asweeping through passes northfromDeniyayaandThe A17goes TORATNAPURASINHARAJA isveryHaputale scenic. orRatnapura), Oya, Madampe (forBelihul andBalangoda Tea Estate, northof Deniyayaenroute to If youhave Hayes acar,theroadthrough CAR &MOTORCYCLE There are perday aroundfourbuses theroadreaches asouth- From Rakwana The attractive road route from Ratnapura The attractive roadroute from Ratnapura of wasthetraditionalstart the Ratnapura The ruralscenerysurroundingthe town isthe The bestplacetostay 045 /pop48,230

( % 045-224 6299;rRs1050) Rakwana . Theviewfrom , aBritish-era Rakwana Rest Rest Rakwana

223 THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY Ratnapura Museum &Laboratory Museum pressurelow sales is at ‘local’prices.Oneplacewith relatively you’re encouraged ‘local’gems topurchase with lessthanmodestshowrooms where modestdisplaysongemcontain lore along well, includinggems, fabricsandjewellery. gem pits.There are items of local culture as cluding rhinos andelephants)discovered in remainsfossilised of variousanimals(in- The town’s Sights 224 child Rs50/25; (including waitingtime). the centre of townshouldcostaboutRs250 polishing. Areturn three-wheeler tripfrom gems, aswellinformationonminingand There’s agooddisplayof localmineralsand Mawatha, Getangama; admissionfree; Getangama; Mawatha, take a three-wheeler from the towncentre Perahera, with which itcoincides. You can it’s notas wellknownas theKandy Esala is a the Buddha andPattini. Themajor festival cated toSaman,while sideshrines honour isdedi- colonial times.The mainsanctuary andthen rebuiltPortuguese duringDutch century, thetemple was destroyedbythe Kandyan style. Originallybuilt in the13th multiroofed whitewashed pavilions inthe ofhandsome series broadcourtyards and visiting. Perched onasmallhill,itboasts city, isanarchitectural treasure wellworth Avissawella To RatnapuraGemBureau, 1 2 RATNAPURA (38km) Museum &Laboratory There are ‘ several whichgem museums’, The (1.5km); Newitigala To Inns (6km);Kosgala(8km) Rathnaloka Tour Devale (3.5km); To MahaSaman THEHILLCOUNTRY••Ratnapura perahera Bus Station...... Cargills FoodCity...... Nilani Lodge...... National Museum...... Vihara...... Gem Merchants...... TRANSPORT EATING SLEEPING SIGHTS &ACTIVITIES anpr etHue.C1 Ratnapura RestHouse.. Gnanasiha Tapowana (30km) Maha SamanDevale Maha A National Museum h on Esala onEsala

9am-5pm Sat-Wed) Ka tu gas Ela Health Resort(1.9km); 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Katugas Falls(2.5km) Kalavati Holiday& C1 C2 B2 B1 D1 C2 ( To Traveller's Market Halt (800m);

% Pothgulvihara Ratnapura Gem Bureau, Bureau, Gem Ratnapura

poya Bandaranayaka Mw Bandaranayaka

222 2469;Pothgulvihara Dharma 3 , 4kmwestof the

( (July/August); (July/August); %

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anga Market Clock Tower Main St Main . 7 6 .com; 153/5 OuterCircularRd;courses perdayRs2000) and polish gemstones. teaches students skills,including howtocut fers afive-day basic gemology that course Ratna Gem Halt Gem Ratna GEMOLOGY Activities too longajourney todoinaday. Uda WalaweNational Park butit’sreally people. You’llalsobe offered daytripsto topay aroundRs4500foruptofour Expect for adaytripto Sinharaja Forest Reserve. about 8kmfromtown. est Park. There are some Pompakellecan walktoitthrough For- on topof ahilloverlooking thetown; you Buddha steam by3pm. Rs 1500).Bothmarkets usuallyrunoutof forhalfadayshould costaround ing ataxi in mornings ( local gem market, convenes however, most St northeastof theclocktower. Thebiggest merchants to organise avisit.Youcanalsoobserve shouldbeable yourguesthouse ists perse, gem mines the temple. wait asthere are usuallythree-wheelers at tohavefor aboutRs80;noneed thedriver Senanayaka

Newitigala Saviya St You can also use Ratnapura asabase Ratnapura You canalsouse There’s afull-sizedreplica of the The outskirtsof townare dotted with Mw 1 attheGnanasihaTapowana Vihara, selling theirwares selling alongSaviya and, although nonecater and,although totour- 0 0 ὈὈ poya , a40-minute drive away(hir- Zaviya 5

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Pompakelle Rd caves at Kosgala, D Estate (15km); 300 m 2 (8km; Carney To Gilimale Pelmadulla 0.2 miles Aukana Aukana (18km) gem of- www.lonelyplanet.com inclusions thatgive withasinglelightsource. thestoneastareffect, particularly spinels beingpassedoffassapphires. Youcan often findcorundrumscontaining‘silk’:minute Bewarethe StarofIndia(displayedatNew YorkMuseumofNaturalHistory). ofpinkorblue hasproducedthreemost valuably,blue. oftheworld’slargest SriLanka bluesapphires, including sapphiresunder lightastarburstappearswithinthe gem.Other canbeyellow,orange, white and, star sapphires are afeature gemindustry.The oftheRatnapura stonesare comparatively dull,but Starrubiesand ofthechemicalsintheirmake-up. of colourdependingontheprecise proportions correctly calledpinksapphires. Rubiesandsapphires are thesametypeofstone,withgradations incommercialquantities. Youwill,however,found inSriLanka seepinkrubies,whichare also only tothediamondinhardness. The bestandmostvaluablerubiesare red, buttheseare not types ofstoneare listed here. onestoneapreciousmakes stoneandanotheronlysemiprecious. Someofthemore popular between precious andsemiprecious stonesispurely arbitrary–there isnocleardefinitionofwhat Some stonesare cutandfaceted Gems are stillcutandpolishedbyhand,althoughmodernmethodsare also comingintouse. includingrarity,hardnessandbeauty.same pit.Astone’svaluedependsonanumberoffactors, notyours. Syntheticstonesarebe ontheirpart, very hardtospot,even forexperts. lievable bargain ongemstonesthebargain Ifyou’re wrappedupintheirpocket. will noexpert Every streetsother personyou meetinRatnapura’s towhisperthattheyhave islikely anunbe- Types ofGems orhorizontal,depending onwhichwaythe shafts, whichcanbevertical finances totheoneuphisneckinmudandwater. Children are sometimessentdownthe the profitisdividedbetweenallmembersofcoop,fromperson whosuppliesthe tosearchthroughthepebbles.wash themuddygravel Ifastoneisfound, aswellanexpert areas have different specialities–villagessometimeshave weeklygemmarkets. beside theroad,butthere are manymore offinthehillsandfieldsaroundRatnapura. Different rivers. roadyou’llseecountlessgem-miningoperationsinpaddyfields OntheColombo–Ratnapura buried river beds,asthegemsare heavierthangravel soaren’t carriedtothelowerreaches of gravel-bearing toholdgemstones. stratumlikely It’susuallyfoundintheupperreaches ofnewly In Ratnapura, gems are stillfoundbyancientmethods. Gemminers look forseamsof GEMS is foundhere, andisquite reasonably pricedsinceitisnotashard or lustrousasotherstones. less valuable,beingsoldascat’s-eyes. light.Onerip-off towatchforistourmalines,whichare farchange undernaturalandartificial for translucenceandtheclarityglow ofthesingleray.Alexandrite isvaluedforitscolour rayknownaschatoyancy, varyfromgreentheir catlike throughahoneycolourtobrown;look stone. Zirconcomesinavarietyofcolours, fromyellowthroughorangetobrown andgreen. orange citron. rightthroughtoyellow or ies widelyincolour, frompurpleamethysttobrownsmoky quartz, are a sort ofpoorperson’s ruby;light-brownare garnets are asort often usedin localrings. rather attractive. They comein a varietyofcolours andcanbetransparent oropaque. also befoundwith aslightshadeofblue,althoughthis colouring israrer. found in Sri Lanka – ifsomeone offers it toyou it’ll probably bequartz. found inSriLanka Cat’s-eyes andalexandriteCat’s-eyes are thebest-known gemsinthe Corundrums gemmingthatavarietyofstonesisalmostalwaysfound inthe It’s apeculiarityofSriLankan requiringGem miningisacooperative mentodigoutthe effort, The appearanceofa The best-known stoneinthe Quartz The moonstone Among the otherprecious stones, variesfromtransparent also var- toopaque, andisusuallyquite wellpriced.Quartz are agroupthatincludessapphires andrubies,bothprecious stonesandsecond (feldspar) zircon , is Sri Lanka’s specialgem.Usuallyasmooth, grey colour, itcan, isSriLanka’s canapproachthatof adiamond,althoughitiscomparatively soft beryl (en cabochon), group, the emerald, is not found in Sri Lanka. Aquamarinegroup, theemerald,isnotfoundinSri Lanka. spinels are fairlycommon butare also quite hard and whileothersare simplypolished.The division chrysoberyl THE HILL COUNTRY •• Gems THE HILLCOUNTRY••Gems illama, illama group. Cat’s-eyes, with group.Cat’s-eyes, workthepumpand runs. Topaz illama, Garnets isn’t a

225

THE HILL COUNTRY HILL THE THE HILL COUNTRY walking trails through thislush forest.walking trailsthrough andislacedwith RestHouse, Ratnapura veranda, barandgrassygarden. place hasheapsof charm withitsspacious style roomsare large andbare. Still,the The colonial- that dominates Ratnapura. ontopofbest site intown,right thehill Rs 700-900, with air-con Rs1200; naturally alsohasagem showroom. expensive itis.It’srun byagem dealer, who they’re theroommore on–thehigher rooms are pricedaccording towhich floor foodand fineviews.The good SriLankan of townwinsplauditsforits hospitality, north guesthouse family-run, seven-room Ratnapura Rest House Rest Ratnapura Sleeping &Eating the first –there’sMountain’ noviewfromhere) was was built,thevillage of theroad ticular menaceonthistrail.Before are hours todescend.Leeches seven apar- to reach thetopof thepeak,andfive to bybus.It takes hours sixtoeight Ratnapura ney Estate, 15kmoronehour away from pilgrimage route fromtheroadheadatCar- and pilgrimstodaypickuptheGilimalai the trek Peak-baggers uptheholymountain. the worship of ,thepatrondeityof once started attheMaha with SamanDevale One of theoldestroutes up WALKING Adam’s Peak 226 The lush crowded onSundaysandpublic holidays. Falls Katugas kilometres northof townare the6m-high duous walksthantoAdam’sPeak. Three footprint onthesummit. ridge, thenupthesteepfinalascentto ofwinds uptoDiyabetma onthesaddle a moreout heranswer,ever faintly.Thetrail send echoes call outhername,andtheeerie the edge, butfell to Pilgrims pause herself. who triedtosave herchild from fallingover pilgrims tell astoryof awomannamedNili lodgings. Furtheruphillis a hillvillage withadagobaandpilgrims’ stop wasat .lk; rinclbreakfast Rs3300) -online.com; 153/5Outer CircularRd,rRs550-1500) Ratna Gem Halt Gem Ratna Travellers Halt Travellers Much closer totownthereMuch closer are lessar- THEHILLCOUNTRY••Ratnapura ambalama Pompakelle Forest Park Forest Pompakelle , which are butare quite pleasant Pallebadole

( %

onthejourney.Thenext ( % 222 3092;30 OuterCircularRd;r

Thisrest hasthe house ( % 222 3745;www.ratnapura Gilimalai (elevation 600m), (elevation 222 2299;udarest@stlnet a Nilihela ) Just over 1km (‘Swallowed liesbehind , agorge; This 1800; s/dRs1300/1500,withair-con1600/ mapala Mawatha; Rs 2000/1300; fax 2223657;PolhengodaVillage;rwith/withoutair-con very friendly. with hotwater. Themanagement seems storey buildinghas10clean,comfyrooms prices. There’s FoodCity. alsoaCargills reasonable riceandcurryfor low that serve halfasmuch. wheeler should costRs600,athree- from Ratnapura andagoodrestaurant. Ataxi tentive service there’s alarge garden,aninviting pool,at- wealth, itstrives tomake astatement, but the buildingsaroundtownfunded bygem was builtbyagem magnate. Like manyof Rs 100to150. costsabout fromthebusstation wheeler extensive menu,andgoodfood.Athree- Therestaurantplace tostay. hasquite an but thegardenshelpmake itapleasant sometreatmentcould use themselves, ‘gem therapy’.Theroomsare basicand centresthe treatments is attheAyurvedic kitted outwithantiquefurniture. Oneof boasts anextensive herbgardenandis from the Kalavati busstation, Ratnapura eureka.lk; (Rs 67, sixhours). are alsodirect toandfrom Kandy buses change atMatara (Rs100,4½hours). There Park) costsRs43.To get toGalleyou must to Embilipitiya(for UdaWalaweNational (Rs28).TheCTBbusbus toBalangoda dulla, you’llprobably first have tocatch a If you’re goingtoHaputale, Ella and Ba- Avissawella (Rs19)andthen change there. Nuwara Eliyayou’ll have tocatch abusto is likely tobejam-packed. ForHatton or intercity express Rs46/100,fourhours) Any buscomingfromColombo (CTB/ &Away There Getting as cost Rs70. should three-wheeler fromthebusstation management iskeen toarrange tours. A con. Theroomsare and cleanandpleasant Village, thishasninerooms,twowithair- out of towninthedirection of Polhengoda Kalavati Holiday&HealthResort Kalavati There are eateries aroundMain several St Rathnaloka TourInns Rathnaloka Nilani Lodge ai ) Thismidrange place6kmfromtown

Kosgala/Kahangama; rstandard/deluxe US$32/45; Kosgala/Kahangama; ) a This1970s-eraconcrete three-

( % ) An Ayurvedic centre 2.5km AnAyurvedic 222 2170;[email protected];21Dhar-

( www.lonelyplanet.com % 222 2455;ratnaloka@

( % 222 2465; www.lonelyplanet.com the above - ‘Do the right thing withour content.’ the above -‘Do theright theterms andconditions onoursiteforalonger wayofsaying youknow,or resell it.See everyone site,mass emailitto only. Inother words,please don’t uploadthischapter toapeer-to-peer In return, wethinkit’sfair toaskyouuseit forpersonal,non-commercial purposes restricted. © LonelyPlanetPublications. iteasierforyoutouse, accesstothischapterisnotdigitally Tomake

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