Kandy Sri Lanka
Kandy is a mountain city of about 100,000 people about 100km east of Colombo. It is a city of profound beauty and is by far the most scenic places of everywhere I had visited in Sri Lanka.
Religion and prayer is everywhere in Kandy and one of the most striking things you will notice is the giant Lord Buddha statue up on one of the local hills. It stand about 88 feet tall and is an impressive site to visit. Tickets for the site go to helping with maintenance and expanding the religious site and caretakers would be happy to show you around for a tip that goes towards helping maintain the statue (and pay their wages).
One of the really interesting things you can do is climb up about half way on stairs that climb up the Lord Buddhas back. It gives you a truly fantastic view of the valleys in the area.
To get up to Lord Buddha find the tourist police office and follow the ascending road up and to the left. It's a bit of a walk going up, or you could take a TukTuk who will drive you up and take you down after a set period of time.
If a giant Lord Buddha statue isn't enough to get you interested in going to Kandy, then how about the massive Temple of the Tooth. A site of massive Buddhist significants and a World Heritage site. The grounds and the building itself are magnificent, with lots of interesting shows and performances going on all the time.
Kandy is a really unique city, it is located far up in the mountains and has a beautiful lake which is bustling with fish. There is a pathway to walk all the way around which makes for a beautiful afternoon.
The city of Kandy itself has a couple really great features, there is a lot of wonderful restaurants, Devon's (just down from KFC) being one of the best in the city in my opinion. It has three restaurants in one. The main street level floor has fabulous breakfast, while a slightly more formal dining experience awaits you on the top floor. The manager was wonderful and friendly, as were all the staff and I highly recommend them.
Shopping is something you could spend hours doing in Kandy, there are several bazaar which seem to run every single day. They close up about 9 or 10 PM and are full of great deals. Make sure you bargain hard because tourists always get told a price at least twice as high as the locals.
If you prefer shopping in stores, there is a variety of stores to shop in, however the bulk of them are geared towards clothing and fashion.
The easiest way to get to Kandy from Colombo is by train. Tickets are about 130 Sri Lankan Rupees for a several hour journey and is reasonably comfortable. But I suggest that you read my tip on getting a seat on a Sri Lankan train.
The other method of getting there is hiring a private car to drive you. From Colombo you will be between 4500-7500 Sri Lankan rupees for an air conditioned vehicle. It's a little expensive but sometimes you just don't want to wait to go somewhere.
Kandy is a really beautiful city with lots to see and do. If you are just going up there to see the sights, I wouldn't spend more than 2-3 days up there max. I would say 2 full days and leave on the second evening would be more than enough for most people.
Then why not do as I did and head down to Hikkaduwa a beautiful beach down in the south.
Happy Travels!
Religion and prayer is everywhere in Kandy and one of the most striking things you will notice is the giant Lord Buddha statue up on one of the local hills. It stand about 88 feet tall and is an impressive site to visit. Tickets for the site go to helping with maintenance and expanding the religious site and caretakers would be happy to show you around for a tip that goes towards helping maintain the statue (and pay their wages).
One of the really interesting things you can do is climb up about half way on stairs that climb up the Lord Buddhas back. It gives you a truly fantastic view of the valleys in the area.
To get up to Lord Buddha find the tourist police office and follow the ascending road up and to the left. It's a bit of a walk going up, or you could take a TukTuk who will drive you up and take you down after a set period of time.
If a giant Lord Buddha statue isn't enough to get you interested in going to Kandy, then how about the massive Temple of the Tooth. A site of massive Buddhist significants and a World Heritage site. The grounds and the building itself are magnificent, with lots of interesting shows and performances going on all the time.
Kandy is a really unique city, it is located far up in the mountains and has a beautiful lake which is bustling with fish. There is a pathway to walk all the way around which makes for a beautiful afternoon.
The city of Kandy itself has a couple really great features, there is a lot of wonderful restaurants, Devon's (just down from KFC) being one of the best in the city in my opinion. It has three restaurants in one. The main street level floor has fabulous breakfast, while a slightly more formal dining experience awaits you on the top floor. The manager was wonderful and friendly, as were all the staff and I highly recommend them.
Shopping is something you could spend hours doing in Kandy, there are several bazaar which seem to run every single day. They close up about 9 or 10 PM and are full of great deals. Make sure you bargain hard because tourists always get told a price at least twice as high as the locals.
If you prefer shopping in stores, there is a variety of stores to shop in, however the bulk of them are geared towards clothing and fashion.
The easiest way to get to Kandy from Colombo is by train. Tickets are about 130 Sri Lankan Rupees for a several hour journey and is reasonably comfortable. But I suggest that you read my tip on getting a seat on a Sri Lankan train.
The other method of getting there is hiring a private car to drive you. From Colombo you will be between 4500-7500 Sri Lankan rupees for an air conditioned vehicle. It's a little expensive but sometimes you just don't want to wait to go somewhere.
Kandy is a really beautiful city with lots to see and do. If you are just going up there to see the sights, I wouldn't spend more than 2-3 days up there max. I would say 2 full days and leave on the second evening would be more than enough for most people.
Then why not do as I did and head down to Hikkaduwa a beautiful beach down in the south.
Happy Travels!
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