Kandy Part 2 (8-13)

Thursday I hired a tuk tuk for an all-day tour out of the city. It usually includes an elephant orphanage where you can have close encounters—bathing, riding—with the elephants. Since I’d had such experiences and had just seen wild elephants, I wasn’t interested in that. When the guesthouse owner mentioned ancient temples, I knew that was what I wanted to do in addition to the botanical gardens.

On the way out of Kandy, we stopped at a woodworking workshop—and sales center—and one for batik. I was prepared for shopping after talking with a German couple at dinner Wednesday night. They spent all their money before arriving at the botanical gardens and didn’t have enough left for the entrance fee. That wasn’t going to happen to me.

The man at the woodworking workshop demonstrated making dye with a special bark that changes color when different substances are added. I’d seen a quick demonstration of this before, but he took more time. It is amazing to watch the water change color as each substance is added. The batik explanation was also well done. I’m pretty familiar with the process, but it was a good review. A special Sri Lankan technique is the dot technique. Skin is depicted by painting dots before the wax is applied.

The three ancient—14^th and 15^th centuries—temples are in small villages. We rode for almost an hour to Embekke Devalya. A special feature of this temple is beautiful wood carving. 

The pillars each have four small, carved pictures, one on each side. 

As I was walking around the building, two men started drumming. So I returned to the central area to see what was happening. After a few minutes, a priest entered and walked into the inner shrine behind the curtain. Then he walked out. A few minutes later he returned carrying two gold cloths on a pole and went to the inner shrine. After several minutes he came out and rang the bells along with the drumming. Then he returned to the shrine and emerged carrying two gold cloths out. Maybe he changed them. While he was in the shrine, I noticed a sign with times, one of which was 11:30. I figured that these were the ceremony times and that my driver planned to get me there in time for the one at 11:30. When we left, he mentioned that.

On the way in to the temple, I noticed a sign that said “toilets for foreigners.” That intrigued me and I needed one; so one the way out I told the driver to stop. He pointed out the building I should go to. The signs on the building were in only Singhalese, which I found interesting since the sign by the road was only in English. The man took me to the correct side of the building, and when I came out, he pointed to the sign that said how much should be paid: 50 rupees/$0.40.

Next was Lankathilaka Temple, which is both Hindu and Buddhist. I had learned at a museum that the two religions started to merge a little in the 14^th century; so this was an example of such a temple. (Many modern temples have both Hindu and Buddhist images in different shrines. This is especially common with Ganesh.) One side of the image house is Hindu and the other is Buddhist. The temple is on top of a rock mountain. It features elephants on the outside. 

When I was leaving the Hindu side of image house after looking at everything, a man motioned to me and asked if I wanted to go inside. Of course I did. We went behind the curtain and he opened a door, locking it behind us. 

This was the Hindu shrine, the inner part of which was carved out of the rock and the outer part of which is made from red bricks. 

Each side of the inner part has a niche for an image—three gods and goddesses and one Ganesh. All are 730 years old and are painted beautifully. It was really special to be able to see these statues and the inner shrine. When we finished, he asked me to make a donation to the temple in the donation box. It was well worth the additional donation in addition to the entrance ticket.

The white main entrance on the Buddhist side is a special feature of the temple according to the brochure we were given. Unfortunately, the Buddhist temple was not open.

Gadaladeniya Raja Maha Vihara, the last of the ancient temples on the agenda, is famous for the wall murals in the shrines. The small building has three shrines that were open, each with a painted Buddha statue and murals on the walls. Some are in good condition, and others have parts that can barely be seen. They are amazing. The outside features carved elephants.

The big stone building is being reconstructed. 

It houses the big Buddha statue.

We made a quick stop at a spice garden. The tour wasn’t nearly as good as the one in Sigiriya. The man pointed out several plants that are native only to Sri Lanka. He told how each plant is combined with a number of other spices to make medicine that cures various illnesses and problems. Then he gave me the pamphlet about the products and, after a couple minutes, asked if I was going to buy anything. When I said “no,” he took the pamphlet back and asked for a tip.

The next stop was a tea factory, which was exactly that. It is where tea leaves are processed to make tea that is sold. The young woman who took me around and explained the process was the most indifferent guide I’ve had. She repeated the memorized information with no intonation and then moved on. Perhaps she doesn’t really speak English and can only repeat the memorized speech. I felt no connection with her and felt like she doesn’t enjoy her job. After the quick tour of the factory, we arrived at the sales room where she gave information about the types of tea they sell. I was surprised to see red/rooiboos tea from South Africa being sold at a Sri Lankan tea factory. They also sell flower tea, the balls that open to a flower when immersed in hot water, from China. When I sneezed, she stopped mid-sentence and waited till I finished. Then she finished the sentence. About fifteen seconds later, she started laughing and couldn’t stop. She apologized and then laughed some more. I told her it was OK and that everyone reacted that way. I was glad to see a bit of personality come out. She seemed more at ease after that.

Finally we arrived at the Royal Botanical Gardens. The driver told me that an hour and a half was enough but two hours would be OK for me. I guess he’d noticed that I take a lot of time looking around. The garden is huge, and for two hours I was immersed in its beauty. Everything about the garden is lovely. There is a huge open lawn area near the entrance. 

Another area has a well-manicured flower garden. 

Of course I enjoyed the orchid house. 

A special feature of the garden is palm walks—several paths that are lined with different types of palm trees. 

There were monkey in one area—a different species of macaques that are brown. They were very protective of their babies, holding them tightly and turning so they were hidden from the people. 

In another area I noticed a lot of big birds sitting in the trees. When I zoomed the camera on them, I realized that they were huge bats, and I remembered the woman at the guesthouse had mentioned them. As I made my way back to the entrance just before two hours was over, I was satisfied. I saw almost everything and thoroughly enjoyed my time there.

Dinner was curry again: long beans, daal, white tuna, and cucumber salad. All were delicious.

Since I kept seeing students dressed in school uniforms, I asked the guesthouse owner about that. He explained that they are studying for the university exam. A familiar story.