Holiday in Sri Lanka (8): Matale and Dambulla
During our two days in Kandy, there were hardly any other guests at The Tourmaline Hotel but, half an hour after we departed on Wednesday morning, some 200 guests were due to attend a wedding. We moved off in our minivan at 9 am (our latest start) and travelled due north to the town of Matale where we stopped briefly to walk around outside a Hindu temple with the snappy name Sri Muthmarian Thevasthanam which charges for taking photographs outside and then some more for access to the interior.
In fact, our main destination in Matale was the Sirilak Spice & Herbal Garden where we arrived towards 1 pm and spent almost three hours. First, we were given a conducted tour of the garden with an explanation of the nature of some two dozen herbs and spices and their use in the locally popular form of medicine called Ayurveda (“the scjence of life”).
Next we were invited to try some Ayurvedic massage and I accepted the offer. I took off my shirt (my poor elderly female companions) and a young man used herbal oils to massage my neck, shoulders, back, arms and hands – very relaxing. At this point, we were given a drink of Spice tea composed of cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and cloves – very refreshing. Inevitably we had to visit their shop, but there was no pressure and I actually bought two collections of spices as gifts.
At this point, we experienced something quite different: a demonstration of curry cooking by a very good looking young man with decent English. One of us had to volunteer to be the cook, dress up in hat and apron, and cook the ingredients which included around a dozen herbs and spices. Yes, dear reader, it was me who rose to the occasion which will amuse family and friends enormously since I am well-known for my absolute lack of culinary skills. But, at the end of the demonstration, we sat down to lunch which was a mixture of my cooking and selection from a buffet.
After lunch, we drove for another hour further north. The afternoon was spent at the Dambulla Cave Temples where we were occupied for just over an hour and a half. At the foot of the cave complex, there is the largest Buddha statue in the seated position in the world – it stands at 100 feet (30 metres) – which was constructed as recently as 1997-2000 and the gold covering glittered brightly in the strong sun. The climb up to the caves involve a lot of steep steps in humid conditions, but one stretch was inhabited by lots of cute little monkeys.
The Dambulla Cave Temples date back to the 1st century BC when King Valagambahu sought refuge here after being exiled from Anuradhapura. When the king regained his throne after 14 years, he converted the caves into rock temples in gratitude to the monks who had given him sanctuary. The location is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The cave temples are carved out of a granite outcrop that towers 350 feet (100 metres) above Dambulla town and the actual temple complex is made up of a series of five caves of different dimensions (Cave II is the largest and most impressive). The caves are filled with statutes of the Buddha in various sizes and gestures (called mudras) including several massive Buddhas lying down awaiting entry to nirvana.
Almost eight hours after leaving our hotel in Kandy, at 4.50 pm we checked into our hotel in Dambulla where we will be spending the next three nights. It is called The Paradise – which I guess is the next best thing to nirvana – and consists of a series of chalets, each with a king-size bed and an upstairs sitting room, nestled in the jungle area of the city.
Given the location of all our hotels on the edge of cities, we have had no choice but to have dinner in the hotel restaurant but the food has been fine. At this hotel, the was no Lion beer so I had Tiger (grrr!).