Sigiriya

From our room at the Heritage hotel at Dambula, we can see the rock of Sigiriya. Sigirya is a not unlike Ayers rock in Australia, which we saw in 2011, but has no religious significance: it was occupied by Buddhist monks in the 3rd century B.C. and then was the fortress of a king in the 5th century A.D.. Around the rock there are gardens and remains as well as caves in the rock itself. At the top of the rock there was once a palace, but now only the foundations remain. We climbed Sigiriya today with our guide Tisa, is our third UNESCO site of the eight in Sri Lanka.

Sigiriya is also known as the lion rock. A lion was carved in the the rock and the entrance to the palace was through its throat. Now all that is left is the feet and signs of where the mane would have been.

A foot:









Above clockwise: Sigiriya from our balcony; the bridge we cross regularly bikes above, cars below; the road to Sigiriya being repaired; a dog in the road: a frequent sight.

Sigiriya was awarded its world heritage status for its water management systems: waters from the top is channeled to the bottom and then to fountains in the gardens. Garden photos




Although we set out at 0830 and by the time we reached the rock, there were queues. Photos on the way up:



We passed through th gallery of the Sigiriya Damsels on the way. The paintings, from the 5th century, may not be photographed and this rule is strictly enforced - we saw an infraction being dealt with.

We continued up to the top passing the 'mirror wall' which was rock coated with egg white beeswax, honey, and lime. Traces still remain but the reflection has gone.

At the top: gardens and the kings throne.





On the way down: the cobra rock; a forest lizard and the king's audience chamber.




When we reached ground level, we moved on towards our next destination, Minneriya national park, pausing for another wonderful lunch of rice and currys accompanied by fresh fruit.



- Pat and John on tour