Anuradhapura

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Day 16: ANURADHAPURA

Saturday, July 6, 2013

Today we started the day shortly before 7 in the morning going to the terrace in front of the room of our hotel in Anuradhapura, the Gamodh Citadel Resort.
After filling our stomachs with something similar to a breakfast, at 8 o'clock Chami comes looking for us with what will be our tuk tuk today in the tour of Anuradhapura.
As soon as we leave the hotel, we already noticed on the road that today will not be particularly quiet, since, as we have said yesterday, today is a holiday here and it seems that all Sri Lanka has been scheduled in Anuradhapura.
The city of Anuradhapura, of about 55,000 inhabitants, is adjacent to one of the two large groups of Buddhist ruins of Sri Lanka, since it has been the main capital of the independent Sinhalese kingdoms, a status it maintained for a thousand years.
It is at the north end of the triangle that encompasses the Ancient Cities and a few kilometers north of Colombo.
The modern city of Anuradhapura It does not have much interest, so our visit will focus only on its Buddhist ruins, which are on the list of Unesco World Heritage Sites.


The ruins of Anuradhapura They extend over an area of ​​40 square kilometers.
It took us to arrive at the first of our visits just under 20 minutes and almost without waiting for it, we met the Daisaba Mirisavatiya.


Dagoba Mirisavatiya

To the north of the lake, this pagoda is large and has whitewashed exterior. It was built by order of the Dutugemunu leader.
To tour Anuradhapura, you need a bicycle, a tuk tuk or a car. We had read that everywhere and we have to confirm it 100% now that we are here.
All the ruins are very distant from each other and it is impossible to take a walking tour, so you have to have a transport to do it in one day.
From the Mirgovatiya Dagoba, we go to Isurumuniya Vihara, where we pay an additional entrance fee of Rs 200 per person.
It is a temple carved in the rock and so far, we can say that it is one of the most original monuments we have seen in Anuradhapura.


Isurumuniya Vihara

Its origins date back to the reign of Devanampiya Tissa, in the middle of the 13th century BC.


Details of Isurumuniya Vihara

The best thing about Isurumuniya Vihara is its stone carvings, like an elephant spreading water with the trunk that can be seen on the rock that flanks the entrance of the sanctuary over the small pond.


Isurumuniya Vihara

Views from the highest point of Isurumuniya Vihara

Vihara

From here we go directly to one of the most sacred places in Anuradhapura and more a day like today, the Sri Maha Bodhi.


Around Sri Maha Bodhi

Sri Maha Bodhi

This is a sacred tree, outside the enclosure of the ruins themselves. The tree has grown from a fig cut of the fig tree of Bodhgaya, in India, under which Buddha obtained enlightenment.


Sri Maha Bodhi

For 2000 years he has been permanently guarded for conservation, even during Indian invasions, whose soldiers surely respected him because Buddhism has always been a tolerated practice in India.
Located to the north of Sri Maha Bodhi we find the Dagoba Ruvanvelisaya, a huge typical pagoda with its whitewashed exterior of a pure white surrounded by a pleasant garden dating back to the 13th century of our era.


Awesome Dagoba Ruvanvelisaya

It has a height of 55 meters, but apparently it was considerably taller before it was partially destroyed by invaders from southern India.


Dagoba Ruvanvelisaya

Details of the Dagoba Ruvanvelisaya

Awesome Dagoba Ruvanvelisaya

From here we go to the Dagoba Parama, the oldest in Anuradhapura and Sri Lanka, which is equivalent to saying that it is one of the oldest Buddhist pagodas in the world.
Despite its good state of preservation and perhaps, a modern appearance, it was built in the 13th century before Christ.


Dagoba Parama

It is small in size and was restored in the mid-19th century when it was shaped like the current bell.


Details of the Dagoba Parama

It is surrounded by the remains of 41 pillars of the more than 170 that it originally had and whose usefulness has remained a mystery, since these pagodas never had ceilings supported by columns.


Dagoba Parama

Today is being quite tiring, not only because of the heat it is, but why can't we take a single step without bumping into someone.
Yes we can say that Anuradhapura It is one of the essential visits in Sri Lanka, but we may not have chosen the best day to meet her ...
We continue with our tour when we have been traveling for more than 3 hours and continue with those known as Twin Ponds or Kuttam Pokuna, which were used for their baths by the monks.


Kuttam Pokuna

Following Kuttam Pokuna, we meet the Buddha Samadhi. This is the image of a seated Buddha, of the SIV that is considered one of the best stone carvings of the master.
The image is surrounded by a metal roof and around we find hundreds of people who are slowly approaching.
In the end we managed to gain a foothold and face the Buddha Samadhi, recover a little tranquility and relaxation that deserves Anuradhapura.


Buddha Samadhi

Streets of Anuradhapura

After this visit, we take the tuk tuk again and go straight to the Dagoba Jetevanarama.

More practical information to prepare your trip to Sri Lanka

- 10 essential places to visit in Sri Lanka
- 10 essential tips for traveling to Sri Lanka

This dagoba is unmistakable due to its exterior of ocher bricks and the truncated cone of its chatta or parasol that crown it.


Dagoba Jetevanarama

It dates from sIII under the reign of Mahasena and when it was built it was the third most voluminous building in the world after the two largest pyramids in Egypt.
Before ending our visit to Anuradhapura, we approach the Dagoba Mirisavatiya again to say goodbye to one of the most special places of Sri Lanka


Dagoba Mirisavatiya

Details of the Mirgovatiya Dagoba

Images…

When we look at the clock it's almost 2 in the afternoon and the sky, almost without warning, has turned black, so we tell Chami that we prefer to go to the hotel Anuradhapura And eat something.


Way of our hotel in Anuradhapura

Images on our way to the hotel in Anuradhapura

Way of our hotel in Anuradhapura

The idea was to go to Mihintale this afternoon, but seeing that the weather threatens a storm, we prefer to leave it for tomorrow first thing, before taking the road to Colombo airport.
And luck we have organized it like this, because as soon as we set foot in the hotel ... the sky begins to break in our heads and a storm falls as we had not seen for a long time!


Watching the storm from our hotel in Anuradhapura ...

We remember all the people who were today in Anuradhapura celebrating the holiday, the people who were sleeping on the floor ... and we wondered how this storm is going on ...
After eating and seeing that the weather does not improve even for a moment, we decided that this afternoon, the last one we will spend in Sri Lanka traveling, because tomorrow it will be at the airport, we can dedicate it to rest and above all, to remember all the incredible moments that we have spent in this incredible country that has given us so much. it's time to relax in our room and on the terrace of the Gamodh Citadel Resort.


Anuradhapura
Day 17
ANURADHAPURA - MIHINTALE - COLOMBO AIRPORT - MALÉ

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