A UNESCO city that holds a very important Buddhist Temple
Kandy is one of Sri Lanka’s best known attractions for both foreigners and locals. It is strategically set between three mountain ranges and is known as the gateway to the hill country. It was not easy in previous times to attack it for invaders because of its location.
I spent an afternoon walking around the endless mazes of alleys and streets in this beautiful little town. A lake at the center of town is where you can find many people just relaxing and enjoying the day. You may also get lucky and find some Toque Macaque monkeys in the alleys, up to their usual monkey business.
The heart of Kandy is the “Temple of the Tooth Relic.” As the story goes about 2500 years ago, one of Buddha’s teeth was brought here from India. It was said that the possessor of the tooth had the right to rule the country. It is kept in a gold casket and stored in the building around very tight security. The temple has many paintings and statues of the Buddha and is one of the most colorful places I have seen. There are many people that come here to worship daily and at the right time (morning and evening), you can see the drumming ceremony in which the window opens for the viewing of the gold casket which has the tooth inside.
