Biking on Atolls

Biking on Atolls

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Columbo & Kandy, Sri Lanka

After a day at sea we arrived to Sri Lanka. Because I wanted to see Kandy and it is a bit far from port I signed up for another super expensive ship tour.

It turned out to be mostly a ride on the tour bus through horrendous traffic conditions - about 2-1/2 to 3 hours each way with non-stop honking, lurching, and slamming on the brakes - with the occasional audible gasp by those closest to the front who could see the close calls. It also meant that many sights were seen as we drove past them without stopping including seeing a man riding an elephant along side the road.
Upstream on this river (Kelani River) is where "Bridge On the River Kwai" was filmed.



Our first stop in Kandy was the botanical gardens. One area of this very large garden was a huge circle where famous people had over many years planted various trees and bushes. Several were planted by the British Royals.

This guy shared with us a scorpion he had found. Uh... thanks for sharing, please don't get near me.


After lunch at a local old hotel we went to the Buddhist temple that is the keeper of the tooth relic. Apparently when the Buddha was cremated they found one tooth in the ashes and it is now kept here.




View from the temple. It was raining and the ship had given us these funny blue rain covers to wear - a bit flimsy but a real help.

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