ChE@ Blog ❄️⚡: My Photo Collection & Description ✍️📷😍

2). Koneswaram Temple – Trincomalee Sri Lanka

Koneswaram Temple of Trincomalee or Thirukonamalai. The temple of the thousand Pillars and Dakshina – Then Kailasam is a classical medieval Hindu temple complex in Trincomalee, a Hindu religious pilgrimage Centre in Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. The most sacred of the Pancha Ishwarams of Sri Lanka, it was built significantly during the region of the early Cholas and Five Dravidians of the Early Pandyan Kingdom on top of Konesar Malai, a promontory overlooking Trincomalee District, Gokarna Bay and the Indian Ocean.

Koneswaram has many strong historical associations. The Koneswaram Temple is well known for its celebration of the traditional Ther chariot festival, the Navaratri and Sivarathri functions. There is a specific sculpture above the main entrance of the Konesvaram temple depicting Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvati, and king Ravana. The sculpture narrates the past story of Lord Shiva, Goddess Parvati, and King Ravana.

This holy temple is a famous attraction that draws a lot of visitors apart from devotees. The temple is enhanced by South Indian Dravidian architectural elements and Hindu designs. This temple hosts the annual Hindu cart festival or Vel Perahera during April and May. Koneswaram temple located in Trincomalee can be called as the most beautiful place Sri Lanka.

3). The Queens Hotel Kandy- Sri Lanka

The beautiful white- coloured mansion facing the Kandy Lake, the Queens Hotel, evokes the old British architectural features. It is an unforgettable monument for any visiting Kandy. This building with over 160 years of history is one of the much-talked about historic building in the city of Kandy.

The Queens Hotel in Kandy is one of first hotels to establish in Sri Lanka as well one of the very few renowned internationally hotels for over 100 years. The hotel lies at the strategic location just in front of the renowned temple of Tooth Relic ( Dalada Maligawa ) in Kandy town. When the British captured Kandy in 1815, Walawwa of the Dullawe Nilame stood at this location. The Walawwa was designed by Devendra Mulachariya on instruction from King Sri Wickrama Rajasingha. The hotel still bears the 19th century features of the ‘railway station architecture’ with rounded pillars and steel girdles retained to-date. It has 80 rooms, including five suites, two restaurants, a coffee shop, hair/beauty saloons and a souvenir/gift shop. It also has an outdoor swimming pool and BBQ facilities.

Notable attraction of the hotel are the Queen of Hearts restaurant, Royal Ball room and The Pub Royal, the latter being the only British Pub in the city that offers service with old colonial flavor. Accordingly, this Kandy Queens Hotel can be called as a famous and well-known place in Sri Lanka.

4). Nilaveli Beach Trincomalee-Sri Lanka

Nilaveli to the north of Trincomalee is one of Sri Lanka’s longest sandy beaches. Nilaveli is a Tamil word translating to ‘moon shine open land’. In Sinhala, the same word means ‘ blue sand’. Nilaveli is a suburb of the Trincomalee, situated 16 km north of the city centre. In contrast to the village Uppuveli, which is in between Trinco and Nilaveli, the latter is a dispersed settlement area.

Apart from the long straight beachfront, Pigeon Island, which is declared national park in order to protect the coral reefs of the islets, is a major destination, where snorkeling activities are popular.Niaveli is recommendable for beach holidays all year around, except from the cyclone season in November. Local peak season is from March to October, when the weather is dry and the sky is blue.

The Nilaveli Beach on the East Coast is ‘the other side of the island’ , one that remains pristine, pure and very private even today- its undoubtedly the best in Sri Lanka and one of the premier beaches in Asia.

5.) Ruwanweli Maha Seya – Anuradhapura Sri Lanaka

Ruwanweli seya is one of the glorious ancient stupas situated in the city of Anuradhapura.

The Ruwanweliseya is sited in the Ancient Sinhala capital of Anuradhapura in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was built by King Dutugamunu (137 BC – 119 BC) and completed by his younger brother, King Saddhatissa, after his death. The Ruwanweliseya is ranked among the tallest ancient monuments in the world.

Legend has it that King Dutugamunu built the Stupa at a place where he found a rock inscription by Arahath Mahinda. The inscription says “In time to come a great king would establish a great stupa where the stone is established.”

According to legend, the site for the stupa was chosen by the king after he found a rock inscription by Arahath Mahinda, which stated that it was the place where in time to come a great king would establish a beautiful stupa to enshrine sacred relics of the Buddha.

The Ruwanweliseya is located next to the Sri Maha Bodhiya, within the Mahamewna Uyana. Its construction is recorded in great detail in the historic chronicles the Mahavamsa and the Thupavamsa. The materials required to build the great stupa are said to have appeared miraculously from various parts of the island, and many craftsmen and artists were involved in its construction. The king is believed to have enshrined relics of the Buddha within the bubble shaped stupa during a grand ceremony.

6). Bandarawela Railway Station – Sri Lanka.

Bandarawela Railway Station is one of the famous railway stations on the Main railway line situated between Ella Railway Station and Badulla Railway Station.

The construction of the railway line between Haputale and Bandarawela commenced in 1887 but it wasn’t until 1893 that work on the line was completed. The first train arriving at the station on 19 June 1893. Bandarawela was the terminus of the Main Line until the line was extended to Badulla in 1924.

The station has a G2 locomotive on permanent display at the station. The diesel shunter locomotive was built by the North British Locomotive Company and operated between 1951 and 1986 at Maligawatta and Thali Mannar. It was moved to Bandarawela on 16 August 2011 and put on display.

7). Gal Wiharaya , Polonnaruwa – Sri Lanka

Gal Viharaya or the Rock Hewn Shrine at Polonnaruwa is one of the most impressive antiquities seen in the island of Sri Lanka and possibly not rivalled throughout the Continent of India. This magnificent group of gigantic figures carved from the gray rock that forms their background was built by King Parakramabahu (1153-1186) and was part of the Uthararama Complex.

The Gal Vihara (Sinhala: ගල් විහාර, lit. ’rock monastery’), and known originally as the Uttararama (Sinhala: උත්තරාම, lit. ’the northern monastery’), is a rock temple of the Buddha situated in the ancient city Polonnaruwa, the capital of the ancient Kingdom of Polonnaruwa, now present-day Polonnaruwa, in North Central Province, Sri Lanka. It was fashioned in the 12th century by King Parakramabahu I. The central feature of the temple is four rock relief statues of the Buddha, which have been carved into the face of a large granite gneiss rock. The images consist of a large seated figure, another smaller seated figure inside an artificial cavern, a standing figure, and a reclining figure. These are considered to be some of the best examples of ancient Sinhalese sculpting and carving arts, and have made the Gal Vihara the most visited monument at Polonnaruwa.

Gal Vihara (Uttararama)

8). Pimburaththewa Tank, Aralaganwila – Sri Lanka

Pimburaththewa Lake is situated in Aralaganwila in the Polonnaruwa district. It is a beautiful lake surrounded by amazing views of the lush greenery found in the Polonnaruwa district. It is situated approximately 10 km away from the Maduru Oya dam.Pimburaththewa Lake is Another beautiful place to visit in the Polonnaruwa district. This reservoir provides water for farming in the Aralaganwila area. Elephants roam the area and come to the reservoir to drink water. Therefore, care should be taken while bathing in this reservoir.

This place is very beautiful during the rainy season. But while bathing should be careful at that time. Great for watching the sunset.

9). The Temple of the Tooth- Kandy, Sri Lanka

The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a world-renowned place of worship, where the left Canine tooth of Gautama Buddha is enshrined. The temple which is venerated by thousands of local & foreign devotees and tourists daily was named as a world heritage by UNESCO in 1988.

The temple which carries a lot of value to Buddhists all over the world also has immense cultural value. The architecture is of unique Kandyan architectural style with a combination of the unique style used to build “Dalada Mandira” the shrines which housed the Sacred Tooth Relic previously in other kingdoms. The temple of the Tooth Relic also known as Sri Dalada Maligawa consists of many buildings and structures. These include the Royal Palace, Audience Hall or Magul Maduwa and the Mahamaluwa. The Tooth Relic was initially placed in the three-storied shrine built by King Wimaladharmasuriya I near his royal palace. The Temple of the Tooth Relic has since being renovated a few times.

The entrance to the Tooth Relic Temple is through a stone slab bridge over the moat and the Great Gate or the Maha Vahalkada is built on the bridge. The Gates are no more there now but old hinges for the doors can be noticed. A Moonstone or a “Sandakada Pahana” of Kandyan design was placed at the entrance to the Bridge way by the road which leads to a five step stairway to the stone bridge. This entrance way is common to both the King’s Palace and the Tooth Relic Temple and diverts to the northern and southern directions after coming over the bridge leading the way to the Palace and the Temple.

10). Dimbulagala Historical Place – Polonnaruwa , Sri Lanka

Today, Dimbulagala is a secluded location again, an outlying area of Sri Lanka’s Cultural Triangle. This is to say, it’s not crowded with tourists, though Dimbulagala can easily be reached on day trips from both the cultural tourist hub Polonnaruwa and the East Coast’s largest beach hotel cluster, Pasikudah. The tranquility of this important heritage site may come to a surprise, as there is a lot to see here. There are at least five pretty charming and quite diverse places of interest at the northern, western and southern flanks of the range, namely the classical excavation site now known as Namal Pukuna, a large Amarapura Nikaya monastery with a museum, the ancient Pulligoda cave paintings and, last not least, the spectacularly located rock shelters of Maravidiya and Vee Atuwa. Seeing all of those attractions requires an entire day at least. Dimbulagala is also a perfect area for hiking tours and even for climbing.

The modern Sinhala name ‘Dimbulagala’ is pronounced ‘Dimbulaegele’ by putting the main stress on the antepenultimate syllable ‘lae’.

The ancient names of Dimbulagala known from Pali literature and inscriptions are ‚Dhumarakkha Pabbata‘ and ‚Udumbara Giri‘, both ‚Pabbata‘ and ‚Giri‘ being words for ‚hill‘. The Pali term ‚Dhumarakkha Pabbata‘ is given in Sri Lanka’s chronicles. It seems to have been the name of Dimbulagala during the entire Anuradhapura period, whereas ‘Udumbara Giri’ is the preferred name in the Polonnaruwa period and also known from second millenium chronicles of Southeast Asia. Instead of ‘Udumbara Giri’ also the names ‘Udumbarasala Pabbata’ or ‘Dumbara Pabbata’ or ‘Dola Pabbata’ can occur.

‚Dhuma-rakkha‘, the older name, literally means ‚smoke-demon’ and may refer to the clouds often seen caught by the mountain resp. to the aboriginal inhabitants of this densely forested area.

In contrast‚ ‚Udumbara‘ is a highly significant religious term which often refers to a mythical tree that is believed to blossom only once every thousand years. In Mahayana Buddhist Sutras it has become a symbol of rare events such as the appearance of a Buddha on earth. But it can also refer to the lotus flower. In Sanskrit literature, the term ‚Udumbara‘ usually means the Indian fig tree, also known as Cluster fig tree (Ficus racemosa), which is native to tropical areas of Asia and Australia. The namegiving characteristic feature of this species are tightly packed clusters of figs growing very close to the trunk and not at the branches of the tree. The bark is used as Ayurvedic medicine. In Theravada Buddhism each Buddha is represented by a specific Indian tree, the Udumbara fig tree being the iconographic symbol of Buddha Konagama. Konagama is the second Buddha of our present aeon, the Bhadra-Kalpa (Buddha Gautama Shakyamuni being the fourth in this Kalpa). A hermitage called ‚Udumbarika‘ is mentioned in the Pali canon as a place where the Buddha gave a discourse to an ascetic that the merits of the non-ascetic Middle Way outweighs ascetic practices (25th Sutta of the Digha-Nikaya).

The meaning of the Sinhala term ‚Dimbula Gala‘ is slightly similar to that of the Pali term ‚Udumbara Giri‘. ‚Gala‘ is a characteristic Sinhalese word not known from other Indian languages. It may have originated in the language of the aboriginal Veddahs (Wedda people). ‚Gala‘ is by far the most common suffix of Sri Lankan toponyms (compare ‚Moneragala‘, ‚Mulkirigala‘, ‚Atthanagala‘ etc.). It refers to rocks and boulders but also to hills, pretty similar to the Sinhala term ‚Giri‘ derived from Sanskrit. The meaning of ‚Dimbula‘ is most probably ‚area of woodapple trees‘ (both ‚dimbul‘ and ‚divul‘ refer to Limonia acidissima).

Another name, used in legends about Dimbulagala, is the the Sanskrit term ‘Yakshapuraya’. The corresponding Pali name would be ‘Yakkhapura’, translating to “demon city”. The Adiwasi village of Yakpuraya (Yakkuaray) situated closed to Dimbulagala is believed to be the centre of the ancient Yaksha Kingdom.

The Dimbulagala Raja Maha Vihara monastery was restored in the 1950s. The villagers around the rock are of mixed Vedda and Sinhalese ancestry.

Thanks for viewing my photo collection, see you in the next post…