Tiny Mihintale is considered the cradle of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. It was here that in the 3rd century BC. the first Buddhist monastery appeared and the missionary activity of Mahinda began - in honor of him, Mount Mihintale is also called Mount Mahinda.

Over time, the monastery grew, gained influence, and until the 13th century was the third largest monastic complex in Sri Lanka. Stupas have been erected here for centuries (there were more than 60 of them), and some of them are quite large.

Today, Mihintale is rightly considered sacred and is visited by pilgrims. This is a working temple: a calm and majestic place, numerous stupas and other ancient buildings are inconspicuously but perfectly inscribed in the landscape. In one of the oldest stupas are the remains of Mahinda, on the mountain there are also big statue Buddha.

Coordinates: 8.35027500,80.51811200

Bo tree

The Bo tree (or sacred ficus) is one of the oldest trees in the world. It is difficult to imagine its age - the 23rd century. The centuries-old bulk grew from a sapling taken from a tree in the Nepalese Budha Goya, under which the Buddha gained enlightenment. For this reason, of course, the tree is a kind of shrine for all followers of Buddhism.

The sprout was brought from Nepal to the island in the 3rd century BC by the nun Sangamitta, daughter of the Indian emperor Ashoka, and found its place in the royal park of Anuradhapura.

It would seem that such an old tree should be very large. But the sacred Bo itself is small, its venerable old age is supported by special props. But the neighboring protective tree is impressively huge.

As befits a shrine, the Bo tree, surrounded by a golden fence, is carefully guarded. You can't just approach him like that. But having passed the protective cordons, you can freeze in awe near the tree and, if you're lucky, pick up a fallen leaf as a memory of the pilgrimage.

Coordinates: 8.34433100,80.39734800

What sights of Anuradhapura did you like? There are icons next to the photo, by clicking on which you can rate a particular place.

Jetavanarama stupa

"Jetavanarama" is a unique monastic complex created by King Mahasena in 276-303. During the dawn of the monastery, on its territory, which occupied an area of ​​48 hectares, there were about 3,000 monks. On the central platform of the complex is the "Jetavana Stupa", which rises to 120 m and is the tallest brick structure ever built by man. In the 4th century AD, during the collapse of the Roman Empire, the Jetavanarama stupa was the third largest building in the world, second only to the pyramids of Khafre and Cheops in Giza. The structure has massive brickwork that extends to a depth of 14 meters, so that the weight of the monument rests entirely on the bedrock.

Another uniqueness of the stupa is that it is a perfect circle and contains particles of the physical remains of the Buddha. The place where the building stands was known in ancient times as the Nandana Gardens. It was here that Arahat Mahinda read a sermon for 7000 people for 7 days. The "Jetavanarama Stupa" was erected over the imprint of the foot of the Buddha, 93,300,000 bricks went into its construction.

Coordinates: 8.35176200,80.40372100

The Museum of Money at the Central Bank with its collections can compete with historical museum, because it was in the coins of their kingdoms that the history of Sri Lanka was reflected. Here you can trace all stages of the country's development from colonial times, when the territory was ruled first by Portugal, and then by Holland and Britain, to the present day. The exhibits of the collections of the Museum of Money are recognized as the oldest in the region.

The museum was established in April 1982 to store the country's complete collection of numismatics. But over time, the exhibits became more and more, they covered more extensive time periods and the collection was divided into four thematic exhibitions: "Ancient period", "Medieval period", "Colonial period" and "The period of independence since the establishment of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka ".

In the first two, you can find the oldest coins that were in circulation in Sri Lanka. They were called Kahapana and date back to the 3rd century BC. They were of the most varied form and were made mainly of silver. Kahavanu gold coins did not appear on the island until four centuries later. The first foreign coins appeared with the development of navigation and trade. Many coins of Greek, Indo-Greek, Roman, Chinese and Arabic origin have been found on the territory of Sri Lanka.

Coordinates: 6.93427600,79.84226900

Kutam Pokuna Twin Pools

Kutam Pokuna pools (twin pools) are the ancient pools of the Ancient World, which are of great hydrological, engineering, architectural and artistic value. The pools were intended for bathing Buddhist monks.

The pools were built in the 8th century in the kingdom of Andradhapura. In fact, the pools are not twins, because the first reaches a length of 28 meters, and the second - 40 meters.

The pools are carved from granite slabs that cover the bottom and walls. Stepped walls in the form of shelves also lead to them, on which, when bathing, the monks placed bathing pots and other items.

The pools are distinguished by a unique water purification system: before entering the pool, the water passes through a series of depressions next to the structure, and all the dirt settles on the bottom. The pools are interconnected by a pipeline.

Coordinates: 8.37110200,80.40159700

Stupa Abhayagiri

Stupa in Anuradhapura is the second tallest building of the Ancient World, built in the 1st century BC by King Watta Gamini Abhaya. The height of the stupa exceeds 112 meters.

In front of the entrance to the stupa, two stone statues are installed, which are considered the guardians of the god Kuvera. The name of the stupa consists of two names - the name of King Abhay and the name of Jain, known as Giri. The stupa houses an interesting library of the Ancient World, which even foreign scholars interested in studying Buddhism tend to visit.

It is believed that the stupa is decorated with gold, silver and precious stones.

A monastery of the same name was built next to the stupa, in which 5,000 monks once lived. They worshiped a Buddha statue made of green jade.

Coordinates: 8.37101700,80.39550300

The most popular attractions in Anuradhapura with descriptions and photos for every taste. choose best places for visiting famous places Anuradhapura on our website.

Anuradhapura. Photo credit: Joseph Clerici, Flick

Modern Anuradhapura consists of two parts - the Old City and New town. The old city is essentially a huge historical park with ancient ruins of city palaces, gardens, Buddhist temples, monasteries and dagobas and stupas. Hotels, guest houses, shops and restaurants are mostly located in the new city.

Set aside at least one full day for the Old City of Anuradhapura

what to go for

Don't miss in Anuradhapura

• Rent a bike to explore the magnificent Old Town of Anuradhapura.
• Watch the beautiful ceremonies near the ancient sacred Bodhi tree, around which the second most sacred temple of Sri Lanka, the Bodhi Tree Temple, was built.
• Don't miss the magnificent dagobas (Buddhist stupas): Ruwanwelisaya, Thuparamaya and Jetawanarama.
• Walk around the ancient monastery of Abhayagiri, located in the northern part of the city, and admire royal gardens and the original architecture of the Isurumuniya temple built into the rock in the south of the city.
• Set aside a day for a trip to Mihintale - one of the most sacred places Sri Lanka.

bodhi tree

The Bodhi tree is perhaps one of the most sacred relics of Buddhism. According to legend, Buddha meditated and attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in the Indian town of Bodg-Khaya, so Bodhi trees are cultivated in many Buddhist monasteries. The original tree has been destroyed. But, again, according to legend, the Bodhi Tree in Anuradhapura was grown from a sprout of the original tree brought from India. Years later, a new one was grown from the sprout of the Anuradhapura tree on the site of the original felled tree at Bodg Haya.

Given the lore and history, it is not surprising that the temple built around the Bodhi Tree in Anuradhapura is one of the holiest places for the Buddhists of Sri Lanka. It is always crowded here, there are many pilgrims who regularly hold beautiful ceremonies.

Bodhi tree in Anuradhapura. Photo credit: Mario Feierstein, Flickr

Pilgrims to the Bodhi tree. Photo credit: David & Bonnie, Flickr

Dagobahs of Anuradhapura

Dagobahs are ancient Buddhist stupas of the original form, inherent in ancient Sri Lankan architecture. At the base, the dagobas have the form of a huge dome erected on a massive platform, which is crowned with a small pointed tower.

The four most important dagoba of Anuradhapura are: Jetawanarama - the largest dagoba in Sri Lanka, Thuparamaya - the most sacred dagoba of the island, Ruwanwelisaya - a magnificent white dagoba, which is considered the most beautiful dagoba of the island and the island's most atmospheric dagoba - Abhayagiri, located on the territory of the monastery of the same name.

Dagoba Abhayagiri. Photo credit: Chandana Witharanage, Flickr

The rays of the sun after a heavy downpour - Dagoba Thuparamaya. Photo credit: lesterlester1, Flickr

Visit to the old city of Anuradhapura

The cost of visiting the Old City and all the sights is about $ 25, in terms of local currency. Tickets are on sale at Archaeological Museum. Anuradhapura does not have one main entrance where tickets are bought and / or presented, there is also no wall between the old and new cities. In fact, you can walk around the whole old city and not meet ticket checkers, but still we would recommend not to succumb to the temptation of "free cheese" and still buy tickets).

inspect Old city best by bike. The alternative is to walk or rent a tuk-tuk. You can rent a bike or tuk-tuk and get a map at any guest house in the city. Set aside a full day to explore the local attractions. Wear clothes that cover your shoulders and knees, take off your shoes where you take off your shoes locals. There are stalls in the park where you can buy food and drinks.

Watch your belongings - local monkeys are still those thieves, they can easily steal a bag, glasses, a camera, and in general everything that lies badly or hangs on a person)

Little inhabitants of Anuradhapura. Photo credit: Nadun Wanniarachchi, Flickr

Anuradhapura. Photo credit: lesterlester1, Flickr

Mihintale

The tiny town of Mihintale, located 12 km from Anuradhapura, is considered the birthplace of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. According to legend, here, on the top of the mountain, the fateful meeting of the Indian monk Mahinda, the son of the Indian emperor Ashoka and King Devanampiyatissa, took place, from whose reign Buddhism began to spread on the island.

To climb to the top of Mihintale to the spectacular white dagoba and the white statue of Buddha, you need to overcome 1840 steps. The ascent consists of several levels, along the way you can see the relics and stupas of the island's first Buddhist monastery.

You can get to Mihintale from Anuradhapura by tuk-tuk, bicycle, train or regular minibuses. Set aside a day to travel.

Buddha statue in Anuradhapura. Photo credit: Daniel Kosla, Flickr

Ascent to the top of Mihintale. Photo credit: k.dexter fernando kariyakarawanage, Flickr

we went to Anuradhapura by bus as usual. The ride takes 3 hours, the cost of 2 tickets is 300 rupees. And, as usual, we were dropped off not at the station, but somewhere in the city. First of all, we wanted to go to the railway station. Until now, we have traveled around Lanka by bus. However, now they decided to use the services of the Sri Lankan railways. The fact is that the next point of our trip was Unawatuna. located almost in the south of the island. By e-mail, the hostess of the villa we booked in Unawatuna asked what time we would arrive. We reported that we were already in Sri Lanka and on the appointed day we would arrive from Anuradhapura in the evening. Having learned that we were planning to travel by bus, the hostess expressed great doubts about the success of our undertaking.

The Anuradhapura-Colombo-Unawatuna distance is not very large by Russian standards, and, in our opinion, it is quite surmountable in a daylight. But buses in Lanka are really not in a hurry, and the mistress of the house, although she was a New Zealander, has lived here for a long time. There is no direct railway connection from here to Unawatuna, you need to go through Colombo. We read that in order to get tickets for the 1st or 2nd class (some horrors were written about the 3rd class), you need to take tickets in advance. That's why we had to get to the station first. We started looking around, trying to get our bearings. We were quickly noticed by a tuker and offered to take us to the railway station for 100 rupees. We knew that there were two stations in Anuradhapura, but we did not know which one we needed. 100 rupees (40 rubles) is a small amount and, having specified that we need a station from which we can go to Colombo, we set off. At the station, we went to the window with the inscription "1, 2 class" and asked for two tickets for the day after tomorrow to Colombo in the first class. We were told that there were no first-class carriages for any train in this direction. And not only on the day we need, but in general. I had to take 2 tickets of the second class with departure the day after tomorrow at 9 am. The cashier took 1,800 rupees from us and gave us a half-A4 sheet perforated along the edges, where the date, time, carriage class and seat numbers C7, C8 were indicated. We checked with the cashier whether this inscription exactly means the numbers of our seats, and received an affirmative answer. The mood has improved: it means that we won’t have to stand in the aisle and fight for seats.

At the exit of the station, a heavy man in a shirt, sarong and sandals on his bare feet approached us. "Taxi, sir?" he turned to her husband. Taxi?! Is there really a taxi here?! Not a tuk-tuk, but a normal car with a trunk and even air conditioning?! Riding a tuk in any country does not give us pleasure. Driving in the heat, inhaling the exhaust gases of passing cars, dust, dying from the driver's pirouettes, and then figuring out why the price turned out to be higher than agreed is not the most pleasant experience. Taxi is always easier and more comfortable. Only so far we have not been able to see a taxi in Sri Lanka, except at the airport. Joyful, we threw our things into the trunk and plunged into the air-conditioned coolness of the car interior. Our hotel was located in the strip between urban development and expanses of rice fields. It was even called Heaven Upon Rice Fields - "Heaven over the rice fields." That's why I chose it, I liked the description and reviews. Our driver knew the object we booked. On the way he asked about our plans. We answered that today we would like to visit Mihintale and would be happy to do it by car. He literally jumped up on the seat and clapped his hands - he was ready to take us. Having unloaded the suitcases at the hotel and paid 200 rupees, we asked the driver about the price of a trip to Mihintale by car. He quoted a price of 2,500 rupees. As we knew from the network, the trip was supposed to cost no more than 1500. As a result, we bargained until 1700, agreed on the time of departure, we wanted to take a shower and have a bite to eat first.

A palm squirrel jumped into our room through the open doors of the balcony.

We wanted to treat her, but she turned out to be so frightened that, after running for a minute along the eaves and curtains, she quickly jumped out. From the windows - really a view of the rice fields and Mount Mihintale, where we planned to go today.

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At the appointed time, a minibus drove into the yard. A completely different person came out of it and asked if we were going to Mihintal. We replied that we were really going to Mihintal, but we had already agreed with another driver. In response, he told us that Abi (the name that the previous driver wrote us) is his brother, and that he is currently busy. We approached the minibus and saw a guy and a girl in the cabin. To our question, the driver said that they were also going to Mihintale. But we didn't agree! We were going to go by ourselves, and not in the company of strangers, and did not want to adapt themselves to someone, nor to force someone to adapt to us. We resolutely turned back. The driver trotted behind us, convincing us that we would not interfere with each other at all. Then he said that he would make a discount of up to 1,500 rupees - "only for you." The time was 4 pm, the owner of the hotel said that he could, if necessary, organize a tuk-tuk for us. But knock-knock, not a car. Time was now more expensive, I did not want to waste it in search of another car. We agreed.

The couple in the minibus was from the Czech Republic. When asked what language they prefer to communicate in - English or Russian - they confidently chose Russian. The guy was from Karlovy Vary (probably the most “Russian” Czech city), understood Russian tolerably well and, although slowly and carefully choosing his words, he spoke quite well. He said that they came from Colombo, where they spent two days, and that Colombo is a boring and uninteresting city with absolutely nothing to do. We shared our impressions.

Now about Mihintal. It is located just 12 kilometers from Anuradhapura. Very atmospheric place, we recommend it for mandatory viewing. There were statements that Mihintale is even more interesting than Anuradhapura herself. It's hard to compare, but we really liked this place. It is known for the fact that it was from here that Buddhism began to spread across the island, the first teacher of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, Mahinda, preached here. The complex includes three hills: Mango Plateau (Ambastala), Royal Hill (Rajagiri), Elephant Mountain (Anaikutti). Climbing Mount Mihintale is quite difficult: the height of the mountain is 305 meters and in order to get to the top, you need to overcome 1840 steps.

But by transport, you can drive up to the upper parking area, which will cut the path in half, although a couple of less interesting sights will remain unseen, as we read. But almost next to the parking lot there are 68 caves, and the ruins of Medamaluwa, and the Mango Plateau.

After getting out of the car, we parted ways with fellow travelers, without agreeing on when we would return to the car. We intended to take our time to examine everything that we had outlined.

It is better to climb here early in the morning, before it is too hot, or after the midday heat, as we did. Be sure to stock up on water and take socks with you (you will have to walk around the entire complex, as always in Lanka, without shoes). We did not seek to see all the ruins here. In addition to the Mango Plateau (tickets for two - 1000 rupees), other attractions of Mihintale are available for free, but are located quite far from each other.

Directly from the upper parking area, a narrow staircase leads to the right to the Kantaka Chetya Stupa (II century BC), which is one of the oldest structures in Lanka.

To the southwest of Kantak, Chetya are heaps of huge boulders, followed by a ridge of 68 caves.

A little higher up the stairs and to the side is Cobra Pond, a natural reservoir filled with rainwater. The edges of the Pond are lined with stones, and an image of a five-headed cobra with an open hood is carved on the rock. According to legend, Mahindu bathed here. But its main value was as a source for the irrigation system of the entire Mihintale complex.

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The mango plateau is the place where the main attractions of Mihintale are concentrated. It is a platform in the center of which the Ambasthala Dagoba Stupa (Ambasthala Dagoba) is installed, the columns around it previously supported the already unpreserved roof of the vata-da-ge (in Sinhalese - “round house of relics”)

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monkeys feast on lotuses on the altar.

Next to the stupa is a rounded piece of unworked stone embedded in the platform - the place where King Devanampiya Tissa first met Mahindu. The stone is protected by a fence and a roof, and strewn with money donated by the faithful.

behind rises the main hill of Mihintale - Aradhana Gala (Aradhana Gala), from which Mahindu read his sermons

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upstairs you need to climb the carved steps, and then the iron stairs. From there open great views

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on the left is a statue of Buddha (Buddha Statue), historical value does not represent, but adds appropriate color to the environment

on the right - the white stupa Mahaseya Dagoba - the largest in Mihintal, its construction belongs to the king Mahadathika Mahanaga (beginning of the 1st century). According to legend, Buddha's hair is immured in it.

view from the platform next to the stupa

bodhi tree

endemic birds of Sri Lanka feast on candle wicks without any reverence

pond with fish and turtles

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Mahindu Stupa (Mihindu Seya) (on the map), where the ashes of Mahindu himself are kept.

If you walk along the path between the Stupa Ambastala and Aradhana Gala, you can go to the Cave of Mahinda, where he lived and meditated. There you can see the so-called bed of Mahinda - a flat rock slab.

Mihintale is saturated with some goodness and peace. Is it somehow related to Buddhism (there is a small functioning temple in the middle between the stupas) or is it simply natural place strength, I don't know. But from the visit there was a feeling of received spiritual strength and health. We were very pleased with the visit.

It took us about two hours for a leisurely inspection of everything, but, I repeat, we did not examine the numerous ruins below the parking area. In general, we are of the opinion that one should not be too tired and make extra efforts when sightseeing. Museum or archaeological complex - after 3 hours, fatigue and dullness of perception sets in, and then the effect and impressions are not at all the same. Too little is always better than too much, in my opinion.

When we returned to the minibus, it turned out that the Czechs were already there. Their bored look said that they were obviously waiting for us for more than five minutes. It turned out to be half an hour. We were a little uncomfortable, but it was not to refuse to view everything that we wanted in a mode that was comfortable for us ... Here is the result of a joint trip of different people. True, then the guy, apologetically, asked us to let the driver first take them to where they could buy beer, and only then to the hotel. We gladly agreed, compensating them for their time of waiting.

In our hotel, dinner was ordered, because judging by the reviews, it’s better not to take risks here, but to eat at your hotel. Moreover, it cost 600 rupees per person, everything is very tasty (curry with another variety of sauces). In general, we really liked the hotel and the owners (young family). I have a review on booking

In the evening we asked the owner of the hotel to call our friend Abi and order a car for us to see Anuradhapura. The objects are located far from each other, and it is best to inspect the complex, and even in the heat, by transport.

In the morning, at the appointed time, a minibus drove into the courtyard of our hotel - another one again - not the same as yesterday. The driver was different. Young guy. From a conversation with him, it turned out that he had come for us, and Abi was his uncle. In general, a family clan. This time there were no fellow travelers, it was possible to comfortably inspect everything that was interesting to us, cooling each time in the saving air-conditioned atmosphere of the car after the next object under the scorching sun.

We had a printout of the map of Anuradhapura tourist sites. At the beginning of the trip, we considered the Abhayagiri monastery complex as an object to visit (1 ticket 30 dollars). But already now we have decided to refrain from examining it for the time being, or, in any case, to leave it for last. The driver, when asked if it was worth going to Abhayagiri, shrugged doubtfully and said that "Abhayagiri is not very important." In addition, the following opinion was met on the Internet: “Many tourists generally refuse to buy a ticket, go around the sights on their own, without entering the territory of Abhayagiri, visiting only free ones. Paid and free dagobas are generally the same, and you will most likely get bored after the third or fourth.

Anuradhapura is the first ancient capital Sinhalese kingdom. The main tourist sites in the city are stupas. Some of them are just gigantic. One of them is brick Jetavana. It is really just huge, visible from afar. It is the highest brick dagoba in the world (originally 122 m, III century). The belt of the Buddha is allegedly immured inside.

The rest of the stupas are also quite interesting and completely free. Particularly liked Ruvanvelizia. The most revered of all the other stupas, because it contains the most relics.

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The stupa is located on a platform decorated with bas-reliefs of more than a hundred elephants (elephants participated in the construction of the dagoba).

Around the stupa are located: a sanctuary with 5 statues of Buddha and frescoes,

4 mini-dagobas, a model of a dagoba in a glass cube and a sculpture of King Dutugemunu.

The height of the stupa is 92 m, the diameter is 90 m. Almost nothing remains of the original appearance. We even saw the next restoration work, in which both the monks and the local population participated.

Thuparam Stupa(Thuparama Dagoba) - the very first stupa in Sri Lanka, dedicated to the emergence of Buddhism.

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The clavicle of the Buddha is immured in the Stupa, around the remains of the destroyed buildings of the old city.

And again we are glad to see you on the pages. Today, having left the north of Sri Lanka, namely, we set off towards sacred Anuradhapura city with many ancient monuments cultural heritage, it is also called old town, from where in 1950 all the inhabitants were relocated to a new part of the city. And since we are not too rich travelers, we will share with you the story of how we managed to see all the sights for free.

Bus: Anuradhapura can be reached by bus in 5 hours (it comes to the bus station in the New City).

• Option 1 - after the airport in Colombo we get to the airport bus station (on foot, “tuk-tuk”). direct bus from this station there is no way to Anuradhapura, but from there you can get to Colombo itself and transfer there to a direct bus number 5.
• Option 2 - get to the bus station in Negombo, transfer to the bus to Anuradhapura or to Kurenegala (Kurunegala) where you can again transfer to another bus. Straight the bus is coming via Puttalam. You can also get with a change through Kandy, Matale, Kurunegala (Kurunegala).

Deciding to try public transport, we traveled by bus from Jaffna for 100 rupees (26 rubles).

Having reached the town of Kilinochi (from Kilinochi to Anuradhapura 144 km), we already hitchhiked, but you can use the train (280 rupees per person).

How to get to the holy city of Anuradhapura for free.

Since we got up early, we still had a lot of time left to hitchhike to the desired point and see more sights. Basically, everything interesting cities is located on one large territory, where a single entrance ticket costs 3,200 rupees (800 rubles) or $ 25. After all, we still did not know how many passes on Attraction are, although I heard, in some cases very overpriced. And it's not at all that Sri Lanka has the most unique sights in all of Asia, it's just that the policy of the state here is too greedy for money.

Naturally, paying such crazy money for a couple of stupas is too “stupid”, so we walked around the territory a little to the side and climbed over a low fence. The first stop was a 120 meter stupa Jetavanarama, located on the ruins of Jetavana monastery.

Well, yes, a big, big stupa, of which we have seen enough in, differs from the rest only in that it is considered the largest in Sri Lanka. And it is necessary, it is not even stipulated, that it keeps a fragment of some “detail” of the Buddha. This time it's part of his belt.

In principle, even a little impressive in size, and for me personally, it seemed to be the most interesting attraction of Anuradhapura than all the others. archaeological sites old city.

In order to reach the second stupa, we had to overcome the secondary ticket control, which we, of course, did not suspect.

The guard, seeing two large backpacks from afar, immediately jumped up and waved his arms at us. Andrei did not even look in his direction, passing on, I followed his example. The guard, taken aback by our impudence, left his place and in three jumps appeared in front of us, blocking the way and shouting “Ticket! Ticket! I silently shifted my gaze to Andrei, who looked at the guard with a stupid look and, in turn, also waved his hands at him, pretending to be a deaf-mute. The uniformed man's face slowly stretched out and froze for a few seconds. I almost spoiled everything with the desire to laugh when I saw his confused look. Still in shock, he automatically pointed his finger in my direction, hoping that maybe I was "normal". However, I repeated the same "concert", smiling guiltily at the same time. This finally "finished off" the guard, waving his hand, he missed our smiling grateful faces further.

Picnic at the Ruvanvalisaya stupa.

Having walked forward a few meters, we allowed ourselves to have fun from the heart. In order not to run into another employee of the holy city of Anuradhapura, we walked around a large white stupa Ruvanvalisaya on the side.

I would say that it opened from here best view on her.

Another "masterpiece" of Sri Lankan architecture is also known as Mahathupa, Swarnamali and Ratnamali Dagaba.

Here we temporarily left our backpacks to rest in the shade of the trees, sway on the long springy branches like monkeys, and stare at the birds.

By the way, there were enough monkeys here too, I can’t stand them since childhood.

We were not approached and okay.

Acquaintance at the sacred tree Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi (Sri Maha Bodhi).

After a rest, the hike continued to the sacred tree Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, grown from the shoot of the same one under which enlightenment descended on the Buddha. Got it along the way Lovamahapaya (Lovamahapaya)- a building formed in ancient times by 40 rows, each of which contains 40 stone columns, which is a total of 1600 columns. The remains of the latter (and maybe a remake) can be seen right in front of the palace.

Suddenly, a young foreigner appeared in front of me, who greeted me in good English and asked where I was from. What else could I say if not the truth. The guy was from Germany, for the first time he got out of his country and somehow his choice fell on Sri Lanka. He asked where we were staying, noticing two backpacks next to me. He obviously lacked company, perhaps he hoped to join us. I said that we are hitchhikers and sleep in a tent or with locals. At first he was interested in this, and he even squatted down opposite me, but after a few of my stories, he realized that it was unlikely that we were on the way, as quickly saying goodbye as he appeared.

By that time, Andrey had finished examining the sacred plant behind the fence, and answered my questions briefly: “a tree is like a tree, nothing special. The fence is only fenced off from particularly curious eyes and mischievous hands.

The last attraction of Anuradhapura is the Mirisaveti Stupa.

Before leaving the old part of the sacred city of Anuradhapura, Andrey decided to turn to the next stupa Mirisaveti (Mirisaveti Stupa), built on the site of a scepter with relics of the same Buddha.

There was nothing else to do in the city, and we went in search of a bus to the nearest one, 16 km before which we paid 35 rupees (9 rubles). Where we had dinner and found shelter in one of the churches that accidentally remained open all night, but you will learn about these details a little later. Stay with us, subscribe to blog news and don't forget to share your pleasant impressions of what you read with your friends through the social buttons below :).

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Anuradhapura is the capital of the North Central Province of Sri Lanka and one of ancient cities islands of Ceylon. For a long time, Anaradhapura, located in a strategically important place - at the intersection of two port areas - and hidden in the depths of the jungle, was the capital of the state - until 1017, when the city was seriously destroyed by the invaders from South India and abandoned by the inhabitants.

For almost a thousand years, the city stood in ruins, and only in the 19th century an English hunter accidentally stumbled upon it in the jungle.

Today, Anuradhapura has mostly been restored and is divided into two parts: the Old City, which is a non-residential protected area, and the New City, where the entire population of Anuradhapura lives (about 50,000 people) and there is a tourist area with hotels, restaurants and shops.

The city is quite far from coastline, therefore, tourists to Anuradhapura are attracted primarily worldwide famous monuments culture and history of Sri Lanka included in the List world heritage UNESCO.

How to get there

Anuradhapura is located 200 kilometers from the capital of the island - Colombo. You can get to the city by train (there are two railway stations here), as well as by bus in 5 hours (it comes to the bus station in the New Town) or by rented car along the A9 highway in 4 hours.

Search for flights to Colombo city (nearest airport to Anuradhapura)

Transport

Buses and tuk-tuks run around the New City, but the need for them is small - this small area can be easily walked from end to end in half an hour. But the security zone on the other side of the Malvathu-Oya River is very large in area - and you can’t do without a tuk-tuk here. However, in many places of the Old City, the movement of any transport, even tuk-tuks, is prohibited.

Popular hotels in Anuradhapura

Excursions, entertainment and attractions of Anuradhapura

As mentioned above, most tourists come to see the monuments of the Old City. Among them are the so-called dagobas (Buddhist religious buildings designed to store relics) Thumaparama, Ruanveli with the famous stone statues of Buddha, Jetavanarama, which is considered one of the tallest brick structures in ancient world, as well as the statue of Buddha Aukana and the sacred Bodhi tree, considered the oldest known tree, with the Mahabodhi temple built around it. And this is only a small part of the monuments that await travelers in the Old City of Anuradhapura.

Anuradhapura

In the New Town, there are many hotels, restaurants and shops, there is also a market where you can buy souvenirs.

It is worth remembering: although alcohol is sold in tourist-oriented establishments, public drinking of alcoholic beverages in Sri Lanka is not welcome.

• Where to stay: on one of mountain resorts Ceylon, where even in colonial times the British hid from the heat, namely in Kandy or in Nuwara Eliya. In addition, you can stay in the capital of the country