Rating:
 ( 4.9 ) ( 54
votes )
Sigiriya, Sri Lanka
Nov 26, 2003 08:52
Pros:
interesting and adventurous place, an amazing 360 degree view
Cons: none
Sigiriya is one of Sri Lanka's ancient cities, and consists of a
humungous rock fortress towering above a small village and lots
of green jungle. We stayed with a lovely Sri Lankan family who fed
us lots of rice and curry, and we got up early to climb the rock
and try and beat the heat of the day and the tourist buses.
The rock itself is 200 metres high, and was used as a fortress in
the year 491. It's surrounded by water and rock and gardens, building
foundations and a large moat, and the rock has some frescoes and
an ancient graffiti wall about half way up. You climb a really steep
spiral metal staircase, then a plain old steep staircase to the
very top of the rock. It wasn't too hard a climb, but you'd think
it was by the way some people, clutching onto amused looking young
Sri Lankan guys for dear life, looked like heart attacks just waiting
to happen! The top of the rock had a rock walled pool and ancient
building foundations, and offered a great 360 degree view of the
lush green world surrounding it.
While staying in Sigiriya, we also went on a walk through the countryside
to a Buddhist monastery and met many friendly villagers along the
way. We then had an arduous journey to look forward to all the way
down south to Galle (overcrowded buses, breakdowns etc!) for the
last leg of our Sri Lankan trip... |
