Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka - among temples and monkeys

Welcome to Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka! In this historic city you will find countless Buddhist temples and other sacred monuments. If you want, you can also climb the small mountain peak of Mihintale for even more religious sites. You can also be sure to see many, many monkeys.

Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka

Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka is an ancient city with a long history. Archaeological data show that the city was founded in the 11th century BC. When Buddhism came to the island in the 3rd century BC, the construction of the huge temple complex that still stands here began.

The buildings were at the time some of the tallest and most impressive in the world. Today this is a religious site where many Buddhists make pilgrimages, preferably dressed in white, and always barefoot when approaching religious sites. The city has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1982.

Isurumuni Rajamaha Viharaya

The driver first took us to the slightly smaller temple area of Isurumuni Rajamaha Viharaya. As soon as we got out of the car, the sky opened up, and we were glad we had packed our rain ponchos. Like everyone else, we had to leave our shoes outside the area, and then we walked around barefoot in the pouring rain. Nice that it's warm outside, then it doesn't matter as much that you get wet!

Ruwanwelisaya temple area

After a good buffet lunch we continued to the next temple area in Anuradhapura, the much more impressive Ruwanwelisaya. The main building here is a huge "stupa", that is, a Buddhist dome-like building.

At one stupa there is a reliquary, and the building is surrounded by other smaller buildings which, together with the stupa, symbolise the universe. The Ruwanwelisaya Stupa was built by King Dutugemunu around 140 BC, and has been renovated more recently.

When we arrived at the sacred site, we handed in our shoes for storage, for a small fee. We had already made sure to wear appropriate clothing, i.e. long trousers and tops that cover the shoulders. Before entering, we also had candles and incense lit.

Perhaps we were just as fascinated by the monkeys as we were by the temple. The monkeys are just everywhere and love to chase each other around the circular temple buildings, skipping among the elephant sculptures or swinging in the branches. It feels a bit like what you're used to seeing on film or in cartoons - monkeys seem to like temples!

Inside the temple grounds, people were walking around, looking reverent towards this sacred place. Many were dressed in white, and some were carrying flowers. Suddenly we heard a drumming sound and behind some men with drums came a long line of people carrying a long piece of cloth. Many of those who did not join the line rushed forward to touch the obviously sacred cloth.

In this area there is also the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi tree. This sacred fig tree in Anuradhapura is said to be descended from the historic Sri Maha Bodhi tree in India, under which Budda was enlightened. It was planted in 288 BC and is today the oldest living tree planted by humans.

The sacred mountain of Mihintale

After visiting all the temples, we asked the driver to take us to the small mountain peak of Mihintale, just outside Anuradhapura. This is considered the place where the Buddhist monk Mahinda met King Devanampiyatissa and introduced Buddhism to Sri Lanka. This is now a pilgrimage site with several religious monuments. But first you have to walk up many stairs, through an avenue of gnarled and beautiful trees.

As you get higher up, there are more stairs, for example to get up to a large white Buddha statue. The rain was pouring when we were here, and after a while the mountain was buried in milk-white fog. In a way, it was perhaps easier to walk up all the stairs in the rain than in the hot sun ...

Lulu's resort - hotel in Anuradhapura

During our visit to Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka we stayed at a small hotel called Lulu's resort. This is a newly built and quite nice place with fresh rooms, a small pool and an excellent Asian-European breakfast.

The man at the reception spoke good English and we got help with everything we needed. When Lennart asked for a bedside lamp to read in bed ... he went and bought a brand new glittery table lamp!

For breakfast we were served a variety of things: fried eggs, melon and pineapple chunks, noodles, spicy scrambles, Sri Lankan flatbread (pictured) and toast with butter and jam.

Restaurant in Anuradhapura

There are a few different restaurants within walking distance from the hotel, and we tried the one recommended by the man at the hotel: Gemi Gedara. Here we ate Nasi Goreng, and a good sweet and sour dish.

See more in Anuradhapura

There is a lot to see in Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka, and we didn't see everything! Besides the "stupa" we mentioned, there is another famous stupa called Jethawanaramaya. This is built in brick and is an impressive 122 metres high. For those who are more interested, there is also an archaeological museum.

See more in Sri Lanka

If you are travelling around Sri Lanka, there is a lot to see and discover. Here are a few examples of interesting destinations not too far from Anuradhapura:

• Lion Mountain Sigiriya is exciting to climb
• Dambulla is a small town, famous for its golden cave temple.
• Minneriya National Park is a nice park with elephants and other animals.

Facts about Anuradhapura

• Country: Sri Lanka
• Residents: 55 000 (2001)
• The name of the city: The word 'Anuradhapura' comes from Anuradha (the minister in charge of the city during King Pandukabhaya's time) and pura, which means city in Sinhalese.
• Lakes: Nuwara wewa and Tissa wewa
• Attractions: The sacred tree Sri Maha Bodhi, Jetavanaramaya Dagoba which is the tallest brick building in the world, the temple area of Isurumuni Rajamaha Viharaya and the temple area of Ruwanwelisaya.
• Unesco heritage: The sacred city of Anuradhapura was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1982.

History of Anuradhapura

• Founding: Some documents state that the city was founded in the 4th century BC, but archaeological data show that the city was founded as early as the 11th century BC.
• 5th century BC: Anuradhapura was made the capital of the first kingdom on the island by King Pandukabhaya.
• 300s BC: The city grew and became one of the ten largest cities on the island. At this time, Buddhism also came to Sri Lanka and large religious buildings were built. Large lakes were also created to irrigate the city's rice fields.
• Year 1017 AD: There was constant warfare with South Indians and in 1017 the city was captured by South Indian Chola forces. As a result, the capital was moved to Polonnaruwa. The city was so destroyed that it was abandoned.
• 19th century: It was only in the 19th century that the city was re-established with the help of the British.

Travelling to Anuradhapura

• Car: The drive from Colombo to Anuradhapura is just over 3.5 hours (195 kilometres). It is possible to rent a car (with an international driving licence), but it is more common to rent a car with a driver.