Kandy – haye.sh

I arrived in Kandy at around 9.30am, which meant I couldn’t check in to my hotel as it was simply too early. So, what better way to kill some time than to visit the Royal Botanical Gardens at Peradeniya, a quick tuk tuk ride from Kandy Railway Station.

The courtyard at the Royal Botanical Gardens, Peradeniya.

Dating back to the early 1800’s, the gardens feature both local, foreign and as I found out, pre-historic, species of of plants. At this time of day, the gardens were quiet, but that was soon to change as a few bus loads of school kids arrived in their neat white uniforms, on an educational trip no doubt. Since this was just after Covid began to settle down somewhat, the kids seemed happy to be able to hang out with their friends once more.

Cycads – were supposedly around during the time of the dinosaurs.

The gardens have an area dedicated to orchids, and one in particular, the “Kandyan Dancer” caught my eye. It is so named due to its similarity to a Kandyan traditional dancer.

After some walking around, it was time for a cup of tea. The gardens have a restaurant almost right in the middle overlooking the main courtyard. Here you can find snacks or even a full meal and beverages. The tea is served old school style. No tea bags. Just a pot of freshly brewed tea, with milk and sugar served separately in shiny metal kitchenware. Time seemed to stand still as I quietly enjoyed my cuppa, while gazing at the lush green courtyard in front of me.

Afterwards, I headed back to Kandy City to check in to my hotel. As the sun began to set that day, I decided to walk around the Kandy lake. I was able to catch a glimpse of the Temple of the Tooth in the distance.

The Kandy Lake with the Temple in the background

Walking around a bit further in to the central business district, I find that even their street lamps have an ancient style to it. How cool is that!

Flower patterns carved in to street lamps

The next morning, I decided to take a walk closer to the Temple of the Tooth. Ok, so if you’re not Sri Lankan, you’re probably wondering what the Temple of the Tooth is. This temple, is said to house the Tooth Relic of Lord Buddha. It is said that, when the Buddha died, his body was cremated, and that one of his teeth was retrieved and then transported to Sri Lanka. The Sacred Tooth Relic has played an important role in Sri Lankan culture and history, as whomsoever holds the Sacred Tooth Relic has divine right to rule the land.

After a quick lunch, it was time to leave Kandy. I was only here for a night, but it was a welcome change from busy Colombo. As I bid farewell to the hill capital, it began to rain, and with it a bit of mist begins to come down. This should make the trip home even more spectacular.

Misty Kadugannawa Station, on the way to Colombo.

Needless to say, it has been a while since I posted anything to this blog. In October of 2022, I travelled to Sri Lanka for the first time after Covid. While there, I visited the historic city of Kandy. I was due to write about that trip but work and life in general seemed to have got in the way. Well, better late than never, this is Kandy!

Kandy is about 72 miles from the capital Colombo. This is hill country and was the final Kingdom of old Sri Lanka before it fell to the British. While you can drive or take a bus to this city, the best and most scenic way to get there is using the train. Tickets can be purchased at the Colombo Fort Railway Station. They can also be purchased online through the Sri Lanka Railways website. If you do plan on taking a long distance train, remember to plan ahead as tickets tend to be snapped up closer to the departure date.

Sunrise over Colombo Fort Railway Station with Lotus Tower in the background

My journey begins at 7am from the Colombo Fort railway station. This is the hub for all Sri Lanka Railway operations, much like Central Station in Sydney. There is a buzz around the station as workers stream in to Colombo from the suburbs and even from other cities to begin their day in offices, shops and businesses. Elsewhere, holidaymakers, both local and foreign alike line up along their respective platforms eagerly awaiting their trains. Vendors walk around with snacks and drinks to be sold to passengers wanting a quick bite. As the sun continues to rise over Colombo, my train rolls on to the platform to pick up its passengers for the morning.

This Colombo-Kandy service is operated using a Class M6 locomotive. Not that I know much about trains, but this one is diesel electric. There are no electric trains in Sri Lanka yet, all locomotives are therefore diesel powered, some older than others. The newer Chinese and Indian built trains are modern with more comforts, but today, our train is an older one with the locomotive being built sometime in the 70’s. After all passengers boarded, it was time to leave…. All aboard!

As we pass the Colombo City limits, a relative calm seems to surround us. The hustle and the bustle of the city becomes a distant thought as we start to roll past the country side and numerous paddy fields. Rice is the staple food of Sri Lanka, and so it is no surprise that you get to see acres and acres of paddy fields. The photos should give you an indication of just how green Sri Lanka is.

The Sri Lankan countryside

The train travels at a good clip, around 100km/h while on flat ground, however, as we begin our climb up the mountains, things slow down to a graceful pace that allows us to enjoy the stunning views. If you’re looking for the most scenic route though, look for the Kandy to Badulla via Ella train route. I have not been on this route, but some have claimed it to be the most scenic in the world. It is also the route on which you would encounter the Nine Arch Bridge.