Trincomalee, one of the finest Natural deep water harbors in the world is located 250 km north east of Colombo. Trinco as it is commonly called has been a sea port called Gorkarna since ancient times and it had attracted sea farers like Ptolemy, Marko Polo since that time.
Trinco, the 5th largest natural harbor in the World with a 33 mile shoreline and ability to accommodate 500 war ships during the 2nd world war and also is one of the safest with its superlative deep waters. It was the head quarters of Lord Luis Mount Batten the Allied South-East Asia Commander and it remained a Navy Town for years after war.
sober island among Several others in the harbor is wonderful spot for a Picnic and from it you can see the,
(1) Fort Fredrick
Portuguese destroyed the Koneswaram temple and constructed a Fort in 1624 but were ousted in 1639 by the Dutch, who captured the Trincomalee town. British recaptured it in 1795 and renamed the fort in honor of Fredrick in 1803.
(2) Koneswaram Temple
At the highest point of Swami Rock sits a Hindu Shrine, the Thiru koneswaram Kovil, one the five most holy temples or Esvarams in the island. This Temple is associated with Legends of Hindu mythologies mainly Ramayana.
(3) Kanniya Hot Wells
Located 8km from the Trinco City on the Trinco- Anuradhapura road, 7 hot Water springs are found here. People come and bathe here for curative purpose as well as to have an experience of hot water because there are only a few hot springs found in Sri Lanka. People believed that bathing would cure rheumatic pain and skin disease.
(4) War Cemetery
This one of the six commonwealth war cemeteries in Sri Lanka. Today this cemetery is maintained by the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defense on behalf of the commonwealth War Graves Commission.
(5) Pigeon Island
At 200 meters off the Nilaweli Beach this is the only Island National Park in Sri Lanka and also this is the only place where the Rock Pigeon could be sighted. It was once used by the British for target practice during the Second World War.
(6) Marble Beach
This is one of the most beautiful beaches in the Trincomalee area. the water is Crystal Blue and there are hardly any waves making it an excellent bathing spot. Before the war the beach was mainly used by Air Force officers and even now it is under the control of Air Force.
And Trinco is one of the few places in the World, where Blue Whales can be sighted.
Nuwara Eliya, otherwise known as “Little England”, is a quaint town located in Sri Lanka’s beautifully lush hill country. During the British Colonial Period, Nuwara Eliya was a favorite holiday retreat for the crème de la crème of British society on the Island. They turned this town, with its ideal cool temperature and rich foliage, into a beautiful little town strongly reminiscent of England, from the architecture of the houses to the flowers that still peep out of every corner. To this day, Sri Lanka’s “Little England” remains almost completely untouched and you feel like you’ve skipped continents as you enter its city limits.
Nuwara Eliya’s tradition has reminded unchanged as it is still known to be a retreat for the island’s elite. During its April ‘season’, the little town comes alive as Sri Lanka’s high society flocks there for the horse and motor races, grand dances and exclusive golf tournaments.
(1) The Old Brick English Village
(2) Country House like Hill Club
(3) Henry Governor’s Grand Bungalow
(4) British Church
(5) The 18 Hole Golf Ground
(6) Race Course
All these places remind you of ‘England’.
Nuwara Eliya’s Galway Bird Sanctuary is a 27 acre Park where you can catch a glimpse of a great variety of rare and tropical Birds, an unbeatable spot for nature-lovers. The Hakgala Botanical Gardens, Victoria Gardens and Horton Plains are also great places to visit if you want take in Nuwara Eliya’s unique landscape and carefully maintained flower gardens.
(1) Gregory’s Lake
This was fashioned under orders of British Governor under orders of British Governor Sir William Gregory in 1873. A boat yard now allows visitors to go boating and rowing.
(2) Horton Plains
This is a National Park and the highest plateau in the island consisting of grassland interspersed with patches of forest, with some unusual high altitude vegetation. The plains are a Beautiful, Silent and Strange World with some excellent paths for hiking.
The most stunning place is the World’s End, where the Southern Horton Plains suddenly ends, and drops off an nearly 700 meters, which is an awesome sight indeed
(3) Queen Victoria Park
The Victoria Park of Nuwara Eliya said to be named to commemorate the Jubilee coronation of Queen Victoria in the year 1897. This Park was established by planting an Oak Tree by a German Prince who visited Nuwara Eliya during the latter part of the 19th century. It is popular for bird watching many attractive bird species are found in the park.
(4) Hakgala Botanical Garden
The garden was first established in 1861 under the curatorship of 3 British citizens of the same name- Willam Nock, JK Nock and JJ Nock. It lies under the Hakgala Peak between 5000-6000ft is elevation- the highest set Botanic Gardens in the World. It boats 100 year old Monetary Cypress Trees from California, Japanese Cedars, Himalayan Pines and English Oak.
Visiting one of the many tea factories perched high on the hills surroundings Nuwara Eliya is definitely a must. It is here that the best of Sri Lanka’ teas-the fragrant and delicately flavored “high grown”-flourish. Blessed with Lush Tea Estates, Salubrious Climate, Breathtaking Views of Villages, Meadows, Mountains, Waterfalls and Greenery, it’s hard to imagine that Nuwara Eliya is the most Favorite Hill Country City in Sri Lanka.
Hatton is a small town in Nuwara Eliya district of the Central province. It is known for tea plantations and industry. The town is situated at an elevation of 1271m above the sea level.
Located in the Colombo-Badulla railway line, and Awissawella-Nuwara Eliya main road (A7) the town serves as a gateway to Adam’s Peak Pilgrims, Nuwara Eliya and other tourists destinations.
In 2008 Part of the Hatton town including religious places, was Gazetted as a religious zone by the Government of Sri Lanka.
Sri Pada (Adams Peak)
The most famous physical feature of Ceylon is Adam’s Peak, which is situated in the Ratnapura district. It is on the edge of the central massif but its surrounding group of mountains called the Wilderness of the Peak, is so extensive in comparison to the bulk of the other mountain grouse that it appears to form a nucleus of its own, separate from the others. It is about 7500ft high and, though it is the second highest peak in the land, its position in relation to the topography is so dominant that is stands out above all others. The view from the peak at dawn is enough to shock the most cynical agnostic into a state of reverie. It takes about four hours to climb to the top from the town of Dalhousie. Reaching the base of Adam’s Peak is simple and if you’re making a night ascent, you’ve got all day to arrive.
Ella is a Beautiful small village in hill country, with little more than a Handful of Shops, Hotels and Guest Houses, but it has an almost perfect climate and occupies a very scenic vantage point with views on a fine day stretching right across the south coast of Sri Lanka.
The view through the Ella gap was probably the best in the entire island. Ella is surrounded by hills perfect for walks through tea plantations to Temples and Waterfalls. The town is also a useful base for day trips to Badulla and Dunhinda Ella.
Badulla is the capital of Uva Province. Badulla is located 230km away from Colombo, and is almost encircled by the Badulu Oya River. It is about 680m above sea level and surrounded by picturesque hills and mountains, most of which have tea plantations. The town is overshadowed by the Namunukula range of mountains.
It was a base of a pre-colonial Sinhalese local Prince who ruled the area under the main King in Kandy before it became part of the British Empire. Later, it became one of the provincial administrative hubs of the British rulers. The city was the end point of upcountry railway line built by the British mainly in order to take tea plantation products to Colombo.
The main heritage sites in and around Badulla are ancient Muthiyangana Temple, Dhowa Temple, Bogoda ancient Wooden Bridge and Buddhist Temple. Located at the northern city limit of Badulla town is Dunhinda Waterfall and ancient Rawana Buddhist Temple is also famous among the tourists who visit Rawana Waterfall in Ella.
Bandarawela, the city of 4250ft above Sea level and the 2nd largest city in the Badulla district and is situated 28km away from Badulla. Due to the high altitude, Bandarawela has a mild weather condition throughout the year hence it is popular among the citizens to spend the vacations with their family members. Bandarawela is 200km away from Colombo and 125km from Kandy. Bandarawela town, tinted with a Colonial past resting among lush forestation has found its niche among its visitors as a base for Eco-Tourism.
The main heritage sites in and around Bandarawela are,
(1) Ancient Dhowa Buddhist Rock Temple
It was founded by the King Walagamba in the 1st century BC which is located 6km away from Bandarawela city. It has a 38ft Buddha Image sculptured from a rock and some paintings belonging to the Kandyan era.
(2) The Roman Catholic Church
St. Anthony’s Church and Methodist Church
During colonial times, the picturesque town of Bandarawela was once hailed as possessing one of the healthiest climates in the world, and nothing much has happened here to change that. There in this was the most favorable climate in the island. Geographically, the Bandarawela area is hilly and surrounded by the large number of mountains in Uva and Central Province.
Mathale is a town in the hill country. Situated 142km from Colombo and 26km North of Kandy, It is an area steeped in history and natural beauty. The Mathale administrative district also contains the historic Sigiriya Rock Castle, Aluvihara Rock cave Temple and Dambulla Cave Temple. Surrounding the town are the Knuckles foothills called Wiltshire. It is mainly an agricultural area, where Tea, Rubber, Vegetable and Spice Cultivation dominate. The Knuckles Mountain range is a special landmark of Mathale.
The Aluvihara Temple, on the North side of the town, is the historic location where the Pali canon was first written down completely in text on old (palm) leaves. Situated near Aluvihara are numerous monastery caves, some of which exhibit fine frescoes.
Mathale was a site of a major battle in 1848 when the Mathale Rebellion started and the British garrison in the Fort McDowall in Mathale was placed under siege by the rebels led by Weera Puran Appu and Gongale Godabanda who are renowned national heroes in Sri Lanka. The Kappetipola Walawuwa is still present at Hulangamuwa, Mathale. With the Christ Church, Mathale was consecrated by Bishop James Chapmon on 30th December 1860. The Church site chosen was Fort Mc Dowell, commanding a view of the entrance to Mathale via Trincomalee.
Mahiyangana is a town in Badulla District. Some orthodox Sri Lankan Buddhist believe that Lord Gautama Buddha himself travelled from India to visit Sri Lanka and arrived at Mahiyangana to stop a war between the Yaksha race (demon) and the race of Nagas (Serpents). The Mahiyangana Raja Maha Vihara monument was later built at the site where the Buddha preached to the inhabitants of the Island.
The name Mahiyangana means flat land. It is situated on eastwards slope of the central hills. The relative flatness of the area can be seen while travelling on the road from Kandy to Padiyathalawa. Mahiyangana is home to the Veddhas, meaning people of the forest who are in fact on the list of the World’s primitive tribes and considered to be the descendants of the Yaksha and Naga Gothra that inhabited Sri Lanka thousands of years ago.
This dry historic yet highly developed town is rich in agriculture and livestock farming. The Mahaweli River water was diverted to Mahiyangana, to enable farmers to do their cultivation which is a main source of income to the community.
The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is situated northwest of the town of Kegalle, halfway between the present capital Colombo and ancient Royal Kingdom of Kandy in the hills of Central Sri Lanka. It was established in 1975 by the Sri Lanka wildlife department a 25 acre Coconut grove near the Maha Oya river. The Orphanage was originally founded in order to afford care and protection to the many orphaned Elephants found in the Jungle.
In 1978 the Orphanage was taken over by the National Zoological Gardens from the Department of Wildlife and a captive breeding program was launched in 1982. Since then over than 20 Elephant have been born in it. The aim of the Orphanage is to simulate the Natural World. However, there are some exceptions: The Elephants are taken to the river twice daily for a bath, and all the babies under 3 years of age are still bottle fed by the mahouts and volunteers. Each animal is also given around 76kg of green matter a day and around 2kg from a food bag containing rice bran and maize.
This 25 acre Elephant Orphanage is also a breeding place for 84 Elephants and the Orphanage has the largest herd of captive Elephants in the World. While most of the Elephants are healthy, one is blind and disabled, another named Sami has lost her front leg due to the landmine. The Orphanage is very popular among Sri Lankan and Foreign tourists. The main attraction is clearly to observe the bathing Elephants from the tall river bank as it allows visitors to observe the herd interacting socially, bathing, and playing.
