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Uda Walawe

National Park

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This huge chunk of

savannah grass-

land centred on the Uda

Walawe reservoir (p188)

is the closest Sri Lanka

gets to East Africa. There

are herds of buffalo (al-

though some of these are

domesticated!), sambar

deer, crocodiles, masses

of birds and elephants –

and we don’t just mean a

few elephants. We mean

hundreds of the big-nosed

creatures. In fact, we’d

go so far to say that for

elephants, Uda Walawe

is equal to, or even better

than, many of the famous

East African national

parks. Blue-tailed bee-eater

Ancient

Anuradhapura

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Here bits of Sri Lanka’s

cultural and religious

heritage sprawl across 3 sq

km. In the centre is one of

the world’s oldest trees, the

more than 2000-year-old

Sri Maha Bodhi. That it has

been tended uninterrupted

by guardians for all those

centuries is enough to send

shivers down the spine.

The surrounding fields of

crumbling monasteries and

enormous dagobas attest

to the city’s role as the

seat of power in Sri Lanka

(p 215 ) for a thousand

years. Biking through this

heady past is a thrilling

experience. Isurumuniya

Vihara (p220)

Soaring

Sigiriya Rock

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If it was just the rolling

gardens at the base of

Sigiriya, it would still be a

highlight. Ponds and

little man-made rivulets

put the water in these

water gardens and offer

a serene idyll amid the

sweltering countryside.

But look up and catch your

jaw as you ponder this

370m-high rock (p 200 )

that erupts out of the

landscape. Etched with art

and surmounted by ruins,

Sigiriya is an awesome

mystery, one that the won-

derful museum tries to dis-

sect. The climb to the top is

a wearying but worthy

endeavour.

PETER BARRITT / GETTY IMAGES © ALAN LAGADU / GETTY IMAGES ©

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