Perhaps during your stay in Sri Lanka you'll tick off in your travel journal the exceptional railway journey connecting the cities of Kandy and Ella, which we presented in our previous article. This activity is one of the most stunning and beautiful in the country, but it would be a shame to stop for only a few hours in Kandy, the country's second city, just for its role as a departure station.

The capital of the former kingdom of Kandy from 1532 to the late 19th century is today, and has been since 1988, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This city, which boasts undeniable sacred and cultural attractions, is the third point of the Cultural Triangle of Sri Lanka, complementing the cities of Anurdhapura and Polonnaruwa, an ancestral zone that bears witness to artistic and religious evolution over 2,500 years and spanning more than 3,200 square kilometers. It notably protects the famous Temple of the Tooth of the Buddha, which is highly recommended to visit during a stop in Kandy, but that's not all. Highly valued for its cultural, popular, natural, and even artistic aspects, this city holds a charm that would truly be a shame to overlook by staying only a few hours, just long enough to eat before catching the train. Here are some ideas to help you find interesting and enriching places that will surely enhance your stay.

Botanical Garden

The city of Kandy is renowned worldwide for its botany, particularly in the suburb of the great Peradeniya Garden, 5 kilometers south of the city center. The place is ideal for resting and enjoying the calm atmosphere surrounded by numerous orchids, palm trees, and fruit bats feeding on the surrounding fruit.

The majestic avenue of royal palms gives an impression of grandeur to the garden. One of travelers' favorite attractions is undoubtedly the immense Java fig tree that spans over 2 square kilometers. You can spend a lovely time there after lunch or even upon waking to start a full day of sightseeing. The garden also features a section dedicated to spices where you can learn more about certain ones, such as nutmeg. And if this particularly interests you, you should head 20 kilometers north of Kandy to the Matale Spice Garden, which is entirely specialized in this type of vegetation and will allow you to deepen your sensory discovery and knowledge on the subject.

The Temple of the Tooth

The relics of the Buddha can be distinguished into 3 totally different categories, based on their rarity and significance. Many cities around the world, and primarily in Asia, possess relics called multicolored relics that correspond to body parts of Buddha Sakyamuni, the original Buddha who lived in the 5th century before Christ. This is the case, for example, in Cambodia, where the city of Oudong holds, in a stupa, blood of the Buddha; one can also find 8 of his hairs in Burma, along with many other sacred bodily relics preserved in the Buddhist countries of Asia. The teeth of the Buddha represent the second category of relics. After his cremation, four teeth of Buddha Sakyamuni reportedly fell intact and were collected. Two of them reside in spiritual worlds, one in the pagoda of the celestial world Trayastrimsha, and the other in the pagoda of the dragon world. The last two are kept on Earth. One is located in China, in Beijing at the Lungguang Temple, and the other in Kandy, in the Temple of the Tooth. Finally, the phalanges of the Buddha, which represent the third category of sacred relics, are unique and preserved in the underground temple of Famen in China.

It is in this very singular and spiritual context that you will visit the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy. You will be able to greatly appreciate its magnificent architecture and the rituals organized within. Yes, as you may have understood, you will have no chance of seeing this tooth, which is kept in a reliquary with 6 locks protecting 6 layers of caskets, opened only once every 5 years, and protected like the apple of Buddha Sakyamuni's eye. The interest for you would be to go to the Temple of the Tooth at 5:30 in the morning! Yes, it's very early, but the moment that is most beautiful visually and least crowded. You will arrive during the ceremony of offerings to the Buddha, through his relic. Many monks receive what devotees and faithful come to offer at the foot of the tooth, and consequently at the reliquary. The pre-sunrise nocturnal vision, illuminated by sacred candles, gives a certain magic to the moment. You also have the choice of participating in the offerings or not, the decision is yours.

Esala Perahera

If not being able to see the sacred relic leaves you with a feeling of incompleteness, you can completely make up for it by participating in the country's largest religious event: the Esala Perahera festival. During this celebration, which spans 10 days each August, a replica of the Tooth of the Buddha is presented to the faithful and passers-by in the streets of Kandy. You will witness for a week and a half daytime and nighttime spectacles, both cultural and religious, such as parades mixing dancers, singers, and even criers, or pyrotechnic moments that will dazzle your eyes. This festival is an excellent way to punctuate your stay in Kandy, but be prepared for the mass of tourists present.