One of the things people are likely to do when they are here is visit and climb Sigiria, a rock towering 200m above the surrounding countryside that once housed a palace on the summit. With that also comes a hefty entrance fee of about 4000R/ £20. That's a lot of money even by western standards if you ask me!
So I took the cheaper option...I chose to splash out and hired a tuk tuk driver (1400R/£7 return) They drive like lunatics here. My driver pulls over to pray to a roadside shrine before we set off. It always scares me when the driver pulls over to do this, like they think God will protect them when they do stupid manoeuvres.
 |
| Tuk tuk driver |
A few km away is another rock outcrop called Pidurangala which gives great views of Sigiria and is far cheaper (500R/£2.50) and quieter!
It's a bit of a slog to get up to the top as the paths are not as well trodden ( I kept losing the path) and you have to scramble some rocks towards the end, but the view was spectacular!
 |
| Sigiria in the background |
 |
| Wild elephants - at dusk (darn) |
 |
| Iguana |
 |
| Scrambling to get to the top of Pidurangala |
 |
| View of Sigiria from Pidurangala |
 |
| Buddah |
 |
| Tourist |
 |
| Poor elephant had a chain around her neck |
Dambulla Market
On the way back I asked to be dropped off in town. As I wandered around I stumbled across the local market. I love, love, LOVE markets. I love the hustle and bustle and looking at all the different produce. It was really nice to just wander around looking at the different fruits, vegetables and dried fish stall. And the people are so friendly. If you smiled, they always smiled back and they were more than happy to allow you to taste different fruit/veg and have their photos taken. (Sadly, I fear I may get a bad stomach from the sampling).
Comments
Post a Comment