Galle is situated 119 km from Colombo it is the largest city of southern province, Sri Lanka Now you can use newly built high-way to travel Galle you can get luxuries buses from Maharagama to Galle which are traveling via high way. Also you can use Sri Lanka Railways' Coastal Line to come to Galle
There are many tourist attractions are situated in Galle. The most popular place in amoung Travelers are Hikkaduwa, Unavatuna and tangalle Beach. .
The world Heritage Site, Galle Fort was built by the Dutch beginning in 1663. It is situated near the Galle international cricket stadium the fortification in Galle was built by using solid granite therefore this coastal city, Galle has great history Galle had been used by Portuguese, Dutch and British as an administration center in their ruling period
Galle is twinned with Velsen city of Netherlands the Galle city was destroyed Tsunami on 26 December 2004 Galle has rebuilt after Tsunami disaster
Saturday, September 21, 2013
Places in Galle District
Galle is situated 119 km from Colombo it is the largest city of southern province, Sri Lanka Now you can use newly built high-way to travel Galle you can get luxuries buses from Maharagama to Galle which are traveling via high way. Also you can use Sri Lanka Railways' Coastal Line to come to Galle
There are many tourist attractions are situated in Galle. The most popular place in amoung Travelers are Hikkaduwa, Unavatuna and tangalle Beach. .
The world Heritage Site, Galle Fort was built by the Dutch beginning in 1663. It is situated near the Galle international cricket stadium the fortification in Galle was built by using solid granite therefore this coastal city, Galle has great history Galle had been used by Portuguese, Dutch and British as an administration center in their ruling period
Galle is twinned with Velsen city of Netherlands the Galle city was destroyed Tsunami on 26 December 2004 Galle has rebuilt after Tsunami disaster
Saturday, November 21, 2009
The Thuparama Temple
The Thuparama was the first Buddhist building at Anuradhapura. It was built by King Devanampiya Tissa to enshrine the Buddha’s collar bone. Originally of the “paddy heap” shape, its present “bell” shape dates to reconstruction in the 1840s. The graceful monolithic pillars surrounding it once upheld a circular roof making the shrine a Vata Dage (Circular—Relic—house) a characteristically Sinhala architectural feature.
Ruwanweli Dagaba - The Mahathupa
The Mahathupa (Great Thupa) is today known as the Ruvanveliseya Dagaba. This is the centre piece of The Maha vihara (Great Monastery). The Maha vihara, because of it's long history of guarding the traditions of Theravada Buddhism, and because its monks kept the most sacred shrines at Anuradhapura, was the most important monastery of the city. Although not it's true height and original form, the fine white Ruvanveliseya Dagaba, guarded by a 'wall of elephants', still looks magnificent.
A dagaba or thupa (relic chamber), is a dome which is built over sacred relics, the bodily remains of the Buddha. King Duttha Gamini had already built the Mirisavati and his magnificent Brazen Palace, but he wanted something bigger and better for his greatest work.
It is said that this cost the king 6.4 million coins in wages, and that the workers received food and clothing and a considerable 'extras' for the work.
On top of this beautiful 'bubble' shaped Mahathupa was a ruby as big as a man's fist, and today the Burmese people have donated a rock crystal, which is 2 feet high (60cm) to replace it.
Loha Prasada - The Brazen Palace
A roof of copper over this primordial skyscraper bestowed upon it, its name. This work of Duttha Gamini is known to have burned down only 15 years after its building; which leads to the surmise that it was largely a wooden structure.
The 1,600 pillars (40 x 40) that now mark the site are historically ascribed to king Parakrama Bahu the Great (1153—1186 A.D.) of Polonnaruwa. The original building was of 9 graded stories and is said to have had one thousand rooms.
The Sri Mahabodhi Tree
It is hard to believe; but without a shadow of doubt—that this small tree with limbs so slender that they must be supported on iron crutches, is the oldest historically authenticated tree in the world (2,200 years).
A branch of the very Bo beneath which (at Buddha Gaya in North India) the Buddha himself found Enlightenment, was brought to Sri Lanka in the 3rd Century B.C. by the Princess/religieuse Sanghamitta; a sister of the saint Mahinda.
It has never since been without its hereditary attendants and the care, to the very end, of the country’s kings. As lately as the reign of the last of them (Sri Vikrama Rajasingha, whom the British captured and deported); a wall was built by royal command to repair the platform on which it grows. In 1966 it was enclosed in a golden railing.
Anuradhapura
"Anuradhapura The Birthplace of Sinhala Civilization"
Anuradhapura, according to legend, was first settled by Anuradha, a follower of Prince Vijaya the founder of
the Sinhala race. Later, it was made the Capital by King Pandu kabhaya about 380 BCE.
King Pandu kabhaya, 380 BCE
According to the Mahavamsa, the epic of Sinhala History, King Pandu kabhaya’s city was a model of planning. Precincts were set aside for huntsmen, for scavengers and for heretics as well as for foreigners. There were hostels and hospitals, at least one Jain chapel, and cemeteries for high and low castes.
Water supply was assured by the construction of 'tanks', artificial reservoirs, of which the one called after himself, exists to this day under the altered name of Baswak Kulam.
TOP
King Devanampiya Tissa
It was in the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa (250-210 BCE) that the Arahat Mahinda. son of the great Buddhist Emperor Asoka, led a group of missionaries from North India to Sri Lanka. With his followers he settled in a hermitage of caves on the hill of Mihintale, (literally, Mahinda's Mountain).
The new religion swept over the land in a wave. The King himself gave for a great monastery in the very heart of the City his own Royal Park - the beautiful Mahamegha Gardens.
The Buddhist principality had but a century to flourish when it was temporarily overthrown by an invader from the Chola Kingdom of South India. The religion, however, received no set-back.
TOP
King Duttha Gamini
At this time far away on the southeast coast, was growing up the prince who was to become the paladin of Sinhala nationalism: Gamini, soon to be surnamed Duttha, the Undutiful (161 - 137 BCE). For all his martial prowess, King Duttha Gamini must have been a man of singular sensibility. The lives he had had to take weighed heavily upon him, for slaughter-in any cause- is repugnant to the sincere Buddhist; and the better part of his regime was devoted to expiatory service to the Sangha.
The Mirisavati Temple and the mighty Brazen Palace nine stories high, he presented to them. But he did not live to see the actual completion of the Ruvanveliseya Dagaba (picture at top right), his most magnificent gift .
Two more, at least, of the Anuradhapura Kings must be mentioned; if only because some of the greater monuments are indisputably attributable to them.
TOP
King Vattagamani Abhaya
The earlier of these was Vattagamani Abhaya Valagam Bahu (103 & 89-77 BCE) in the first year of whose reign Chola invaders again appeared and drove him temporarily into hiding. For fourteen years, while five Tamil Kings occupied his throne, he wandered often sheltering in Jungle caves. It is recorded that as in his flight he passed an ancient Jain hermitage, an ascetic, Giri called and taunted him. 'The great black lion is fleeing!' Throughout his exile the gibe rankled.
Winning the Kingdom back at last, he razed the Giri's hermitage to the ground, building there the Abhayagiri Monastery. The name is a wry cant on his own name and the tactless hermit’s as well as (meaning mountain of fearlessness) a disclaimer of his cowardice!
TOP
King Mahasena
Next came the heretic king Mahasena (274 - 301 A.D.). He alienated to the Abhayagiri vast spoil from the Maha Monastery, Devanampiya Tissa’s original foundation. But he had more substantial claim to notability than his heresy; not only did he build (for the heretics) Sri Lanka’s vastest completed Dagaba the Jetavana Ramaya, - but he was also the greatest irrigator of the Sinhala Kings, building 16 major tanks and a great canal.
Anuradhapura was to continue for six hundred years longer as the national capital. But as the protecting wilderness round it diminished with prosperity, and internecine struggles for the royal succession grew, it became more and more vulnerable to the pressures of South Indian expansion. The final blow came when the Chola King Rajaraja I invaded Sri Lanka, burnt and looted the city. Anuradhapura was finally abandoned and the Capital withdrawn to more secluded fastness.
But the monuments of its heyday survive, surrounded by such beauties as become the past: the solemn umbrage of trees, the silence of cold stone, and the serenity of the sheltering sky.
Anuradhapura, according to legend, was first settled by Anuradha, a follower of Prince Vijaya the founder of
the Sinhala race. Later, it was made the Capital by King Pandu kabhaya about 380 BCE.
King Pandu kabhaya, 380 BCE
According to the Mahavamsa, the epic of Sinhala History, King Pandu kabhaya’s city was a model of planning. Precincts were set aside for huntsmen, for scavengers and for heretics as well as for foreigners. There were hostels and hospitals, at least one Jain chapel, and cemeteries for high and low castes.
Water supply was assured by the construction of 'tanks', artificial reservoirs, of which the one called after himself, exists to this day under the altered name of Baswak Kulam.
TOP
King Devanampiya Tissa
It was in the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa (250-210 BCE) that the Arahat Mahinda. son of the great Buddhist Emperor Asoka, led a group of missionaries from North India to Sri Lanka. With his followers he settled in a hermitage of caves on the hill of Mihintale, (literally, Mahinda's Mountain).
The new religion swept over the land in a wave. The King himself gave for a great monastery in the very heart of the City his own Royal Park - the beautiful Mahamegha Gardens.
The Buddhist principality had but a century to flourish when it was temporarily overthrown by an invader from the Chola Kingdom of South India. The religion, however, received no set-back.
TOP
King Duttha Gamini
At this time far away on the southeast coast, was growing up the prince who was to become the paladin of Sinhala nationalism: Gamini, soon to be surnamed Duttha, the Undutiful (161 - 137 BCE). For all his martial prowess, King Duttha Gamini must have been a man of singular sensibility. The lives he had had to take weighed heavily upon him, for slaughter-in any cause- is repugnant to the sincere Buddhist; and the better part of his regime was devoted to expiatory service to the Sangha.
The Mirisavati Temple and the mighty Brazen Palace nine stories high, he presented to them. But he did not live to see the actual completion of the Ruvanveliseya Dagaba (picture at top right), his most magnificent gift .
Two more, at least, of the Anuradhapura Kings must be mentioned; if only because some of the greater monuments are indisputably attributable to them.
TOP
King Vattagamani Abhaya
The earlier of these was Vattagamani Abhaya Valagam Bahu (103 & 89-77 BCE) in the first year of whose reign Chola invaders again appeared and drove him temporarily into hiding. For fourteen years, while five Tamil Kings occupied his throne, he wandered often sheltering in Jungle caves. It is recorded that as in his flight he passed an ancient Jain hermitage, an ascetic, Giri called and taunted him. 'The great black lion is fleeing!' Throughout his exile the gibe rankled.
Winning the Kingdom back at last, he razed the Giri's hermitage to the ground, building there the Abhayagiri Monastery. The name is a wry cant on his own name and the tactless hermit’s as well as (meaning mountain of fearlessness) a disclaimer of his cowardice!
TOP
King Mahasena
Next came the heretic king Mahasena (274 - 301 A.D.). He alienated to the Abhayagiri vast spoil from the Maha Monastery, Devanampiya Tissa’s original foundation. But he had more substantial claim to notability than his heresy; not only did he build (for the heretics) Sri Lanka’s vastest completed Dagaba the Jetavana Ramaya, - but he was also the greatest irrigator of the Sinhala Kings, building 16 major tanks and a great canal.
Anuradhapura was to continue for six hundred years longer as the national capital. But as the protecting wilderness round it diminished with prosperity, and internecine struggles for the royal succession grew, it became more and more vulnerable to the pressures of South Indian expansion. The final blow came when the Chola King Rajaraja I invaded Sri Lanka, burnt and looted the city. Anuradhapura was finally abandoned and the Capital withdrawn to more secluded fastness.
But the monuments of its heyday survive, surrounded by such beauties as become the past: the solemn umbrage of trees, the silence of cold stone, and the serenity of the sheltering sky.
About Sri Lanka
Location
Sri Lanka is a teardrop-shaped island in the Indian Ocean just below the Southern tip of India, and lying North of the equator.
See Detailed Map of Sri Lanka
Climate
Sri Lanka enjoys a tropical climate. There are no seasonal variations. The bi-annual monsoon rains provide the only seasons. Colombo and the South West experience rain from April to May and September to October. The East coast gets its share of rainfall from November to January. Being closer to the equator, the temperature is high throughout the year. The average temperature in Colombo is 27 degrees centigrade (80 degrees Fahrenheit). This is accompanied by high levels of humidity. However, in the different parts of the island, the temperature and the climate vary according to the terrain. The higher you go, the cooler it gets. In the mountainous regions of Nuwara Eliya, the temperature averages 16 degrees centigrade (61 degrees Fahrenheit).
History
The chronicled history of Sri Lanka dates back to over 2,500 years. It had established trade and cultural links with many ancient civilizations. Throughout history, it has been known by different names. To the Greeks it was Taprobane, to the Arabs it was Serendib, to the Portuguese it was Ceilao, to the Dutch it was Zeylan, and to the British it was Ceylon. Sri Lanka was the ancient name meaning "The Resplendent Isle".
People
The population number approximately 19 million. This multi-ethnic population comprises:
* Sinhalese - 72%
* Tamils - 19%
* Muslims - 8%
* Burghers (descendants of Dutch and Portuguese) - 1%
Religion
The four major religions are:
* Buddhism - followed by 69% of the population
* Hinduism - followed by 13% of the population
* Islam - followed by 8% of the population
* Christianity - followed by 7% of the population
Languages
The most commonly-spoken languages in Sri Lanka are Sinhala, Tamil and English.
Currency
The Sri Lankan Rupee (Rs.) is divided into 100 cents. The coins and notes fall into the following denominations:
Coins: 1 cent, 2 cents, 5 cents, 10 cents, 25 cents, 50 cents, 1 Rupee, 2 Rupees, 5 Rupees, 10 Rupees
Notes: 10 Rupees, 20 Rupees, 50 Rupees, 100 Rupees, 500 Rupees, 1,000 Rupees, 2,000 Rupees
* Please note that 1 cent, 2 cents, 5 cents and 10 cents coins are barely in circulation today.
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