Sigiriya Rock Summit

 

About an hour and a half after beginning my ascent, I had arrived at the summit. The foundations of many buildings and pools remained, giving an idea of how extensive the place was. A stone bench looked quite tempting to sit down on, but a sign forbade it, saying it was a royal throne. From here, there was an uninterrupted view of the landscape below – and what a spectacular view it was! Past the heavily forested land with small lakes and then a mountain lay the city of Kandy. Just barely visible in another direction was the Gold Buddha statue of Dambulla.

After soaking in the surroundings and climbing up and down some of the buildings’ stairs, I headed back down. Along the way, I stopped by Cobra Hood Cave with a remnant of decorative fresco, a platform that was an audience throne, and through a natural arch. Much quicker than expected, I had reached the bottom and had plenty of time to swim and relax at the hotel.

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Sigiriya Lion

After turning around an incredibly windy corner and up more stairs, I arrived at a flat area. From here, I had a great view of the surrounding jungle as well as the gardens below. I had already climbed a lot of stairs, but I could see there were many more still to go. Against the base of the main rock were the two giant brick lion paws, remnants of the Lion from which gave the rock its name. At one time, the stairway led between the lion’s paws and up into its mouth, but the brick head fell off a long time ago, probably due to its support being constructed out of wooden beams. How imposing it must have once looked! A lot of steps were still to go. A few people motioned me to pass them in these narrow sections, making me particularly glad that I had gone up early before the crowds came.

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Sigiriya Mirror Wall

Back down the spiral staircase and continuing up the path towards the summit is the Mirror Wall. This highly polished (and protected by threat of large fine and/or imprisonment for those who touch or vandalize the surface) wall contains the graffiti inscriptions of visitors from between the 6th and 14th centuries who made their remarks about the rock & palace – and particularly the women frescoes, written in rather poetic and descriptive manners. A large number has been studied, deciphered, and published in a two-volume book. The markings also help document the evolution of the Sinhalese script and language. I’m glad someone had the patience and ability to decipher the ancient writings from modern defacing covering it.

 

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Sigiriya's Fabulous Frescoes

Partway up the steps to the summit was a spiral staircase leading to a sheltered gallery. Protected from the sun were some exquisite frescoes of partially clothed females. The jewelry, facial expression, eyes, and hand gestures were particularly well-executed. The brushstrokes were still visible, adding a more lyrical look. It is believed that these figures represent celestial nymphs –or asparas.. Out of perhaps as many as 500 portraits, only 22 remain today. How beautiful the rocks must have looked with these colorful women adorning their surface!

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Sigiriya Nature, Drive to Colombo

Late that afternoon, I went for a walk on the dirt road outside the hotel. Monkeys sat on the branches of the large trees that looked like a tangle of vines and flowing roots. Others were busy trying to find mangoes that were at least somewhat fleshy. Although I didn’t know what lay at the end of the road, I hoped to see at least a clearing in between the trees; perhaps I’d see some elephants in the nearby fields. Alas, a local on a motorbike told me to turn around, because wild elephants had been spotted there yesterday at that time. Knowing that wild elephants can be unpredictable and dangerous, I conceded and walked back to the hotel.

The next morning, I woke up to pattering and thumps on the roof of my room. Looking out the window, I saw langur monkeys jumping between trees and onto the roof. Like the monkeys I saw yesterday, they were enjoying a morning snack of green mangoes. It was interesting to watch, but I don’t know how long that novelty would last, particularly early in the morning.

 

I left Colombo just before 8am, headed for Colombo, the final leg of my trip. The drive was through a large number of towns and villages, some still rather sleepy, and others already adjusting to morning activities. Once again, I saw mosques, churches, Buddhist temples, and perhaps a Hindu temple on the same street. Farmers were busy in the muddy paddy fields. Multiple workers were busy using a large hoe-like tool. A few used tiny garden-size tractors with hand controls and special metal wheels protruding from the rubber ones, designed to work in the paddy fields. Children in their crisp white uniforms were already at school, some gathered around the shady trees in the schoolyard.

The road was shared by lots of buses, pimped-up rickshaws, Massey-Ferguson tractors, pulling wagons of people, colorful trucks pulling loads of veggies, coconuts, and other produce. Spanning the width of the road and tied to the trees were large signs of politicians. Like in Tamil Nadu, these politicians must have loved to have seen pictures of themselves. Alongside the road, men were whacking grass with a tool the size of a golf club; a lawn mower would have been SO much faster. Signs announced the names of towns, along with its elevation, and not its population.

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Sigiriya UNESCO site, Sri Lanka - History and Gardens

History and Introduction
After a wonderful early morning breakfast buffet at the hotel, I headed to the massive rock of Sigiriya that dominated the view from the hotel swimming pool. At 7:20 AM, the temperature was still pleasant. The sun was trying to peek up over the top of the flat-topped rock jutting 200 m over the flat land of north central Sri Lanka. We drove past a large pond filled with lotus flowers. At the entrance, I showed my UNESCO Cultural Round Ticket ($50) that was also good for Polonnurawa and Anuradhapura (which I wasn’t going to visit). Meaning Lion Rock, the unique geological mass is actually the hardened magma plug of an extinct volcano.

According to legend, the palace and gardens were built by King Kasyapa (AD 477-495) who fled here after killing his father and usurping the throne. After climbing up the 1,202 stairs to the summit, I can see how he would think that building on top of the summit would be a safe location. There is also evidence that points to the area serving as an ancient Buddhist monastery, particularly in the caves. It is quite apparent from the remaining structures and gardens that the city was planned and quite sophisticated, even including sub-surface hydraulic systems. After Kasyapa’s reign, the area reverted back into being a Buddhist monastery, lasting until about the 13th or 14th century.

Moat

Gardens
Passing through the well-preserved outer moat (which still has water), one first encounters the equally well-preserved symmetrical water gardens. How beautiful it must have looked at one time, with the fountains going and well tended gardens with flowers and shrubs – all against the majestic rock. Up past a series of stairs are the boulder gardens. Some of the boulders were used as bases of buildings.

Symmetrical water gardens

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