We bought a multi-site pass called the Cultural Triangle Pass. We burned a hole in it (got our money's worth big time). In one day, we visited Anuradhapura, Minhitale, Polonnaruwa, and arrived in Sigiriya by nightfall.
But first -- the train. For many of the sites, we had to travel at least one leg by train. The trains run infrequenly. Logical challenges. We travelled with the Camels team again - Sami and Brian. Great couple and it was very helpful to have four of us on the lookout for things. Great teamwork. Besides, it's fun.
We covered a lot of territory and did an awful lot of walking around. Did I mention it's very hot and sticky and we are in the jungle?
Anuradhapura became a capital city in 380 BC. For me, the highlight was the sacred bodhi tree which is the oldest historically authenticated tree in the world. It has been tended by guardians for over 2000 years.
Polonnaruwa is a large, sprawling complex. When it feels like the temperature is over one hundred degrees, it is pretty hard to get excited about getting baked among temple ruins. Nevertheless, we carried on. We saw a former home of the sacred tooth. (More on that later - We saw the current home of the sacred tooth the following day). A top sight in Polonnaruwa was the gal pota, an inscribed stone tablet like an early book. It is the largest stone inscription ever discovered.
Parts of the ciry's ancient irrigation system are still in use to draw water from the lake and irrigate the rice paddies.
We pressed onward to Sigariya and checked in to a hotel with a perfect view of the giant rock we planned to climb in the morning.