The Dambulla Cave Temples
The Golden Temple of Dambulla is an impressive temple complex in Dambulla, Sri Lanka most famous for the spectacular and Dambulla Cave Temples World Heritage Site. First, let's get the logistics out of the way: the temple itself is located in the outskirts of Dambulla so to get there you should probably take a tuk-tuk from your hotel (it's a quick and cheap trip).
At the entrance, you'll see a truly bizarre museum whose entrance is the mouth of a wild-eyed face complete with teeth and everything. The museum (which we skipped) is topped by a towering golden Buddha. You can access the seated golden deity by the side steps to get a closer look and enjoy the mischievous monkeys scavenging around the fruit and flowers left as offerings.
Afterwards, its a short but sweaty hike up the hill to get to the entrance to the incredible Dambulla Cave Temples. I've written about the individual caves in detail, so I'll just summarize by saying that the Dambulla Cave Temples are one of the most amazing and impacting places I've ever seen. The complex was built by King Valagamba of Anuradhapura after he sought shelter here during a Tamil invasion and, as a token of gratitude, created a monastery on the site in the 1st century BC. The complex features five caves, hundreds of rock-hewn Buddhas, and some of the most intricate and amazing frescoes found anywhere on Earth. In fact, my wife and I both agreed that the second cave, known as the Cave of the Great Kings, was the favorite thing we saw during our two week tour of Sri Lanka.
Seriously...the Dambulla Cave Temples deserve to be ranked among the ancient wonders of the world, and when Sri Lanka's war-tainted image eventually fades away, they will be. If you can, visit them soon so you can enjoy their majesty in peace, as we did, before they get overrun with crowds.
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