Sigiria continued

After yesterday's busy day, today was more relaxed.

We started with a visit to the Silk factory and Batik factory much to Anni's delight, but to the considerable detriment of my wallet. It was some consolation that prices were less than half of that in the U.K.

We visited the ruins at Ritigala, some 25km from Sigiria, hidden away in the jungle.  The ruins had been a monastery of a sect of monks practicing the most extreme form of Buddhism wearing robes made only from rags,  and relying

upon donations of food from the villagers.  The monks had received considerable support from the ancient kings who built up the site for their own use.  The ruins included a hospital, complete with a sunken bath and grinding stone for preparing the herbal infusions. Despite the intense heat and humidity it was comparatively cool under the shade of the trees, although the path, particularly at the start involved some strenuous climbing over loose boulder.  Sadly Anni slipped and twisted her ankle at the end of the walk, so remained a passenger in the car for the remainder of the day.

Next up was "the most magnificent Buddha cut from a single piece of rock in the whole of Sri Lanka". So said the

poster at the entrance to the Avukana site. At over 12metres high, and being cut in the 5th century, it was quite an achievement.

Nearby is the Kala Wewa reservoir.  Again this was built in the 5th century AD, during the time of King Dhatusena. The spillway, over 40ft wide, meanders for 56 miles all the way back to Anurahadapura, and allows the cultivation of thousands of acres of paddy fields.  Fro such an advanced society in its time, it is puzzling that Sri Lanka or Ceylon does not have a more prominent position in ancient history.