How to Spend Two Days in Kandy
Kandy’s hilly, majestic, and endearing charm is irresistible. While this mountainous and green region is worthy of a sojourn, you can discover its beauty within the course of two days. Since there are plenty of natural and cultural attractions in Kandy, you would need to pick a few that you can enjoy within just two days. After all, a good holiday allows you to relax.
The_Kandy_lake | img by Sleepyartz via wikipedia commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Enjoy the Kandy Lake
The Kandy Lake is a legacy of the last Kandyan kingdom, and to this day the citizens of Kandy love the lake environs for the peace it provides. A stroll around the lake is one of those things to do in Kandy that doesn’t require a lot of effort but provides plenty of rewards. The lake itself has grown into a rich ecosystem of surprisingly sharp and eager fish species, egrets looking to nest, comical ducks, cormorants preening their glistening feathers and thoughtful pelicans. The famous Temple of the Tooth is set near the lake, and you would encounter pilgrims laden with red and blue lotuses and fragrant water lilies making their way to worship. If you time it well, you’ll get to listen to the majestic musical pooja that reverberates from the temple early in the morning and evening. You can buy some luscious pineapple slices from a street vendor or beat the mid-day heat with ice cream. There are a couple of good cafes and restaurants nearby if you wish for a coffee fix. Kandy Lake is located within half an hour of distance from most resorts such as the Amaya Hills.
Visit the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens
The vast river-fringed landscape of the Peradeniya Botanical Garden is brimming with massive, ancient trees, flowering shrubs, an orchid house, elegant palm trees and plenty of picnic spots. You can spend half a day or a few hours of rest and bliss exploring the secret gardens of Peradeniya botanical garden. Take a gourmet picnic along and find a grassy knoll to enjoy it. The garden is home to thousands of species of rare plants and exotic trees. You’ll catch glimpses of butterflies and bees fluttering over many-hued flowers. There is a hanging bridge across the Mahaweli River (the longest river in Sri Lanka).
Discover Hidden Paths on and off the Beaten Path Drive
Rent a car and hire a driver to explore Kandy’s more rural areas on your own. There are some beautiful routes flanked by trees, hills, and meandering waterways in Kandy. You can ask the driver to take you somewhere rural and explore it slowly. You’ll stumble upon trickling brooks and fast-flowing, majestic streams. You’ll see local people going about their lives at a peaceful slow pace – tending to their gardens, picking flowers in the evening, or simply enjoying a juicy gossip session with neighbours at roadside cafés. Make sure you stop by a roadside shop selling roti with piping hot chilli sambol and ginger tea. If you are not fond of spicy food, try a sweet pancake wrapped around shredded coconut mixed with jaggery.
Visit the Ceylon Tea Museum
The ethereal beauty of the Hantane range provides a stunning backdrop to the Ceylon Tea Museum. This museum was first established in 1925. The four-storey building is home to old machinery used to produce fragrant, much-loved tea leaves of old Ceylon. You can go on a time travel stroll into colonial times when tea production was a revered process. You can find a variety of flavoured tea and Ceylon tea on the third floor. Make your way up to the fourth floor to sip a cuppa while you gaze at the tea plantations and the hilly charm of Kandy’s landscape. What a sweet goodbye to a charming region.
