Kandy, perhaps is Sri Lanka’s most beautiful town. Set 488 meters above sea level, Kandy is Sri Lanka’s most visited place after Colombo. Kandy is the English name for the city of Maha Nuvara (Senkadagalapura) in the centre of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the ancient kings’ era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills in the Kandy plateau, which crosses an area of tropical plantations, mainly tea. Kandy is one of the most scenic cities in Sri Lanka; it is both an administrative and religious city. It is the capital of the Central Province and also of Kandy District. Kandy is the home of The Temple of the Tooth Relic (Sri Dalada Maligawa) one of the most venerable places for the Buddhist community of Sri Lanka and all around the world. It was declared a world heritage by the UNESCO in 1988. There are a number of shrines and temples in and around Kandy, where you will see rare paintings, frescoes, and stone carvings from the Kandyan period. The scared Temple of the Tooth in the historic city of Kandy houses one of Buddhism’s most sacred relics and draws followers of the Buddhist faith from all over the world.
The Royal Complex situated around the Temple of the Tooth and Kandy Lake – comprising of the King’s Palace, the Queens Palace, the Audience Hall, the Royal Boathouse and the Royal Summer House, represent the zenith of ancient Sri Lankan architecture. The Temple of the Sacred Tooth enshrines Sri Lanka’s most important relic of Lord Buddha. Constructed during the 17th and 18th centuries, this temple is surrounded by a deep moat. Nearby are three impressive shrines or devalas dedicated to guardian deities: Natha, Vishnu and Pattini. A fourth devala a short distance away, the Kataragama shrine, is famed for its wooden columns with exquisitely carved panels. The temple was part of a complex of buildings that included the 16th century King’s Palace (part of which now houses the Archaeological Museum), while the Queen’s Palace, home to the National Museum, has a collection of royal regalia. Kandy’s pleasant Lake in the centre of the old city was created by the last Sinhalese King in 1807.