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Sri Lanka 2026
  • We are Living the Dream
  • We are Living the Dream

Sri Lanka 2026

We will be going through jungles to hopefully see leopards, riding on a train through tea plantations, visiting a number of ruins, attending the Kandy Esala Perahera, exploring some exotic places and celebrating Carol's Birthday. Read more
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  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Spice Garden

    August 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    This was very interesting learning about various spice plants and their medicinal benefits. I even had a leg massage using an oil derived from Red Pineapple to see if it would remove my knee pain from walking all the steps over the last few days. To my amazement I currently do not have any pain.Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Sri Muthumariamman Temple

    August 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Sri Muthumariamman Temple is a Hindu temple situated in Matale. The temple is dedicated to Mariamman who is the goddess of rain and fertility. It is also known as Arulmigu Sri Muthumari Amman Kovil. The current temple structure was built in 1874 and is used by both Hindus and Buddhists.Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Queens Hotel Kandy

    August 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    The Queen’s Hotel stands as one of the most iconic landmarks connected to Kandy’s heritage, with a history shaped by royal, colonial, and hospitality traditions. Its origins date back to the early 19th century when it was built as a Governor’s residence during the British colonial era. Over time, the building transitioned into a prestigious hotel, welcoming prominent figures and travellers.Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Queens Hotel

    August 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    We have booked this Hotel to view the Perahera Parade. The Hotel is quite old but majestic and appears to be in a great place to view the Parade.

    Just after we checked into the room, we had a police security search of the room and all our luggage. 6 police where here for about 10min, I was not allowed to take a photo.Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Esala Perahera

    August 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    The Kandy Esala Perahera, also known as The Festival of the Tooth, is an annual religious and cultural festival held in the months of July and August. This historic procession is conducted to pay homage to the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha.

    The Perahera is considered a unique symbol of Sri Lankan heritage and features a vibrant array of traditional performances with several thousand performers doing fire dances, whip dances and other cultural displays with over 60 Elephants.    Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Esala Perahera

    August 23 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    The Parade went for 3.5 hours.

    The Parade was incredible. Our position was great, maybe a little further up the street would have better, but we saw everything.

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Temple of the Tooth

    August 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is a world renowned place of worship, where the left Canine tooth of Gautama Buddha is enshrined. The temple was named as a world heritage by UNESCO in 1988.

    The temple carries a lot of value to Buddhists all over the world and also has immense cultural value. The architecture is of unique Kandyan architectural style with a combination of the unique style used to build Dalada Mandira the shrines which housed the Sacred Tooth Relic previously in other kingdoms. The ruins of such edifices remain in ancient capitals of Anuradapura, Pollonnaruwa, Dambadeniya, Yapahuwa, Kurunegala, Kotte and Gampola.

    While in Kandy the last Kingdom the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic continues to be the greatest shrine for the Buddhist world.    Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Sacred Tooth Relic

    August 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    The relic which s the left canine of Buddha resides in the Temple of the Tooth which was constructed in the 16th century. The relic is enshrined in a golden casket, and its display forms the focus of several annual religious ceremonies, the most famous being the Esala Perahera.

    Protecting of the Sacred Tooth Relic and conducting religious rituals without a break is being carried out to the present day under the strict surveillance of the three chief custodians of the Tooth Relic, the most Venerable Mahanayake Theros of Malwatta and Asgiriya chapters and the lay custodian, the Diyawadana Nilame.    Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    History and View of Kandy

    August 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    Kandy, founded in 1476 by King Wickramabahu, grew from a semi‑independent territory under Kotte into a strong, fully independent kingdom protected by its mountainous terrain. It resisted foreign invasions, notably defeating the Portuguese at the Battle of Gannoruwa. After the last Sinhalese king, Vira Narendra Sinha, the Nayakkar dynasty ruled, with Kirti Sri Rajasinha revitalising Buddhism and developing major religious sites. The final king, Sri Vickrama Rajasinha, completed the Temple of the Tooth Relic and built Kandy Lake, but internal betrayal enabled the British takeover in 1815. His capture marked the end of the Kandyan Kingdom. Kandyan resistance continued under British rule and contributed to Sri Lanka’s independence in 1948.Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    The Crowd

    August 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Over 100,000 attend each daily procession. Many of the attendees drive to Kandy for the day which is why they find a suitable place to sit until the parade starts.

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Esala Perahera

    August 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Our second viewing of the Parade. Whilst it was the same as the previous night, the parade now went straight down the street. This allowed us a slightly better view. Also having the monks seated opposite ensured a better viewing as the parade slowed for them.Read more

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Esala Perahera

    August 24 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Our whole holiday was planned around this festival and my birthday. We are looking forward to our second viewing from our balcony overlooking this magnificent celebration.

  • We are Living the DreamSri Lanka 2026Traveler

    Goodbye Kandy

    August 25 in Sri Lanka ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Queens Hotel was the best location for Eslea Perahera even though walking the street was difficult due to the crowds, it is so noisy the traffic starts around 4am.

    Today we will be driving to Nuwara Eliya which is in the mountains so should be more serene. The drive is 2 and a half hours away plus a few stops along the way.Read more