Thank you for visiting my site.
You are here: Home / Destinations / YAPAHUWA
After the decline of Polonnaruwa capital of Sri Lanka was shifted to Yapahuwa by King Bhuvanekabahu the first. The palladium of the Sinhalese Buddhist nation, the sacred tooth relic of Buddha was enshrined within the newly built temple at the Yapahuwa royal residence in 13th century Yapahuwa was able to preserve some interesting remains. While many traces of other ancient defenses are still be seen, an ornamental stairway remains it’s the main draw. capital of Sri Lanka in 1301, today, the Royal residence, the Temple of Tooth Relic, the battle defenses are in ruins. While many traces of other ancient defenses are still be seen, an ornamental stairway remains it’s the main draw. The ruined walls of Yapahuwa form a rough semicircle. The ends join the foot of the high steep-sided rocky granite outcrop. The outer fortification, an earthen rampart extends to about a mile is about 20feet in height. Over the rampart are the ruins of a brick wall that was erected for defences. Around the rampart was a moat. Around the rampart was a moat. Access to the fortress was by means of the three gates that connected to three causeways. Within this rampart was an inner fortification: a stone wall 12 feet in height and about 500 yards long with a moat outside it and with two gates.
Stone Stairway in Yapahuwa
The Stone stairway originally comprised of three flights of stone stairs, one above the other, however the lower one has disappeared and been replaced by cement steps. The walls on either side of the stairway form pavilions in each of which is a graceful female figure. Above these sculptures are sculptures of stylized goggle-eyed spring and the in balustrades above these, the head of lions have transformed into the Elephants with their trunks extended. Beautiful rock carvings of jubilant musicians, dancers and drummers decorate the last staircase and the porch above them.
Also you can see “Door way”, stairway the pilgrim will reach the impressive and harmoniously conceived doorway that once led into the Temple of the Tooth.
Caves on the top of the hill are inhabited by ascetic monks for centuries. Also there are another caves in base of the rock there is a fortification with two moats and ramparts. In this enclosure there are the remains of a number of buildings including a Buddhist shrine. There is also a Buddhist temple called Yapahuwa Raja Maha Vihara built during the Kandyan period.
"We came for a wedding and then embarked on an amazing holiday. Cyril show us magnificent sights and scenery of Sri Lanka. To do the country just we need to return with more time. Many of the sites we visited just made us want to know more about them, even though Cyril was a fountain of knowledge. We have thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Cyril and his excellent company, and it was so nice to go home a guardian angel looking after us. He is consistently courteous & good humored and now fe..." Andy Powell UK
"11th April 2014 01 week tour around Sri Lanka A fantastic week was had by all with Cyril, exploring Kandy, Nuwaraeliya and Bentota. Your meaningful insights & excellent explanations of the Sri Lanka’s culture, nature and traditions were invaluable. Your smile and charm helped is feel related and comfortable. Not getting stressed once. With your guidance & tips, the holiday flew by with only one problem: it was very short! Your comprehensive list of talents ranges from findin..." Ian Price and family from UK
"Thank you so much for wonderful Sri Lanka trip.We had a great time. The trip was very relaxing as well as fun. My daughter MAHI who lovingly started calling you "Cyril Dada"(grand farther) Had a memorable trip. She cannot stop talking about elephants. Our trip to Sri Lanka will be full of great memories, its because of you. Thank you for showing us your beautiful country the way we wanted, eating local food, lots of King coconut and Corn stops. We will be surely coming back to see rest o..." Mithil Patel
"We highly appreciated Cyril as our chauffeur guide. We can easily speak with him about any subject. We learnt a lot about Sri Lanka' s culture, history and way of life. He arrange everything we asked. In the airport on arrval his welcome is marvelous. His English language is superb and very clear. His knowledge and expanation about the sites are unique. More than the all he is very friendly and punctual. We will recommend him all the people who willing to come to Sri Lanka." COMBE MARTIAL AND WILD EMMANUEL FROM FRANCE
"Dear Cyril, Here are some photos for you as we promised, and also little gift to you. Here is some photos of elephant boy which we were took on elephant ride. Please give to them when you go to Habarana again. We are very grateful to you for your services that you have done to make our holiday in this beautiful country. Still we are thinking over our nice trip with you. It was fantastic, really! Here in Holland, life is normal again. Greeting for your wife and daughter too. George and Cala ..." George and Cala
"CyrilWe are now back at home after the lovely time with you in Sri Lanka, andvisiting Hong Kong.Thank you for driving for us while we were in Sri Lanka.In particular, we appreciated - your smooth, calm and efficient driving through varied traffic conditions - your calmness when things did not go quite as expected - your being available at all times of day - I'm remembering our late arrival at the airport, and our late departure - your information about all sorts of ..." Cliff Hooker and Jean from Australia
"Dear Cyril, We just got back to Singapore today...I am will be back to work tomorrow.. :) Sad but true ha ha……. We were very lucky to have you as our guide. I don’t think there will be anyone else who could have done an excellent job that you have done. We will spread the word around and will surely sell your services...do keep in touch so we can work something out. Thanks for the photos they are great Will visit your website soon and put in some good words for you.. Ti..." Shuhanth Haridas from Singapore
"Dear Cyril, Sincerest apologies for this delayed email --- reason being that I had been extremely busy with work & travel, since returning from Sri Lanka and just got a breather now, to download our photos and catch up with private matters. Hope this email finds you & family, in the best of health & spirits. Your granddaughter must be keeping you busy and giving you & Mrs. Baddegama immense joy. At this end, we are doing fine. Nikhita is back at school, now in Grade 7 and havi..." Pradeep Kumar Menon - Singapore
"Dear Cyril, Thank you for truly amazing oneweek tour your beautiful country.We have seen so many amazing sites in such a short space of time. From Sigiriya to beautiful temples, Scenic tea gardens of Nuwaraeliya the colonial land ark hotel Mount Lavinia. We have seen so much more. You have made this an utterly memorable holiday with your expert knowledge, amazing, facinating stories, patience, careful+safe drivingand your unforgetable smile. We will cetainly recommonding your tours to all of fr..." Sara Kitson - UK
"We had a fantastic holiday in Sri Lanka, thanks Cyril Tours, Our driver, Amiila, was brilliant and nothing was too much trouble for him. The places we visited were really interesting and we saw some lovely scenery.I would definitely recommend your company to other people. Emma - UK 2010 December " Emma Patterson