Dambulla
When it comes to interesting history, Sri Lanka is blessed with the best of the essence. Situated in the Matale district, Damulla is a large town, near to Colombo. Bestowed with the title of a World Heritage Site, Dambulla’s most fascinated fact seems to be the time period of its construction. The fascinating town was built in just 167 days.
Dambulla Cave Temple - The Dambulla Cave Temple lies in the central part of Sri Lanka, and is also known as the Golden Temple. People from faraway places come to see this cultural beauty with their own eyes. Adorned with paintings and statues strewn all over, the cave makes for a must visit attraction.
History of Dambulla
The many statues, paintings and sculptures in the temple caves date back to the 1st century BC, though there were touch-ups done in 11th, 12th, and 18th century AD. The caves were used as a shelter to King Valgamba during his 14 year long exile from the kingdom of Anuradapura.
Upon the King’s return to his kingdom, he had a glorious rock temple built in those caves of Dambulla, as a sign of gratefulness to the monks. There is also evidence of ancient civilizations existing here over 2700 years ago where the people lived on agriculture. The region was earlier referred to as Dhamballai and was ruled by various Kings like Rajendra Chola, Raja Raja Chola, etc. during their term in the late 10th and early 11th centuries.
People and Culture of Dambulla
The people of Dambulla are mostly Sinhalese, Sri Lanka Tamils, Moors and Indian Tamils. Majority of the residents are Theravada Buddhists, followed by Hindus, Muslims and Christians. The locals of Sri Lanka are well known for their warmth and hospitality, and they can always be seen smiling. The people dress in mostly western clothes, but wear colourful traditional clothing for festivals and celebrations. It is recommended to dress modestly when visiting the temples.
Strongly connected to religion, traditions and cultural practices is the way of life for people in Dambulla. Their lifestyle is greatly influenced by their religious customs. Their ceremonies and celebrations are mostly related to religion, agriculture, politics or customs.
The major festivals celebrated here are Ramadan, Christmas, Sinhala and Tamil New Year Festival, Duruthu Full Moon Poya, Patti Pongal and Esala Perahera (a Buddhist festival that takes place in Kandy). The staple food of Sri Lanka consists of rice along with curries of meat and vegetables that are cooked with fragrant spices and coconut.
Best time to visit
The best time to travel to Dambulla is between the months of January and May. Though Dambulla has a very consistent climate with average highs staying around 30 °C to 34 °C and average lows staying around 15 °C to 17 °C, it has heavy rainfall from April that continues till January. This makes it uncomfortable to travel to the Golden Rock Temple and walk around its campus.
How to reach
Bandaranaike International Airport is the main international airport in Sri Lanka. The airport is 35 m from Colombo and 113 km from Dambulla. From here one can travel by bus or taxi to Dambulla city. The airport is connected to various cities across the world, such as Mumbai, Kuwait, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Dubai, Istanbul, Singapore, Milan, Bangkok, Shanghai, etc.