Your base for exploring this tourist attraction is the ancient city of Kandy, Sri Lanka. For tourist information about Kandy, go to Kandy Travel Guide. To prepare for a trip to Sri Lanka, read also the Sri Lanka Travel Guide. Looking for budget accommodation there? Use AsiaExplorers Budget Accommodation Guide, the no-frills website to cover your budget accommodation needs.
Kandy Lake, the main body of water in the city of Kandy in central Sri Lanka, is a manmade lake created in 1807 by the last Sinhalese king of Kandy, using forced labour. The king used land which was paddy field to create the lake. It stands as an indictment of the excesses of the Kandyan monarchy for wasting away national resources to built an ornamental lake at a time when the kingdom was under serious threat.
When a hundred of his advisors advised King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe against building the lake, he had them impaled on the reservoir bund of the paddy field which he was converting into the ornamental lake. It was not long before the British captured him, with help from his own noblemen disgruntled by his irrational policies.
View from the banks of Kandy Lake.
Kandy Lake has a perimeter of 2.1 miles and a maximum depth of 60 feet. A decorative wall, called Walakulu wall, runs for 2060 feet along the banks of the Kandy Lake. In the middle of the lake is an island housing the Royal Summer House. Sri Dalada Maligawa, or Temple of the Tooth Relic, is located beside the lake across the road. On the opposite side of the road from the Temple of the Tooth Relic is the Royal Bathhouse, which is used by the king's wives and concubines as a bathhouse. The British added one more storey to the structure to house a library.
It is impossible to miss the Kandy Lake if you are visiting the city, as it is located smack in the middle of town. I had the good fortune to walk around and admire it, when I explored Kandy with a small group of AsiaExplorers members, and am documenting it here for your enjoyment.
View of Kandy Lake with the island in the middle.
The Royal Bathhouse, also called the Queens' Bath.
Kandy Travel Guide
Useful tips and information on tourist attractions to help you prepare for a trip to Kandy, Sri Lanka.
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