Badulla District

The entire land area of the Badulla district is 2,861 km² and total population is 837,000. The district is bounded by the districts of Monaragala and Rathnapura on the East & South, by Ampara and Kandy districts on the North and by Nuwara Eliya and Matale on the West. Mainly the economy of the district is based on agricultural farming and livestock.

Badulla District is an agricultural district where tea, vegetable and paddy are cultivated. Mainly the district is divided into two portions as Upper region and Lower region according to climatic and geographical characteristics. Upper division of the district is famous for tea plantation and vegetable cultivation while lower division is famous for paddy cultivation.

Ella & Around

The small town of Ella is a beautiful place to spend a few restful days. The town is largely made up of a long main street lined with restaurants, and paths leading off to attractive guest-houses where some excellent home cooking can be sampled. One of the prime attractions here is Ella Gab, a cleft in the hills where the land drops a dizzying 1,100 m into the plains below. The best view of the Gab is from the garden of the Grand Ella Motel.

Ella is walking country and guesthouses will be able to provide hand-drawn maps of scenic walks, such as the 4 hour long hike southeast of the town to Ella Rock, from where there are splendid views across the Hill Country. An easy, mostly flat 2-hour long walk winds through tea plantations southeast to Little Adam’s Peak, which affords great views of the surrounding countryside. Visitors are advised to set off early to reach here before the clouds descent.

Environs

“Arukku Nawaya” Bridge (Nine Arch Bridge): This bridge is situated 01 km. on the Gotuwala road near the Sutherland bungalow on the left of 02 kms. Away from Ella town along Passara road. This bridge belongs to the Madhuragama Grama Seva Division between Ella and Demodera Railway Stations. This name is used since the bridge contains of 09 arches. It is also known as “Ahas Nawaya Palama” (9 Skies Bridge). This bridge is 300 feet (91.44 m) long and 25 ft (7.62 m). wide. This bridge connects with two high lands and has been made of large cubic stones. The height is 80 ft (24.38 m). The bridge has constructed with using an amazing engineering technology.

Rawana Falls: This water fall is situated on the Ella – Wellawaya road. This is a wide waterfall and the height is 27m. Rawana falls origins from Kirindi Oya. It is really attractive falls with a charming environment. This is also associated with the romantic legend of Rama & Sitha narrated in the ancient Indian epic poem, Ramayana. According to folk-lore, king Rawana of Sri Lanka had hidden the beautiful princess Sitha whom he adbucted after defeating her husband prince Rama of India.

Rawana Cave: One should climb up the hill about 1.5kms. in front of the Rawana ancient temple. It is said that this cave belongs to the period of Walagamba. According to the folklore, Queen Seetha has been hidden in this cave. According to the legend the tunnel which begins from the cave opens up in the Dowa temple and is a place to enjoy seeing the panorama as this cave located on a high elevation.

Dunhinda Falls

Fed by Badulla Oya River, the 63-m high Dunhinda Falls are picturesque sight, with an enormous volume of water gushing into the pool below in a cloud of spray. The 1-km long path leading to the falls can be a bit of a scramble. It is narrow in places and slippery if there has been rainfall. Stalls selling drinks and snacks can be found along the way, but watch out for thieving monkeys when taking a break or enjoying the scenery.

On the way to the waterfall, the lower, wider Kuda Dunhinda falls can be seen. There is concrete observation point at the end of the path. The falls can be visited year-round. However, the place is very popular with locals and can be busy at weekends and on public holidays.

Mahiyanganaya

The town of Mahiyangana is famous in Buddhist legend as the first of the three places in Sri Lanka that the Buddha visited after he gained enlightenment; the other two been Kelaniya and Nainativu. About 1 km south of the town center, the huge Rajamaha Dagoba marks the spot where the Buddha is believed to have preached during his first visit to the country. Said to enshrine a lock of the Buddha’s hair, the dagobawas expanded by King Dutugemunu in the 2nd century BC, and further renovated during the reign of King VoharikaTissa in the 3rd century AD. The attractive complex, backed by a long walkway.

Another temple of note here is the Sri Maha Bodhi Seya, which is located west of the center. It was commissioned by President Premadasa in the early 1990s to look like the Mahabodhi Stupa at Bodh Gaya in India. The town also serves as a good base for visiting the Maduru Oya National Park.

Dambana - Vedda people

Dambana, a village closest to the town of Mahiyangana. It is known as the refuge of the indigenous Vedda people as well as their moribund Vedda language. It is well known for its eco-tourism projects, operated by Eco Team. In 2010 it had population close 1000 individuals all belonging to Vedda families.

The Vedda are a minority indigenous group of people in Sri Lanka who, among other self-identified native communities such as Coast Veddas, Anuradhapura Veddas and Bintenne Veddas, are accorded indigenous status. The Veddha minority in Sri Lanka is in threat of becoming extinct. Most speak Sinhala instead owing to near-extinction of their indigenous languages.

It has been hypothesized that the Vedda were probably the earliest inhabitants of Sri Lanka and have lived in the island before the arrival of Vijaya and his clan from India. According to the 5th-century genesis chronicle of the Sinhalese people, the Mahavamsa (“Great Chronicle”), the Vedda are descended from Prince Vijaya (6th–5th century BCE), the founding father of the nation, who originated from Eastern India, through Kuveni, a woman of the indigenous Yakkha (Odia/Pali for yaksha) whom he married. The Mahavansa relates that following the repudiation of Kuveni by Vijaya, in favour of a Kshatriya-caste princess from Pandya, their two children, a boy and a girl, departed to the region of Sumanakuta (Sri Pada or Adam’s Peak in the Ratnapura District), where they multiplied, giving rise to the Veddas. Anthropologists such as Charles Gabriel Seligman believed the Veddas to be identical to the Yakkha.

Sri Lanka Dream Tours organize various tour activities that includes folk dance & music program, local house visits, local market visits, dinner or lunch with a local family of the area and much more like this. These activities are organized as part of your tour program and gives real experience of India to any guest visiting India with us.