Gal Pota, or Stone Book, is an long granite carving of a palm leaf book that was used to record Buddhist texts and royal genealogies. However this slab praises the works of King #2, Nissankamalla, a Tamil prince from India who married into the Sinhalese nobility. He is the third Polonnaruwan king. The inscription is…
The Vatadage consists of a central shrine and dagoba, which is now missing its wooden roof, enclosed by a brick wall. Four sets of steps lead to the terrace. Two stone platforms are decorated with stone carvings. The lower one is accessed through a single entrance and the raised one is accessed through four doorways…
Vijayanta Prasada is the first ruins after entering the grounds. This was the royal palace, built by King Parakramabahu I in the 12th Century. In its heyday, the palace stood seven stories tall and contained 1,000 rooms. Construction took a little over seven years. It was destroyed by South Indian invaders in the 13th century. Burned bricks…
The Thuparama Gedige is the smallest gedige (hollow Buddhist temple with thick walls) in Polonnaruwa. This has stood the test of time, as proven by the intact roof. Four standing Bodhisattva statues adorn the interior.
This winter was the peak of the 11-year solar cycle, the period during which the sun produces sunspots and solar storms, resulting in high auroral activity. Since there’s nowhere better to view the aurora borealis than Lapland, my husband and I stocked up on extreme cold-weather gear and headed north. Way north. We were prepared…
Since we were sort of in the area, of course we had to spend a night at the original Icehotel in Sweden. If you’ve never heard of the Icehotel, it’s exactly what it sounds like: a hotel built of ice (well, ice and snow). Each year, the hotel is built anew. It takes three months…
Abisko, Sweden is located 195 km north of the Arctic Circle in the middle of the auroral zone and is considered the best place to see the Aurora Borealis. It’s in the middle of nowhere, so the air is clear and there’s limited artificial lights. Additionally, the sky is typically free of clouds, thanks to…
When my husband and I decided to head to Lapland, Tromso seemed like a good start- and end-point. It is in the middle of the Aurora Borealis zone, there were regular flights to and from Oslo and it was large enough to comfortably spend a few days in the Polar Night, which is the period…
Medieval St-Émilion is the oldest wine town in France. It is about 22 miles northeast of Bordeaux and sits high on a limestone rock overlooking the seemingly endless vineyards, châteaux and Romanesque churches of the Dordogne valley. St-Émilion is a cluster of stone houses, churches and wine shops surrounded by ramparts. The most famous sight…
When I heard about Marathon du Médoc, I could not wait to sign up. A 26.2-mile scenic course that winds through Bordeaux’s vineyards and past world-famous chateaux sounded spectacular. The wine and extravagant food (cheese, oysters, ice cream) along the course sounded…well, not like things I usually consume while running, but an interesting twist to…