The cloud wall
White parapets.
Cherubino — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Løken — Public domain · Alexey Komarov — CC BY 3.0 · Charith Gunarathna from Kandy, Sri Lanka — CC BY 2.0 · Dan arndt — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sleepyartz — CC BY-SA 4.0 · KapilaKTK — CC BY-SA 3.0 · calflier001 — CC BY-SA 2.0
A man-made lake in the heart of the hill city of Kandy, created in 1807 by King Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe, the last king of Kandy, next to the Temple of the Tooth on what had been paddy fields. Locals call it Kiri Muhuda, the Sea of Milk. It is edged by a low white wall with notched parapets shaped like clouds, the Walakulu Bemma, which runs for more than 630 metres. On the small island in the middle stood a pavilion where the kings relaxed, and folk tales say a secret tunnel once linked it to the palace. A shaded path a little over three kilometres long runs all the way round, looking out on green hills, the rooftops of the town and the octagonal tower of the Temple of the Tooth. It is a favourite walking and jogging loop morning and evening. Walking round the lake is free and takes about an hour; fishing is banned. It pairs easily with a visit to the temple next door, and it is loveliest early in the morning or just before sunset when the heat eases.
White parapets.
On the shore.
Shaded all round.
Central Kandy, in front of the Temple of the Tooth
About an hour for the full loop of a little over three kilometres, and it is free.
