Famous for its well-preserved ruins of an ancient civilization, Anuradhapura is one of the ancient Sri Lankan capitals. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the city is one of the oldest and continuously inhabited cities in the world.

The ancient city which is considered sacred by Buddhists contains a enormous collection of archaeological and architectural wonders such as massivedagobas, soaring brick towers, ancient pools and crumbling temples built during the citys 1000 years of rule over Sri Lanka. The ruins of the ancient city cover an area more than 16 square miles, and yet more is still to be uncovered.

In Anuradhapura Sri Lanka, one particularly worth visiting is Sri Maha Bodhi. This sacred Bodhi tree, central to the Anuradapura city in both the spiritual and physical sense. The sister of Mahidu, who originally introduced the Buddhism teachings to Sri Lanka, brought the tree as a cutting from Bodhgaya in north India. Sri MahaBodi is the oldest historically authenticated tree in the world having been tended by an uninterrupted succession of guardians for over 2000 years.

Complex carvings and incredibly detailed stonework in general are one of the highlights of the trip. In some ruins we can see perfectly elegant rock works. No one has an idea where the knowledge to do this came from and it remains a complete mystery.