Kandy: More of the faithful demonstrating their devotion to the memory of Buddha.

Kandy: Crowded room with scores sitting against the walls while chanting mantras or prostrating themselves before various holy relics.

Kandy: Crowded room containing one of the principle stupas.

Kandy: Devotees lay flower offerings around all of the memorials for the many Buddhas enshrined near the venerated Sacred Tooth.

Kandy: Looking from the entrance into the devotional oil lamp chamber containing hundreds of small votive lamps, only a few waiting to be lit by pilgrims wishing to leave behind a lingering token of their devotion.

Kandy: Looking up at the elaborate golden ceiling donated by a Japanese donor.

Kandy: Details of the bas relief to the right of the main entrance into the Tooth chamber of the Temple of the Sacred Tooth.

Kandy: A balcony feature at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth. This architectural feature is seen elsewhere in religious buildings around Kandy.

Kandy: This is one of the dozens of flower arrangement artists preparing the floral offerings pilgrims want. During one of my early morning walks past the Temple grounds I discovered the daily fate of the floral offerings as I witnessed janitors dumping garbage cans full of rotting flowers into a huge trash bin.

Kandy: This is one of the dozens of flower arrangements on display along the streets leading to the entrance of the Temple of the Sacred Tooth.

Kandy: This is one of the dozens of flower arrangements on display along the streets leading to the entrance of the Temple of the Sacred Tooth.

Kandy: This old guy looks bored... or perhaps he is reminiscing about the days when he was the alpha male.

Kandy: This three foot long Monitor Lizard has found or killed a bird and is attempting to swallow it whole as best I could see. There also was a smaller two foot specimen and the adult six foot, fat female which always seemed to be sunning herself.

Kandy: What do you suppose these guys are up to? I decided they were just monkeying around next to the garbage can where tasty morsels occasionally showed up.

Kandy: Monkey see, monkey do. Nothing much happening, but they all seem to enjoy doing it.

Kandy: Monkeys high, monkeys low: monkeys everywhere the eye can see. About the size of a house cat, these dexterous animals can scale the highest buildings with little more than a drain pipe to grab.

Kandy: Looking down on the city from the hills behind the Hotel Suisse where I stayed a week.

Kandy: Along the bank of Kandy Lake wildlife abounds. This is the resident Monitor Lizard I see everyday during my walks. He has numerous birds and a turtle for company... and a young two foot long relative further along the shoreline.

Kandy: Bark of a tree pattern for possible background use. I spotted the unusual pattern on a tree along the bank of the lake. Just tossed it in for those looking for evidence I'm a bit weird.

Kandy: Another example of the wildlife seen along the banks of the Kandy Lake.

Kandy: Scene along the banks of the Kandy Lake across the road from the Hotel Suisse where I stayed most of the time.

Kandy: Popcorn seller at work. People feed the ducks popcorn! Throngs hang around the wall closest to the developed part of the city tossing popcorn into the water between taking bites themselves while chatting.

Kandy: Part of the crowd of people milling around the wall at the lake edge not far from the Temple Of The Sacred Tooth. I visited the monument to an enduring legend about the supernatural powers of the left canine tooth of the first Buddha found in the ashes of his cremation fire, still revered today after nearly three millennia.

Kandy: This is the sacred resting place for Lord Buddha's tooth, an object of veneration throughout the Buddhist world. Some reports suggest the actual tooth is hidden elsewhere because of the civil war, but it is hard to get an authoritative statement from anyone.

Kandy: Crowds pause before the memorial of another Buddha to show devotion.

Kandy: This majestic 16 foot high sitting Buddha is a reproduction of one standing in Sarnath India where the Lord Buddha preached his first sermon. This replica stands at the entrance to one of the lesser buildings around the Temple of the Sacred Tooth.

Kandy: Looking from the entrance into the devotional oil lamp chamber containing hundreds of small votive lamps waiting to be lit by pilgrims wishing to leave behind a small symbol of their passing this way.

Kandy: Looking back at the Temple from near the devotional oil lamp chamber.

Kandy: Looking back at the Temple from near the devotional oil lamp chamber.

Kandy: Walking around the exterior of the main chamber in the Temple of the Sacred Tooth.

Kandy: Looking back at the Western entrance to the temple grounds from the third floor balcony of the temple complex itself.

Kandy: Everyone must remove their shoes (if any!) before entering the "holy of holies." Inside, one is in the presence of an actual piece of the historical Buddha's body: his left canine, to be exact. I wonder if anyone has had a forensic dentist verify that claim. I notice many (most?) local people just go barefoot, so the "foreign visitor" qualification under the Shoe-Rack Counter sign is hardly necessary.

Kandy: These  embellishments to flights of stairs are common in Sri Lanka. This one is particularly elaborate, but I have seen similar artistic results in long "short-cut" stairways winding their way up hillsides through lush tropical vegetation where only the rare visitor would ever be present to admire the artist's work.

Kandy: A balcony feature at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth. This architectural feature is seen elsewhere in religious buildings around Kandy.

Kandy: Most pilgrims like these bring flower offerings to lay at the alters. Here, a father records his wife and daughter's floral selections.

Kandy: During one of my walks along the north shore of the lake I saw many monkeys like this one eating from a discarded Jack Fruit.

Kandy: During one of my around the lake walks I explored the dirt roads running up the hills and found this unusual... and expensive hotel: the Helga's Folly Hotel.

Kandy: During one of my around the lake walks I explored the dirt roads running up the hills and found this unusual... and expensive hotel: the Helga's Folly Hotel.

Kandy: During one of my around the lake walks I explored the dirt roads running up the hills and found this unusual... and expensive hotel: the Helga's Folly Hotel.

Kandy: During one of my around the lake walks I explored the dirt roads running up the hills and found this unusual... and expensive hotel: the Helga's Folly Hotel.

Kandy: During one of my around the lake walks I explored the dirt roads running up the hills and found this unusual... and expensive hotel: the Helga's Folly Hotel.

Kandy: During one of my around the lake walks I explored the dirt roads running up the hills and found this unusual... and expensive hotel: the Helga's Folly Hotel.