Kuruwita near Ratnapura

Not many foreign tourists know Kuruwita, a small town just north of Ratnapura. To be honest, Kuruwita is not a must-see for first-time visitors of Sri Lanka. However, if you are travelling via Ratnapura, Kuruwita is well worth a stop. There are two very different major attractions in the immediate surroundings. To the southwest of the town is a typical Buddhist temple known  as Delgamuwa Raja Maha Viharaya. It is special in one respect: It was once Sri Lanka’s Tooth Temple, more precisely, it was the hiding place of the nation’s most sacred object of veneration when the Tooth Temple of the capital Kotte was threatened to be plundered by the Portuguese and when Kandy was bot yet a new Sinhalese capital with a new Tooth Temple.

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Attraction number one of Kuruwita is a natural one. The waterfalls of Bopath Ella are to the northwest of Kuruwita town. This is one of the most enchanting waterfalls in Sri Lanka, attracting many visitors particularly in the weekends, most of them not foreigners but Sri Lankans from Colombo. Be aware, swimming below the waterfalls can be dangerous due to sudden floods after heavy rainfall. Deadly incidents occured.

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