Buddhist festival

By ⋅ August 9, 2010 ⋅ Post a comment

Today’s Geo Quiz celebrates the Perahara: It’s a 10-day Buddhist festival with elephant parades and fire-dancing all rolled into one. It gets underway this week in city in central Sri Lanka. That’s the city we want you to name.

It boasts magnificent Buddhist temples, and it’s surrounded by sprawling tea plantations. Tourists flock there each summer to see the Perahara. You can get up close and personal to a lavishly costumed elephant.

“This elephant has tusks about 4 feet long, his trunk right now is sweeping the ground in front of him, he’s got pile of I think these are palm leaves which are his snack before the parade.”

…so can you come up with the name of the Sri Lankan city where the festval is being held.

Geo Answer:

And the Buddhist festival called the Perahera just got underway in the city of Kandy and that’s the answer to our Quiz.

John Stifler sent us a postcard from the previous festival and, as you’ll hear it’s quite a scene. (Audio available after 5PM Eastern)

Discussion

5 comments for “Buddhist festival”

  • K. Amarasinghe

    Thank you for sharing this beautiful festival with us. My husband is from Sri Lanka and I have visited, Kandy but have yet to go to Perahera in Kandy. I have seen other festivals and the beautiful Elephants are a sight to see. They are graceful animals but all dressed up they seem so happy to be apart of the celebration. Marco Polo got it right it is a beautiful Island.

    • John Stifler

      Thanks so much for your kind words. Seeing this festival was one of the greatest highlights of my life — and you are right that the elephants themselves enjoy the event. Somewhat like good dogs at a show, they know they are the creatures everyone is watching, and they respond well.
      John Stifler

  • Katherine Hoffman

    John, Thank you for posting this wonderful audio postcard. I did not get to see the Kandy Perahera while I was in there on my Fulbright the year before yours, but I was captivated by the one in Columbo. I especially loved the dancers. Kandyan dance is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.

  • http://www.sundayobserver.lk Nilma

    Wow! Thank you John, for making me famous! I’m so honoured!

  • isuri

    im so proud of u nilma… keep it up…