Dambulla sucks, except for the cool history

I hiked to the top to see the temple, and they initially were willing to bring me past the gate area, until they asked if I had a ticket, which I said I didn’t and would purchase one.
My guest had asked at the bottom if they could buy a ticket at the top, and they assured that they could. They were unsure if they could complete the journey, so they didn’t want to risk paying and then not make it. They made it before closure, but the ticket office at the top closed 4 minutes early and wouldn’t allow entry.
My elderly guest, expecting a sacred, religious experience, ended up offering 5 times the ticket price at the top, after hiking all the way, barefoot, and was still refused entry at the top.

What horrible people work there.
Dambulla was the worst experience in Sri Lanka, so far, and I will never forget it, and I will never go back.

Shame on a government that does this, especially if they are Buddhist.

#buddhisttemple
#siddhartha
#mountaintrek