Kanniya seven wells and Koneswaram the Trinco sacred circuit in a morning

Trinco local so the morning circuit mapped Kanniya first 0700 opening beats both the heat and the local family rush The mechanics seven square wells in a walled garden each a slightly different temperature the legend says Ravana struck the earth seven times in grief for his mother You do not immerse the wells are shallow you draw with the shared buckets and pour over yourself head to feet moving well to well comparing temperatures wear shorts and a t shirt you can soak modesty is the code there are basic changing rooms small entry fee the experience is communal joyful and entirely unpretentious locals will coach your technique within minutes Then Koneswaram by 0900 the kovil crowns Swami Rock inside Fort Frederick you walk the fort approach road past the colonial buildings and the resident spotted deer The temple story is deep time one of the Pancha Ishwaram the five ancient Shiva abodes of the island the Portuguese destroyed the original in 1622 toppling it into the sea divers later recovered the Swayambhu lingam now enshrined again Etiquette shoes off at the gate men traditionally remove shirts to enter the inner sanctum cameras fine in the outer precinct not the sanctum The cliff edge behind the kovil is Lovers Leap with the harbour panorama one of the great viewpoints of the east Timing verdict Kanniya 45 minutes Koneswaram and fort 90 minutes back at Uppuveli or Nilaveli sand by 1130 comfortably