Women sashay past, saris fluttering and hips swaying rhythmically to the thumping drums. The high-pitched whining of a wind instrument draws me like the call of the Pied Piper. I'm swept along by the crowd of spiritual devotees circling a massive white Stupa at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka's Cultural Triangle. The region, in the centre of the island, was the seat of two powerful kingdoms, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa. It's the place to visit for statues, relics, ruins and to soak up Sri Lanka's days of glory.

There's an air of mystery around the Cultural Triangle and although more than 2000 years have passed, I can still feel the seductive tug of power from a long-gone kingdom that was once great.

The sacred city of Anuradhapura

Anuradhapura was established as Sri Lanka's first capital in 377BC by King Pandukabhaya and remained the capital until the 12th century AD.

White bell-shaped Stupas, some 60 metres high, soar towards the sky and are almost as impressive as Egypt's pyramids or Myanmar's pagodas. But unlike the pagodas, these Stupas and Dagobas of Anuradhapura are mound-like structures filled with Buddhist relics.

Buddhism has influenced the kingdom's culture, laws, and rule so it's not surprising that one of the main attractions at Anuradhapura is the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi tree, a sacred fig tree believed to have been planted from a cutting of the Sri Maha Bodhi tree in Bodhi Gaya in India where Buddha attained enlightenment.

It's obvious - from the stream of devotees offering flowers, prayers and chanting around the tree - that this is the drawcard.

The tree was planted in 288BC and part of its supernatural mystique is that it is believed to be the oldest tree planted by man.

Ancient Polonnaruwa

Another ancient capital, Polonnaruwa, was the island's seat of power during the 11th and 12th centuries. The Polonnaruwa era was a period of engineering and construction. Shrines and Stupas were made of brick and temples were built for Hindu gods.

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Stunning, seductive Sri Lanka lures with rich cultural heritage