Visakhapatnam Chronicle Part 3

Here is the 3rd and final part to the series “Visakhapatnam Trip”

29th Oct 2008 – We had plans to go to RK beach early morning to watch the ocean with rising sun. But due to exertion from the Araku trip, we woke up quite late. We had booked the same driver for the last day of our trip. It was almost noon when he arrived with his car. We left for Indira Gandhi Zoological Park in Vizag city. The park spreading over an area of 625 acres, exhibits about lots of animals and birds in open surroundings, except the birds of course! We decided to move around in car only. One thing we noticed in Vizag that at every tourist attraction there was a charge of Rs.20 for camera. AP Govt is surely minting money from tourism. There is a special house of nocturnal animals where owls, civets, porcupines, wild cats, loris etc are kept in total darkness with artificial dim light and air conditioned cave sort of place. It was both eerie and scary! We were wondering why they have done that as in natural habitat, these animals experience daylight! I found the answer on internet. Apparently the Hyderabad zoo has a similar section.

To make the nocturnal animals active during the daytime for the benefit of visitors, the wake-sleep cycle of the animals is reversed by simulated night condition, inducing the night time activities in the animals. In this connection special arrangements are made to change the time of day gradually, that is from daylight to dark and dusk to dawn, so that the animals are conditioned to the change of biorhythm in their routine life. A modern cave has been constructed to exhibit the nocturnal animals in such a way that people have a feeling as if they are going through a tunnel and see the animals in their natural habitat without causing any disturbance in “The Moonlit Zoo”.

The lions and tigers were resting after lunch. All animals were kept in wide open spaces with just a moat around the area.

From there we went to the same Hotel Sandhya I had mentioned in part 1 for a delicious Bengali meal of rice, dal, potato fry, sabzi, fish, chicken and curd. Our next destination was the famous Submarine Museum on RK beach. But on the way we stopped at Tenneti Park. Its a beautiful park overlooking the ocean.

There is another park called the VUDA Park but we didn’t go there. We went to the submarine museum. After decommissioning INS Kursura, the Govt spent like 6 crores hauling it ashore and making it a museum for public display, the only of its kind in SE Asia. Seeing so much machinery and torpedoes inside was just mind boggling! Here is a good link about the setting up of the submarine museum and a link of photos of the inside of the submarine. We also bought some souvenirs from a little shop there. Then we stopped at the 1971 Indo-Pak War memorial at RK beach. This memorial called “Victory at Sea” is established to commemorate the victory of India and successful blasting of a Pakistani ship. Many war related materials are displayed here, including a fighter plane, missiles, few bombs and a tank.

Our next stop was Kailashgiri Park, a tourist spot developed at a height of 130 m overlooking the city of Vizag and facing the Bay of Bengal. There are various view points offering a panoramic view of the city and ocean. We had a ride in the toy train which goes around the hill. There are many food courts too. One can easily spend 2-3 hours enjoying the lush greenery and view from the park. The main attraction is the huge statue of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. As there was still lot of time left for sun to set, we didn’t stay to enjoy the city lights view from the hill.

Our last stop was at the Matsyadarshini i.e. Fish Aquarium. It was simply wonderful to see all those species! It was hard taking snaps of moving fishes.

Then we came back to hotel, had our dinner, packed our stuff and went to sleep. Our trip ended next morning when our train left Visakhapatnam station. We were exhausted and felt that 3 days is very short for visiting Visakhapatnam and enjoying it fully with rush. Next time no Araku and 3-4 days only in Vizag. Here are the souvenirs of the trip.

Hope you enjoyed my series of posts on my trip.

Krishnagiri Chronicle

When we bought our car Ford Figo, we knew we will definitely go on road trips because both of us like traveling and D loves driving [only to such places not to market or malls :D] So our first road trip was to Krishnagiri. After that we visited the place once more recently with my in-laws. Here is an account of the place and our experiences.

Krishnagiri is a small town and district headquarters in Tamilnadu, the 30th district to be precise. It is around 90 km from Bangalore. So it is not a long drive especially from south Bangalore where we live. Apparently Krishnagiri is famous for its mango production and it owes its name to the many black granite hillocks that are a part of the landscape. It is also the birthplace of Dr. C. Rajagopalachari, the first Governor General of India. The National Highway 7 makes the drive to Krishnagiri a pleasant one but only after one crosses Hosur. The condition of highway in Hosur is bad. Also the traffic can be a problem sometimes mainly due to trucks in Hosur. There are two tollways till Krishnagiri. After Hosur, there are many fuel stations and restaurants (even a McDonald’s) at Shoolagiri. The hills in the Hosur – Krishnagiri region give an impressive view with the famous 2000 year old Sri Varadaraja Perumal Temple located atop the Shoolagiri hill. We did not visit the temple so I have no information about that place.

National Highway 7

Hills along the highway

Approaching Shoolagiri

McDonald’s!!

Tollway before Krishnagiri

Further along the road, there is a lake called “Avathanapatti Lake” which has a boathouse and a children park. Though we intended to visit that, we could not due to shortage of time.

The first time when we visited Krishnagiri it was during the monsoon season of 2012. The lush green paddy fields, the countryside, the highway, the weather – all were mesmerizing. We could actually see the drizzle happening at a distance!! When we visited next time in August 2013, it was not raining that much and that beautiful look was missing.

Dark Monsoon Clouds

Green Paddy Fields

Krishnagiri doesn’t have too many tourist attractions. The most popular tourist attraction is the Krishnagiri reservoir project (KRP) Dam. Then there is a fortress built on the top of Syed Basha hills (also known as Krishnadevarayar Mountain) which belonged to the famous ruler, Tipu Sultan.

# Krishnagiri Fort – The Krishnagiri district website lists “Rayakottah” as a fort in its tourist places but I am confused whether it is the same fort as the one we visited. Though the fort was a protected monument according to a blue notice by ASI, there was no monument name anywhere to be seen. The fort is clearly visible from the main road but finding the entrance is a tricky thing. The entrance or rather the starting steps to the fort are visible after passing through some gullies and crossing someone’s front yard!! The area around the fort has become a human settlement and reeks of negligence of a so-called protected monument. On the positive side, the steps leading to the top of the hill and thereby the fortress are good. But it is a long hike and not for aged or unfit persons. My in-laws decided to wait at the village. D and I started climbing. There were many goats at the starting of the steps and it was amazing to see them standing on the sloping faces of the hills defying gravity!! We humans wont be able to do that!!

Krishnagiri Fort on the top of Syed Basha Hill

Area around the Entrance Steps

The Starting Steps of A Long Climb

Goats standing on the hills

D leading the hike to the fort

As we climbed, the aerial view of the town became visible. There were so many different types of shrubs, even cactus in the hills. We also came upon monkeys, ant hills, salamanders, odd rock formations etc.

View of Krishnagiri from top

Slopes of the hill

We climbed 220 steps (I counted on our way down!!) after which I gave up.  From the point where I gave up, the fort was still not in sight. God knows how many more steps were there to the fort! I did not want to take sick leave the next day at work 😀 So even if D wanted to complete the hike, I was adamant and we came back. Apparently there is a museum inside the fort. Maybe next time!!

The Point where I gave up

    # KRP Dam – The fort is on the left side of the highway and the road leading to the KRP dam is on the right side when one is coming from the direction of Hosur. So you have to take a U-turn on the highway and go on the service road till you reach an arch now on your left. There is an entrance fee which one has to pay before entering the dam area. The dam is built across the Thenpennai river. The dam is working since 1958 and was inaugurated by the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu K. Kamaraj.

Entrance Fees to KRP Dam

First time when we went the road leading upto the dam was open but the second time it was closed. At the front of the dam some sculptures are there. A sculpture depicts a king sort of person giving alms to some ascetic looking person. But there was no sign board explaining the significance of the sculpture or the tale behind it. Then there was a huge sculpture of a demon looking king type of person. Again no story!! 😦 Would love to know the tales if any of my blog readers knows it.

Front of the KRP Dam

A fisherman fishing with monsoon clouds looming

The sculpture at the dam

Another sculpture at the dam

The narrow road leading to the forebay area of the dam is always open.There is not much place there to sit and relax but if one wants to take a dip in the water, then it is good. We parked the car and relaxed for sometime taking in the view of the water and trying to bounce pebbles off the surface of water 😀 The first time when we had gone we could not stay for long as it was drizzling but the second time it was sunny so we enjoyed the view a lot. Inside the village there is a small outlet which we had seen on our first visit, which sells fried fish fresh from the river. Would have loved to try some!

The forebay of the dam

My in-laws and D taking in the view

Fried fish outlet

Again we returned back to the dam and parked in front of a park near the dam. There is a beautiful well maintained garden which was closed when we had gone for the first time but was open the second time around.  The garden spread over 50 acres serves as a picnic spot for tourists. There are steps leading from the garden to the top of the dam. The view of the embankment is mesmerizing from the top. There are swings and other play stuff for children. There is a round fountain area which was not that well maintained, with a Lord Krishna statue in the middle surrounded by “gopiyas” among which one was wearing a salwar kameez!! 😀

KRP Park

Garden

Krishna surrounded by Gopiyas

Steps leading upto the dam

View of the garden from the dam top

View of water from top of dam

View of the water

After spending time in the park, we started on our way back to Bangalore. Reached home by 6 pm with enough time to relax, have dinner and sleep for the next day was Monday. Krishnagiri is a good place to go for a short one day outing with family, just to get out of the city and to take a break.

Delhi Chronicle Part 2

Continued from here

My parents arrived in New Delhi on 1st May 2012. They were very happy to see their grand-daughter  in person for the first time. Sadly she had fallen sick due to the bad water and weather of Delhi. 😦 On 2nd May 2012 my parents and I decided to go sightseeing around New Delhi. So we talked to our hotel manager and booked a cab for the day. We left right after breakfast but even in such early morning the sun was mercilessly bright and hot. The places we visited were

Delhi Chronicle Part 1

After spending a wonderful week at Ahmedabad, we went to New Delhi to meet my sister and my niece whom I had not met since her birth. It was my first trip to the capital city. The train journey was uneventful and we reached New Delhi in morning after an overnight journey. The weather was bad with the summer sun showing its ugly face. After getting freshened up at the hotel near relatives’ house, we went to see my precious niece. Poor thing! She was surrounded by so many strangers all of a sudden and such weather and water at that! As for the first impression of people of Delhi, I think every family of every status and income owns a car whether they use it or not and whether there is place for parking or not. Moreover all these cars are dented!! In the evening D and I decided to visit the famous Lotus Temple. Though we were interested to go via Delhi Metro, we hired a cab because one has to change trains three times to go to Nehru Place from Patel Nagar. The cab driver was an affable Punjabi person and just as we were about to leave another car backed into our cab. We understood why all the cars in New Delhi have dents! We had an amusing experience on our way to Lotus temple while the cab driver pointed out the landmarks of Delhi on our request.

 

An example

Cab driver – And that is AIIMS….the biggest hospital in Asia, all people come here for treatment blah blah

D – Ahh yes we know.

Cab Driver – Humph! I am telling only because you asked me to show the  landmarks as you are visiting for first time. If you already know then why did you ask me? Blah blah

I – Okay okay calm down. My sister is a doctor so we know about AIIMS. Please continue.

( D and I were smiling to each other)

Finally we reached the place.

# Lotus Temple – Located at Kalkaji, this lotus shaped temple is the house of worship of Baha’i faith. It was  completed in 1986 and is the seventh of all the Baha’i Houses of Worship all around the world. It was designed by Iranian-Canadian architect Fariburz Sahba and is made of marble entirely. The architecture of the building is exquisite with 27 white-marble petals, lush green landscaped gardens and nine reflecting pools surrounding the temple from outside. There is a central hall which can be accessed through nine doors. Silence is mandatory inside the hall and visitors are encouraged to sit peacefully and meditate for some time. The serenity and calmness of the place really brings peace to one’s mind and thoughts from the noisy world outside. Though it is a Baha’i house of worship, it is open to all people of any faith to come and meditate in the beautiful environment. At the entrance there is a slab which describes the Baha’i philosophy and after reading that we were truly impressed and inspired by the principles of the Oneness of God, the Oneness of Religions, and the Oneness of Mankind. Entry is free and photography is prohibited inside.

After we reached our cab, the driver took us to some emporiums right behind the temple complex for shopping. I guess that is the usual practice the cab drivers follow for tourists. We went inside and roamed around the shop and came back without buying anything. 🙂 Then he dropped us back to our hotel. D left the next day to come back to Bangalore while I stayed back to spend some more days with my family as my parents were due to arrive in Delhi two days later.

To be continued…..

Ahmedabad Chronicle Part 2

Continued from here

The next day and the day after that, D and I decided to go sight seeing on our own using my SIL’s two wheeler. The weather was as hot as the inside of a furnace! Still we being the ghumakkars that we are, we decided to go exploring the city anyway. I had shortlisted the must see places of the Heritage city. But April 24 being a holiday on the occasion of Bhagvan Shree Parshuram Jayanti, all the government places such as museums, art galleries etc were closed and we missed out on visiting many places. Driving in Ahmedabad city was a spine chilling, adrenalin rushing, heart palpitating act because it seems to be the city where traffic rules go to die and traffic police are non existent. Yet it was interesting to see rural people in ethnic dresses, camel carts and even elephant on the roads! But the color of the city is only in the clothes…the white or grey buildings and the white cars give the city a dull appearance unlike other cities of India.

# Darwazas of Ahmedabad: Founded in 1411 AD and fortified in 1487, the old Amdavad had a wall 10 km in circumference encircling the city to protect it from invasion. This wall originally had 21 gates or darwazas. But after 500 years most of the walls are gone and today only the gates still stand, as well as a short section of wall also stands along the riverfront. The area within the boundary of the old wall is known today as the “old city”, and is easily identifiable by narrow streets, old houses and clustered buildings, crowded markets and traffic congestion. We spotted 2-3 gates while driving around the city. Each appears to be a remnant of a golden era gone by in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the modern age…a mismatch with the surroundings, but they do lend an antique historical feel to the city. We got scolded by passersby and other drivers while trying to take photographs 😀

# Bridges of Ahmedabad : Ahmedabad is a city sprawling on the both sides of the Sabarmati River with 9 bridges built across it to connect the eastern (old city) and western (new city) regions. While roaming we crossed the Ellis Bridge, Sardar Bridge, Nehru Bridge etc. Ellis Bridge was built in 1870 and had a wooden structure, which was replaced by steel in 1882. Extensions have been constructed on either side of the original bridge to support heavy traffic, and the original bridge is preserved as a landmark.

# Sabarmati Ashram : I think every Indian knows the name of this place 🙂 It is located on Ashram road near Vadaj on the bank of Sabarmati River. Sabarmati Ashram or Satyagraha Ashram had played an instrumental role in the non-violence movement and India’s struggle for independence. Mahatma Gandhi’s famous “Dandi March” started from here in 1930. At present the site functions as a museum and an institution whose aim is to preserve and propagate the legacy of the Mahatma. At the entrance, a map of the area acts a guide for tourists. The site covers a large area and the Ashram premises a museum (Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya) which has five units – office, library, two photo galleries and an auditorium. The museum has eight life-size colour oil paintings and an exhibition on Gandhi’s life “My life is my message” and “Gandhiji in Ahmedabad”. An archive is also set up, which stores  letters written by Gandhiji, manuscripts, photographs etc. The library has large number of books, coins, postal stamps and letters of felicitation received by Gandhiji. The grounds of the Ashram include the Hridaykunj, Gandhiji’s humble living quarters, Vinoba-Mira Kutir, Prarthana Bhoomi, statues of the three wise monkeys etc. The tranquility of the place is impressive and the memorabilia of Gandhiji and Independence Struggle reminds us of what we owe to our forefathers. Timing: 8.30 am to 6.00 pm throughout the year and admission is free.

# Sanskar Kendra : It is located near Sardar bridge in the vicinity of  Tagore Hall, opposite to the National Institute of Design. The place is a  museum depicting history, art, culture and architecture of Ahmedabad, designed by the famous architect Le Corbusier in 1954. We were keen to see the famous Kite Museum at Sanskar Kendra which has a fascinating and striking collection of kites but due to holiday the place was closed. 😦

# Ahmed Shah Mosque : Located near Ellis Bridge, in the vicinity of Bhadra Fort,  this mosque dates back to 1414 A.D. and was constructed by Sultan Ahmed Shah, the founder of Ahmedabad city. It is one of the oldest mosques of Ahmedabad. It is famous for the intricate carvings, beautiful pillars and ornamental jalis (perforated stone or latticed screen). We wanted to visit the famous Bhadra fort located nearby but after roaming about we just could not find the entrance to the Fort!! 🙄

# Jhulta Minar : Ahmedabad’s architectural history is famous for the Shaking Minarets or Jhulta Minar. Quoting from the official tourism website of Gujrat

They have left the best of architects and pioneering design engineers intrigued and in unresolvable wonder. What they cannot unravel is when one minaret is shaken the other begins to vibrate, though the connecting passage between the two remains vibration-free; what causes this vibration is unknown. There are two well-known pairs of Shaking Minarets in Ahmedabad, one located opposite the Sarangpur Darwaja and the other near the Kalupur Railway Station Area. The one near Sarangpur Darwaja is within the vicinity of the Sidi Bashir Mosque built in 1452 AD by Sidi Bashir, a slave of Sultan Ahmed Shah. They are three storeys talls with carved balconies where visitors were once allowed to climb all the way up. The other set of minarets near the Railway Station is taller in height. However, these are not in a very good condition as it is believed that the British had dismantled them to understand the cause of vibrations. They could not resolve the engineering and it was not possible to put them back in their original condition. Demonstrations of the minarets shaking or vibrating are not carried out anymore.

We visited the one at Kalupur railway station. It was a pity that it was a closed monument and entry was restricted.

# ISKCON Temple : Shri  Shri Radha Govind Dham or ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) Temple is located on Satellite road, near Big Bazaar. Quoting from the official website

Three 50-ft diameter stone shikhars (domes) hand-carved with depictions of Krishna’s pastimes, rise more than 100 ft. above the 25,000-sq-ft temple. The building, blending Gujarat Sompura, and Rajasthani Khamira architectural styles, sits on four acres and features one of the largest temple rooms in India. The 12,000-sq-ft hall can accommodate 4,000 people and is home to the Deities of Radha-Govinda, Gaura-Nitai, Sita-Rama-Laksman-Hamuman, and Sri Nathji, as well as murti forms of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati. Decorations include ornate stone-clad pillars, marble flooring engraved with colored granite designs, windows intricately carved in Rajastani Mewas style, and Khemira and Araish decorated ceilings.

Timings :  Sun, Sat  Closed  Mon-Fri   4:30am-1pm, 4-9pm. Photography is prohibited.

Apart from these places, we went to three places outside of Ahmedabad. So in my next post I’ll write about the excursions from Ahmedabad and shopping Ahmedabad!! 🙂 To be continued…

Ahmedabad Chronicle Part 1

In April – May 2012, we made plan to visit Delhi to meet my sister and my cutest niece who were visiting India for the first time since her birth last year. We decided to include Ahmedabad, my SIL’s place, too in the itinerary. Visiting both the places in the months of April and May was going to be a real challenge due to the hot weather. Sight seeing and sun do not go together at all! But who knew the trip was going to be one of a kind experience for me!

So we went via flight to Ahmedabad….my first flight experience ever! The field of clouds, the farm lands, the miniature buildings, the streams, the lakes and the sun from high above in the sky…breathtaking experience!

Next day we visited these places :-

# Adalaj Ni Vav – It is located at Adalaj village, around 19 kms away from Ahmedabad on Gandhinagar road. A Vav in Gujarati, means a stepwell – a well that is accessed through many levels of steps. The step well was built in A.D. 1498 by Ruda, wife of Vaghela Chief Virasimha. The oblong step well runs from south to north. The entry to the step well is from south through stairs on three sides which descend into a spacious landing with octagonal opening supported on eight pillars. All the walls are covered with intricately carved and beautiful sculptures and frescos. The grand architecture of the step well really takes one back into that century and you can imagine women bearing water pots, sitting, resting and chatting at specially designed places at the step well. There are openings in the many ceilings which provide good ventilation for the octagonal well. Thankfully direct sunlight does not touch the flight of steps or landings and it is quite cool inside. The well is covered with a netted enclosure. After admiring the structure and the skill of the workers of yore, we went to inspect the roof. There were five tombs on the roof but there was no description of these tombs anywhere.

After visiting Adalaj we came back home for lunch and afternoon siesta 🙂 In the evening, we decided to visit Kankaria Lake at Ahmedabad.

# Kankaria Lake – It is a polygonal (though appears to be circular) lake situated on the south-eastern side of the Ahmedabad city. Apparently it was constructed in 1451 by Sultan Qutb-ud-Din. The lake and the surrounding area have five entrances/gates. Gate 6 leads one straight to an island-garden with a summer palace and musical fountain show known as Nagina Wadi, right in the center of the lake. The lake is a very popular recreational centre and it is difficult to find parking!! It is surrounded by trees, plants, benches along with nice pathway for those who like walking. There are facilities like ‘Bal Vatika'( children’s garden), boating, aquarium, balloon safari, dirt track racing, natural history museum, a zoo, joyrides on toy train (Atal Express and Swarnim Jayanti Express)and a colorful bus. It was quite late and most of the facilities were closing for the day. But it was enjoyable seeing the place at the evening time because of special lighting of the lake in evening. We decided to go for the “Balloon Safari”. The tickets were priced at Rs 100 per person!! Since it was weekend, there was a long queue. It had got dark by the time our turn came. The balloon safari is a ride up on a securely tethered hot air balloon upto a height of around 50 m and then it comes down. But the view of the Ahmedabad city from above was wonderful! There is an entrance fee to the lake and for various rides and shows. Closed on Mondays.

The next day plans were made to visit the Science City at Ahmedabad post lunch.

# Science City – This is situated at Thaltej off the Sarkhej – Gandhinagar Highway. After having visited Science City at Kolkata and Digha, we were keen to see the one at Ahmedabad. The mission of the Science City, in their words, from their website is

Gujarat Science City is envisioned to be an impact-making science appreciation and entertainment experience for the common citizen while providing special offerings to the educated and the gifted. the Government of Gujarat is keen to create such Gujarat Science City as will be become a role model for the developing world.

Science City covers around 107 hectares and has attractions like Hall of Space (where you can also take your photo wearing a spacesuit!), Hall of Science, Thrill Ride/Simulator (where people can enjoy simulations of riding a roller coaster, flying in an aerobatic aircraft, a journey into space etc inside a closed capsule), Energy Park (where people can see solar panels, solar water heating system, solar lantern, wind turbine, water mobile, working models of Nuclear Power Plant etc), IMAX 3D theater, an LED screen having dimension of 20′ x 12′ size as an outdoor exhibit, a musical fountain ( which is spread over an area of 9000 sq.m in hexagonal grid pattern and is claimed to be the Asia’s largest one) and an Electrodome to explore various realms of electricity which we didn’t get time to visit sadly. Moreover we found Bangalore’s musical fountain to be far better than the one at Ahmedabad. But still, it was a great place to visit and we enjoyed a lot. There is a small curios shop where one can buy some science and other hobby related stuff. The Musical Fountain shows timings are Monday-Sunday – 7.00 pm, 7.30 pm, 8.00 pm and 8.30 pm. The center is open daily from 10 am to 10 pm. Other show timings are available at their website.

After the musical fountain show, we came back home. The next day being Monday I and D decided to explore the city further on our own…..To be continued…….

Mysore Chronicle

Continued from the Srirangapatna Chronicle

So after lunch, we proceeded on our Mysore sight-seeing trip. Mysore is the Karnataka’s second biggest city. It was the erstwhile capital of the Wodeyar dynasty and is considered the cultural capital of the state. It is also known as the City of Palaces. From what we saw, Mysore appeared to be a clean and well planned city with a heritage feel and quaint charm to it. The places we visited are

# St.Philomena’s Church – This church is dedicated to Saint Philomena, a 3rd century saint from Greece. The twin spires of the Cathedral, 175 feet in height, are visible from a distance making them a distinctive city landmark. Apparently there was a smaller church in the same place dated back to 1800 A.D. This larger church was built in its place in 1956 and is one of the largest churches in the country. I found the statues of Mother Mary and others dressed in sarees little strange. But the interior of the church is so serene and beautiful. There are steps leading down to a beautiful catacomb right below the main altar which houses the relic of Saint Philomena. The exit is through a tunnel way which opens at the back of the church. Entry Timings 05.00 am – 06.00 pm. Free Entrance.

# Chamundi Hills – Chamundi Hills is the prime landmark of Mysore city, visible from anywhere in the city center. There is a temple dedicated to goddess Chamundeshwari, situated on the top of Chamundi hill which is about 3,489 ft. above sea level. Goddess Chamundeshwari is the guardian deity of the Mysore royal family of Wodeyars. The goddess is just another incarnation/name used to describe Goddess Shakti or Durga or ‘Mahishasura Mardini’ who killed the buffalo headed demon Mahishasura (the ruler of this region and from whom the name Mysore is derived). There are two other temples dedicated to Lakshmi Narayana Swamy and Mahabaleswara (Lord Shiva) which is the oldest temple on the hill dating back to 9th century A.D.

Near the parking lot there is a brightly painted statue of Mahishasura, built in 1659 by Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar. A popular spot for tourists to pose and take photos. 🙂 There is a spot marked “View Point” from where a panoramic view of the city is visible from the top of the Chamundi hills. One can see the Race Course, the Lalitha Mahal palace, Mysore Palace, Karanji and Kukkarahalli lakes. After visiting the temple, on our way back, we took a detour to visit the huge monolithic statue of Nandi, the bull (vehicle of Lord Shiva). This statue of Nandi is one of the largest in India, 16 ft. tall at the front and 25 ft. in length with exquisite pendant bells carved around the neck.

Chamundeshwari Temple Pooja Timings: 07.30 am – 02.00 pm, 03.30 pm – 06.00 pm, 07.30 pm – 09.00 pm

No Entry Charges 

# Mysore Zoo – Mysore Zoo or Shri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens is one of the oldest zoo in India. The zoo is spread over 250 acres providing large enclosures for animals and abundant natural vegetation. There are battery operated tour vehicles available till 5 pm. We were late and the last vehicle was full. So we covered the entire zoo on foot which was no problem as the weather was very nice. It was great seeing toucans, tropical parakeets, macaws, pink flamingos, giraffes, gorilla, two-horned rhinoceros, hippos, tigers, tapir, gaur, jaguar and many other exotic species. Also we came to know that Mysore zoo has a lot of programs for conservation of endangered species, rehabilitation and captive breeding. One such program is the Animal Adoption to inspire the visitors to the Zoo and generate empathy for wild animals and for maintaining ecological balance, in a way to involve people in Wildlife Conservation. It was wonderful seeing so many animals already adopted in the zoo. There are restaurants, tender coconut outlets and toy/souvenir shop too inside the zoo.

To learn more about the Animal Adoption Program click here. Mysore Zoo Entry Timings: 08.30 am – 05.30 pm, Tuesday Holiday. Entry Charges: Adults Rs. 40/- Children (5-12yrs) Rs.20/- Camera charges: Rs 20 for still camera and Rs 150 for video camera. Tour vehicle charges Rs 100 for adults. Children (5-12 yrs) and Senior Citizens Rs 50.

# Mysore Palace – Mysore is called the City of Palaces and among all the palaces, the most famous is the Mysore Palace or Amba Vilas Palace in the heart of the city, the home of the Wodeyars who ruled Mysore for more than 500 years. If your itinerary allows just 1 or 2 hours in Mysore, this is the only place to visit. The original palace was built of wood and was got burnt down in 1897. The present one, designed by the English architect Henry Irwin, was rebuilt in 1912 at the cost of Rs. 41 lakhs. The present building is a three-storied structure in the Indo-Saracenic style built with fine gray granite and square towers at cardinal points,with rich pink marble domes. There is a five-storied 145 ft tower which has gold-gilded domes. The palace is surrounded by a large and well-kept garden. The Palace has four entrances – Varaha Gate in the south, Jayarama and Balarama in the north, Jaya Maarthaanda (main entrance) in the east and Karikal thotti and Brahmapuri in the west. One has to give cameras at the entrance and get their bags scanned. There is a supposedly free stand for footwear but the workers ask for Rs 10 tip.

One can opt for an audio tour guide kit which is good unlike Bangalore Palace where it is compulsory and pricey. However the price of the kit is included in the ticket charge for foreigners. Starting from the pavilion of traditional dolls, ceremonial objects, ornate mahogany ceilings with exquisite frescoes, sculpted pillars, intricately carved wooden and ivory doors, costumes, musical instruments, weapons, solid silver doors, white marble floors, stained glasses, glazed tiles, oil paintings, gorgeous chandeliers of Czechoslovakian make to the golden howdah (elephant seat) and the fabulous jewel encrusted golden throne, Mysore Palace is a feast for the eyes. Apparently the erstwhile Royal family continues to live in a portion of the Palace.

The palace complex also has twelve Hindu temples, the oldest being of 14th century and the recent one built in 1953. A silhouette of the Mysore Palace illuminated with ninety-seven thousand bulbs with the night as the background is one of the most famous images of the Mysore city and one which you will come across in any travelogue on Mysore except mine. Sadly during our two visits to Mysore, once we were in a hurry to reach Brindavan Gardens on time and on the second time, it was not Sunday. So we missed seeing the wonderful spectacle of the illuminated Mysore Palace and capturing it in our minds and cameras.

Palace Timings:10am to 5.30 pm daily Illumination 07.00 pm – 08.00 pm Only on Sundays, National Holidays and State Festivals. Entrance Fee: Adults : Rs. 20 Children below 10 years : Free

# Brindavan Garden – The Brindavan Garden is laid out behind the Krishnaraja Sagar dam site at a distance of 24 km from Mysore and is a very popular tourist destination made famous by several Bollywood songs being filmed here in 1960s. One has to leave Mysore by 5.45 – 6 pm if this place is to be covered on the same day. It is a visual delight in the evening only. We were running late and the place was almost closing down when we reached. So we missed seeing the musical fountain show. The garden is laid out in the three terraces, which ends in a horseshoe shape with seating arrangement for the audience. The three terraces contain water fountains (which are illuminated with colored lighting in evening) and various ornamental and flowering plants. The pathway across the boating pond, leading to the garden is very long and may be exhausting especially at the end of the day when all are tired from walking. It is advisable to take the boat instead and save time and energy. But beware! The boat driver will offer to take the boat close to fountains in the pond which kids enjoy a lot but if you are the one to consent, then he will ask you for a tip while dropping off on the other side.

Brindavan Garden Timings All Week Days 06.00 am – 08.00 pm, Saturdays & Sunday 06.00 pm – 09.00 pm
Musical Fountain Show Timings All Week Days 06.30 pm – 07.30 pm, Saturdays & Sunday 06.30 pm – 08.30 pm
Entry Charges -Adult  Rs.15/- Children (5-12yrs) Rs. 5/-

After visiting Brindavan Garden, we started our journey back home and it was 11.30 pm when we reached Bangalore. The places we left out of our itinerary are Railway Musuem, Jaganmohan Palace,  Jayalakshmi Vilas Mansion, Lalitha Mahal Palace, Melody World and National Museum on Natural History at Karanji Lake. You can also include the Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary which is 4 kms from Srirangapatna and 19 kms from Mysore.

Visakhapatnam Chronicle Part 1

In 2008 I’d gone to Visakhapatnam during Diwali vacation for four days. But only one post will not do justice to my experience so it is going to be three posts series. As Visakhapatnam or Vizag is only 12 hours from my hometown by train, we decided to go there on a short trip.

26th Oct 2008 – Train was at an unholy time of 6.00 am! And day journey in sleeper class (AC had no seats left for reservation) was bad due to heat. But the scenery was beautiful.

We reached in late evening and went to the hotel where we had booked room. We had been told on phone that they will give an extra bed. We were given an extra mattress without cot! But as it was late, we decide to stay there only. Service was average but food was bad. Dad and I went to the nearby APTDC office and booked ourselves for tour of Araku Valley and Borra Caves on 28th. We also hired a car for local sightseeing on 27th.

27th Oct 2008 – The breakfast was better as it consisted of idli and dosa. After breakfast, we left for local tour. The roads and the cleanliness of the city impressed us. Our driver was polite, pleasant and experienced but understood only English. First we went to Ramakrishna Beach. Unlike Puri, the beach was quite clean. I felt so elated seeing the Bay of Bengal and beach, even in the scorching sun. On the horizon we could see ships and the Dolphin’s Nose which is the most prominent landmark of Vizag. This huge rock, 174 m in height and 358 m above sea level, is shaped like a dolphin’s snout;hence the name. The area around RK Beach is highly developed from tourism point of view. The statues and unique pillars really beautify the road along RK Beach.

Then we went to Simachalam to visit the famous temple of Lord Varaha Lakshminarasimha. The deity is such an angry personality that he is always covered with sandalwood paste. The real form of the idol is viewed only once in a year, during the Chandana Yatra. The view from the top of the hill temple was awesome. Camera was not allowed inside.

From there we came back to Rushikonda Beach. It was less developed or rather less commercialized than RK Beach but still equally beautiful. Our driver knowing that we were Bengalis, took us to Hotel Sandhya (located beside the Beach road) which was a shack serving very tasty, homely and typical Bengali lunch at low price. I was so happy to have a good lunch.

Then we went to Fishing Harbour for boating. The smell of diesel fumes of the boat caused more nausea than the turbulence of ocean waves. But the view was wonderful. Artificial embankments have been built to stop waves from crashing on to the harbour and nearby coast.

After a tiring day, we returned to hotel. In the evening, we went to RK Beach in auto-rickshaw. Auto rickshaws are quite cheap in Vizag. One just needs to bargain a little. The area around RK Beach has a Ramakrishna Mission Ashram and a KaliMatha Temple along with other attractions. After enjoying the setting sun and jhaal muri on beach, we went to Kalimatha Temple which was decorated for Kali Puja on 28th i.e. Diwali for non-Bengalis. Then we went to the famous CMR shopping mall as my parents have never been to a shopping mall before. But it was a disappointment compared to the real shopping malls like those in Pune or Bangalore. Before the trip, I had searched the location of Pizza Hut in Vizag on Google. 😀 In the morning I had asked the driver to show the place too. So after shopping, we went to Pizza Hut. And that ended the day blissfully.

Bangalore Chronicle

Its been 6 months since we moved to Bangalore. Visits from in-laws and parents resulted in a lot of sight-seeing in and around Bangalore. It is impossible to cover all the places in one day in Bangalore due to traffic and distance. This post is about all the places we have visited in Bangalore and an attempt to act as a sight-seeing/ tourism guide for any visitor. There are still lot of places yet to be seen. 🙂

1. Bull Temple – It is situated in Basavanagudi ( Basava means bull in Kannada). It is the oldest temple built in the Dravidian style by Kempe Gowda, founder of Bangalore and has a monolithic Nandi, the bull (vahana or vehicle of Lord Shiva). Karnataka Tourism website tells me the imposing sculpture of Nandi measures 4.57 meters in height in height and 6.10 meters in length. There is a legend associated with the temple. You can also see the famous Dodda Ganesh temple next to the Bull temple. Apparently there is a huge monolithic statue of Lord Ganapathi about 18 ft in height and 16 ft in width, coated with kilos of butter. We didn’t have time to visit that temple so no photos. Timings of Bull Temple : 6 am to 8 pm.

2. Lalbagh – Well, anyone who wants to travel to Bangalore or knows people who live here, know about Lalbagh 🙂 So I will just quote introduction from their official website. Timings: 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, open all days. No charge for camera.

The Lalbagh Botanical Garden, Bangalore is of royal origin and was started initially as a private garden in an area of 40 acres by Hyder Ali and later developed by Tippu Sultan. Lalbagh was given the status of a Government Botanical Garden in 1856, and since then, it has been an internationally renowned centre for scientific study of plants and botanical artwork and conservation of plants. Today, the garden is a lush green paradise with an area of 240 acres in the heart of the city. The main gate is at the North facing towards Subbaiah circle, the West gate is towards Basavanagudi, the South gate is towards Jayanagar and the East gate is towards the Double Road. Today, nearly 673 genera and 1,854 species of plants are found in Lalbagh.

There are tour vehicles available at the North Gate which give you a tour of the 18 notable places of the huge garden. The charge is Rs 100 person but it is good for the elderly and disabled and for those who are on a sightseeing tour of the city. Of the 18 tourist places, here is a description of few of them.

Above is the Glass House constructed in the year 1890 on the model of Crystal Palace of London. It is the most famous structure in Lalbagh.  The glass house is the venue for holding the famous biannual flower shows of Lalbagh.

The lake is the main reason for the establishment of the garden. This 30 acre lake serves as a source of water for watering the garden plants. Below is a tower known as Kempegowda Tower that stands on a wide stretch of rock called peninsular gneiss, constructed in 1597 AD. The tower offers a partial view of the Bangalore city.

3. Kote Venkataramana Temple – It is located at the junction of Albert Victor Road and K R Road at Chamrajpet. It was constructed in 1695 during the time of Chikka Devaraja Wodeyar, one of the Mysore rulers. This famous Vishnu temple has a huge “gopuram” built in typical Dravidian style. Parking can be a problem as it is at a very busy traffic junction. Timings: 08:00 am – 12:00 pm 06:00 pm – 08:30 pm, all days.

4. Tippu Sultan’s Summer Palace – It is located next to the Kote Venkataramana temple. The palace’s construction was started by Hyder Ali and completed by Tipu Sultan in 1791. This was one of Tipu Sultan’s summer retreats hence the name. It is a two storied palace built of teak wood completely and has ornate pillars, arches and balconies. There are floral motifs painted on the walls and ceilings of the palace. There is a huge well-maintained garden leading from the entrance to the palace. Again, parking can be a problem as it is a very busy market area. Timings: 9:30am to 5:30pm, Sunday closed. There is a nominal entrance fee.

5. Government Museum – This is situated on Kasturba road. The museum, constructed in 1876, is one of the oldest in India and has a beautiful well maintained building with two exhibition floors. The museum has a wonderful collection of coins, weaponry, sculptures, inscriptions, old paintings and excavated items including those from Mohenjodaro! Timing : 10 am to 5 pm. Wednesdays closed. Entry fees : Rs 5. Photography prohibited.

6. Venkatappa Art Gallery – The Venkatappa Art Gallery is located next to the Museum and is named after Late K Venkatappa (1887–1962), court painter to the Wodeyars. There is no separate ticket for this gallery..the one to museum is valid for both places. The gallery showcases a selection of Venkatappa’s famous paintings, plaster of paris works and wooden sculptures. Also on view are works of various contemporary artists. Timing: 10 am – 5 pm. Wednesdays closed.

7. Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum –  It is situated on Kasturba Road on the other side of the Government Musuem. It was established in 1962 and is one of the units of National Council of Science Museums. The wonderful and impressive musuem is a tribute to the eminent engineer and scholar Sir M. Visvesvaraya. The museum has seven permanent exhibition halls (Engine Hall, Electrotechnic, Fun Science, Space, Biotechnological Revolution, BEL-Hall of Electronics and Science for Children and two special exhibits(Dinosaur Corner and Wright brothers aeroplan). The place is a must visit for all the people interested in science and engineering. Also a number of shows are held for the visitors – Taramandal Show, Science Demonstration Show and 3D film show. Timings: 10 am – 6pm. Open on all days except for Ganesh Chaturthi and Deepawali.

8. Government Aquarium –  It is located right at the entrance of Cubbon Park from KG road side. It is the second largest aquarium in India and has a diamond shaped building comprising of three floors. The ground floor has the office and the laboratory. First floor has 14 big tanks of cultivable fish. Second floor has both large and small fishes kept in separate tanks exhibiting their habitat. Timings : 10 am to 5 pm. Closed on Thursdays. Entry fees : Rs 5.

9. Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium – It is situated at T. Chowdiah Road but no one seems to recognize the road’s name so it is better to tell Raj Bhavan road. Also it is better to take auto from Kasturba Gandhi road / Cubbon park area as they know the place. Others don’t know “planetarium” and hard to make them understand if you don’t know Kannada. The planetarium was founded in 1989 and has a dome with 15 m diameter upon which the show is projected. There are exhibition halls which offer more information on astronomy. There is a weighing scale which shows one’s weight on all the planets and gives a print-out. Also there is a Science Park outside the Planetarium. Though the show was good, the crowd spoiled it by doing flash photography; even though cameras were prohibited. The show timings are : 12.30, 3:00, 4.30 and 5.15 pm for English shows. Monday closed.

10. Indira Gandhi Musical Fountain and Park – It is situated right opposite to the Planetarium. The landscaped park, maintained by the Department of Horticulture, is spread over 17 hectares of land and includes a play area for children. At the entrance to the park, there is a railway engine placed in honor of the then Central Railway Minister, C K Jaffer Sharief, who presented the musical fountain in 1995. The musical show consists of synchronized rhythmic dancing of the fountains based on multimedia technology along with both Hindi and Kannada songs and lights which makes it a visual and audio delight. Timings: Two shows are held daily at 7 pm and 8 pm. Mondays and second Tuesdays of the month are holidays.

11. Shiva Temple – It is located behind Total Mall on Old Airport Road. Although it is a must visit for religious people, it makes a good tourist place for non-believers too. The concept of the place is worth seeing. One has to buy tickets at some places and there is extra charge for camera. Upholding the tradition of worshipping Lord Ganesh before all endeavors, there is a 32-feet-tall Vignaharan Ganesh statue at the start of the tour.

Along the tour you will come across 108 Om Namah Shivaya Yatra  (where you can drop coins one by one in the 108 bowls chanting Om Namah Shivaya – beware each coins cost rs 10), Pahadi Shiv Dham Yatra (where you can experience the illusion of being at the pilgrimages of Haridwar, Rishikesh, Badrinath, Kedarnath, and Amarnath – complete with an exact replica of the famous frozen shrine!!), Barah Jyotir Ling Yatra (where you can see exact replicas of the 12 sacred lingams along with animatronics!), a replica of Mansarovar Lake, Pratyaksh Ling, Healing Stone and Navagraha Temple.

The temple is abode to the 65-feet-tall Shiva statue seated in a Yogic (Lotus) posture with the scenic backdrop of Mount Kailash, Himalayas and the Ganges flowing from the Lord’s matted locks. Timings: Open 24 hours, all days

12. Ulsoor Lake – It is located near M.G.Road. Though there are timings to visit the lake, a tip of rs 10 will get you inside during off timings. The lake is one of the biggest lakes of the city and is dotted with islands. There is a boat club at the lake (whose gate is on the other side) where you can hire a boat to go boating around the beautiful lake. Boating club timings : 9 am to 6 pm with holiday on Wednesday. Apparently, there is also a gurdwara near the Ulsoor lake, considered to be the largest Sikh shrine in the Bangalore city of India but we didn’t visit that.

13. Bangalore Palace – It is situated in the Palace Gardens, near Jayamahal. The beautiful palace was built by a Wodeyar King in 1887 on the 400 acre space. It is built in the Tudor style, complete with Gothic windows, foiled windows, battlements and turrets; apparently inspired by the Windsor castle in London. The palace is constructed largely of wood and is famous for its carvings, paintings, historical photos, furniture, trophies from hunts and traditional dresses. There are audio tour guides available for tourists which are quite useful to understand and enjoy the palace. Also the audio guide is available in English, Kannada, Hindi, French, Spanish, German, Italian and the tour lasts about an hour. But the entrance fees is very costly. For Indians it is Rs 200 (inclusive of audio guide) and camera charge is Rs 600!!! The grounds are now used for hosting various events. We visited the palace on 31st Dec so there were lot of preparations going on for some New Year bash. So we didn’t get to capture any nice photos of the impressive palace. Timings : 10 am to 6 pm (Sunday Holiday)

14. ISKCON Temple – The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple in Bangalore city is situated near Chord Road on a hillock called “Hare Krishna Hill”. The huge cultural complex is quite wonderful and has all the facilities. But one has to give all belongings (except purses) including camera. But people still take snaps using mobiles! Anyway so there are some direct darshan passes ( don’t know the cost) available to bypass the “buffer” system; which is quite tedious to be frank and especially when you fall behind someone who traverses the path actually stepping on stone tiles one at a time while chanting the mantra. And after all that one gets to see the idols and pray for just two seconds and is forced to move along!! But that will make a separate blog post in itself, so moving on..there are three temples mainly, one higher than the earlier. The construction of the place, the interiors, the gold-plated dwajastambha (flag post) at 17m high and the gold plated kalash shikara at 8.5m high are pretty impressive. On the return path, there are all sort of shops selling various mementos, dress materials, stationery items, idols and even tasty food items and sweets. One does get hungry after all that walking! There is free distribution of prasadam too. The place can get very very crowded during evening so beware! Timings for darshana: 4.15 am to 5 am, 7.15 am to 12.50 pm and 4 pm to 8.20 pm everyday.

There are still so many places left to visit – Bannerghatta National Park, HAL Aerospace Museum, Cubbon Park [by the time we visited all the places on KG road it was closing time for the park somehow every time 😦 ], St. Marks Cathedral etc. So there will be a second part of this post! Hence to be continued……

Kolkata Chronicle

In August 2009 I visited Kolkata along with my parents. Our schedule was just full of meeting friends and relatives. We had just one day to do sightseeing around Kolkata. So here is an account of my trip.

Day 1 – 13th Aug 2009:- Mumbai Howrah Mail reaches Howrah at 5.50 am as per Indian Railways. But the moment it entered Howrah’s  nearby region, there was no line clearance and the train started moving at snail’s pace. We reached at 8.30 am!!

Then there was the long queue at the prepaid taxi booth. (If you don’t go by prepaid, the taxi drivers will fleece you).

That is a view of the red building of Howrah Station and The Howrah Bridge

Day 2 and 3 were spent with relatives doing nothing fruitful. 🙂

# Day 4, 16th August 2009 :- At last Dad took me sightseeing around Kolkata..but due to rains we couldn’t stick to our time schedule. First we went to Science City.

Science City, the largest science centre in the sub-continent, under the National Council of Science Museums consists of two facilities, the Science Centre and the Convention Centre. The Science Centre complex comprises Space Odyssey, Dynamotion, Evolution Theme Park, Maritime Centre and a Science Park. The Space Odyssey houses India’s first Large Format Film Theatre, Time Machine, 3-D Vision Theatre, Mirror Magic and exhibits on space science, motion, electricity and virtual reality. The Dynamotion Hall has a Butterfly Corner, Aquaria, an exposition on giant robotic insects and host of interactive exhibits on science & technology for both education and entertainment of the visitors.

It was an awesome place for people interested in science. There was a small scientific show on dry ice where I got applauded for my correct answers. The Time Machine was cool too but my mom got very scared. A 70 mm documentary called “The Living Sea” was telecasted in the Space Theatre. It was simply awesome!! Though photography was prohibited people were taking pictures inside the theatre. I decided not to in the best interests of my camera. In the collage below you can see the science city building, mom walking on the musical piano, the “see your voice” equipment and “The Powers of Ten”.

Due to rain, we were unable to visit rest of science city and take more snaps. Then we went to visit one of my Dad’s friends in South Kolkata and had lunch there. I was able to take a snap of the famous “Tram”. Kolkata is the only city in India to have a tram network. Kolkata tram is the oldest operating electric tram of Asia, running since 1902. Trams are under the administration of the Calcutta Tramways Company, popularly called CTC.

From there we went to the Millennium Park located along the Strand Road. The most wonderful thing about this park is that its on the bank of river Hooghly. A nice place to sit and relax. But there are some bad areas of the park where one can see the pollution of the river. One can see both the Vidyasagar Setu and the Howrah Bridge from the park. Check out my photoblog for more photos of the park and its activities.

It was already dusk by the time we reached the famous Victoria Memorial. So all the snaps did not come out that well as my camera is not suited for night photography.

Dead tired after roaming about all day, we came back home.

# Day 5, 17th August 2009 :- Afternoon was spent in packing and we left for station by 6 pm, 2 hours before the train’s departure time. Kolkata traffic and roads are unpredictable!!