A Buddhist Monastery in the heart of Bangalore

Buddha's teachings are relevant in today's world which is driven by conflicts, more than ever. I believe many of us, though not Buddhists, got influenced by Buddha's thoughts. Buddhist monasteries are perfect places for meditation with their peaceful surroundings. But did you know that there is a Buddhist monastery in the heart of bustling Bangalore city?

Mahabodhi Loka Shanti Buddha Vihara, Bangalore

Yes, near the Freedom Park, you can find this Buddhist monastery or Buddha vihara. If you are going from Anand Rao circle towards the Freedom Park, before the park, if you take a right turn onto Kalidasa road, immediately you can find it!

Bangalore - One Day Trip

Being a proud Bangalorean, I am often being asked about the tourist spots in the city. I faced the same question when I wanted to take my relatives for tour of our city. I jotted down and made a decent list of places to see in namma Bengaluru. If you hire a multi purpose vehicle like Chevrolet Tavera or any other vehicle for that matter for a day tour of Bangaluru, they charge you as follows - There will be fixed charge for the first 8 hours which assumes that you don't travel beyond 80 kms. For every additional hour, you will be charged 100 Rupees. Also, for every km beyond the fixed 80 kms, you will be charged according to the vehicle you hire. I had to keep all these constraints in mind to make the trip optimal and economical by utilizing the available time following a shortest path algorithm. Anybody remembering Dijkstra's algorithm?

I hired Chevrolet Tavera starting from Vijayanagar at around 9 30 am. First place we visited was Basavanagudi. I believe Dodda Ganapathi Temple and Bull temple are must visits for a newcomer in Bengaluru. 

Bull Temple, Basavanagudi

Basavanagudi : Lord Ganesha sculpted in a huge rock is a treat to the eyes. It would be great if you visit the temple when the idol is decorated with butter. Next, horns made of rock invites you to the famous temple of Bengaluru - the Bull temple. The biggest temple to Nandi, the bull houses huge sculpture of Nandi.

Basava Statue, Basavanagudi

Lal Bagh : Our next stop was Lal Bagh. Glass house, floral clock, aquarium, bonsai garden, Lal bagh lake are the prime attractions here.

Lal Bagh, Bangalore Entrance

Namma Metro : Trip to modern Bangalore is incomplete without a joy ride in Namma Metro. We boarded to Namma Metro at M G Road station, went till Indira Nagar and came back to M G Road again. Ya, it is a kind of toy train till it completes all the stretches are complete.

Glass House, Lal Bagh, Bangalore

Shiva Temple, Old Airport Road : Shiva temple behind the Total Mall in old airport road though not visible from the road, once you enter premises 65 feet Shiva statue sure to delight you.

Shiva Statue, old Airport Road, Bangalore

Vidhana Soudha, High Court (drive through) : I instructed the driver to drive through Vidhana Soudha and High Court to reach K G Road.

Adigas Majestic : Adigas Majestic was my choice for the lunch that day.

ISKCON : After lunch, we headed towards ISKCON. In ISKCON, cameras are not allowed. Situated on top of Hare Krishna hill, from ISKCON, you can have a panoramic view of West Bangalore. New landmark of Bangalore, World Trade Center can be seen from here.

After visiting ISKCON, when we reached Vijayanagar back it was 5 30 in the evening.

Bonsai Garden, Lal Bagh, Bangalore

Statue of Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar, Lal Bagh, Bangalore

Floral Clock, Lal Bagh, Bangalore

Following is the map of places visited.

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Kyathadevara Gudi or K Gudi Trip

Kyathadevara Gudi or K Gudi Trip was an exciting one. Spending the night in the forest is amazing. It was the month of July in 2011. On July 22, 2011 seven of us left Bangalore early in the morning. After passing via Mysore, the last 50 km stretch to K Gudi was horrible as the road was in bad shape and we were driving uphill!

K Gudi Wilderness Camp : It was past noon when we reached K Gudi and we had spotted the first animal in the forest already, an elephant. No no, it was not a wild elephant but a tamed one tied to a tree! K Gudi wilderness camp is at a perfect location in B R Hills (in Kannada Biligiri Rangana Betta) overlooking the landscape down! Why the name K Gudi - there is a small temple Kyathadevara Gudi built by Maharaja of Mysore! Soon after getting refreshed and having our lunch, we roamed around the K Gudi camp.

Tamed elephants, K Gudi

Deers, Elephants and Animals on the board! Apart from the elephants which you can find in the camp all the time, you also find spotted deers roaming freely in the area. Not afraid of human settlements in the area, watching deers up close is such an amazing experience. At the Jungle Lodges and Resorts office, in a white board names of the animals spotted on safari during last few days will be listed. We found just 2 days back, a tiger was spotted and needless to say, we were excited!

Barking Deer

Safari and Wild Elephants : At about 3 30 pm, we went on a safari into the forest. This was my first safari and thrilling it was. Just before entering the forest we could spot Soliga tribe colonies. Moving further ahead, we could spot herd of barking deers. Then, a herd of spotted deers. This was an usual sight in our journey for an hour or so. It was getting frustrated and at the same time, we were nearing a pond where another jeep carrying tourists had been parked. Something special to be sighted for sure.

Spotted deers in K Gudi

We went quiet sensing the situation. Now at the other end of the pond, some black thing moving - was it a rock or an animal? Revelation was a minute away - the black shape grew bigger as it neared the pond! Alas - a wild elephant! No, no - not just one. Three of them, one being a baby elephant. First reaction from our camp was - ugly elephants! Yes - they were ugly with a big belly. Not at all like the ones in Mysore Dasara procession. Back to the action - now the three were getting down to water. Next scene - they splashing water. Pouring water was done by one up above also - it was raining! We watched the scene for about half an hour or so. Once the elephants disappeared in the greens, we started our vehicles.

Wild elephant, K Gudi

Morning Safari : The next day we went on a safari in the morning at about 6 am. This time, with misty surroundings, it was getting even more difficult to spot the wild animals. Did we spot any? Of course - not the special ones - only barking and spotted deers.

Machan, K Gudi

Waiting at the machan : After having breakfast, we went on trekking in the forest. Well, there was a guide (from the Soliga tribe) to show us the right routes. We went to machan located near a big pond, waiting for wild animals which could come to quench their thirst! As luck would have it, none of the animals were interested in drinking water there!

Pond near the machan, K Gudi

Camp fire and Scorpion : That day night, a camp fire was set up and we seven gathered around. It was an awesome setting middle of the forest and that too in high altitudes. One incident is memorable here. As we were around the camp fire for warmth, some other creatures found it warming too! One of us said to me that some small creature is moving here(kuch keeda hai idhar). I spotted and it was a scorpion and I shouted - scorpion, scorpion. Every one jumped from their chairs except for the guy who informed me of the keeda leaving everybody wondering why. Then somebody screamed - abe bichchu hai. Now it was his turn to get scared and jump out of the chair!

Scorpion which came to the campfire

Trails and Walks : Trails leading to the Jungle lodges huts form nice walkways here. Rocks scattered in the surroundings provided ample space for our discussions or rather chit chats. Next day we were on our way back to Bangalore only to stop to admire the beauty of B R hills.

Kyathadevara Gudi(K Gudi Temple)

B R Hills

Jungle Lodges & Resorts huts, K Gudi

Wild elephants, K Gudi

Trip to Melukote Temples, Rayagopura

Back from KRS backwaters we were at Mysore at about 3 pm that day. We had our lunch at the popular Dasaprakash hotel in Mysore. We also noticed that it is popular among foreign tourists too as we found many foreigners at the tables there. Lunch we must say was good.

Temple pond in Melukote

Melukote : Our next stop was Melukote about 50 kms from Mysore. It took us about an hour or so to reach Melukote. The temple town which is a center for Srivaishnava sect is famous for 2 temples - Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple at the hilltop and Cheluvanarayana Swamy temple. When you enter Melukote first thing you will notice is the large temple pond or pushkarini or kalyani. Numerous Kannada films were shot in this location. Remember the Nadheem Dheem Thana song from Gaalipata?

Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple, Melukote

Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple : After parking our four wheeler near the pond, we went uphill to see the Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple. Narasimha is one of the avatars of Lord Vishnu. From the hilltop you get a beautiful bird's view of the Melukote town. People were waiting for the doors of the temple to be open for the evening pooja. We waited too, though rest three in our group were reluctant to wait. The temple premises is full of notorious monkeys. So, beware of them! Meanwhile, I purchased a CD of Kannada folk songs inside the temple premises. But later I realized that it was almost double the prize as shopkeeper had pasted a different price sticker. I was surprised that in a religious place like Melukote, people do such fraud!

Raya Gopura, Melukote

Raya Gopura : As we did not have much time in the day and it was getting dark, we could not visit the Cheluvanarayana Swamy Temple (but got a glimpse of it on our way) and went straightly to Raya Gopura which is famous with the film folks. If you remember the barso re song from Hindi movie - Guru, it was shot here. It is an incomplete temple structure with four rising pillars. 

House of Pu Ti Narasimhachar

House of Pu Ti Narasimhachar : In Melukote, you will also find the house of great Kannada poet - Pu Ti Narasimhachar. It was beyond the visiting hours of the house. So, we missed chance visit the memories of Pu Ti Na.

Suset at Yoganarasimha Swamy Temple, Melukote

Rayagopura, Melukote

Raya Gopura, Melukote

Srirangapatna, Meenakshipura(KRS Backwaters), Mysore

It was an unplanned or rather over-planned trip. After shortlisting many locations we finally nailed down  Mysore and nearby places for a weekend trip. Starting from Bangalore on Friday evening(2nd December 2011), four of us had our evening snacks at Shivalli MTR (near Channapatna) skipping the usual destination - Kamath Lokaruchi(near Ramanagara) :) Our next stop was our chosen resort - Young Island Resort near Srirangapatna. One nice thing about this resort is river Kaveri flows along its border!

River Kaveri near Young Island resort, Srirangapatna

Srirangapatna and Mysore : After finishing our lunch at the resort, we headed towards Mysore at about 9 30 pm. After reaching Mysore we made some unsuccessful attempts at capturing the Mysore palace at night, though only few lights were lit (not elaborate like at the time of Dasara).

Statue of Chamaraja Wodeyar, Mysore

Meenakshipura or KRS Backwaters : Next morning, one of us suggested instead of going to KRS(Krishna Raja Sagara, which was in our initial plan), why can't we explore KRS backwaters? Bingo, everyone agreed! Known also as Meenakshipura, nobody seemed to recognize that name when we asked for directions. Anyway, when we reached Meenakshipuram or KRS backwaters we had spent considerable amount time and fuel, thanks to the road guides who did not know the right route! 

Coracles parked in Meenakshipura shores

Coracle Ride : Soon after reaching Meenakshipura, coracles kept on the shore caught our eyes. Initial inquiry about a ride yielded negative response. Then we were asked to go the colony nearby to see if anybody can drive. We found one guy but the problem was he knew only Tamil and also had stammering problem. An elderly person who was speaking Kannada advised us not to move from our places when were in the coracle since if we move then there is a danger of coracle turning upside down. When we were on board other than the usual chit chat, we had the opportunity to take close shots of birds resting on rocks. On the whole, it is good place to visit if you don't mind the unclean shores!

Crane

Birds on the rock

Few more birds

St Mary's Island, Malpe, Udupi, Karnataka

Below are the photos of St.Mary's Island off Malpe coast in Udupi district in Karnataka. I visited the place in April 2010. 

Boat carrying tourists to St.Mary's Island from Malpe harbour

Nearing St.Mary's Island, Malpe

Coconut palms in St.Mary's Island

St.Mary's Island Beach

Basaltic Rock formation in St.Mary's Island

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St.Mary's Island

Basaltic Rocks, St.Mary's Island

View of St.Mary's Island, Malpe

Ferry Ride from Holebaagilu to Sigandur

On Wednesday, 5th October 2011, me and Manju went to Sigandur taking a day off from Ninasam Culture Course 2011 at Heggodu. Decision to visit Sigandur instead of Ikkeri or Keladi (which were historical places) was mainly because of the mode of transport from Holebaagilu to Sigandur, a ferry!

Heggodu to Holebaagilu : We boarded a bus towards Sagara from Heggodu in the morning and got down at a stop after being said that one can catch the bus to Sigandur there instead of going to Sagara. After few inquiries we came to know that there were only few buses to Sigandur and when the bus finally arrived, it was overcrowded. We thought of backing out on the plan but finally succumbed to our adventure instincts and boarded the bus. There was not even an inch to keep our feet anywhere. In these tough times, comic relief was provided by the conductor of the bus entertaining the crowd! I also noticed the usage of a different Kannada term for 'move inside' the bus unlike jarugi used in Bangalore. People from in this region of Malnad use the term daati. Kannadigas generally use this term to mean 'cross' - like cross the road, cross the river. I thought this usage might have been because people here cross rivers more often! :)

Talking of hardships, this was only the beginning; more were to come later! Somehow managing unprecedented rush in the bus, we reached some 2-3 kms away from Holebaagilu, place where one needs to board the ferry. Why not at Holebaagilu? Beacause of traffic jam. But in this remote town of Malnad, how come? It was a jam created by Bangaloreans for the most part. How? - It was Dasara season and that day, it was Mahanavami. We then also noticed the bus being decorated with flowers - it was the day of Ayudha Pooja too and huge number of people had come from all over Karnataka and particularly from Bangalore(as it was evident from the registration numbers of vehicles parked) to visit Sigandur Chowdeshwari Temple. Analyzing the situation the bus conductor started giving back some part of the ticket money as the passengers now would not be able to reach Sigandur via this bus! Me and Manju got down from the bus and walked till Holebaagilu and waited for the ferry.

Ferry or Launch Ride : When the ferry arrived, people were allowed to board first and then the vehicles - cars, bikes and vans. The first thing we did boarding the ferry was securing a strategic place to sit so that we can enjoy the ride watching the exquisite natural surroundings. Sitting on the edge of the ferry seemed perfect to view the nature in our travel.Our ticket for this travel cost mere Rs.1 per person! Because it was operated by Govt. of Karnataka. Sitting on the edge of the ferry with legs dropped we could see the water flow underneath our feet - wonderful. Kids on board were too excited and posed for photos whenever I took the camera out! We could also watch another ferry carrying the bus and other vehicles too. Other fantastic view - was of the vegetation in the submerged river, clear sky and the hills nearby in one shot!

Sigandur by Road : Once we reached the other end of the Sharavati river, it was about 1 30 pm and we were extremely hungry. There are few small hotels here. Lemon rice, chutney and pakoda - a combination which I felt like one of the best meals I had in recent times. From here, there are private players transporting passengers to Sigandur Temple and their mode of transport - jeep and car. Needless to say, they operate only after the vehicle is fully occupied or rather tightly packed with passengers.

Sigandur Chowdeshwari Temple : Since it was an auspicious day, huge number of devotees were visiting the temple. I had wait for a long time to get a darshana of the goddess as people were sent in batches to view the idol of Chowdeshwari.

Areca nut Palms, Return Journey and Meditation! : After the visit to the temple, me and Manju went exploring the nearby estate filled with areca nut palms. We went further to find a green plain ground; watching the clouds in a clear sky lying in the ground is what we did to pass time there! Coming back from there, we returned back to the river bank this time in a jeep. In the return journey, we were not so lucky as we did not get the strategic place to sit in the ferry. Once we reached Holebaagilu, Manju had an idea. To sit by the river without talking as a form of meditation. He did so and I did too with a twist, having a book in hand to read! After half an hour or so we were on our way back to Sagara and then to Heggodu ending a wonderful day. 

Trip to Jog Falls, Sagara, Karnataka

A day before Ninasam Culture Workshop 2011, I visited Jog Falls. 1st October 2011 seemed to be the perfect day to visit as there was plenty of water and enough of water to allow us to get down to the bottom of the falls.

First Reaction : Coming from Bangalore, we got down at Sagara, which is 10 km from India's 2nd highest plunge falls. Without spending much time in Sagara, we boarded a local transport bus heading towards Jog. My first impression after reaching the Jog was 'hey, it does not look that high or as I saw in the photos!'.  And I was visiting the place after 15 years; last time on a school trip. This must have added to my bewilderment. Well, it does look like that when you are a bit far off the water falls. Having finished our break-fast at the hotel run by Karnataka Tourism department, we headed towards the natural beauty!

Photos, People and Monkeys : I think the first thing most of us do when we reach a tourist place is to capture in our camera the proof that we were there. Well, I insisted on that, though Manju and Guru were not in much enthusiasm to stand in front of the electronic gadget! But the enthusiasm for photographs was all over the place with people handing over their cameras to strangers to capture the perfect group photo in Jog. Apart from the humans, monkeys dotted the 1000 odd steps descending down to the bottom of the falls. It was a hot sunny day and so, we guessed it would take some effort getting down.

Walk, Rest, Walk : It seemed it would be easy getting down but it was not to be. Every now and then, we took rest to cross more stairs! Not to worry as we found people selling biscuits, cucumber slices, lemonades on the way to quench our thirst and silence our hunger!

Wow: As we were getting closer to the falls, it seemed it was revealing more of its ever charming beauty and I was uttering wow more than once. As a avid viewer of NGC and Discovery channels, I tried to capture that perfect shot imagining Amazon rain forest photographs. Well, it does help following these channels or the GEO magazine which I am subscribed which publishes some splendid pictures, as it provides you with new dimensions when you are trying to take some extraordinary photographs. 

Water everywhere: Once we reached the bottom of the falls, it was water all over and the slippery rocks. Roarer falls was making too much noise justifying its name. Visibility was low purely because droplets arising out of the water falling on the rocks. In this setting, there were photographers lined up who will take the photos and give the printed photo then and there and their assurance - we avoid the mistiness in the photos taken though it was unavoidable. Getting wet and sitting on a rock listening the sounds made by the water is an amazing feeling. I can sit listening to these soothing sounds for hours together.

Rainbow: Having spent enough time down the falls, we were once again on the stairs on our way up. Mission was more difficult this time. Not doing physical exercises daily and spending most of the time sitting in front of the computer - these were evident on our tired faces. Having finished our water bottles on our journey down, we were now looking for anything liquid. Soon we found lemonade on offer. We had it but it only increased our thirst further. Thank god, there were also people selling plain drinking water! One of the best sights on our way back was the rainbow formed in front of the falls and it was the time to say wow once again.

Lunch: There are no good hotels near Jog. But all the shops boost of having one. Though these guys don't have a menu-card, they know the names of dishes Bangalore guys would love. But what is served is entirely different. Well, we managed this and ordered Omlette, plain rice, sambar avoiding fried rice second time!

Rani Falls: After lunch, it was time to get adventurous once again and go to the top of the falls. You need to bargain with autowallahs everywhere and Jog was no different. The auto rickshaw guy we found insisted on Rs.200 for the entire visit - Rani falls, British Bungalow and Sharavati valley. We brought it down to Rs.180. Rani falls is the first stream of water you get to see falling from a height.

Rani Falls

Roarer and Rocket: After crossing British Bungalow, when we reached the spot where we can spot the other 3 falls, Roarer, Rocket and Raja - it was Roarer which caught my attention. Such speed, such loud sound - I felt a sense of fear and it was going to last longer as it was my nightmare for the next 2 days.

Rocket Falls

Roarer Falls

Raja Falls and Mungaaru Male Spot : Raja falls straight from the rocky top without any intervening rocks till it reaches ground. It is the same spot where Mugaaru Male was shot - Nandini(Pooja Gandhi aka Sanjana Gandhi then) expresses her love for Preetham(Ganesh) here and the song - Kunidu Kunidu Baare follows. It was quite dangerous to go near the place from where the Raja plunges down. We did not go there and there were plenty who were crazy enough to take a photograph lying down in the rock beside. One could also spot a monkey which was sitting over the edge of a rock without any fear!

Raja Falls

Sharavati Valley: Then we went to see the Sharavati Valley. Well, it was dusk and it was a great time to see sun rays falling on the hills and it was a wonderful day to end with.

Sharavati Valley