Talakaveri - the origin of the Cauvery River

The temple at Talacauvery and the temple tank

It was when I was doing my masters that we had gone to Bhagmandala in Coorg* to do a media survey there. After a day of hard work, we drove towards the Brahmagiri Hill on the slopes of which lies Talakaveri, the spot believed to be the origin of the Cauvery River.

The temple here further sanctifies the holy site. In front of the temple is a tank that is said to house the spring from which the Cauvery river takes source. They say the river then flows underground a little distance down the hill before it surfaces again and flows through Karnataka and Tamilnadu.

If you visit this Talakaveri make it a point to climb up hill beside the temple, for a view of the hills around. I am  told that you will also get to see the Bhagmandala town. The evening that we were there, it was raining and there was fog too so we didn't really get to see much.


FYI - Talacauvery from Wikipedia

*in the state of Karnataka, India

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Chapel of Our Lady of the Mount, Goa

"In Goa, if you picked up a stone and threw it, it would either fall on a church or a pig," said a tourist guide in Goa, meaning to say just how many churches and pigs you would find in this small Indian state that was once a Portuguese colony.

Goa is popular for its churches and many of them get a lot of visitors. However on my second trip to Goa, our guide took us to church that is often bypassed by most tourists to Goa. Called Chapel of Our Lady of the Mount, this one apparently looked like a really old building (that might have been a victim of a fire) that was renovated.

Situated on top of a hill, the view from this chapel is a scenic one showing off the coconut trees and churches that Goa is famous for. I recall seeing 6-7 churches from this lovely viewpoint.

I'd say this place should be included in many more tourist itineraries. (So sorry I don't have a decent picture of the church itself. Shall replace this one when I get to go that side again.)

Note: the pictures are scans of non-digital photographs.

A retreat far from the madding crowd

A part of the wall that overlooks the hills

It was when we were Masters students at Mysore University that we decided to go on a trip to Gopalaswamy Betta, a quiet hilly retreat, far from the madding crowd.

This Betta (Hill in Kannada) was just around 80 kilometres away from the University so one Saturday we decided to ride all the way there. The ride through the Mysore - Gundlupet Road and the uphill road to Gopalaswamy Betta was a long one but it was fun too; what else would you expect when the company was a bunch of youngsters.

When we got there, we first walked into the temple atop the hill and then made our way to the back of the temple and down a hill and up another, where a friend of us had promised us a place that resembled the `Dil Chahta Hai wall.' And Boy! it was like that, only with rolling hills on the other side instead of the sea as we see in the movie.

It was a feast to our eyes. We seated ourselves on that broken stone wall and stared at the hills beyond for I-don't-know-how-long. A few hours of nature-watch later we saw another awesome sight: some elephants on one of the hills nearby. In the distance the pachyderms looked so tiny in comparison to their actual size.

Today when I think of how close to the wild and how far away from human beings and our vehicles we were, it sends a chill down my spine. But that day we were so intoxicated by the beauty of the scenery around that we didn't feel like leaving there. I remember saying I could sit on that wall for days together just taking in the surroundings.

It was with such reluctance that we left the place; we just had to at some point because the sun was going to call it a day and we had a long ride back to urban Mysore.

Blue City

Cruising the Thar Desert

It was on the way to Jaisalmer that I first saw desert sand. We were on a train and the car began to get all dusty. In  a few minutes there were layers and layers of dust on the seats. People were closing the windows of the non-a/c sleeper coach we were in, so we had it to do it too. However some of us curious students made our way to the door and stood there for a while in order to feel the sand on our faces as the train zipped through the desert area.

I could not wait for the desert safari we had planned to go on, once we got to Jaisalmer. We had heard from our seniors, of their trip to this interesting place and could not wait to go into the desert on camel back and stay in tents and all of that. Our bubble kind-of burst when we learnt how much the rates seemed to have gone up since the time our senior friends were there. Unfortunately we had not gone through travel agents and so could not negotiate beyond a certain point. So we settled for a safari sans the night in tents.

It was one afternoon that the safari began. We had jeeps to take us from our hotel in the town to the desert and from there it was a camel-back ride. 

It was my first ride on a camel and I must say I had a frightening moment when the camel began to get up; one side went up first and thought I was going to fall. Once it was on all fours it was fine. 

It was exciting to finally be in the desert and it was fun to be in the caravan going up the dunes and down.

 The camel keepers were friendly people who named their camels Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan (I'm not kidding), names of popular Bollywood stars. 

A while later we drew to a stop got down from the camels and onto the desert sand. It felt good to be there; only that there were more people than I expected. It was New Years day and there were a lot of tourists doing the desert safari.

After taking a whole lot of pictures, watching some dancers do their thing and watching the sun go down in the desert, we made our way to the desert camp that awaited us. There we had some chai (tea) and settled down for some very Rajasthani entertainment of song and dance around a campfire. This stretched way into the night and culminated in more dance, where we all took turns and joined the dancers around the fire. 

Later that night we had a Rajasthani dinner and had the jeeps take us back to our hotel. We might have missed out on the night in the tents but when we left Jaisalmer, I felt that the desert safari was the best part of the trip; an experience of a lifetime. 

Note: If you are going on a desert safari, I suggest you go through a good travel agent to avoid being fleeced.  

Lots of colour, dance and music

Rajasthani dancers: on the streets, in the desert; you will find them  just about  anywhere.

A dancer a the desert camp in Jaisalmer

Of balconies and lattice work

This facade of balconies is a major attraction in Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. It is a part of what is known as the Patwon ki Haveli, a grand mansion that belonged to the Patwas, a family of merchants in this Rajasthani town.

People say this is the biggest haveli of the region.

Made of Golden Sandstone, this mansion is five storeys high is also known for its very-Rajasthani construction and the lattice work on the windows and balconies, that one just cannot miss.

A few years have gone by since I visited this place but I remember I found it difficult to photograph the whole face of this building as this haveli was situated by a narrow lane that was crowded with locals and tourists alike.

Colourful souvenirs

Handmade Rajasthani dolls

Charminar

Situated bang in the middle of a very busy street is this symbol of Hyderabad. Charminar gets its name from the four towers that make the corners of this monument (char means four and minar means tower).

Every time I was there, the place was so crowded and I wondered how people ever managed to get a clear picture of this architectural beauty.

Check out what the Charminar looks like by night, here

Wacky car museum

Would you believe it if I told you that the white thing in the picture is a car? Well, it is just that - a car in the shape of a cup. This was designed by one K Sudhakar who lives in Hyderabad in India. This person also has to his credit a Guiness Record for the world's largest tricycle and India's smallest bicycle (of 6-inches).

A vehicle enthusiast, he has built all kinds of interesting machines on wheels and exhibits them in a car museum of his own. Two-wheelers, three-wheeler, four-wheelers... he has got them all. All that you see along with the cup-shaped car in the picture are vehicles he created.

When I visited there, I was amused by his collection and was not quite sure if these handicrafts of his could move. A few months later I saw him driving some of them on a television show.

This car museum calls itself the world's only "wacky" car museum. That would be an understatement, for, his creations include this

and this http://sudhacars.com/creativebikes.html and all of this http://sudhacars.com/creativevehicles1.html .

Regal Viceregal lodge

I sometimes fall in love with buildings and its usually love at first sight. One of the buildings I fell so in love with was an elegant stone building. It was big. It was beautiful and it was once the Viceregal Lodge, Shimla. That was way back when India was under British rule.

This very Elizabethan structure has a place in Indian history not just because it was the Viceregal Lodge, but also because it was here that the 1945 Shimla Conference took place. Two years later, it was here that the decision to separate Pakistan from India, was also made. 

A part of this building is open to visitors and exhibits some historic pictures and some old furniture. I remember seeing a table that is today known as the 'Partition Table,' the table on which the India - Pak partition was charted out, I believe.

This building that once lodged the Viceroys is now the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies. When India got independence, the Viceregal Lodge became the summer retreat of the President of the country and was renamed Rashtrapati Niwas. However during S Radhakrishnan's tenure, he is said to have turned it into an institute for higher learning. So Indian Institute of Advanced Studies it is, today. 

Qutub Complex - Around the Minar

Qutub Minar (on the right) among the ruins. 

In and around the famous Qutub Minar are some ruins, tombs and an unfinished minar, all of which deserve to be seen. Called the Qutub Complex, this area is considered a World Heritage Site and has many stories to tell: of Islamic conquest, of architecture, of demolished Jain temples and tombs of prominent  figures.

Tomb of Alauddin Khilji in the Qutub Complex

Alauddin Khilji had planned to build a Minar taller than the tall Qutub Minar but met with death before the completion. As such the Alai Minar remains incomplete. Nevertheless, it is a sight to see.


You can find more info:
Qutub Minar
Qutub Minar Complex

Standing Tall - Qutub Minar

This tall red structure of Indo-Islamic architecture  is a major landmark of the country. Inscribed on it are some verses from the Quran.

All of 72.5 metres in height, the Qutub Minar is believed to be the tallest brick minaret in the world.

Rajghat - In memory of the Mahatma

Rajghat marks the place where Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi or Mahatma Gandhi was cremated. On the black structure which serves as the memorial are the words `Hey Ram,' supposedly the words that Bapu last uttered. Since Gandhi is considered the Father of the Nation, the Rajghat is usually a stop on the itinerary of foreign heads of state. 

From the Agra Fort

A courtyard of the Agra Fort on a mist morning in January of 2003

More about this Fort, which is also a UNESCO Heritage Site  here

India Gate

India Gate 

India Gate up close 

India Gate in the is a war memorial erected in the national capital, Delhi. Previously known as the All India War Memorial, this monument commemorates around 80,000 soldiers Indian and British who died in various wars during the British Raj.

(I'm sorry I don't have better pictures. This was taken some years ago before I owned a digital camera. Had I known I would be blogging some day, I would have taken more (and better) photographs. )

You can see better pics here 

THE monument of love

Taj Mahal blanketed in mist

It is a mausoleum, it is all in marble and it is magnificent. I was fortunate to see the marvelous Taj Mahal a few years ago but unfortunately the day I was there, the mist was also present. So this is the only (full) picture I have of this monument, which is every Indian's pride.

Taj Mahal was Emperor Shah Jahan's token of love;  a tomb for his third and most favourite wife Mumtaj Mahal. History says it took 22 years, 20,000 people and 1000 elephants to get the mausoleum built. This construction that was completed in 1653 also houses the remains of Shah Jahan himself. 

Considered to be the perfect example of Mughal Architecture, this gorgeous monument stands beside the Yamuna River in Agra in North India. With its exquisite details, its neat Mughal Gardens and its standing as specimen of symmetry, Taj Mahal attracts millions of visitors every year. Taj Mahal has made its way into Seven Wonders of the World several times and we can all see why.

One of the four minarets that adorn the corners of the Taj Mahal

See better pics. of the Taj `here'