India Travel Tourism

After enjoying and experiencing the rich cultural heritage of Tanjore we headed towards Madurai city in Tamil Nadu. This small culturally rich destination of South India is one of the oldest cities in Asia. It is internationally known for the incredibly beautiful Meenakshi Amman Temple.

We reached Madurai in the early morning and after a brief rest we headed towards the Meenakshi Amman Temple. On the way to the temple our guide Shravan told us about this famous city and its temple. This ancient city is ideally located on the banks of river Vaigai. Popularly known as the temple city, it is the third largest city in Tamil Nadu. The history of this city spans over 2,500 years and it was also an important trade center in the past.

As we reached the world famous Meenakshi Amman Temple, I was left spell bound by its architectural beauty. It clearly reflects the glory of this region in the past. Its beauty attracts many a tourist from across the globe. Built in honor of Goddess Menakshi( Parvati) and his consort Lord Shiva in the 12th century by Kulasekara Pandyan, the temple has nine stories which are lavishly decorated with exquisite carvings and sculptures. I wondered how creative the artists and craftsmen of that era must have been!

Our guide Shravan said that this Hindu temple has an interesting legend attached to it. The legend goes that Lord Shiva poured nectar or Madhu on this city and hence it was named Madhu. Later after the 14th century the name was distorted to Madurai. I could really feel the positive vibes while we were exploring the temple.

Showcasing the beauty of the Dravidian architecture, the temple is extravagantly decorated. I was amazed at the beauty of the wonderful gopurams which were adorned with stucco figures of heavenly deities, mythical animals and monsters painted in vibrant colors. The use of different colors to paint the temple is one of the most striking features of the temple.

Before visiting the main shrine of the temple complex we took a bath in the Golden Lotus Tank located inside the temple premises. It is believed that this pond is much older than the temple and was created by Lord Shiva. Taking a dip in this pond is considered auspicious.

After taking blessing of the goddess and lord, we visited the thousand pillared hall. There are 985 pillars inside the hall and all the pillars are beautifully carved. And the interesting fact is that no two pillars look alike. Also the musical pillars inside the temple are the other main attractions. There are five musical pillars carved out of a single stone. They are named musical pillars as when they are tapped they produce sound. We also saw the Kalyana Mandap, the hall inside the temple where the marriage of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati is solemnized every year in April during the festival of Meenakshi Thirukalayanam.

It was such a pleasant experience to visit the Meenakshi Amman Temple in Tamil Nadu.

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This is the second time I was visiting Pondicherry and was really excited about it. Pondicherry is a whimsical destination where you can enjoy natural beauty at its best. We reached Auroville town 10 km north of Pondicherry in the afternoon. I call this unique town as ‘the town of humanity’ as it is a home to several Indian and International residents who live here in harmony. There we met a family from France. They have been living here for the last 20 years and were speaking fluent Hindi with great ease. I was amazed! It is a beautiful destination founded with an aim to make it a Universal town where people from different nationalities could live together peacefully.

Next we visited the Matri Mandir which is an important religious place of the town. This town is affectionately dubbed as the ‘City of Dawn’. Our guide told us that there are 1000 varieties of trees in this small town. The gorgeous greenery, peaceful ambiance and natural beauty of this town really makes it a great destination to visit.

Next day we drove to Tanjore, the culturally rich city of the state of Tamil Nadu. The most famous attraction of this city is its paintings. And the South Indian temples of this city are simply marvelous. Here we visited the Brihadeshwara temple dating back to the 10th century. Its incredible architectural beauty earned it the title of ‘World Heritage Site’. Reflecting perfect example of Dravidian style of architecture, this temple is surrounded by fortified walls which were added back in the 16th century. The temple tower (called Vimana in south India) is 216 ft high and is one of the tallest of its kind in the world. The interior walls of the temple are festooned with Chola Fresco paintings which were completely mesmerizing. Being a dance lover I made sure to see all the 108 dance poses of Lord Nataraja beautifully depicted on the walls of the temple.

In the evening we browsed the colorful bazaars of Tanjore and bought beautiful paintings at ‘bargained price’. Wow I was so happy at this achievement! We had our dinner at one of the restaurants and enjoyed traditional dishes of South India. We gorged on Thavala Adai( a kind of vada) with rasam. It is one of the popular dishes of this city. We also had dosa, and Uttapam. In the end we rounded off our hearty meal with sweet dishes Surul Poli, Pal Payasam and Kozhakottai. This marked the end of our tour to Tanjore. The next day we were scheduled to travel to Madurai city of Tamil Nadu.

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The monotonous routine of daily life had left us jaded and we were longing for a rejuvenating break. And needless to say traveling is the most rejuvenating activity for us. Here us includes me and my friends Monika, Tahir and Sanjog. We with great difficulty took leave for a week from our respective offices and embarked on our journey to South India. Well we had a holiday dilemma and we browsed several sites on travel and tours. Finally we decided to go on a temple and spice tour of South India. South India Temples are famous for their glorious legends and breathtaking architectural beauty. Some of the temples are also the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We started from Delhi and reached Chennai, our first halt. This wonderful city is famous for its cultural heritage and history. Post breakfast we headed for our first destination, Fort St. George. Our guide told us that this fort was built by the British East India Company in 1640. We visited the museum inside the fort which houses ten galleries displaying armory, old uniforms, crockery & silverware, coins, palanquins, paintings, letters and several other rare articles belonging to the Britishers.

Next we headed for the National Art Gallery which was founded in 1857. We visited its various sections based on archeology, botany, geology, anthropology, zoology, numismatics and sculpture. Next we visited the beautiful Kapileshwar temple dating back to the 8th century. Our guide told us that the temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva who used to be worshiped as a peacock in the temple. And according to the legend, desirous to get married to Lord Shiva, goddess Parvati took the form of a peacock. The Dravidian style of architecture of the temple is truly mesmerizing.

The next day we drove to Kanchipuram, the religious capital of South India which is ideally located on the banks of river Vegavati. Most of the temples in this city are dedicated to Lord Shiva. Ramesh our guide said, ‘ At one point of time this city had over 1,000 temples, but over the years now only around hundred are left’. He took us to the Kailasanatha temple, a beautiful temple built in the 8th century. We were left spell bound with its intricate carvings and fresco style paintings. Then we visited Kamakshi Amma Temple and were awe-inspired by its golden gopuram and exquisite carvings. This temple is dedicated to Goddess Kamakshi( goddess Parvati) and is one of the three main sacred sites of Shakti worship in the country.

After seeing some more beautiful temples we went to the bazaar for shopping as this city is famous for silk saris. Beautiful and fine silk saris are produced here. We bought several shopping items including the silk saris which had brought a big smile on my face.

Next we headed towards Mahabalipuram and reached there at night. Mahabalipuram is a World Heritage Site famous for its rock-cut and monolithic monuments. The next morning we visited the famous Shore Temple which was built in the 7th century in Dravidian style of architecture. The presiding deities of the temple are Lord Shiva and Vishnu. Located on the shores of Bay of Bengal ocean, this five-storied structure is majestically carved and sculpted. We also saw Arjuna’s Penance, another famous attraction of Mahabalipuram. It is the world’s largest bas-relief. The next attraction we visited was Five Rathas, the monolithic cave temples which are incredibly beautiful.

A visit to these wonderful places and attractions was a great delight and now we were eagerly waiting for some more destinations. The rich cultural heritage of South India beautifully reflects in its temples and monuments. Next we were slated to reach Pondicherry and several other destinations which I will cover in my next blog.

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Come summers and I start planning a trip to hill station to escape the heat for some time. I was going through ‘Srishti’, a nature based magazine and came across an article on Mount Abu, a hill station in Rajasthan. After reading the article featuring amazing pictures of this hill station I decided to explore Mount Abu this time. I immediately called up my friend Monika and Pallavi and soon we finalized Mount Abu as our destination for this summer.

Mount Abu is the only hill station of Rajasthan which attracts many a tourist from far and wide. Located at an elevation of 1,220 m above sea level, this hill station is famous for its scenic beauty, pleasant climate and several other amazing attractions. We reached Mount Abu at 6 in the morning and were booked at the heritage hotel, Kesar Bhawan Palace. It is a wonderful place to stay at as it is located on a hillock offering breathtaking views of the surroundings. Also the famous Lake of Mount Abu and bazaars are located at a walking distance from the hotel.

After refreshment we began our Mount Abu tour with our guide Ravinder Singh. Chatting with him we headed towards the Nakki Lake by car.  It is the most enchanting attraction of this hill station. Ravinder told us that the legend goes that this lake was dug by the Gods with their nails. Highly picturesque, this lake is hemmed in by majestic Aravalli mountains which adds more beauty to it. Beautiful gardens and rock formations are the other attractions near the lake. The climate was very pleasant here which was a great relief from the sultry heat of Delhi. We sat here for some time and captured the natural beauty in our camera. The Toad rock near the lake was an interesting feature of this place. Lying overhanging the lake, this rock is in the form of a toad. Ravinder told that it would be great if we come here in the evening also to enjoy breathtaking sunset views.

From here we went back to our hotel for lunch. After relishing delicious lunch we set out for Dilwara Jain Temple, which are well known throughout the world for their stunning architectural beauty. As we reached there I was completely bowled over by their architectural beauty. The exquisitely carved walls, ceilings and pillars of the temples are simply awe-inspiring. Dilwara Jain Temples is a World Heritage Site where people come from across the globe. These temples were built during the 11^th to 13^th century AD. They are majestically carved out of white marble.

After exploring the Dilwara Jain Temples we headed towards Gurushikhar, which is the highest point in the Aravalli mountain range. Here we greeted our senses with picture-perfect views of the surroundings and breathtaking sunset views. This marked the end of our memorable and pleasurable Mount Abu Tour.

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