14^th April 2006

We left Bangalore at around 6:00 am. It was record time by any standards. I think the fear of eruption of violence was in our mind, and we wanted to avaid any if it happened. The reason being the death of Dr. Rajkumar, veteran Kanadda actor on 12^th April. Government declared 2 days mourning and state holiday. Therefore Thursday the office was closed, and there was major violence, bus –vehicles burning, vandalism by people. We stayed at ho me and watched the coverage in TV.

14^th being the Good Friday was our off and we had planned the Nature’s Nirvana trip. It is situated in Kemmangundi 250 kms from Bangalore. (35 kms from Chikmanglur (Approx. 1 hour 15 minutes)). This Holiday Home, a plantation bungalow, built in an attractive colonial style, offers you a sanctuary of seclusion. We tried getting reservations in Taj Chikmanglur, but could not get any as it was sold out.

Ved had put alarm for 4:30 am. Surprisingly I too was up by 4:45. Got up, made tea and sandwiches for the road. Then woke up Tia with her milk. Said the magic word “Ghummi” and she was up in a jiffy. We were ready by 6:00 and left around that time.

The route we took was Tumkur -> Meelamangala ->Kunigal ->C.R.Patna ->Hassan ->Belur ->Chikmangalur ->Kaimara ->Sampiggekatta

It took us around 40 mins to come to outskirts of Bangalore. We took outer ring road and also filled gas and air. The trip was good with Tia managing to sit in her childseat for around 3 hrs. She was sleeping throughout that time, or eating potato chips. We just took a small break to have tea/sandwiches. Later Ved stopped the car for nature’s call. There I tied giving milk to Tia and much to my agony she vomited. In the process spoiled her clothes and my shoes. We took some time to clean up the mess. From then on she was in front seat with me.

The route from Chikmanglur to Nature’s Nirvana was too good. It was hilly with trees and valleys around. The last 7 kms was mud road meandering on the hill.

We reached the place around 12:00 in afternoon. It is a resort run in a small scale., with 5-6 rooms. The place is good with clean and spacious rooms. We had lunch – vegetables all with coconut added, sambhar, rice, pappadam and curd. We were hungry and had sumptuous meal. Then slept till 5:30 pm. We had 3 other families staying with us. 2 of them had come together from Bangalore. In the evening the caretaker took us to small lake, just 5 mins walk away. Ved and Tia took coracle ride there. Along with them other kid and his father were there in the coracle. It was fun watching them paddling furiously in all directions. With coracle either rotating in one place or moving around aimlessly. They just could not get hang of it till end, but somehow managed to return back to the starting point.

When we reached resort back from water hole, it was dark. We were served bhajjis(pakoras) and tea/coffee. All sat around the bon fire and enjoyed the experience. Later Ved and myself played badminton. Tia had become friends with 2 other small girls who were the part of other families. They may be 4 and 6 yrs old. The place also had rabbits and a family of dogs(mama, papa and small puppy)Tia was fascinated by the puppy and played with him a lot. Second day she had mustered enough courage to play wit the mother too. They were Dachshund.

The place had a recreational room with TV and some old magazines and books. I picked up stardust and a MB. Ved took up Robert Ludlum – The borne ultimatum. Tia and myself watched TV for sometime before having dinner. The complete stay she had only milk and nothing much in solid. I have decided from next trip I will carry cuppo noodles. That may interest her. These days due to bird flu eggs are out of question. Otherwise she at least would have had eggs.

Later in the night I finished the MB. The sleep was little disturbed, obviously with so much of sleep in the afternoon it was understandable.

15^th April 2006

I got up early from the barking sounds and playful whining of the puppy. The morning was just beautiful with clear sky and light cols breeze. It was around 7:00 in the morning. Tia was awake much early, and pushed me out of the bed. Drinking tea outside in the pleasant surrounding was heavenly experience. Tia watched the helper clean the rabbits’ room and fed them vegetables. She was excited to see all this and on top of that tired herself out running after the puppy and his mother.

We had planned to leave for KR hill and Abbey / Hebbe falls after breakfast and come back by lunch. The caretaker had arranged for the jeep – Mahindra. We had sumptuous breakfast of idli, sambhar, bada, poha and left immediately around 8:45 am. The way to Kemmangundi was just beautiful. The hilly terrain was feast to the eyes. You go through the coffee plantations, barren hills and green valleys and hills. As luck would have it, we got a flat tire on the route. The driver replaced it and now –there was a change in plan. He dropped us at Kalhatti falls, and went to get the flat tire repaired. Here the water cascades from the top of the Chandra Drona Hill from a height of 45 metres to flow before the Veerabhadreshwara Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. We did not go down to bathe in water, but sat afar and looked at the happenings there. People were taking bath, washing and drying clothes. We also watched some even giving bath to the idol of the temple there.

From there we left for Kemmangundi hills. The picturesque hill station of Kemmangundi is located at a height of 1434 metres above sea level. It was the summer retreat of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV. Ringed by the Baba Budangiri Range and blessed with silver cascades, mountain streams and lush vegetation, Kemmangundi’s beautifully laid-out ornamental gardens and enchanting mountains and valleys views are a treat to the eye. It has a small playing area for kids. Tia had her jhoola ride there. It was difficult to pull her from there. By the time we finished going around the garden, it was 1:30. We decided to let go of Abbey falls. It required us to do 1 km walk to the falls. The jeep would be waiting for us 1 km far from the falls. The drive back was anyways around 1 ½ hrs. So we drove back to Nature’s Nirvana. Reached around 3:00. There the other family was playing carom. We had our lunch and Ved went to take a small nap. Tia was fully awake, as she had her beauty sleep through out the ride. I basically wiled the time on the hammock watching over Tia. She was playing with Harshita, the younger kid. Both first played carom and then badminton. After sometime Harshita got tired of humoring Tia and went to play with her father. In the mean time tea was served and promptly Tia woke up Ved. After finishing tea, we went for a small walk. On our way the caretaker came with the new couple who had come and asked us if we are interested to visit the sunset point. We joined them. He picked up the other two families from the pool we had taken coracle ride the previous day. WE were around 9 adults + 3 kids in the jeep. He drove like mad to the sun set point. It was race against time, as he wanted to reach there before the sun set. All of us were holding our breath and finally took a deep breath when we reached the top. We sat there watched the sun slowly setting. The view from there was too good. We could see the highest peak of Karnataka - mullainagiri and Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary area. This peak is the highest (6,317ft) in Karnataka and the highest between Nilgiris and the Himalayas.

Like the previous evening after we were back we had bhajjis – mirchi, capsicum, aloo, vegetable – torai. Then played some badminton, but due to heavy breeze had to let go. The little badminton playing took toll on my right hand. It started paining a little- muscle pain. Then we went up to watch TV, read books and wait till the dinner was served. In dinner they had jackfruit(kathal)sabji. Kathal was from their farm. We saw lots of kathal trees around in this place. On the way there was a distinct Supari plantation. Otherwise along with coffee trees all around, there were kathal, supari trees and black pepper climbers around. We had planned to leave early the next day. Our plan was to have breakfast in Hassan and visit temples in Belur, Halebid and Shravanabelagola.

16^th April 2006

We could not leave before breakfast. The caretaker served us breakfast first and we left around 8:00 am. The road down to Chikmanglur is very scenic and we stopped in-between to click snaps and capture those moments. Our first stop was Channakeshava Temple in Belur. One is amazed by the temple architect and stonework there.

The Hoysalas were brilliant builders who developed a new style of temple architecture. They conceived their shrines as star-shaped structures and not the usual cubical form. In this concept of the stellate, the main temple at Belur, is a show-stealer. Among the Hoysala rulers, King Vishnuvardhana who was also responsible for defeating the Chalukyas, built this impeccable masterpiece of a temple. The serenity of Belur is attributed to the celebrated temple of Channakeshava. According to inscriptions, the temple was built to commemorate his conversion from Jainism to Vaishnavism. He signalised his conversion by the erection of many temples of unsurpassed excellence, of which the temple of Chennakesava was no doubt the best. There is also another version where the temple is said to have been built to celebrate King Vishnuvardhana's victory of Talkad over the Cholas. Before learning about the major assets of the Channakeshava Temple, it is essential to understand that the temples built in those days were not just limited to the cause of worship and religion. Infact a temple was built for five reasons, where apart from religion, it provided scope for a justice court, a treasure house, an institution to impart ethical education and fostered our various arts including music and dance. The first thing that catches one's eye, is the beautiful ornamental Gopuram of the Channakeshava Temple. It stands tall , giving a feeling that one is entering a grandiose royal court. As one steps onto the temple's sacrosanct platform, in a corner of the vast courtyard are tossed a golden horse and a temple chariot. The winged figure of Garuda, Lord Vishnu's carrier, stands at the entrance, facing the temple, its palms touching in homage. The main structure of the temple, which is a stellar, stands as a homogenous architectural unit on a raised platform. The entire structure with its intricate Filigree gleams like metal. Chloritic Schist, a light greenish soapstone, hard as granite was used to create the complex. Every possible surface is covered with the most perfectly proportioned figures. The main temple is surrounded by other small ones such as those of Soumyanayaki and Ranganayaki, beloved of Sri Chennakesava. There are also temples built for Narasimha, Anjaneya, etc. King Vishnuvardhana's senior queen Shantaladevi, a dance legend herself, built a temple in similar fashion to the main temple, which was called the Channigaraya temple. The surface of the temple exterior is intricately filled with horizontal friezes, sculptured in succession from the bottom. Stories from the Puranas, Upanishads and other mythological stories have been executed in the most authentic way. The Ramayana and the Mahabharata also have been included. There are also friezes of a variety of creepers and cornices with bead work . The lowest frieze is that of a series of 650 charging elephants around the walls and are all different from each other. They symbolise stability and tremendous strength and are considered the weight lifters of the temple. Next come the lions which symbolise courage while the horses above them are for speed. The creepers signify beauty. Thus, every piece of work is significant, having a meaning. As you look up at the corners of the temple exterior, you are left spellbound at the ultimate sculptural beauties, that adorn it. The bracketed figurines called the Madanikas or celestial nymphs are no doubt the highlight of the temple's magnificant architecture. Exclusive to Belur, the Madanikas lift the glory of the temple to unprecedented heights of excellence. And there are as many as 42 of them, of which 38 adorn the exterior walls while the remaining four are placed inside on the ornate ceiling. The Madanikas are said to be inspired by the beautiful Queen Shantaladevi, epitomising the ideal feminine form. The variety of poses and subjects that these represent is something to marvel about. Each depicts a mood and all are amorous. 'The Beauty with a mirror-Darpana Sundari', 'The lady with the parrot', 'The Huntress', 'The Bhasma-Mohini' are some of the favourites. All these and more are carved with utmost care and clinical precision, making them come alive. On entering the interiors of the Channakeshava temple, at the entrance one cannot help pausing a moment to look at the trademark of the temples of Hoysa'la dynasty, the royal emblem. The story of "Sa'la" killing the tiger as though comes to life. He has been immortalised along with the tiger and thus this heroic act has became the royal emblem of the Hoysala dynasty. This emblem is found at the entrance of almost all their temples. If the temple's exteriors are out of this world, it is almost impossible to describe the greatness of its interiors which is even superior architecturally speaking. The presiding deity is the manifestation of Lord Krishna or Keshava and is called 'Vijaya Narayana' here. The beautiful image stands six feet tall and was installed in the sanctum of the main temple in 1117 A.D. There are about 48 pillars of various sizes, shapes and designs , bearing testimony to remarkable artistry. Inside, even in the darkness, you can see the shining pillars, each unique in its own splendour. The most popular being, the Narasimha pillar in the Navaranga, unique in its filigreed splendour. It is said to have revolved on its ball bearings once. A small space has been left on it to be sculpted by anyone who has the talent. It remains untouched. The Mohini Pillar also deserves a special mention which has been carved with great care and proportion. Here again, the spotlight is forever focussed on the four Madanikas on the ceiling.

Our next stop was the temple at Halebid - Hoysaleshwara Temple. It is small temple compared to Channakeshava. The temple of Halebid is situated in a wonderful park and gives the impression of two temples stuck together, which is enhanced by the existence of two nandis. Ketumalla, the chief of staff of Vishnuvardhana, built this temple during 1121 A.D. Even then it is learnt that it took 105 years to complete. Even now there is some incomplete work. Both the temples are joined by one veranda from outer views. It looks like star just as Belur. The God on the northern side temple is called as Shanthaleshwara and that on southern side is called as Hoysaleshwara. These Shaiva Gods are in the shape of Linga, indication to small bull in front of these Gods big bull are kept in stone mantaps outside in front of each temple. They have been fully decorated by stone ornaments around their neck. Behind the bull in a mantap we can see big sized Suryanarayana standing with seven horses and Arundadeva. It is said that Ketumalla built these temples joined into one.

Some of the stone statues here are hollow, and marvel to see. One wonders t the intricate work done in stone, like the details of the ornaments in the various statues. Looks as if the carving is done in wood and not stone.

Since it was getting late, we decided to go straight to Bangalore. The road was good and drive too was fun. With Tia sitting in her car seat throughout and rain going along with us. As luck would have it around 60 kms before Bangalore, one of the tires got punctured. First time for Ved in Scorpio. He was not aware of how the jack works and after some fumbling he managed to replace it, just before the downpour started. Later we stopped to get the tire repaired. It required complete replacement of tube. We utilized the stopover to have tea. Tia was sleeping peacefully throughout this. We decided to take the Mysore road-Bangalore university route and reached home by 6:00 pm.

On the whole the trip was fun and relaxing with Tia too enjoying it to its fullest. She learned some new words – Rabbit, puppy, “thandi hawa” to name a few. The temples are worth a visit once. The landscape too is very beautiful around Chikmangalur.

Some captured moments of the trip.