Mysore & Peripherals!

Time: Dec 4th & 5th, 2021

Place: Melkote, KRS Dam, Nanjangud, Somanathpura, Mysore Palace (lights)

Company: Wife and Daughter

Highlights: A hastily prepared Friday evening plan for the weekend! Decided to take family car. KRS Dam and Mysore Palace with lights on were two things that was planned but we could not accomplish in the previous Mysore trip. So added couple more places and packed it into a nice getaway weekend.

Day 1: Idea was to first go to Melkote via Mysore Road but in the morning saw that traffic on that road had piled up, and Google Maps showed fastest route was via Tumkur-Hassan Road. And although longer, I was in fact glad since the drive was very smooth and relaxing. When I was maybe about 10 years old, my uncle stayed in Nagamangala and we used to frequent his place during summer holidays or weekend getaways. And it was during that time that we used to travel on this exact route: Nelamangala, Kunigal, Yadiyur, etc.. Sometimes we used to go via KSRTC bus and at other times we used to drive. Back then, dad used to drive and I felt strange that now I was driving on the same route. So much has changed since then. The roads were lined with wide, tall trees then but now it is replaced with wide roads, and it is now two-way with median. In short, the drive was nice and smooth. Our first stop was, in fact, Nagamangala for fuel. And then we headed to Melkote. It was sometime in the '90s that I had visited here, and was my wish to show it to family as well. Although I did not remember much, I did have a good feeling about this place.

Our first stop at Melkote was Cheluvanarayana Swamy. There was not much queue and the darshan was quick. Imbibed the divinity and then we headed to Yoga Narasimha Swamy Temple atop a hillock. Parked the car at the base and climbed barefoot. It was a short climb but still exhausting since the steps are steep. Darshan atop also was quick and then we came out to enjoy the 360 degrees view. Nice, lush greenery everywhere thanks to Cauvery basin. We then headed back down to the car and went in search of Annadanam near Cheluvanarayana Swamy temple. It was right behind the temple but took us some time to get there, and alas, the last batch of pilgrims were having the lunch and we were not lucky. Our next best option based on the research was Subbana's Mess which was just a few minutes away. Luckily we could get a full-fledged lunch here. Although some of the items were extremely spicy for us, we felt very glad since it definitely seemed like home-made food. Pretty satisfied.

Our next destination was KRS Dam. There is a short-route, about 50 kms, from the back-side of Melkote which leads directly to KRS. I have always entered KRS via Srirangapatna and this was the first time I was entering from a different route. All through the 50 kms stretch which is through the Pandavapura district, the roads are lined by lush greenery. It always gives me joy to see the rich Cauvery basin. Finally by the time we reached KRS, it was about 5 pm. Timed perfectly for the Musical fountain.

We visited the Brindavan Garden and took some snaps & videos in front of the landscape & fountains & the waterways. Just being close to the water and the wonderful garden was extremely pleasant and induced a feel-good factor. The last time wifey & I visited was on Aug 2008 but then we had missed out on the musical fountain (I guess I had seen it about 2-3 decades ago). We spent quite some time roaming here and there, sitting on the grass and looking at the other tourists. And then it was time for the musical fountain show. We walked to the other side and got some nice seats. The show was great, just 15-20 minutes and comprised of some nice collection of songs. 

By 7 pm, we left the KRS and reached Mysore Palace at 8 pm. We tried to get a glimpse of the Palace on lights but it had just turned off. I cursed myself for having arrived late, and reflected that I should have taken a better route. Anyways, next stop was Guru Sweet Mart which is famous for having invented Mysore Pak for the then Mysore King. We took two packets and then had snacks as dinner at a nearby Pure Veg restaurant. And then we headed to retire for the night at a hotel nearby where I had reserved beforehand.

Day 2: We left early at about 9 am towards Nanjangud. Our first stop was the Kabini river Bathing Ghat. The water seemed muddy compared to River Cauvery. Surprisingly this day also was ear-marked for Kabini Arati similar to Cauvery Arati in the previous trip. But this time we did not have any plans of returning back for the Arati. Soon after bath, we went towards the main temple Sri Srikanteshwaraswamy Deity. Lots and lots of crowd, despite us opting for special entrance ticket. Also the queue was not well maintained with people coming from all sides due to which it was hardly moving. But finally we were able to get the darshan. We sat for some time to soak in the divinity. 

That done, we went in search for lunch offering. It was just opposite but here too there was far too many people. We stood in the line once again and had to wait for close to an hour. Idea was to get sathvic food but it didn't seem to be sathvic since it contained onion sambar and rice. Nevertheless food was good, and we were grateful for the offering. We then departed.

Our next stop was closeby: Sri Parashurama Temple, supposedly the place where Parashurama did penance here for atoning the sin of beheading his mother. A very beautiful and soothing place with a nice stream flowing. Had a great time, and then departed Nanjangud. A beautiful one hour drive amidst lush greenery to Channakeshwara Somanathpura Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is an Archeological marvel. A simple yet very artistic & architectural site. Spent about an hour here and took some snaps. 

Our final stop was the elusive Mysore Palace on Lights. We failed the last time, we failed the previous day but this time it just had to be done. So we reached the place by 6:30 pm, well ahead of the 7 pm start of lights. We took our place right in front and in the middle of the Palace. Bang at 7 pm, the lights came on and it was indeed a sight to see. In fact I was glad we missed to see the lights the previous night because it is quite an experience to see the lights coming on right at 7 pm, and the entire palace lights up. We spent about 15-20 mins enjoying the sights and then departed Mysore. Had a quick dinner midway and then rest of the journey was uneventful. Reached home at about midnight.

Overview: Well, finally the elusive Mysore Palace Lights wish came true! It was in our minds since a long time and we came close on Dasara day but the floods ruined it. So, an entirely new trip had to be planned, ensuring not much repeats either in itinerary nor in the route. And surprisingly it got fulfilled not too far from the original trip. Added highlights were Melkote, Srikanteshwara Swamy, Parashurama Temple and Somanathapura temple. A nice, soulful weekend getaway from Bangalore indeed - and the Palace lighting up exactly at 7 pm will be in memory for a long time!