Trip Details
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Distance From Bangalore
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138 kms from Bangalore and
35 Kms from Mysore
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Type
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Historical monument,
Carvings and sculptures on soap stone, Hoysala Architecture, Pilgrim
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Time needed
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One day to cover all these three places
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Best time to visit
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Anytime
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Local guides
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On request, Charges
approx. Rs.200/=
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Stay options
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Mysore or Bangalore
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Food
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Few options, average food,
you get plenty of options in Mysore
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Nearby places
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Talakkad,
Shivanasamudra waterfalls - Barachukki and Gaganachukki falls
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Other tips
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· For Talakkad, tthe help of local guide and they charge you Rs.200/=. Ask for guide where you
take tickets.
·
If
you go from Bangalore, you may want to try Kanakapura route to avoid heavy
traffic on Mysore road.
·
You
may want to pack and carry food from Mysore or Bangalore, so that you can
cover all the three places in a day. (see nearby places listed above)
|
Note: You can cover all these three places in a day if you start early from Bangalore or from Mysore. Also read my other Blog on "Belur, Halebid" as well.
1. Somanathapura or Somnathpur
Belur, Halebid and Somanathapura are really one of the Wonders of the World in my opinion and has amazingly so intricate carvings and sculptures. These are MUST see in INDIA. Read more about Belur and Halebid from my earlier post "Belur and Halebid" . This will take around 1 to 1.5 hours to visit. There are lots of trees in front of the temple complex and you shall relax.
This is one of the best examples of Hoysala Architecture apart from Belur and Halebid. Somanathapura is a Trikuta and Trikuta means that, there will be three sanctums for three different shrines Keshava, Janardhana and Venugopala. All these are avatars of Lord Vishnu. Belur is an Ekakuta and Halebid is a Dvikuta. It is better you ask for the help of guide to explain the details and history.
This temple is not well protected like Belur and Halebid. Many sculptures are broken. Please avoid touching and damaging the sculptures, it is in our hands to protect this beautiful temple.
Near the temple entrance there is a shop which has many varieties of antique items.
2. Shivanasamudra Falls
Barachukki and Gaganachukki falls are the two falls you can see at Shivanasamudram. Both are beautiful to watch after monsoon.
Distance from nearby places
From Mysore: 78 Kms
From Somanathapura : 57 Kms
From Bangalore : 136 Kms
From Talakkad : 28 Kms
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| Barachukki Waterfalls Shivanasamudra |
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| Look at the trees in between |
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| Shivanasamudra Someshwara Temple |
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| Shivanasamudra Someshwara |
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| Shivanasamudra Prasanna Meenakshi Amman |
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| Do you see two Rainbows? |
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| On the way back, you can see a big Anjaneya status 20 feet at Ramanagara, on the main road |
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| On the way back, you can see a Lakshmi Narasimhaswamy Temple, Marehalli |
3. Talakkad or Talakkadu - Sand everywhere
This is a very different and surprising place you might want to visit. This is on the banks of Kaveri river. There are many temples buried under the sand. Few temples were excavated and you can visit them. Talakkad Panchalinga Darshan is well known term in Karnataka. The Vaidyeshwara temple in the middle has few nice carvings and sculptures.
As you approach the village you see normal red soil around and the plants and trees. But when you go close to the temple complex, you see only sand everywhere. Also many cashew trees and eucalyptus trees. Carry enough snacks and water bottles. But eat only near the local shops to avoid monkeys snatching your food. Visit Wiki which has lot more details "Wiki Link"
Near the temple you can also check the kaveri river.
Moving onto photos.....
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| Somanathapura Temple view |
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| Somanathapura Details |
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| The pillars |
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| In old Kannada, if you know this script, then Zoom to read |
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| This is just amazing and do you see the colors? Now those colors are gone.... !! Multi-layered ! |
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| A complex carving on roof, multi-layered |
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| Wov... amazing and again Multi-layered |
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| Each Pillar is different from the other |
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| One of the sanctum and see the outer walls with lots of beautiful sculptures |
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| Sanctum or Vimana or Gopuram |
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| Do you see the series of elephants, floral design, 7 bodied animal .... |
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| Amazingly each elephant was different |
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| Well ventilated and do you see the rain water harvesting idea ? |
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| Wov... again Multi-layered and with Colors... but the colors are faded now... |
Talakkad
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| Beautiful flower and the seed (Cashew) |
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| Excavated temple |
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| Yes, Sand everywhere and sometimes Monkeys as well !! |
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| Yes, I saw butterflies ... but this is with mobile camera... |
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| Sand ...... |
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| Parking place... Sand starts from here |
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| If you love to play with sand, then you are in right place now. ! |
Hope you enjoyed reading. You might be interested in my other relevant posts as well. Check and Post your comments below
Very Nice and detailed information. Your photos are very perfect speak to us. Please add one more information 5 years once one festival will come on a particular star , all the five temples can be seen without sand, we visited last .2009/10. Karnataka Govt. makes grand arrangements those 5 days. Its a sabam(curse) by a kings wife, a famous poem in Kannada, they taught us in our Mantri Kannda Class. Once in 5 years all the five temple, Shiva can be seen on a same day. I'll check & tell you the day.
ReplyDeleteThank you Meena and yes that festival is called "Pancha linga Darshan" and that time huge crowds come to this place. I have not gone during festival. Yes, the temples gone inside the sand due to the curse. The Wiki had details on this history and curse http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talakad. If you know the date when this festival is planned in future, please update. It might help all readers. Thanks a lot for your kind feedback and comments.
ReplyDelete