World of Books and Travel

  We had been thinking of visiting Mamallapuram for a very long time and finally it worked out last month. (Oct 2019). Mamallapuram, also known as Mahabalipuram, is an old town along the Coramandal coast of  Bay of Bengal and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is located in Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu. Mamallapuram and is famous for the stone-cut work of a group of monuments, made by the Pallava kings  who ruled this place between 5 th and 8 th centuries.  After checking in to the hotel, we had our lunch and immediately after that we hired an autorikshaw for the afternoon to take us around all the important tourist places there. Actually most of them were in walkable distance only.  Since we had only half-a-day there, we preferred to save time. The autorikshaw driver was friendly and knowledgable person. His details are given below. Shore Temple  Krishna's Butter Ball Arjuna's Penance Mr.Raju, Mobile No.900385...

During our recent trip to Dhanushkodi we had to pass through Rameswaram, which is connected with  Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge ( Pamban Road Bridge.) Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge is the longest sea bridge in southern India measuring nearly 2.2 kms in length.   It connects the National Highway (NH 49) with Rameswaram on Pamban Island, and stands parallel to Pamban Rail Bridge.   Rameswaram is located in Tamil nadu and is steeped in Ramayana legends. This road bridge is also popularly known as Pamban Road Bridge. This is an engineering marvel and is one of the first sea bridges.   It is  surrounded by blue water from all sides and offering beautiful views of the Railway Bridge and Rameshwaram Island.   The new visitors to Rameswaram stop over here to have an amazing view of the   Pamban Rail bridge over which the train passes to Rameswaram. They can also see innumerable fishing boats scattered in the sea.   The ships al...

Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal  of Madurai is one of the important historic places in Tamil Nadu. It is located just 1.2 kms away from Madurai Meenakshi Temple (Meenakshi Amman Temple) and hence it is easy to visit this place to those people who visit Meenakshi Temple. It was built in 1636 AD by the Nayakar Dynasty king Thirumalai Nayaakkar, by an Italian architect. It was four times bigger to what we see today as many things including ornaments have been removed from here.  There is a light and sound musical programme in the evenings, both in English and in Tamil, the local language.   Please see the video to get a proper view of this historic and architectural beauty and further details.  .  There is also a museum inside which should not be missed. 

I'm sorry for such a long gap to post the remaining part.  I had some personal commitments and was out of the country.. Back to Kancheepuram Our next visit was to Kanchi Varadaraja Perumal temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu. This temple is also known as Thiru Parameswara Vinnagaram Temple, which was about 6 kms away from Kanchi Kailasanathar Temple. Prakash, our auto driver, suggested that we should reach there before its closure time. (8 pm). Though there was some rush we made it for the darshan and it was some special day (Ekadashi) in the temple. Since it was evening I couldn't get some good pictures to post here. This is also an ancient temple built by Pallavas in the 8th century.  The devotees have to climb a couple of steps to reach the sanctum sanctorum.  After having a light dinner in one of the restaurants on the way we returned to  our hotel. The next day, Prakash was there at sharp 6 a.m. to take us to start our temple tours. Our first visit...

Back to Kanchipuram We wanted to cover one or two temples in the evening of the same day we arrived at Kanchipuram. Our autorikshaw driver was only too glad to take us around.  He first took us to Kanchi Kailasanatha temple located in the west of Kanchipuram.   He dropped us just in front of the temple.  The temple has a high rising tower at the entrance.   The temple, built in Dravidian style architecture,  is dedicated to Lord Shiva .     Built in 650 AD-705 AD, by the Pallavas, it is the oldest temple of Kanchipuram. Currently it is looked after by the Archeological Survey of India.    Numerous carved images of Gods and Goddesses are seen on the inner and outer walls of the temple. One of the unique features of this temple is the 16 sided Shivalingam made up of black granite at the main shrine.   Since it was in the evening we could not capture photos properly. However, I am posting one photo which I ...

Last week we had a week end trip from Bangalore to Kanchipuram, one of the seven sacred cities of India. Kanchipuram is also known as  the City of Temples and the Silk City, located in Tamil Nadu, South India.  Kanchipuram is a historical, cultural and religious city located on the banks of  River Vedavadi. Kanchipuram (Kancheepuram) is also one of the most important spiritual centres of Hinduism and a major pilgrim destination.  The ancient temples located here are built by Pallava and Chola kings.  Getting into Kancheepuram -  Kanchipuram can be accessed by train, bus, and car. From Chennai, it is only 75 kms away and from Bangalore 278 kms. We went by car and it took us nearly 4 hours. The roads were excellent and the drive was pleasant. Accommodation - We had booked our accommodation in  Pine Tree, one of the good hotels in Kanchipuram. We had a comfortable stay in Pine Tree. On reaching there we enquired about visiting the temples; they h...