World of Books and Travel

I had an opportunity to visit Swananda Loka, an upcoming Ganapathi Temple in Hoyasala style of architecture, housed in the Swananda Ashrama complex located in the Agara village in Tataguni, 3 km off Kanakapura Road. Swananda Loka is believed to be the heavenly abode of Lord Ganesha. The 9-acre temple complex area with lush green gardens is a feast to the eyes and mind. The piolet project was completed successfully and the model called Ganapathi Panchayathana is  open to visitors.  Around the main shrine, the temple would have 4 shrines for the 4 Yuga Ganapathis and idols of 32 manifestations of Lord Ganapathi. In this Swanandashrama  complex, there is also a  temple for Lord Subramanya and another one for  Devi. In this Devi temple, Goddess is sitting on the snake. A goshala is also there where cows are taken care of. The Ashram also promotes education of rural children and organizes socio cultural events. I was blessed to a...

  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. 

Dhanushkodi is located at the southern tip of Rameswaram on the eastern coast of Tamil Nadu.    It is also the place for the union of two mighty oceans   – Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean, and is elongated   in shape.   It is also the end of India   and we felt we are at the end   of the earth. You can also check out this video on Dhanushkodi .  As we were driving closer to this place a frightening silence came upon us. However, surprisingly we began to get Simhalese language on our car radio . In the next few minutes, we got a welcoming message on our mobile from Airtel Srilanka. Sri Lanka is just 31 km away from here. Finally we reached our destination where a post is standing erect, to mark the end point of the land and we got a feeling that we are at the end of the world. The Tragic History of this place - It was once a flourishing trade hub with Sri Lanka, (then called Ceylon)   but today it is an abandoned cit...

A friend recommended us a new place to have a lovely day. She reached there first and waited for us.  It is a wonderful  place in the heart of Bangalore city to chill out  with your friends playing some childhood board games, such as Alagulimane game, chowka bara etc. and enjoying wonderful vegetarian food. Another interesting thing is the ambience is so homely.  It is definitely a hidden gem in the heart of the city.   The food will be served only after the games are over.  Address - 1980s Games Cafe 63, Kanakapura Road, (Upstairs) Basavangudi Bangalore 560004

Kodumudi is a small town in Erode, 40 km away from Erode city, in the State  of Tamil Nadu.  This place is also known as Thiruppandikodumudi. The popular  Magudeswar Temple  is located here on the bank of  River Kaveri,  which is coming from the northwest and turns to the east at Kodumudi. Standing before the temple, it is so beautiful to watch the wide Kaveri River flowing untiringly. The main features of this temple ·           Kodumudi is the abode of the three moorthies  – Lord Shiva, Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma. Lord Shiva is known here as Magudeswar with his wife Soudaryavalli, Lord Vishnu as Veera Narayana Perumal   in reclining position, with his wife  Goddess Thirumangai Nachiyar , and Adisesha offering protective hood over him, and Lord Brahma  with three faces and  a tree called Vanni tree as his 4 th face, without his consort.     ·  ...