Date: 21-Dec-2007 to 24-Dec-2007
21-Dec-2007
6:30 a.m. - Start. Half an hour late. But with two kids who take their own time to drink milk, this is an achievement. We catch the outer ring road to hit the NH4 and take the NH48 to Hassan.
9:00 a.m. or there abouts - We reach Shravanabelagola. Could see Bahubali Statue for a distance. Children all excited. We were wondering if the two boys can make to the top of the hill. The steps are cut off the rock and at places very steep (there are railings on the side). To my surprise, the kids actually run up the stairs to the very top. The view from the top is fantastic. The monolith itself is superb. On the hill, some ancient travellers have inscribed their names and dates of their visit. The inscriptions are protected by a glass (plastic?) shield. In some case the Devanagri script is readable. (observation: today we would call such inscriptions an act of vandalism!)
11:00 a.m. Check in into Hoysala Village Resort, off Hassan. A very wise decision. Though the trip can be made in one day flat, we decided to make a holiday of it. The price seems a bit steep but throw in 3 free meals a day, free indoor games, a largish swimming pool (and a tiny pool for small children), large rooms (with a sit out) and extremely courteous staff, the price is just good.
22-Dec-2007
8:30 a.m. Start for Belur and Halebeedu. Belur is about 31 km from the resort and Halebeedu about 57 km. Both temples are just mind blowing. The work on the outer and inner walls of the temples is beyond words. Therefore picture in my next posting - soon.
Advice: Take a guide. For a sum of Rs. 125 they make the temple come alive. Most speak good English.
1:30 p.m. Back to the resort in time for lunch. Freaked out at the resort. The Ayurvedic Message at the resort is GOOD. The swimming pool can be cold. Don't test waters; just dive in.
23-Dec-2007
7:30 a.m. The previous evening, we decided to visit Dharmasthala. Have early breakfast (if requested the staff would be ready with your breakfast even earlier). We were told that the NH48 beyond Hassan was bad. We were suggested an alternate route. Hassan - Belur - Mudigere - Dharmasthala. The road over the mountains was bad. Reach Manjunatha temple at 12:30 p.m. First shock: no one had told us that there would be a loooooong queue at the temple. Having come so far, it would be ridiculous not to join in. It takes us 4 hours 15 minutes to come out of the queue after the dharshan. Generally well behaved and patient crowd. But there are always some idiots who would stop and let the queue build up before moving again (but, I guess, that is their attempt at entertainment).
5:00 p.m. or thereabouts: We take a real stupid decision. We try the NH48 to Hassan. After all how bad can that be. "Bad" is putting it as mildly as possible. Over the ghat section, the NH48 does not exist. It used to be a road once upon a time. There is some construction work going on in parts of the ghat section. You can see bits and pieces of cemented road coming up. No idea when that is likely to be completed. Till then I would strongly advise not to take the route. DO NOT TAKE THE NH48 BETWEEN HASSAN AND SAKALESPURA TO REACH DHARMASTHALA. I am glad I was driving a Scorpio.
8:30 p.m. Reach resort. Dead.
24-Dec-2007
The day of departure. So we take it easy. Still manage to pack in two last Ayurvedic Massages (one for me and one for my wife), cycle ride for the kids (available free at the resort), one bullock cart ride (at Rs. 100 per family) and a quick dip in the swimming pool. Since we had missed the lunch the previous day, the resort staff were kind enough to offer that lunch before departing. Very nice of them!
1:30 p.m. Start back.
4:30 p.m. Reached NH4.
6:30 p.m. Reached home. Normally should take half an hour. Took 2 hours. Traffic!
If you enjoyed this post you might want to see my other posts on travel to (i) Mahabalipuram, and (ii) Kodaikanal You may also see some more photgraphs on Mahabalipuram at Things To Do At Mahabalipuram
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