Madikeri – An Ignored Beauty!

A small town in Western Ghat in Karnataka, Madikeri, once known as Markana, Scotland of India, at 5000 Ft enriched with lush green vegetations nestled in the lap of mountain. You will be elated by seeing orchards of oranges, cocoa, rubber, coffee and spices on your way either from Mangalore or, Mysore. The silvery springs on the way add more feathers to its crown. Though gifted so liberally with nature, Madikeri is not yet so popular among tourists.

If you are reading this article in any website other than in "TRAVEL INDIA" or, INDIA STUDY CHANNEL", then you are reading a copied and stolen content. Enjoy the original site here http://ourtravelindia.blogspot.com

What to see in Madikeri:

Gifted with abundant natural beauty, Madikeri has some other things to share too with you.

Tipu Sultan's Fort: This fort is originally built in 17^th Century by Mudduraja by mud. On 1817 AD, the king of Mysore, Tipu Sultan renovated the fort and rebuilt it with granite and named it as Jaffarabad. Two elephant's statue at north east corner and a church on south east corner add to the beauty of this fort. Panoramic view of Madikeri from this fort is wonderful

Omkareshwar Temple: Situated at the heart of Madikeri, This temple was built on 1820 AD by Lingarajendra. This temple has a combination of both Islamic and gothic style of architecture.

King's Seat (Raja's Seat): At the end of the town on a hill top is a well maintained garden and from here you can experience the nice view of the Koorg valley. Viewing sunset from this place on the far stretching blue mountain is of course a breath taking experience. In ancient times kings used to spend their evening here after their day's work, hence the name.

Abbey Falls: 6 km from Madikeri, the most popular spot to travel is Abbey falls. Kaveri river is cascading down 70 ft from the hill over a rock face is a wonderful view to witness. Car will take you up to the entrance, from where you have to step down about 500 meters to reach to the base of the falls.

Bhagamandala: Here is a temple, built in Kerala style with the shrines of different Gods. The importance of this place is due to the confluences of three rivers kaveri, Sujyoti and Kanake. This place is a holy pilgrimage for the local people. People use to offer puja ( Pinda Dan) to their passed away ancestor in this place.

When to visit Madikeri:

Almost whole year! Monsoon is usually avoided by the tourists, but it has another kind of beauty. Most of the tourists come here between November and December.

The temperature in summer is 29 degree Celsius and in winter 9 degree Celsius – a very comfortable weather throughout the year.

If you are reading this article in any website other than in "TRAVEL INDIA" or, INDIA STUDY CHANNEL", then you are reading a copied and stolen content. Enjoy the original site here http://ourtravelindia.blogspot.com

How to reach Madikeri:

Madikeri is placed on NH 48, the road between Mangalore to Mysore. From both these places you can get buses to reach Madikeri in 3 to 3 ½ hours. Madikeri is also well connected by bus from Hasan, Belur and Chikmagalur.

Where to stay at Madikeri:

KTDC Mayur Valley View: Ph: +918272 228387 DB @INR 500 – 1500

There are many other hotels and lodge around bus stand and market to fit every pocket. Off season rebate is given during monsoon in these hotels between June 15^th to September 15^th. If you wish you can visit Madikeri without staying here; but to enjoy its fully at least one night stay is recommended.

Photo attribution:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kmadiga/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ananth/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/praveent/

Read more...

Mahabaleshwar – A Beautiful Hill Station In Western Ghat

The month was May. We were all set for Goa but suddenly changed our mind to visit a cooler place to get rid of the heat. The obvious choice came Mahabaleshwar. From Mumbai VT station we hired a cab @ INR 3500 for Mahabaleshwar. Nestled in the Sahyadri hill in the Western Ghat around a beautiful lake Mahabaleshwar is quiet popular hill station in this western region. It was irritating to pay toll taxes several times through our journey from Mumbai to Mahabaleshwar, but the scenic bauty and traversing few times through long tunnels were sensational. The road also is beautifully maintained. We drove at a speed 100 – 120 Km /hour to reach Mahabaleshwar in 6 hours.

If you are reading this article in any website other than in "TRAVEL INDIA" or, INDIA STUDY CHANNEL", then you are reading a copied and stolen content. Enjoy the original site here http://ourtravelindia.blogspot.com

Panchagani – En route

Before reaching Mahabaleshwar, at another beautiful spot we halted was Panchagani. It is a small and cozy hill station. We walked around Panchagani and witnessed the variety of flowers this place have. Krishna valley looks wonderful from this place. Other places to see here were Parsi point, children's park etc.

Tapola lake – En route

30 Km away from Mahabaleshwar Tapola lake is a part of Shivsagar lake. Boating for some time in this lake was really wonderful.

At Mahabaleshwar we chose to stay at MTDC Holiday Resort. Be careful of plenty of agents, who will try to dupe you to any hotel and earn some commission. It is always better to search and bargain hotel of your choice and budget.

What to see in Mahabaleshwar:

The landscape itself was wonderful, so that we enjoyed our stay here. There are different view points, beautiful falls, Venna Lake, Kshetra Mahabaleshwar and Pratapgarh Fort. Conducted tour by state tourism by bus will cover 12 points in Mahabaleshwar @ INR 100. We hired taxi to cover all these places.

Arthur seat: A famous point in Mahabaleshwar. The fantastic view of the Valley of Savitri on your left and dense Brambha Aranya forest on our right will mesmerized us. Raigad and Torana fort were also be visible due to clear weather. On our route to Arthur's point we saw Tiger spring, where people said tiger use to come to drink water, Echo point, Elphinston point.

Venna Lake: It is one of the major attraction of Mahabaleshwar constructed by Appasaheb Maharaj, king of Satara in 1842. Surrounded by the greenery and flowers, this lake is fed by the springs from the surrounding hills. Situated 2 km from the bus stand on Panchagani road, was really a wonderful experience, specially the boating.

Lingamala water fall: We saw this beautiful falls very close to Venna Lake.

Bombay Point: This spot is famous for viewing the sunset. It is also called sunset point.

Kshetra Mahabaleshwar: The name Mahabaleshwar is derived from "Mahabali" another name of lord Shiva and the temple of Mahabali is situated at 5 Km from the main city popularly known as Kshetra Mahabaleshwar.

The Panchganga temple, a Krishna temple situated at the junction of 5 rivers and considererd as a holy sangam. These five rivers are Krishna, Venna, Koyana, Savitri and Gayatri.

Pratapgarh Fort:

Though at a ruined state, this fort has very important historical significance. At 1020 meters altitude, Chatrapati Shibaji built this fort on 1656 AD. We had to climb more than 400 stairs to enter the fort. Afzal khan was killed by Shibaji at this fort. We saw Bhawani temple on our way to fort where Shibaji use to offer puja to Devi Bhabani. The Shiva temple is there on the top of the fort. The view of Konkan valley was beautiful from the top of the fort.

As a whole it was a nice place for a break in a naturally beautiful hill station to rejuvenate ourselves. For honeymooners also, this is a safe bet.

How to reach Mahabaleshwar:

The nearest railway station is Pune. Mahabaleshwar is 122 Km from Pune. You can get buses of different category @ INR 80 – 150 from Pune in 4 hours. Buses are also available from Mumbai to reach Mahabaleshwar( 237 km) in 7 hours.

From Mahabaleshwar, if you want to go Goa, you will get very comfortable Volvo buses to take you to Panaji in 10 hours night journey @ INR 1000. You can hire a car also for the same @ INR 5000.

If you are reading this article in any website other than in "TRAVEL INDIA" or, INDIA STUDY CHANNEL", then you are reading a copied and stolen content. Enjoy the original site here http://ourtravelindia.blogspot.com

Where to stay at Mahabaleshwar: STD code +91 2168

Around the bus stand there are many hotels to choose from depending on the budget and choice. There are seasonal variation of tariffs in these hotles. The season in Mahabaleshwar and the best time for visiting is between April to June and in Mid September to October. Rest of the year is off season and hotel charges are usually half the normal rates. Many hotels in Mahabaleshwar remain closed in monsoon.

MTDC Holiday Resort: Ph: 260318/ 261318 DB @ INR 500 – 800; TB @ INR 850 – 1200; 4 , 8, 12, and 20 bedded rooms are also available from @ INR 1000 - 3000

Other Information:

Carry light woolens, you may require them. Don't forget to buy strawberry jam, jelly, honey, fancy sticks and sandals so special of Mahabaleshwar.

Photo attribution:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ankurp/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/krayker/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/maestra/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/54156994@N00/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/astrolondon/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/hitejas/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/abhisworld/

Read more...