Travelogue: Mysore, Karnataka, India

For My other Travelogues please see

~ Shillong & Cherrapunji

~Kaziranga National Park

Mysore, also known as City of Palaces is 140 Kms from Banglore ((2.5-3 hrs drive); Mysore is the biggest city in Karnataka. It was the capital of Wodeyar kings before the abolition of Royalty post independence.

Mysore Palace or the Maharaja's palace or the Ambavillas is the most spectacular & magnificent among all the palaces in Mysore. It was the residence of Wodeyar Maharajas of Mysore. It was built by Krishnaraja Wodeyar III. It took 15 years to build the palace in it's present form after the original wooden facade was destroyed by thunderstorm n ensuing fire. The palace has been designed by British Architect, Henry Irwin. It was completed in 1912. The Palace has glass & huge chandeliers imported from Scotland. Some parts of palaces are made out of pure gold. The second floor has a picture gallery depicting the lives of the Royal family. It also has two portraits by the celebrated artist Raja Ravi Verma ( More Raja Ravi Verma paintings are on display at the Jagmohan Palace which is now converted into an Art Gallery). Unfortunately cameras are not allowed inside the palace. One can take pictures from the outside n then deposit the cameras at camera deposit counters.

The Mysore Palace is open all days of the week, from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The palace is illuminated on Sundays, national holidays and state festivals from 7:00 p.m. to 8 p.m. The palace is illuminated between 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. only during the Dasera festival.

Actually there are 2 palaces within the premises. The first one is Magnificent & beautiful. The second one is worn down n ordinary n frankly looks like servant quarters of the palace. As separate tickets need to be bought for the two palaces only those who are interested n too enthusiastic about history should venture into the second one else its a wastage of precious time 'cos there are far too many things to see n enjoy in Mysore, so time is at a premium. Though to be fair the second palace does sport the Royal photographs & Royal dresses n some jewelery.

Jaganmohan Palace: The Jaganmohan Palace was constructed in the year 1861 by the king, Krishnaraja Wodeyar III as an alternate retreat for the royal family. The Mysore Palace, which was the original home of the royal family was burnt down in a fire and the construction of a new palace in its place was started in the year 1897. Till the new palace was completed in 1912, the Jaganmohan Palace was used by the royals as their home. Now the palace has been converted into an Art Gallery.

The art gallery contains a large collection of artefacts . Most of these artefacts are paintings, prominent among which are those by Raja RaviVerma, some of which demonstrate scenes from the Hindu epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata. The collection of paintings in the gallery exceed 2000 in number . Among them are 16 paintings of Raja Ravi Varma^. Another important painting present here is the Lady with the lamp which was painted by the artist Haldenkar and is placed in a dark room where it is the only exhibit. This is to give an illusion that the glow of the lamp is illuminating the face of the woman. This painting is a sight to behold. Some other painters whose works are exhibited here include Rabindranath Tagore.

Other exhibits here include weapons of war, musical instruments, sculptures, brassware, antiques coins and currencies. Some other unique artefacts exhibited here is a French clock which has a mechanism in which a parade by miniature soldiers is displayed every hour; beating drums mark the seconds and a bugle marks the minute. Paintings made on a grain of rice which can be viewed only through a magnifier are also displayed here.

Brindavan Gardens: One of the most visited places in Mysore by locals and by tourists is the famous Brindavan Gardens. Located about 20kms from Mysore these beautiful gardens are laid out below the Krishnaraja Sagar dam built across the river Cauvery. These gardens are famous for the illuminated dancing fountain. The Garden is very expansive n beautiful with several varieties of fountain. Professional cameramen are available to click pics for you. Though we had our digicam we decided to hire one of them to click couple pics for us for memories sake. It was fun as he made us pose in several romantic angles much to my delight n his embarrassment. It also houses the Royal Orchid hotel. We had our evening tea n snacks on the front portico of the Royal orchid which was very refreshing n relaxing after the walk in the gardens. We wanted to rest n freshen up before the musical fountains began which is supposed to be the highlight of the day. But to be very frank we were put off by it 'cos the music being played was not some soft n elegant instrumental music but some cheap hindi n kannada item song numbers like 'Babuji zara dheere chalo'!! We literally walked out in disgust though the public was just going gaga n enjoying themselves to the hilt. A better idea is to watch the gardens illuminated n then go to see the illumination at the Mysore Palace. This way you also avoid the huge rush of vehicles going back to Mysore after the musical show is over.

Chamundeshwari Temple: is located on top of Chamundi hill. Legend has it that Goddess Chamundeshwari (an incarnation of Durga) killed Demon king Mahisura to protect the city of Mysore. On the hill one can alo find a huge statue of Nandi ( God Shiva's vehicle!!) & Mahisura. In fact Mahisura looks quite colorful n adorable.

Other places worth visiting in n around Mysore:

~Lalita Mahal Palace (Now actually a five star hotel)

~Mysore Zoo

~St. Philomena's Church

~Bandipur Wild life Sanctuary

~Ranganathittu Wildlife Sanctuary