Day 26 & 27

A bit of catching up to do…

Yesterday we had a fun day in and around Mysore.

First we visited a beautiful World Heritage temple called Kesheva. Really amazing. Dating from 1268, it has 3 separate temple spaces, one each for the main Hindu gods. Incredible carvings everywhere. It is made of soapstone.

It was incomplete when it was taken over by a Moghul ruler and is no longer an active temple. Hindu people who were there still appear to venerate it, however.

Our next stop was a private home in Mysore, where the people cooked us a biryani lunch. Most delicious, with all the little accompaniments and an excellent dessert of gulag jamun.

Then we went to see how incense sticks are made. It was really interesting and of course smelt great.

The people also talked to us about the scents and essential oils that are used in Indian products like incense and perfume. Everything g smelt beautiful.

Later in the afternoon, we did a quick tour of the famous Devaraja Market. A riot of sights and sounds.

I also spent a bit of time in the silk shops. Mysore is famous for its fine saris. Purchases were made.

A quick dinner, and then we were off for our BIG adventure AN OVERNIGHT TRAIN to Chennai.

Absolutely horrible. Tiny cabins shared with seven other people (strangers). Rock hard bunks. Stinky toilets. Lots of stopping and starting. Minimal sleep.

I suppose it is part of the total India experience, but I really could have lived without it. At least I got a lower bunk, so I did not have climb up.

We arrived in Chennai at 7am. We were picked up by a new driver. Our destination was the village of Mahabalipurum, on the Bay of Bengal. We had breakfast on the way.

The village is small, and the hotel is lovely. The whole place exists around a 7th century temple complex, also World Heritage listed.

I did some more fabric shopping, and managed to pick up a couple of nice pieces of Madras cotton.

In the afternoon we had a guided tour of the temple complex, which was quite a walk. The temples are cut into caves, or carved out of solid rock. Really impressive.