Drive to Ghati Subramanya Temple

Ghati Subramanya is one of the popular pilgrim centers located near Doddaballapur of Bangalore Rural district. Ghati Subrahmanya is located about 60 Kms from Bangalore.

The temple here is dedicated to Lord Subramanya and Lord Lakshmi Narasimha. It is believed that the idol of Shri subrahmanya is self originated. The uniqueness of the temple is, Sri Subrahmanya is facing east and Sri Lakshmi Narasimha is facing west in a single image. One can have darshan of Lord Narasimha through a mirror placed rear side.

This unique and ancient temple attracts many a pilgrims. Special pooja's will be performed the event of Brahmarathotsava, i.e., on the day of Pushya shudda Shashti. Narasimha Jayanti is other major festival celebrated here. Marriage functions are also held here.

It is Lord Murugan's temple and very much in tradition with the "Kukke" subramanya temple. Here you find him in the "Naga" avathar and all the "sarpa (snake) dosha" related poojas are performed here.

Free lunch is provided daily for the devotees.

How to Reach
Take the road from Hebbal towards Bangalore International Airport (Devanahalli). Before touching Yelahanka, take a slight left on the service road, and proceed towards Yelahanka level crossing. After about a KM you will see the Yelahanka Traffic Police Station on the left. Take a left turn immediately after this, and proceed straight to Doddaballapur.

Another route is to proceed straight towards Devanahalli. After Devanahalli bus stand, there is a left turn that moves towards Doddaballapur. Proceed along here until you reach the road coming from Bangalore (Hindupur Road). Take a right here and proceed for about 5 kms, you would be in Doddaballapur.

From D.B.Pura, proceed straight until you see the arch towards Ghati Subramanya. Ask locals for directions (they are generally helpful).

Address
Shri Subrahmanya Temple
S.S. Ghati Post,
Doddaballapur Taluk,
Pin code: 561 203,
Bangalore Rural district.
Phone Number : 080-27657131 (Just Dial)

My Travel
On a gloomy noon, around 3:15 PM we started off. At around 4:00 PM, just as I crossed Yelahanka the sky blackened, and mother nature presented her beauty !


With bit of difficulty, in controlling my nature loving personality and driving personality, I managed to wade through the tar in the drizzle towards Doddaballapur.

I mistakenly took a slight deviation towards Doddaballapur Railway station, and took a moment to capture this.


Then, got back on track and proceeded straight for about 5 kms. There was a junction, with direction boards. Went straight for about 3 kms and found the arch showing the entrance to the road to Ghati Subramanya.


Beleive me the road was very scenic and the apt time, is to drive around during cloudly evenings. We had to pass through one more level crossing, and it was real fun driving in those roads. There were lot of road side vegetable sellers, selling fresh vegetables. We had decided to check them on our return and proceed.


Just as you near Ghati, the road turns into a scenic motorway, with slopes and curves, it makes for a real chilling drive.

We reached Ghati around 5:30 PM. There was ample parking space, but we parked near a shop, and were forced to buy garlands there (for free parking) :-) After taking a few snaps outside, we had a good darshan at the temple. Not being able to identify the deity, "where is Subramanya", I asked the priest, and he helped me gleefully by showing his hand :-) Infact, I was only loooking at Lord Narasimha, and then noticed Lord Subramanya.

After buying a few photographs of the Unique B/W Lord Muruga, and some snaps of the Monkeys around, in the drizzle, we ran towards the car, and started off around 6:15 PM... On our return, we bought some fresh vegetables, in the drizzle. It was real fun...


The return drive from Doddabalapur towards Yelahanka was even more fun. The light began to fade and traffic piled up (though all fast moving traffic). It was real fun driving on 2 lane roads during drizzle, waiting for the right moment for overtaking and cruising ahead. Without much fuss, we reached Hebbal flyover around 7:30 PM and after some shopping & dining at Esteem Mall, we reached home around 9:00 PM.

It was a really enjoyable drive of about 130 kms, and it happened during the right time (and it was my first noticeably long journey on my i10 with the new Michelins).

Route Map

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Someshwara Temple, Ulsoor

Being in Bangalore for more than 6 years and not having visited the Someshwara temple was a sin. I was searching for a Kaala Bhairava temple, around Marathahalli / Old Airport Road / Kagadasapura, etc. After about a month of frantic searching, I got to know from many friends and relatives that only the Someshwara temple in Ulsoor houses the deity - Lord Kala Bhairava.

Brief Introduction about the temple
Someshwara temple is one of the prominent ancient temples of Bangalore. The main temple was supposedly built during by Chola dynasty, while the impressive Rajagopuram and the compound of the temple was built by chieftain Kempegowda, the founder of Bangalore. Endowed with splendid architecture, the Someshwara temple bears shimmering Rajagopuram (tower) and Dhwajastambha (massive pillar) which provide glimpse of the master craftsmanship.

The presiding deity being worshipped at the temple is Lord Someshwara (Shiva). In addition, the main temple houses these deities:
1. Lord Vinayaka
2. Lord Murugan with Valli & Deivanai
3. Goddess Vishnu Durgai
4. Lord Dakshinamoorthy
5. Lord Chandikeswarar
5. Lord Kaala Bhairava

The temple houses other deities of Kamakshamma, Arunachaleswara, Bhimeswara, Nanjundeswara, Panchalingeswara and the Navagraha Gods.

On the eve of Shivarathri in the month of February, devotees flock to the Someshwara temple in large numbers. Worshippers crowd here to have a darshan of Lord Shiva, the main deity and the Pancha Lingeswaras . The temple celebrates Brahmotsava on the full moon day and Kamakshamma Pallaki Utsava festivals in the month of April. The deity of the temple, Goddess Kamakshamma, is taken in a procession in a Pallaki (palanquin) around the temple.

My Experience
With this, on an Ashtami day, we went to this temple. One could get a Tamilnadu feel, in and around the temple. There are quite many garland shops around the temple, and they sell the famed Bilva leaves. Around 7:00 AM, when we went to see the Lord, Abhishekam was being performed on Lord Shiva. We had offered the flower garlands, and proceeded to see the other deities.

I was surprised to find so many deities around the main temple. As it was a Thursday, special poojas were performed to Lord Dakshinamoorthy. We then lit the coconut lamp dedicated to Lord Kaala Bhairava, and offered our prayers.

Overall, it was a very blissful experience, and I have made it a point to visit this temple, at least once a month.

Some Pics of the temple

Around the prakaram	Main temple Vimanam
Dwajasthamba	Photo of the aerial representation
A View of the Gopuram from Inside	A View of the Gopuram from Outside

Location of the temple
The temple is situated next to Bazaar Street Ulsoor. While travelling from MG Road, one has to pass the trinity circle, and proceed straight on Old Madras Road. On the left you would see the Fame Lido Mall, and the on the next signal, you will find Bazaar street on the left. Proceed straight for about 100 metres, and you will find a small street on the left. Take this left and you can spot the temple immediately.


View Larger Map

Parking space is limited, so in crowded days you may not get parking space for cars. But on normal days, there is just enough space to park about 10 cars.

New Wheels

Its been about 20 months and 19000 odd kms on my red i10 with the Bridgestone stock tyres, and no problems whatsoever. But, the yearning for more road grip and big boots were always on. Half the age, and not the age to die, but as it happens, it had to happen :-) Well, I decided its soon.

The Finished product
Before jumping to a bit more story and the thought process, here's how it all ended.


Choosing the right tyre
It was not very tough to decide the brand of the tyre. Google listed www.team-bhp.com forums, and there were plenty of posts on it. Unanimous choice was Michelin for the driving comfort, though there were some cons that it is not 100% made for bad indian roads. Hey but we have lot of 4-laned tolled roads now, and as most of the fuel would be burnt there, I decided to go in for Michelin straightaway.

I had to do a thorough research to find the right upsize for my i10. Courtesy lots of Tyre size calculators online, I was able to list down these options:

Original Tyre Size

Tyre code	Diameter	Circumference	Difference
155/80 R13	578 mm	1816 mm	0 %

Upsize Options

Tyre code	Diameter	Circumference	Difference
175/65 R13	558 mm	1753 mm	-3.55 %
185/65 R13	571 mm	1794 mm	-1.3 %
165/70 R13	561 mm	1762 mm	-2.94 %
175/70 R13	575 mm	1806 mm	-0.52 %
185/70 R13	589 mm	1850 mm	1.9 %
155/75 R13	563 mm	1769 mm	-2.68 %
165/75 R13	578 mm	1816 mm	-0.09 %
175/75 R13	593 mm	1863 mm	2.51 %
155/80 R13	578 mm	1816 mm	0 %
165/80 R13	594 mm	1866 mm	2.77 %
175/60 R14	566 mm	1778 mm	-2.18 %
185/60 R14	578 mm	1816 mm	-0.1 %
155/65 R14	557 mm	1750 mm	-3.65 %
165/65 R14	570 mm	1791 mm	-1.4 %
175/65 R14	583 mm	1832 mm	0.85 %
185/65 R14	596 mm	1872 mm	3.1 %
155/70 R14	573 mm	1800 mm	-0.97 %
165/70 R14	587 mm	1844 mm	1.45 %
175/70 R14	601 mm	1888 mm	3.87 %
155/75 R14	588 mm	1847 mm	1.71 %

RIM Size & Width
I had a tough time to decide whether to go for a R13 or R14 dia Rim. R14 would decrease the profile, making the ride bit rough. If I had maintained the profile, then I had to endure few scratches on the body when riding on speed humps. Greater RIM Dia would increase the visual appearance, but that could lead to a not so good ride quality. Hence, I decided to go with R13 Rims only.

Then, I had to choose the RIM Width that is appropriate for the new tyre's width. I've covered those in detail in the upcoming sections.

Deciding on Tyre Size
I had to choose a tyre size such that the overall difference in circumference should be less than +-2%. While increasing the diameter could have increased the profile for a comfortable ride quality on smooth roads, it would have scrapped few coatings from the wheel cavity, and damaged the front mud-flaps on sharp turns. Decreasing the diameter could have adverse effects on the ground clearance. Esp. on indian roads with sewage mini bridges, converted to massive speed humps, you need to maintain (as far as possible) the original ground clearance.

155 was ruled out, so I had to choose from 165 to 185. Ideally there was only a choice between 185 and 175, as 165 too seemed apparently small. The visual appeal from 175 was much more than 165, so the options were narrowed down to 175 or 185.

While 185 would give a better look, I know I have to compromise a bit more on mileage. Moreover, there was the concern of the tyre protruding out of the body awkwardly which could result in a mismatch in looks vs size. Moreover, there was a concern on team-bhp, that on few i10s, 185/60 R14 had touched the inner wheel cavity on bumpy roads. One of my friend had 185/60 R13 on his i10, sporting the Yokohama A-Drives that looked classy. But, I figured out that it has decreased the circumference by -81.68mm that is -4.5% difference. But, he seems to be pretty happy with his tyres and ground clearance. I still was not able to make the choice between 185 & 175. Unfortunately or I would say fortunately (as it narrowed down the options available) Michelin did not have 180/70 R13, so I decided on 175/70 R13 finally.

I also found out that the 175/70 R13 tyre had a speed rating of H (i.e. upto 210 kmph). With the realization that I could experience more stability on highways, I knew I am making a wise decision.

Choosing Alloys over Stock Rims
Another choice to make, was whether to mount the tyre on the stock rim or whether to go for alloys. Remember that if you increase the width of your tyre, you need wider Rims to accomodate them, else you would experience the sidewall strain, that can cause a cushioned ride and shorter tyre life. The recommended RIM Width for 175" wide tyres are 5J to 6J. So, 5.5 would be the ideal width. This was one of the most important factors to opt for alloy wheels during tyre upsizes.

So, having convinced myself that it makes sense to spend extra bucks to get a rich look, I decided to go for new alloy rims that could get me a wider Rims (good enough to mount 175 or even 185) and having more stable ride quality and increased tyre life.

I had a red-lip design in mind, to go with the body colour of my i10, but at the same time had other factors to consider such as strength of the casting, width of the spokes, number of spokes, etc. It was a contentious decision to opt for more spoke width, than the visually appealing red-lip design. So, I chose this design, that I would call "The violent Sudarshan Chakra", for it looks gorgeously violent !!!

I also had to go for a change in bolts to new chrome bolts, as it would match with the alloy looks, and provides better safety for tyres, in case, I had to park my car at a public garage for a longer period. The new chrome bolts come with a unique lock key, that would fit with the stock toolkit to fasten or unfasten.

The Numbers
New Tyre Size: 175/70 R13 (Stock: 155/80 R13)
Brand: Michelin (Stock: Bridgestone)
Speed Rating: H (Stock: S)
Alloy Wheel: CP Wheels
Rim Width: 5.5J (Stock: 4.5J)
Cost: Ask me!

Links to Tyre size calculators
http://www.alloywheels.com/tyrecalc.asp
http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalcold.html
http://www.tyrestore.in/upsizing.htm

Links to Alloy Wheel manufacturers Web-site
http://www.auraalloywheels.com/
http://www.alloywheels.in/
http://www.evoalloywheels.com/index.html
http://www.acealloywheel.com/
http://www.alloywheelsindia.com/
http://www.apollotyres.com/acelerewheelz/index.htm
http://platiindia.com/aboutus.php5
http://www.neowheels.com/
http://www.mahalaxmiauto.com/products/index/alloy-wheels_413.html
http://www.aez-wheels.com/257_EN
http://www.lensowheel.com/
http://www.lexani.com/
http://www.limitedalloy.com/
http://photoshop-car-mods.blogspot.com/2009/05/add-alloy-wheels-in-photoshop.html
http://alloywheelsdirect.wolfrace.com/
http://www.speedywheels.com/
http://www.bestalloywheelsandtyres.com/alloy-wheels-and-tyre-packages/
http://www.skyalloywheels.com/
http://www.poweralloywheel.com/
http://chinesealloywheels.cn/?page_id=4&category=3

Michelin Logo

OEM Michelin Tyre Pics

Some Alloy wheels designs that I considered

Pics Shot during Fitting

Drive to Yelagiri and Jalagamparai Falls

Drive to Yelagiri
It was a late decision to go for a weekend drive. As we wanted the drive to be smooth and visit unseen (rather undriven) places, we zeroed upon Yelagiri Hills.

Yelagiri is a hill station near Jolarpet, in Tamilnadu. It is at an altitude of 1400 metres above sea level. There are 14 hairpin bends on the ghat road. For information on Yelagiri Hills and the places of interest, visit http://wikitravel.org/en/Yelagiri.

Before embarking on the journey, I had a brief understanding of the places to visit at Yelagiri, courtesy - http://www.yelagirihills.com/where_to_go.htm

The Start
We started early around 6:30 AM in the morning. We reached Hosur around 7:15 AM, and had breakfast at Gowrishankar / Vasanta Vihar Hotel on the back side of the bus stand. It is the tasty pongal served in the morning, that lured us there. And we had a sumptuous breakfast before embarking to Yelagiri.

Then we took the Chennai Highway from Krishnagiri and proceeded towards Jolarpet. I got deterred by a wrong route board, and took a detour near a place called Natrampalli... At this point, I realized that on the new SW version on my N8, Google maps had stopped working. Ovi Maps, did not have this road at all :-) After enquiring from few locals, we were asked to proceed on a bit rough road. After about 30 mins (20 kms) we reached Jolarpet. After struggling to find a way past the Railway Level Crossing, we reached Vaniyambadi - Tirupattur SH, which was very good (though 2 way). After enquiries at roadside shops, we found the road to Yelagiri, at a place called Ponneri. There was a Ganesha Temple just before the start of the Ghat section, and we took a moment there.

The ghat section was very good, and the roads were well laid with umpteen warning and direction signboards. There was a name painted on every hairpin bend, and we managed to click every one of those. We stopped at the 7th Hairpin bend to get a panoramic view of the adjoining plains. The view as ever from a hilltop was just beautiful. Then just after clearing 11th hairpin bend, we saw the Telescope house.

The Telescope House
The telescope house, situated on a cliff is not functional now. There is no telescope or anything as such, and is unmanned.

The sound of trees swaying in the breeze greeted us to the top of the cliff. We spent a breezy 15 minutes, captivated by the valley view and the cool breeze.

Then, after a few more hairpin bends, came Athanoor town and we were greeted by this signboard.

Punganoor Artificial Lake-cum-Park
After having parked our car at the Parking lot (Rs. 20) at Punganoor Lake, we proceeded towards the lake hoping for some decent boating experience. But, we were taken aback by the lack of motor boats, all that was available were pedal and row boats. There was also a children's park beside the lake.

After taking a few photographs and a semi circular stroll around the lake, we thought what next, and decided to just drive around.

Murugan Temple
A few minutes away from Athanoor towards Nilavoor, is the Murugan temple. The temple is situated on a hillock, and one has to climb about 100 steps to reach the temple. After some oofs and aaahs, we were able to find the temple.

Nilavoor Lake
Not knowing where to go next, we saw up some sign boards of a Sports Adventure camp at a place called Nilavoor. The word adventure prompted me to drive to Nilavoor (about 6 kms from Athanoor). We were greeeted by a mud coloured lake :-) yes, the water was brownie, but yes we decided to pedal our way for about an hour. And we couldn't manage more than 20 mins. After tasting some Jackfruit, we decided to return.

We enquired about Jalagamparai falls to a few locals and got to know that the falls is on the other side of the hill, about 5 kms trek from Nilavoor. However, if one had to go by road, its about 44 kms, as we had to go downhill, then to Tirupattur, and take the scenic Jalagamparai Falls road. As we were pretty tired, and wanted to explore on road, we decided to go to Jalagamparai falls. We had Milk at an Aavin Milk outlet at Athanoor and then proceeded downhill. It took us about 1.5 hours (90 mins) to cover the 44 kms stretch. The road to Jalagamparai (though was narrow) was very scenic with rich vegetation all around. Jalagamparai is about 14 kms from Tirupattur.

Jalagamparai Waterfalls
We were greeted by a crowd of Monkeys at the falls. There was no water from the falls as it was not raining at that time. There was a temple slightly above the base of the falls (about 75 steps). We then got to know from the locals that the actual place of the falls is about a half km trek. I wanted to do the mini trek to proceed to the exact place of the water fall. However, one local warned me that the trek path is deserted and immediately I spotted a snake zipping past about 5 feet in from of us. Then, we decided to heed to the warning and just took a few snaps and started on the return journey.

Return Drive
From Tirupattur, we took the Krishnagiri road, quite good though 2 way. Easily I could drive at 80kmph and occasionally touch 100. In about 45 minutes we reached Bargur (about 40 kms from Tirupattur), From there on we joined the Chennai - Bangalore Highway and from there on it was a cruise.

We reached Hosur around 4:30 and had tiffin at Gowrishankar (don't ask me why again), but, It was just so good, atleast to me.

Route Map
While writing this blog, I observed that the routes we had taken were not present on the Google maps. I added these roads through mapmaker, but even then was not able to chart out the route that we had taken.

However, the simplest route is to proceed towards Vaniyambadi, and take the Vaniyambadi Tirupattur road and take the Yelagiri Ghat Road at Ponneri.


View Larger Map

Kotilingeshwara Temple

Kotilingeshwara, as the name suggests is a temple of Lord Shiva, with about one crore Shivalingas. It is situated at a place called Kammasandra, about 5 km from Kolar Gold Fields (KGF). This place has a collection of number of Shiva Lingas spread over an area of 15 acres. More than 80 lakhs of such Lingas have already been installed here since 1974. Kotilingeshwara has the distinction of having the biggest Shivalinga (108 ft) in the world and accompanying it is a 35 ft tall Basava. The entire project involves the installation of one crore shivalingas of various sizes, hence the name 'Kotilingeshwara'.

I had been to Kotilingeshwara a couple of times, and its been one unique experience. On my first visit, we also went to Bangaru Tirupathi at Guttahalli (about 10 kms from Kotilingeshwara). Then, we went to Avani, and then to Mulbagal. Avani is believed to be the place where Seetha raised Lava and Kusa. The village is quite peaceful, and you will love the roads. On my second visit, we started quite late, and had to return after visiting Koilingeshwara only.

There are no good hotels around on the way, but if you happen to come via Mulbagal, just before the Kolar railway Bridge, you will find Hotel Woody's on the left. Its quite popular, and food is okay.

Route
From Bangalore, proceed to Old Madras Road, Kolar, then take a right to Bangarapet, and then on to Koti Lingeshwara. Then, we went on to Bangaru Tirupathi (about 10 kms from Koti Lingeshwara), then to Mulbagal and back to Bangalore.

View Larger Map

Reference Links
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kotilingeshwara
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avani
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guttahalli
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/2005/06/25/stories/2005062503540100.htm


Here are some pics that we took on our couple of visits -








Pic of Bangaru Tirupathi Temple


Here are links to some images from Panoramio

May 2011 Temple Pilgrimage

We embarked on our routine religious trip to few temples in Tamilnadu. This was a yearly affair for the last 5 years, except 2010. The planning for this visit was bit tricky and we had to alter our plans at the last minute due to fear of disruptions around Madurai and Tirunelveli due to Poll results. Our Govindan mama had predicted that we could be caught in a fire and would be standing on the road, during the trip, did it happen though?

The Start
The auto that we engaged from our home to Madivala, had a break failure, just as we neared the St. John's Signal from inner Ring Road. The first thrill was to experience a drive on a breakless vehicle for about a km :-) We stopped near the Ayyapan temple, and walked to ABT Boarding point.

The new sparkling ABTX Travels coach arrived at Madiwala at 6:15 PM and after securing our luggage at the rear, the journey began. The bus zooomed on the Elevated Electonic City Expressway, and reached Hosur around 7:10. Around 7:45, the bus stopped at A2B for dinner.

Having had an expensive feast at A2B, the bus started around 8:10 PM. Next Stop at Salem (10:30 PM) at ABT depot. the distance from Salem to Kovilpatti was about 322 kms and Google Maps showed it would take about 4 hours 32 minutes. So, at that time I anticipated that we would reach there about 3:30 or so.

My Father (along with Mother and sister) coming from Chennai, had told me that they would reach Kovilpatti by 4:00 and I had told them that we would reach around 5:00 or so. As I started to relax, I checked the map on my N8 in between. Came Namakkal at 11:15, Karur at 12:00, Dindugul at 12:30, Madurai at 1:00 and Virudhunagar by 1:30, Satur by 1:45. At this point, i got scared, and called up my Father.

In all frenzy, we got down at Kovilpatti at 2:00 AM. Can you imaging ? Yes, we were standing on the road at a ghostly time :-) Meanwhile Father had called up Driver Sakthivel, and asked him to come to Kovilpatti Bus stand as soon as he can. We had tea at the New busstand, and decided to wait.

Around 2:20 AM, another ABT bus stopped. My wildest imagination, suggested that this could be the bus from Chennai. And yes, it was. In fact my father in his doze, told me around 1:45 that he would be between Tiruchirapalli & Madurai. But, courtesy the express Highways / NH7, and thanks to the tollgates for eating about 15 mins extra, they reached stifle late at 2:30.

Can't imagine the speed of these buses on the highways, they should be cruising arround 120 - 130 minimum.

Reaching Kovilpatti
Around 3:30 AM, Sakthivel, with Tata Sumo arrived on the scene, and we proceeded to Sankarankovil. During the way, we experimented with FM transmission from my N8 and my sis' N79. But, due to the poor antenna on the car, we had to turn it off.

Sankarankovil
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sankarankoil
We reached Sankarankovil around 4:30 AM, and Ramasamy Pattar was waiting for us. We had a quick sleep in one cottage, and got up around 6:00 AM, thanks to the routine power cut from 6:00 AM to 9:00 AM.

After having tiffin at a nearby hotel, in Battery operated CFL bulbs, we proceeded to the temple. We offered Archanas to Pillayar, Sankaralingeswarar, SankaraNarayanar, Gomathi Amman and Shanmugar. We also lit the "Mavilakku Mavu" and offered a 9 Gajam Saree to Lord Gomathi Amman. It was here that the fiery amman, burnt a small part of Amma's saree, but it happens, and we had to take it in our stride.

We had ordered for 3 Prasadams - Chakra Pongal, Puliyodharai and Thayir Saadham. Having settled the bills including 2 year chanda, we had prasadam in our room, and started from Sankarankovil to Tiruchendur around 12:00.

Here are some Photos taken at Sankarankovil.

Here are few photos taken on the way from Sankarankovil to Tiruchendur.


Tiruchendur
http://tiruchendur.org/
We were able to cover the ~100kms odd trip via Tirunelveli in about 2 hours. We had booked a A/C Deluxe Family Suite at Siva Murugan Lodge, via our Kattalaikkarar - Maharaja Raman. After taking rest for about 2 hours, we went to a Vishnu Durgai Temple, and lighted lemon deepam. Then, about 5:30 we proceeded towards the temple.

After taking a few snaps of the shore and having wet our feet at the divine waters, we went inside the temple and met Raman. Raman had made elaborate plans for us till about 10:00 in the evening. We had these darshans:
1. Vaira Thirunaamam alankaram (6:00 to 7:00)
2. Abhishekam (Rs. 1500) - (7:30 to 8:30)
3. Ekantham (9:00 - 9:30) followed by Chevali, where Lord Muruga is taken around for 5 rounds around the temple.
4. Palliyarai Deeparadhanai (9:40 to 10:00)

It was very satisfying darshan, thanks to Maharaja Raman. We started from Tiruchendur towards Kovilammalpuram, next morning ~7:30 after having breakfast at Hotel Mani Iyer.

Few snaps taken at Tiruchendur -



Kovilammalpuram
http://kovilammalpuram.blogspot.com/
We took the route towards Sattankulam, Nanguneri, kovilammapluram (deviation from Nanguneri to Kalakkad route). We reached there at around 10:00 AM. One of our Uncle had come from Nagerkovil, and he being a preist, performed Abhishekam and Poojas at all the temples around Kovilammalpuram.

For more details on Kovilammalpuram leg of our tour, see http://kovilammalpuram.blogspot.com/


Then we proceeded to Tirunelveli, on the way on my N8 checked the PNR status of our Wait listed ticket from Tirunelveli to Tiruchirapalli. Gosh : Chart Prepared and still wait listed. After having prepared to slug out on train, we had a brief stoppage at Chithappa's Godown, and had dinner near Junction. Then proceeded towards new busstand, to alight a bus to Tiruchi.

The Experience - Tirunelveli to Madurai to Trichy
What happened in the next 6 to 7 hours, shall remain in our memories for a long time. We were greeted by Crowds and no buses from Tirunelveli to Trichy. Chitappa adviced to go to Madurai (Mattuthaavani) and then to take a bus to Trichy. As it seemed to be the best choice at that time, we got into a bus (Non PP, Non Bye pass rider) to Madurai. A Bye pass rider would take about 2 hours, where as this bus took us to some little known towns taking a detour on every possible occasion on the cruisable NH7. After boarding the bus at around 8:30 PM, we reached Madurai Mattuthaavani Bus stand around 12:30 PM.

What greeted us here was the sprawling bus stand, with no easy marks to locate the area where buses to Trichy would be stopping. And, to cap it all was the crowd. Every bus to Trichy was filled up before the current passengers could step down. Such was the situation on that day...

Our presence of mind, suggested that its better to look out for a cab / car to Trichy, and fortunately we located a taxi stand. After some bargain, we were able to finalize a tata indica for 5 of us for Rs. 2100.

Just when we thought our plight for the night would be over, I was slowly realising (sitting next to the driver) that it wasn't to be yet. Imagine a driver dozing off when driving in 80 and speed suddenly dropping to 40 (on bare empty roads) and a Huge volvo zipping on your left, pushing the creeping car by the wind it generates.

I was trying my best to keep the driver engaged in words by asking him Qs, his response were all in one word. Even increasing and decreasing the audio volume did not help. The driver himself realized this, parked the car on the highway, and said he wanted to have tea.

After having consoled ourselves after the 10 min break, that this would be the last stop, we started off. Slightly better this time, nah... again the sleepy driver. Just when we were praying... burst and a screeching halt. Front right tyre puncture.

Thank God, he had a stepney wheel. Having cleared all our luggage from the rear and kept it on the roads, we all felt like "Standing on the road, in the midnight" had come true. After 15 minutes, he had the wheel replaced, but I could sense that he was not happy with the condition of the replaced tyre either.

He then called up his various cab driver friends who had gone to Trichy on that day, and were on their return to Madurai. One such driver, helped by providing another spare wheel. The driver was adamant to fit this new tyre, but we had to starve him saying that we were only 15 mins from Trichy and that he could do it after dropping us there. He then agreed.

Tiruchirapalli

By God's grace, and with much lesser trouble we reached Trichy Junction and Hotel Sevena by around 3:30 AM. Fortunately, our advance room booking (courtesy: http://hotels.bookingsonline.in/) held good, and we had a brief sleep till about 6:00 AM.

After a quiet BF, and 15 mins waiting, the Ambassador cab rolled in (and must say with a good driver). We started towards these temples:

Srirangam
http://www.srirangam.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Srirangam

We reached Srirangam around 9:00 AM, and took the Rs. 250 ticket. Within 30 mins, we were blessed to witness the nava deeparadhana at Lord Sri Ranganadhar Sannadhi. Then after having darshan of Lord Ranganayaki, Lord Chakrathaazhwar and some Butter Milk, we proceeded towards T.V.Koil.

Few photos taken at Srirangam Temple-


Thiruvanaikovil
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jambukeswarar_Temple,_Thiruvanaikaval
It was scorching heat on our heels, as we alighted from our car, and we rushed to meet Jalakandeshwarar, as it was nearing 11:30 already, and the temple would close down by 12:00. We got ourselves a Rs. 10 ticket for a darshan of Jalakandeshwarar.

Then after choosing the shadowy path to Sri Akhilandeshwari Sannathi, we had to wait till 12:00 clock, for Ucha Kaala Dharisanam. The speciality of this temple is the vishesha pooja performed by a saree clad gurukkul. We took Rs. 50 ticket and was able to enter the sanctum sanctorum and get a very close darshan of Goddess Akilandeshwari.

Samayapuram
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samayapuram_Mariamman_Temple
http://www.samayapuram.org/
If ever there was a bitter temple experience, on this tour, it was here. With crowds berserk, and in the maddest heat, we had no choice but to fall prey to a third party darshan broker. He told us that there was a long queue to the ticket counter and it would take more than 2 to 3 hours for the darshan.

Not knowing what to do we went ahead with him. As we had plans to offer a saree to Mariamman, one of the broker said that he needs to register the saree with the temple authorities and then only one can offer it to the Lord.

Then one of their guys took us via some estranged paths to the Lord Mariamman. We got a ghostly welcome from the priests and we were indeed a bit upset when they dumped the saree on Mariamman, and told us that's it. Then we were pushed forward by the crowd and completed one pradakshinam. At that time another person pretended to be very friendly and told us that he could provide us one more darshan. At the same time our original broker also said that he could offer one more darshan, and I asked my mother, wife and sister to go one more time. I got to know that they were later abused by the priests "What you all don't have any work? other than coming over again and again?"

Well having taken it in our stride, we came out of the temple. Then came the long bill by the broker -

Darshan = 5*100 = 500
Lemon Garland = 200 (We dont remember to have seen this)
Flower garland = 200
Panner Bottle = 75 (Luxurious?)
Saree Registration = 100
Coconut + Beetel leaves = 100 (Wow, the best deal?)
Salt & Pepper = 100 (Hmmm... not even organic would cost this much?)
Others = 100 (Wonder what it is?)
Total = Rs. 1375.

After some argument, we were able to settle him for Rs. 1000. Gosh, it was not so enjoyable and cherishable experience, but it is the price one has to pay in these temples. But nevertheless, the POwer that we gained on seeing the Lord, made us to forget all these...

As it was about 2:00 PM, We then decided to proceed towards a good A/C Hotel. The driver took us to Hotel Maayas (near Chathiram Busstand). After a decent lunch, and loads of butter milk, we then proceeded to Woraiyur Vekkaliamman.

Woraiyur Vekkali Amman
http://www.hindupedia.com/en/Talk:Woraiyur_Sri_Vekkali_Amman
http://www.vekkaliammankovil.org/
We lit lamps to Vishnu Durgai and amman, and also offered Saree to Vekkali Amman. The fees for saree is Rs. 7 and special darshan - Rs. 25. We had a very satisfying darshan at this temple as always.

We then proceeded towards our hotel room, and decided to take some rest. After about 6:30 PM, we spent few hours at Femina Shopping Mall, and helped ourselves to some few gift items.

The Return via ABT
We had dinner at our Hotel Cafe, and having settled the hotel bills, our cab driver dropped us at ABTxTravels office. For a 70kms ride, for about 14 hours, the trip had cost us only Rs. 1250.

Our ABT bus to Bangalore arrived at 10:45, and immediately in 5 minutes came the bus to Chennai. We reached Bangalore Silkboard at 5 AM and our parents had reached Tambaram around 4:30 AM.

Upon reflections of the trip, we had satisfying darshans at almost all the temples and our kula dheivam. And the words of Govindan Mama had also come true. Nevertheless, it was a cherishing and renewing experience.

Route Map #1 (Kovilpatti - Sankarankovil - Tiruchendur - Kovilammalpuram - Tirunelveli)

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Route Map #2 (Trichy - Srirangam, Thiruvanaikavil, Samayapuram, Woraiyur)

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Photos Slideshow