Prelude
Well... setting out to post a blog after a loooooong time... my postings on a blog till now was as frequent as our PM's musings.. but after going through such a blissful break just after a period of extreme emotional upheaval and in the midst of hectic and frustrating work schedule, I couldn't just resist from sharing those blissful moments spent with family. Most important is the location where we experienced these moments... Its our very own malenaadu "Shivamogga". At times we just decide something out of intuition without much deliberation and it turns out to be the best decision and so was the decision to tour shivamogga without giving any second thought.
Drawing parallel with UPA just doesn't seem to end... just like how the elite people at helm in Delhi run the government, this trip lacked effective planning. Missed on booking train tickets, delayed booking hotels/resorts and was totally clueless on how we are going to make it. However the proverbial plan "B" (which was never made!!) worked.. Managed to get an Innova to fit our not so small but happy family and surprise surprise!!! managed to get cost free accommodation at a guest house in shimoga for two nights and literally managed a last minute booking in one of the home stay near Teerthahalli for a night.
Day 1
After a heavy breakfast at thindi mane, we drove towards shivamogga with a stopover at Beerur for a lunch at "kana(ha)vali". Just as we reached shivamogga we just drove towards Gajnur dam with google navigator directing us accurately. Though its a small dam built over river tunga, its a picturesque place and an ideal location for a short visit.
Link to Gajnur Dam snaps
As it was getting dark we ended the day with a visit to Gajnur dam and we then just reached the guest house, which was pleasantly comfortable and apt for us. However we had to manage dinner outside and we made the most of it by having sumptuous dinner at Tiger Trail @ Royal Orchid.
Day 2
After managing to get every one up and ready, we left the guest house, headed to Hotel Samrat Ashok for a decent breakfast (neat and decent place for food without reducing the weight of your wallet). Day 2's prime target was "JOGA Jalaptha" and the drive from Shivamogga to Sagar was amazing with intermittent showers, greenery all around and pure malnaad visuals soothing our strained and battered nerves. Had a brief stop at Sagar for tea and straight away headed to JOG.
Well nature had its own plan and it was raining continuously at JOG and what we could see was mist all over and the waterfalls seemed to have vanished just like the UPA's manifesto after election.
Though disappointed initially, we had a glimmer of hope that it might just get clearer and JOG may unveil itself for us who have travelled all the way after such "precise" planning & all... It did unveil itself for a brief period of 10 precious minutes. Flow of water wasn't as huge as we wanted it to be, but the sight of sharavathi plunging to the ground from a height of 830 ft was just breath taking. With mist playing hide and seek for a while, we managed to download the beautiful sight into our minds and eyes as much as possible before the rains brought the curtains down. It was a brief show and am sure I will be back there again for the full "picture" in future.
Link for Jog album :
Next stop of day 2 was varadahalli- shridara swami ashrama.. located very near to sagar, Its a holy shrine established by Shri shridhara swami.. who is said to be in Samadhi at this very location. Its situated atop a hillock and the place is very serene, environs are calm and spiritual. Best part is they serve food for all, which is simple but very satisfying. They serve food in steel plates and people are required wash their plates and tumblers after lunch, which is a very sensible practice.
Sigandhur was our next destination, but had to drop as it was late and we had settle for visit to a wildlife safari at tavarekoppa near shivamogga town ( had to yield for immense demand from Juniors in our family). Nothing much to say about this "sapari"... pictures speak for themselves..
Had our dinner at Samrat Ashok (again) before hitting the sack at guest house.
Link for Varadahalli and Tavrekoppa wildlife safari
Day 3
Checked out from Guest house in the morning and headed to Hotel Panchami (not recommended) for breakfast and proceeded towards sakkrebailu elephant camp. Kids did have a great time at watching the elephants, while we weren't left behind as we enjoyed giving a scrub to the pachyderms.
Boating was stopped due to high levels of water, but we just enjoyed the greenery ,water and jumbos there. After sakkrebailu , enroute to theerthahalli we stopped at Mandagadddhe a bird sanctuary (not as big as ranganathittu) but we could spot many birds r(n)esting in the trees amidst water. Was able to click some interesting shots here. check it out..
Devangi Athithya &Kuppali
We had no idea about the home stay that we were headed to and were hoping that we don't end up thinking it would have been better to "stay home". We took a leap of faith and drove to a small village named "Devangi" few Kms after Teerthahalli. After few calls and enquiries we were able to locate a quaint and unassuming Home stay tucked away in the inner circles of malenaadu.
Delightfully, host was very courteous, warm in welcoming us and led us to the first floor of a relatively newly constructed block which housed rooms consisting comfortable beds, TV, balcony, attached batch and yes a set of dainty wooden stairs leading to a cute little Attic with beds. This family at village Devangi has an impressive history and heritage attached to them and were well connected to wodeyars at some point of time. In fact the late father of Mr. Manu Dev (owner) is brother in law of rashtra kavi "Kuvempu". A tastefully designed resting area with sofas ,collection of books and attached to it is a common dining area which facilitates buffet, its all simple yet appealing.
Food served there was really tasty, neat and absolutely had no ill effects on intestines.
Menu for lunch
Malnaad style idli (kadubu), saagu, anna, saaru (with a tinge of garlic), bisibelebath, shavige paisa, curds....ishtu iddaga... swargakke kichu hachenda sarvagna.....
Glimpses of Devangi Athitya
For more details on this homestay, you can browse thru http://www.travelmalnad.com/
After zabardast batting we all just rested for some time and then turned our wheels towards "Kuppalli" birth place of ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರಕವಿ ಕುವೆಂಪು ... ಕುಪ್ಪಳಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕುವೆಂಪುರವರ ಮನೆ ಮತ್ತು ಅವರಿಗೆ ಸ್ಪೂರ್ತಿದಾಯಕವಾದ ಸ್ಥಳ ಇದೆ. ಅತಿ ರಮಣೇಯವಾದ ಜಾಗ ಮತ್ತೆ ಮನಸ್ಸಿಗೆ ತೀರ ಸಂತೋಷ ಉಂಟು ಮಾಡೋ ಜಾಗ. ಅವರ ಮನೇನಾ museum ತರಾ ಮಾಡಿ, ಸಾಂಪ್ರದಾಯಕವಾದ ಮಲೆನಾಡಿನ ಮನೆ ರೀತಿ ರೂಪಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ.
ಕುವೆಂಪುರವರ ಸಮಾಧಿ ಇರೋ ಜಾಗ ಮಾತ್ರ ಅತ್ಯದ್ಭುತ . ಕವಿಶೈಲ ಅಂತ ಪ್ರಶಸ್ತವಾಗಿ ಹೆಸರಿಟ್ಟಿದ್ದಾರೆ .
ಬೇಡ ಜಾಸ್ತಿ ಮಾತು. ಆ ಜಾಗ ನೋಡಿ ಆನಂದಿಸಿ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಸ್ಥಳದಲ್ಲೇ ಕೂತು....
After a quick visit to a mallikarjuna swamy temple in a place called mrugavadhe in the evening we ended an eventful day 3 with dinner at Devangi Athithya..
Day 4
Wary of this being the last day of this trip and after a good sleep over night got up lazily in the morning and it was still drizzling. Had a hot cup of proper coffee and followed it up with a small walk just outside the home stay. Bid good bye to hosts of the home stay and proceeded to seek blessings of sri sringeri sharadamba. Visit to temples, prayers and prasada bhojana brought us to the end of a trip which was successful in refuelling the energies, recharging our jaded batteries and refilling the much needed fresh air and bliss into our bodies and souls.
ಮುಂಗಾರು, ಮಲೆನಾಡು ಹಾಲು ಜೇನಿನ ಮಿಲನ
ಮೈ ಮನಗಳು ಪುಳಕಿತಗೊಂಡು ಸಾರ್ಥಕವಾಯಿತು ಜೀವನ
While travelling back to Bangalore.. watched a beautiful kannada movie Mynaa... so can u guess the next monsoon destination......?????
Its definitely the "Doodh Sagar Falls......... " (colorfulllll)
Arrey wah, super blog Ramz. Could visualise every bit of your narration. A well deserved break that was for all of you. Looking forward to your next blogs
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