It is Thursday and my last day in India for this trip.  Today we are going to Mysore.  I have been there once before with a specific agenda, but today, not so much.

We left a little late this morning as we were waiting for a confirmation call about our appointment in Mysore.  Having not received one, we decided to go anyway and just see what the day would bring.

It looked to be another beautiful day, so even if we just take the drive and hang out in the city for a few hours, I would consider it a great success.

Punchamukhi Ganesha Temple-is slightly outside of the city, on the Bangalore-Mysore Highway.  It is one of the more recently built Ganesha Temples.  This temple has a large gold Ganesha statue on top, and is five faced so that Ganesha can be seen from any direction.  The temple also has an entrance in all four directions. On the inside of the temple there is another large stone statue of Ganesha, carved entirely out of black stone.

I love the great big road signs that drape across the roads. You definitely know where you are going!

For all my Pepsico clients, here is the Pepsi plant…love the big bottle.

This is just one of the many American businesses you see in India.

There are many little towns between Bangalore and Mysore.  One of my favorites is “Silk Town or Silk City”.  Maybe because I love silk, maybe because I had such an awesome experience the last time I was here.  (Go to: silk worm blog ) Ramanagar is a town of about 80,000 people and is famous for its sericulture (the raising of silk worms for the production of raw silk). The silk produced in this region forms the input for the famous Mysore Silk.  Ramanagar is the largest market for silk cocoons in Asia.  50 tons a cocoon a day arrive at the town. Here is the sign as we are leaving town.

As we get back on the road to Mysore I have to say that the road itself is quite nice.  There are lots of speed bumps, however, which keep the traffic at a slow speed for most of the trip.

Oh and did I mention the traffic is like in London, backwards! Or at least to us Americans it seems as if the traffic is backwards.

Here we see a large load of coconuts on the way to market, a familiar scene in every area of southern India that I have visited so far.

Manjus Tea stall looked like an interesting place, but Darshan would not let me try foods from any of the roadside spots.

After I took this picture of these lovely ladies out for a walk, I noticed how big the saree sign looked next to them.  Not sure why the signs are all so big.  I guess because they can be.

A healthy crop of sugar cane not yet harvested.  Remember we just came from Eastern India where they had already harvested their sugar cane crops.  This looks pretty ready to go though.

Srirangapatna is the next town that we come to.  Its importance was not brought to my attention by my guides, which seems odd, however upon researching it for this blog I have found it to be very important for many reasons.  The city sits on an island surrounded by the Kaveri River.  While the main river flows on the eastern side of the island, the Paschima Vaahini segment of the same river flows to its west.

The town takes its name from the celebrated Ranganathswamy temple which dominates the town, making Srirangapattana one of the most important Vaisnavite centers of pilgrimage in south India.  The temple was built by the Ganga dynasty rulers of the area in the 9th century; the structure was strengthened and improved upon architectually some three centeries later, thus, the temple is a medley of the Hoysala and Vijayanagar styles of temple architecture.

Tradition holds that all the islands formed in the Kaveri River are consecrated to Sri Ranganathaswamy, and large temples have been built in very ancient times dedicated to that deity on the three largest islands.  These three towns, which constitute the main pilgrimage centers dedicated to Ranganathaswamy are: Adi Ranga-at Srirangapattana, Madhya Ranga-at Shivansamudra, and Antya Ranga-at Srirangam

On the outskirts of Mysore I notice this modern looking house (much different than the houses I have seen so far in India).

Then just beyond the house is this field with the traditional bull-cart and workers.

As we enter Mysore, we begin to look for the Yoga studio I am supposed to have an appointment at.

Thinking we are here, I go to the door and am greeted by a house guest of the teacher. Embarrassed, I am told this is not her studio, but her home.

We drive around the corner and there is the studio.  We inquire about my appointment and am told the teacher has taken ill and that I would not be able to see her.  I was bummed but it explained why she had not confirmed the appointment.

I guess I will have to try again the next time I am in Mysore.

I did however meet Mr. B Naga Kumar who arranges the housing for those coming to study in Mysore.  So all was not lost.

Now having some extra time on our hands, I pulled my list of what I did not get to see the last time I was here.  First stop, the first Yoga Studio of Krishnamacharya. We head back past the South Western Railway station.

It was on the other side of town, so we had to drive through the busy streets.

There were tons of motorcycles here, but it only made sense, as it was a smaller town and the roads were narrow with no where to park.

The vegetable and fruits stands were busy as lunch was in full swing.

I was so hungry we stopped to eat at a small restaurant in a hotel just off the main square.

Loved this picture of the guy with his pineapples!

Back in the car we again head towards the first yoga studio of Krishnamacharyas.

At the junction of Albert Victor Road and Ashoka Road, popularly known as Sri Jaya Chamarajendra Circle or New Statue Circle, stands the statue of Maharaja Chamarajendar Wodeyar, 23rd Maharaja of Mysore. Sculpted by the eminent French sculptor, William Robert Colton, this statue stands in a pavilion which is covered by a golden plated cupola supported by carved bracketed columns. Sculpted in white Italian marble, the maharaja is portrayed in standing posture wearing his full military gear. Before bringing the statue to India, it was displayed at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. Though William Robert Colton spent around three months sculpting this statue, the Maharajah’s wife was not happy with the final result as the face of the statue did not resemble the Maharaja. The head of the statue was replaced with a new one in 1920, this time sculpted by the Mumbai sculptor Ganpatrao K Mhatre.

The statue was vandalized and the sword was taken away, later to be replaced by a new sword made in white Rajasthani marble.

Finally we arrive at the Jagan Mohan Palace, now home of the Shri Jayachamarajendra Art Gallery.  This palace (one of seven palaces in Mysore) was built in 1861 by Mummadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar and was the main residence of the royal family while the present majestic Mysore Palace (Amba Vilas Palace) was under construction after the old palace turned into ashes due to a fire.  As I have mentioned before, I wanted to visit here because this was the space that the king had given to Krishnamacharya to house his Yoga School.  Walking through this palace’s three floors, I imagined how this must have been set up as a Yoga School.  It must have been incredible.

Now as an art gallery, there were many beautiful paintings, but unfortunately, the palace was not well kept and it was sad to see the beauty of the paintings in ill repair.

Having left the palace, next on my list was to buy some silk.  You can’t come to Mysore without at least being tempted! So we head to the downtown square.

It was early afternoon, but the crowds we still as big as at lunch.

This picture was taken from the center of town where there is a big round-about with hundreds of vendors selling off the ground as well as shops.

Behind this gentleman you can see a gazebo type structure that is sitting in the middle of the square pictured above.

This cilantro was magnificent as was the other fruits and veggies I saw. These men are so attentive and ready to sell their produce.

This lady was selling banana leaves (used for plates) and sugar cane.

Lots of wheeling and dealing going on!

Party city?

And I love that they used the same architecture look as the palace for their downtown center.

The coffee shop! Not quite Starbucks but I am sure as good.

This yellow cow just walking down the street!

Again the cow just hanging out!

Then there were the flower shops! The flowers…so fragrant, the colors just jumping up at you.

Strung flowers for placing over your doorway.

Everyone wanting to sell their products.

The colors are magnificent and it is so refreshing to see how many ways they use flowers in India.

On our way out of town, my guide made sure we went by the Catholic Cathedral.

Exhausted and excited to get back for dinner with Mike my husband and his colleagues, I was still a little sad to be leaving Mysore.

As we get closer and closer to Bangalore, we begin again to see the big, giant bill boards for beautiful gold jewelry.

The next morning at 4 am we head back to the airport to return to London and then home.

Thanks so much for following me on this, my second trip to India.  Watch for trip #3 this October and of course the many blogs between now and then.

Check them out at www.thebalancedyogi.com.

If you are wanting to start a yoga practice, or finetune or advance your practice now, I am always available for private yoga lessons or Ayurvedic Consultations. Until next time.

Namaste, Peggy