Yesterday, Kelli, Karey, Deb and I ventured to Mysore. Mysore is a city about 3 hours away from Bangalore and our driver drove us for the day. We left our hotel around 7 AM and didn't get back until 9 PM so it was definitely a long day. The drive itself was really interesting, because we passed through many small towns along the way. It was definitely nice to see some of the Karnataka countryside, since we haven't experienced anything except for the city life since we've been here.
On the way to Mysore, we stopped at Dariya Daulat Bagh, which was Tipu Sultan's summer palace. They had an art gallery inside of the building, and every wall and ceiling was painted in really bright colors. It was really pretty, and the gardens surrounding the palace were really nice too. There were many groups of people everywhere, and lots of groups of school children. Since we were some of the only non-Indian tourists everywhere in Mysore, many of the kids (and adults!) were coming up to us to say HI and ask to take pictures. Some asked to take pictures of us and some asked US to take pictures of them (see the picture of the family below). It was definitely an interesting experience!
Apart from the shopping ( we did a lot of it since Mysore is known for its fine silk and fabrics), we also went to a Hindu Temple and the Maharaja's Palace. The temple is called Sri Chamundeswari Temple and it sits on top of a steep hill. It was really pretty and there were tons of people there. We walked through the temple and learned about the Hindu religion, and about some of the things they offer to the gods. It was really interesting because there weren't many tourists there at all, so most people at the temple were there to worship. It was really neat to see, even though we definitely got ripped off by the "guide" that adopted us and walked us through. Oh well - at least he was knowledgeable and we learned some things!
The Maharaja's Palace in Mysore was beautiful. Shankar's friend, Babu, met us at the palace and was our tour guide while we were there (we also ended up getting a little ripped off here, but I guess that is all part of the experience, right?) and he gave us a nice tour.
It was a really fun day and we were able to see a lot. Definitely a nice change from being in the office all day!
We are planning a trip to Agra next weekend to see the Taj Mahal so stay tuned :)
Here are some more pictures from Mysore yesterday....
http://public.fotki.com/mdebacco/mysore-/
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