Yatri Yadien: village

Showing posts with label village. Show all posts

January 11, 2019

My TripAdvisor Review No.418: Thariode, Wayanad, Kerala.

Rural Wayanad.

Thariode is a pretty little village in rural Wayanad, about 10 kms from Vythiri and Kalpetta, on the route to Banasura Dam. It is surrounded by hills with plenty of greenery and tea gardens. There are many temples, churches and mosques in the town, and all the communities live in perfect harmony.

We passed the impressive looking St. Mary’s Church, and clicked a snap with my cellphone. It is a model rural town of Wayanad, with an idyllic setting surrounded by nature, and there are many resorts and home-stays nearby. Maybe we will stay at one of them on our next visit to Wayanad.

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Date of experience: December 2018

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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC

January 1, 2019

My TripAdvisor Review No.408: Belavadi, Chikmagalur District, Karnataka.

Sleepy Village With Amazing Temples.

Belavadi is a sleepy village about 12 km from Halebeedu, and 29 km from Chikmagalur, in the Indian state of Karnataka. This small village has two amazing temples, the Veeranarayana Temple, which is one of the largest Hoysala temple monuments, and a Ganapati temple, the main deity of which is known as the Udhbhava Ganapati. Both these temples are worth visiting. Belavadi village is also said to be the place where the Pandava prince Bhima killed the demon Bakasura and protected the village and its people.

The Veeranarayana Temple is more than 800 years old and was built by the Hoysala King, Veera Ballala II. While the temples at Belur and Halebeedu are known for their sculptures, this temple is known more for its architecture. This is a three shrine Vaishnava temple with images of Lord Vishnu in three different avatars, Sri Veeranarayana, Sri Venugopala and Sri Yoganarasimha. The temple pujari himself guided us around the temple and helped us have a nice darshan. The temple is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India.

We then walked down to the Udhbava Ganpati Temple, a couple of hundred metres from the Veeranarayana temple. It is a small Ganpati temple, with a natural rock formation in the shape of a Ganapati which has manifest itself (swayambhu), and is still growing slowly (udhbava). Here also the temple priest helped us have a good darshan and performed a puja for us. This temple is maintained by the Sri Shankaracharya Mutt of Sringeri.

There are many other smaller temples dotting the village. The atmosphere of the village is calm and serene, with many trees and farms surrounding it. The villagers were busy with their farming and processing activities, and taking their livestock down for grazing. I could not resist the temptation to take some pictures of the quaint but clean little village of Belavadi.

Many tourists visit the main temples of Belur and Halebeedu, but very few care to visit Belavadi, firstly because it is a bit off the main tourist circuit, and secondly very few know about it. So there are no crowds at Belavadi, and we got a very good experience of the peaceful village life in Karnataka.

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Date of experience: December 2018

April 10, 2018

My TripAdvisor Review No.302: Aihole, Bagalkot District, Karnataka.

Cradle of Hindu Rock Arcitecture.

Aihole is a remote village in the Bagalkot district of North Karnataka, lying next to the Malaprabha River.

We visited the ancient rock and cave temples of Badami, Pattadakal and Aihole over three days, making Badami as our base. We drove to Aihole village (35 km from Badami), then stopped at Pattadakal (22 km from Badami) on the way back. The road between Pattadakal and Aihole was in a miserable condition, and overnight rain had made some patches most difficult to navigate. Still, I would say that the majesty and beauty of the temples at Aihole made it all worth it.

We visited only the main temple complex, also known as the Durga Temple Complex, at Aihole, which encloses about seven major monuments. None of these temples were in active worship, so we did not have to take off our shoes to enter. Besides the Durga Temple there was the Suryanarayana temple, the Lad Khan temple, Gaudargudi temple, Chakragudi temple, the Badigargudi temple, and a large stepwell with a small Hindu shrine. The Aihole Museum and Art Gallery is also housed in this complex, with well preserved pieces of statues and temple art.

The Jyotirlinga Temple complex was located across the road near the parking lot in a walled compound. They were small to medium Shiva shrines but mostly in ruins.

There are more than about 100 other temples and caves in Aihole, but we only saw them in passing because of lack of time and difficulty of walking in the sludge and slush caused by the rain. We saw the Triyambakeshwara temple which was in Aihole village, and the Kuntigudi complex. We did not venture to climb the Meguti Hill, with a Jain Temple; neither did we climb up to the Ravana Pahadi Cave.

The temples and rock cut caves of Aihole, Pattadakal and Badami showcase the evolution and fusion of North and South Indian styles of Architecture. Whereas most of the evidence has been destroyed in North India, here in Aihole you can still witness how it evolved in between the 4th and 8th centuries CE. No wonder that Aihole has been nick named as the ‘Cradle of Indian Temple Architecture’.

It is better to visit early in the morning to avoid the mid-day heat. There is a token entry fee of Rs.30 for Indians. Architecture and History buffs can spend the whole day at Aihole, and still not be satisfied.