the light baggage

Overview: Suraj Kund, as the name suggests, is a reservoir which was dedicated to Sun God. Built in the 10th century in what is a part of the old city of Delhi and belongs to the state of Haryana. Situated on the banks of the Aravalis, the base of the reservoir measures about 130m in diameter, and it expands as we go upwards. The entire structure resembles a Roman amphitheater, and it resembles the rising Sun when viewed from the top. The Southern part resembles the temples of Mexico, which were also built for the Sun God. The reservoir was originally built by the Tomar kings in the 10th century, who were known to worship the Sun God. Though many theories exist behind the name of the reservoir, almost all of them date this back to pre- 10th century. The place is not very far from the Lal Kot, or Kila Rai Pithora, which was built by Prithviraj Chauhan, one of the last Hindu kings of Delhi. Suraj Kund Suraj Kund Suraj Kund Qila Rai Pithora Suraj Kund, view...

  Overview: A visit to any dam/reservoir whenever the water level is up is really good as we experienced during our trip to Tungabhadra reservoir in Hospet. The dam gates were open and water was gushing out from all the gates. The garden was also well maintained and the reservoir behind the dam resembled an ocean. Also we could see water all around us even on our drive back from Hospet.   How to reach: Bus: KSRTC buses ply frequently from Bangalore to Hospet. By Car: Travel towards NH4 and at Chitradurga, turn right on NH 13 to reach Hospet. Food/Accommodation: Accommodation is available for all budgets in Hospet. Map: View Larger Map

  Overview: Having nothing much to do over a weekend, we thought of visiting a regular picnic spot near Bangalore, the Kanva reservoir. Its one of the favourite places for the bikers as one gets to go down till the mouth of the water. We thought of a family outing so we set off in our car. We had to take a right turn near Channapatna towards Kanva. The roads at that time were not in a very great condition. As it was just the beginning of the monsoons, there was very little water in the reservoir. We went to the Dam and enjoyed the scenic view of the surrounding hills. The water was looking crystal clear and the reflections from the sky gave it a blue look. It was a Sunday so we could see decent crowd at the place. Though there is nothing much to see at Kanva, one can be lucky enough to spot a few good birds. After spending a while near the reservoir, we headed back towards Bangalore. On the way back, we visited the Kengal Hanumantha temple at Kengal.     ...

Venugopalaswamy Temple, KRS: Hidden gem in the backyard Overview: I would like to dedicate this entire blog to one place which, at one sight, attracts you with its beauty. It is the Venugopalaswamy temple near KRS backwaters in Hosa Kannambadi village. The story starts with the village itself before the Krishnarajasagara dam was constructed in 1930. There used to be a village named Kannambadi with this temple built by the Hoysalas in the 12th Century. The villagers were asked to vacate their place due to the construction of the dam and subsequently the whole village was submerged under the KRS waters. Every year the water used to recede in the summers and a part of the temple used to become visible from the south side of the backwaters. A new village was built just besides the old one and was named 'Hosa Kannambadi'. There was an initiative taken by the Khodays group to reassemble the whole temple on the banks of the river in Hosa Kannambadi. For this many experts were called...

Overview : Savanadurga is known for big monolith and is a popular destination for rock climbing around Bangalore. It is located around 75 kms from Bangalore and can be reached via Magadi road or Mysore road. Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple stands at the foothills which is frequented by many pilgrims. The temple is pretty old and is well maintained.    The trekking/rock climbing trail starts amidst the bushes just next to the temple. Initial 15 minutes look pretty easy with not much challenge. Its better to ask the locals for the route in the beginning as it is very difficult to climb down from such awkward position. The climb can get really steep at times and one has to maintain will power to overcome such challenges. The half way mark is a brick wall probably a part of the fort built by the Kempegowda rulers. Further ascent managable with a few difficult stages. Once the final Nandi is visible from a distance which is the summit of the rock, one has to climb down a few...