Sunset on Ramappa lake

About 70 kms from the twin towns of Warangal and Hanamkonda is a village called Palampet which is completely lost in the middle of civilisation. The journey is one of the best I have ever travelled and what is interesting is that there was not a single milestone that will tell me that I am on the right route. The reason I say this is that the 13th century Ramappa Temple in Palampet built by the Kakatiyas is claimed to be a tourist site and there is nothing remotely touristy about it. The lake which is just half a km from the temple is said to as ancient as the temple, created by the Kakatiyas as well. It is like an earthen dam which is about 2000 feet long and it forms a lake around the hills . And there is a lake shore temple there as well.

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by Jour ~ Thursday, October 30, 2008 0 comments

Moissac Cloister

The magnificent cloister of Moissac Abbey in southwest France is the oldest and largest cloister with narrative capitals in existence. Completed in 1100 AD, it contains 76 capitals plus marble pillar reliefs of apostles. Forty-six of the capitals depict narrative scenes from the Bible or the lives of the saints. Unfortunately nearly all human faces have been smashed by iconclasts, but the rest is

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by Jour ~ Monday, October 27, 2008 0 comments

Bandipur-going wild

Here is a wild adventure this Deepavali. An elephant chase in Bandipur . Well,I am not going to post it here .Read more about this wild excapade in CLAY(Club Mahindra and You) a corporate blog of Club Mahindra where I am a guest writer. It is a great initiative by Club Mahindra which wants to promote travel , travel blogging and travel bloggers , so if you wish to be a guest writer , please do let me know.

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Deepavali Wishes

Happy Deepavali to all of you..please have a noiseless Deepavali..The best thing I like about Deepavali is having an oil bath and eating a lot of "bakshanam" or savouries like murukku and mixture which are typically South indian ..and I love lighting lamps..Here are two traditional pictures, one from a typical Coorg home and another at the Big temple at Thanjavur which showcases the spirit of the moment.

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by Jour ~ Sunday, October 26, 2008 0 comments

Warangal - a sneak preview

A sneak preview into the historic past of the old city , Warangal. The fort built by the Kakatiya rulers in the 12 century. The four Keerti Toranas (gateways of glory )which symbolise Kakatiyas architecture still stand today in the four directions...More than 30 feet high, these stone gateways enclose many sculptures and pillars ..more on this in a few days


Pls do click on the snaps to see them in their original size

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Visiting the twin cities Hyderabad and Secunderabad

I am in the twin cities after almost a year and a half. My most memorable trip here was when I was here when I launched a media product here a couple of years ago ..and my trips gradually stopped after I left my job .The Charminar has always been one of my favourites and I strolled along the vibrant lanes of the Bangle Bazaar and shopped till I dropped..

Well, I havent had the biriyani as yet and I am off to Warangal today, an ancient town and probably the capital of the Kakatiyas who ruled here ...one of my most impulsive and unplanned trips. I dont even have a roof tonight over my head and I need to figure that out once I get there ..see you next week and have a great Deepavali if I dont see you guys before that..

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by Jour ~ Thursday, October 23, 2008 0 comments

Tournus Abbey Church

New on Sacred Destinations: the magnificent Abbey Church of St. Philibert in Tournus, France. One of many fine Romanesque churches in Burgundy, this was built mostly in the 11th century and has all kinds of interesting things to see. Click photos for captions, learn more in the detailed new article or just go straight to the big photo gallery.

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by Jour ~ Tuesday, October 21, 2008 0 comments

Magnificent Medieval Art

Medieval art is one of my favorite things about Europe's churches and cathedrals. I've been working with photos of medieval art quite a bit lately, so you can now explore the following places in detail on Sacred Destinations:One of the beautiful early-1200s stained glass windows of Chartres Cathedral in France. Shown above is the month of February, symbolized by a man warming up by the fire, in

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by Jour ~ Friday, October 17, 2008 0 comments

India through my eyes - carrots in kodaikanal

We were passing through this idyllic village called Mannavannur near Kodaikanal looking for a lake ..it was an agricultural belt and the terrace farms looked inviting..we did not see anyone and then in a green corner, we found four men "cleaning" the carrots they had harvested..the carrots were left lying near a small stream and the men would then do a little dance on them, rubbing them with the soles of their feet ,probably kicking them a bit as well and then packing them into little sacks that were later sold in the market..I did not have a video camera..so here are the pictures..



This post is dedicated to Jeevan who reminded me regarding the Kodai post..will be putting up a longer one soon

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Stuck at home with itchy feet

I am stuck at home as I am broke..no money to fly or stay in a decent hotel and all trains are running full.So am currently looking for sponsors and well wishers and good ideas to travel without spending much.I write for a living and so if any magazine or website out there wishes me to travel to Kerala or Kumbakonam in exchange for a story, I am game. Hope some resort or hotel owners out there are listening as well and will show me some hospitality in return for some publicity. This weekend has been particularly disappointing. Four destinations were planned and they all remained in the planning stage only . Next week seems to be going the same way . So, here I am sitting and looking at my old pictures and feeling nostalgic

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by Jour ~ Wednesday, October 15, 2008 0 comments

India through my eyes - What the Gods eat !

Grams sold outside the Azhagar (Alagar )temple dedicated to Vishnu near Madurai . This is bought by devotees and served to the Gods.. I asked why and no one answered..

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by Jour ~ Friday, October 10, 2008 0 comments

New City Pages, Plus Hildesheim and St. Cecilia

I've started to upgrade the layout of the city pages on Sacred Destinations. This will be a long-term project that I won't do all at once, but so far Ephesus and Rome are available for your perusal: www.sacred-destinations.com/italy/romewww.sacred-destinations.com/turkey/ephesusHope you like it! Let me know if you don't. Comments are always welcome.And there are a couple new articles and photo

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by Jour ~ Tuesday, October 7, 2008 0 comments

Travel plans - Can you guess this destination ?

I did not travel anywhere in September . And October has been disappointing as travel plans were altered or canceled. I had already dropped out of two trips that were scheduled to happen this month and finally even today's plans got altered - a simple day trip. But an impulsive decision at 12.30 pm this afternoon took me to the above mentioned destination, a place where I have been wanting to go for ages - any guesses

Update - The guessing game is over and the answer is simple..all you need to do is to click on the picture and it will tell you the location. This Nandi is also the tallest Nandi sculpture in the country. I am talking about Lepakshi...

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by Jour ~ Saturday, October 4, 2008 0 comments