Mangalore Udupi

Itinerary :- Bangalore to Mangalore by overnight Bus (Sugama Travels - booked via Redbus)
Hotel :- Stayed at the Hotel Mangalore International (booked via Tipadvisor)
Going Around: The hotel arranged a car with reasonable rates ( Rs 1000 for 8 hours or charge per kilometre whichever is higher)
Mangalore to Bangalore by overnight Train ( booked via IRCTC)

Details:- We reached Mangalore early morning around 8 AM. Our hotel had a 24 hour checkin/checkout facility hence had no problems in getting into the hotel.
The hotel provided us a guide book which showed which are the places to see along with the approximate distances.

Saturday :
Mangalore to Bekal Fort ( 65 kms) by car-> Bekal Fort is a huge fort in Kerala. The road condition was bad, it took almost 2 hours to cover this stretch. The ideal time to visit would be early in the morning or late afternoon. It is right on the shores of Arabian Sea and is a treat to watch if its not too hot. It is maintained by ASI(Archaeological Survey of India) and there is an entry fee of Rs 5 per person(Rs 100 for foreigners) plus camera fees of Rs 25.
One can get a good view of Arabian sea from here. It is one the perfect places to be in on a moonlit night(pity it closes after 6pm).
There is a small temple at the entrance of the Fort. Together it will take at least a couple of hours minimum to enjoy the fort and the beach just opposite to it.
There is a resort outside the fort. One can have lunch and dinner at this place. The resort serves special fish fry. The prices are slightly steep but the resort is a nice place to relax after a trip of the fort.

On our way back we went to Someshwara Beach. There is a temple at this place also. It is not one of the popular beaches for swimming. But its a nice place to sit down and watch the sea and the sunset.

Kadri park -> This is a small park. Probably a toy train used to run in the past , but there were no signs of that any more. This is an afternoon/evening joggers or lovers park.

Lighthouse and Tagore Park-> This is again a small park and has a dilapidated lighthouse building associated with it. Probably in the past one could watch the sea or sunset from here. But when we went we found it had residential apartments and a hypermarket(Spar) right next to it and it was hardly noteworthy.

City Centre -> This is right next to Spar on K.S. Rao road. It is almost in front of our hotel. We thought about going to KFC for dinner. But finally gave up the idea. We were too bored of malls.

We had dinner at a small bar cum restaurant called 'Cellar' right on K.S. Rao road. We crossed a wonderful procession which seemed like an inauguration of a shopping centre.




Sunday:
We started early on Sunday. It was our day to have the complementary breakfast. The hotel (Mangalore International) has a small kitchen on the first floor where they prepare the stuff.
We had Masala Dosa and coffee. There were other items available like Upma and idli.

After checking out of the hotel we started for UDUPI. Its about 70 kms from Mangalore, and it took around 1.5 hours to reach there.
Krishna Temple at Udupi -> This is a wonderful temple right in the heart of the city. There is a lot of innovation work going on around the temple. We went around the temple to see the different altars. Photography was not allowed in most of the inner parts so there are very few pictures.
Inside the temple building there is a small market selling all different kinds of stuff. I bought some idols made of wood.
There is a handsome elephant just like many other temples. Although the mahaut was not letting anyone take a picture of the beast I managed to take one (couldn't resist) . The elephant seemed healthy and happy.

Malpe Beach near Udupi -> This is a nice beach in Udupi. It has got a perfect slope and lots of people enjoyed the Sunday with a swim here. Although it was pretty hot even in december , there were motor boat rides, speed boat rides available. The motor boat ride was to a small island called St. Mary's Island which can be seen from the mainland.

The Malpe beach has a small hotel and some coco-huts right next to the beach. The Hotel serves all types of food , but no special seafood. One can only get fish fry at reasonable rates. The beach is quite clean and one can go and sit around in the late afternoon or evening.

Penambur Beach + Mangalore Port -> This is another beach , near to Mangalore. It has hardly got any shelters nearby. There were a few bathers but the sea was rough and the coast guard was whistling continuously to get people nearer to the shore.
We watched a huge ship cruise its way into the port from this beach.

Sultan Battery -> This is a small dome shaped structure of the size of a badminton court right across the river banks. It offers a nice view of the river.

Pabbas Ice Cream-> After a long day of sightseeing this is a good place to hangout. A decent place with decent prices this offers some very good ice cream and snacks. A good place for kids too.

Omkar Temple -> This is another temple founded by several MPs and other important persons in the last few decades. It is mainly a Shiva temple and is a nice place to go in the evening.

Our trip ended and the car dropped us at Mangalore Central Railway station. ( We had to go back to the hotel. One of our friends forgot shampoos and stuff which were kept in the reception. The Hotel was a bit old and non-AC rooms had mosquitoes, but overall its a decent hotel).

RAMESHWARAM , MADURAI

This weekend I've been to Madurai and Rameshwaram, both are wonderful places. This was the itinerary.

Bangalore -> Salem -> Madurai
Madurai -> Rameswaram (600 kms)

Return from Rameswaram -> Pudukottai -> Tiruchirapally (Trichi) -> Salem -> Bangalore
The roads are excellent. But keep your purse ready as there are 5 tolls on this road.

Places to see in Madurai:- Meenakshi Temple
Places to see in Rameswaram :- Ramanathaswamy Temple, Pamban Bridge , Dhanuskodi

Places to stay in Rameswaram:- There are few good hotels, so it is advised to book before going.
We stayed at a hotel called "Hotel Sunrise View" for 1600 Rs for a double bed room. The hotel is located right at the front of the main temple.
There is another hotel , TTDC ( owned by Govt of Tamil Nadu) at the far end of the Rameswaram beach drive. This hotel location is serene and away from the busy market. Room rents range from Rs 675 onwards.
One needs AC during day time because its pretty hot in Rameswaram , but after evening its very cool and pleasant.
Very few people actually stay in Rameswaram, it is evident by the number of public toilets available.

Where to eat in Rameswaram :- There are few quality restaurants in Rameswaram. Also non-veg restaurants are practically non existent in this pilgrimage centre. There is a nice Gujarati Bhojanalaya with very good food.

How to go around in Rameswaram:- There are a few places to see around Rameswaram. The best way to travel is by Auto. Auto drivers take around Rs 250 for a auto ride around 8 different places to see. They also double up as guides. There are big autos which can easily accommodate 6 to 8 persons.
Dhanuskodi , known as the death City is 18 km from Rameswaram. One has to take a different vehicle like a jeep or mini truck ( with 4 wheel drive) to go to see the Dhanuskodi beach.
These vehicles charge Rs 80 per head if they can fill up the vehicle or Rs 900 (for jeep) or Rs 1600(for truck ) flat rate if you book the vehicle completely. These extremely primitive vehicles keep their engines running when they are in Dhanuskodi , maybe a superstition , maybe the engines are so rotten that they wouldn't start without a push.



Beware: Both Madurai and Rameswaram have changed a lot over the years. There is a lot of renovation done in these temples , but some of this is done very badly. Like they have painted the ceilings and some pillars in childish ways which take away the charm of the temple so sacred for hundreds of years.
Foreigners always had to pay 10 times extra for the entry fee and camera fees. Instead of trying to get rid of this hypocritical policy it seemed to have increased several times. There are new stuffs like "Special Darshans " at special prices.