I woke up in Bangalore on Saturday morning and was told by the owner of my hotel that I 'won't be leaving Bangalore today'.
He explained that a state-wide Bundh was underway across Karnataka. A Bundh is a general strike in India that occurs fairly rarely and paralyses state transport, shuts down shops and basically brings towns and cities to a standstill. This Bundh had been called because a politician had been banged up, and the rural population, in particular, weren't happy. There were reports of buses being stoned for breaking the picket line, and other outbreaks of violence and arson across the state.
I had a train ticket already booked to Mysore and, knowing my travel plans meant only 24hrs in Mysore, I decided to try my luck with the train. In the event, I saw nothing of the Bundh - and the fact that the roads were a bit more empty meant I got to the station in no time at all. Bundh schmundh.
The Shatabdi Express from Bangalore to Mysore was a fantastic train. Two hours of A/C comfort, with a free meal chucked in:
I arrived in Mysore, finally managed to locate the free driver sent by the hotel and checked in to the basic, but pleasant Suhashini Palace. Bags dumped, and I negotiated a price with a rickshaw driver to take me to a couple of sights. Knowing I had just one afternoon to 'do' Mysore, this was the best way of getting the most out of a fairly sizeable town.
First we went up Chamundhi Hill. Because of the Bundh, all the petrol stations were closed, so my driver explained to me in broken English that whether we made it up to the top of the hill or not was 'in God's hands' - as the fuel gauge showed us to be worringly empty.
We chugged along at about 5mph up 6-7km of bendy road and, praise the Lord for he doth provide petrol, made it to the top without conking out. At the top there was a spangly temple:
And a monkey chewing on a coconut:
One quick 'comedy' snap of me taking the rickshaw reins...
and we rolled back down the hill - stopping for a couple of pics on the way:
Once back in Mysore we passed the zoo, so I asked him to stop while I went and had a look. The poor guy had no petrol to run any more jobs so agreed to wait an hour and a half while I took a walk around the massive zoo. I made sure to tip him at the end of the day.
I'm not overly keen on zoos, and how the animals are cooped up in pens, but to be fair to Mysore Zoo they rescued all the animals from captivity and appeared to be treating them very well. As far as variety goes, the only big beast missing from my list was a polar bear. There were lions, tigers, giraffes, huge bison, crocodiles, hippos and more. Here are some pics:
Following the zoo, Mr Rickshaw was woken from his slumber to drive me to the palace. It's far and away Mysore's biggest tourist draw. I saw it in the daytime, then went and had a lovely Masala Dosa (pancake with potatoes) before returning to see it at night, all lit up with lightbulbs. This lighting-up ceremony only takes place on a Saturday and Sunday between 7-7.30pm so I was really glad my visit coincided with it:
Yesterday, Sunday, I made my way to the bus station to catch my coach to Ooty. Again, more rumours were spreading among locals and backpackers about the Bundh and the chaos it would cause - but we left an hour late, which is nothing in Indian terms.
I really enjoyed the 5hr coach trip, particularly the last couple of hours which was a meandering, sometimes scary, ascent up into the Nilgiri Mountains. We passed tea plantations, saw some incredible views over valleys, and got stuck once or twice negotiating hairpin bends in the face of oncoming traffic:
We arrived in one piece, and stepped out into the crisp air of Ooty at about 6pm.
I found my guesthouse, killed about 10 mosquitos in my room, had a quick bite to eat and a chat and went to bed. This morning I got a first proper look in the light at the guesthouse, and the fantastic view from my room/veranda over Ooty lake. It's a great spot.
I have two full days here so today was spent getting my bearings on a leisurely walk around town. My guidebook map is worse than useless, so I did a lot of getting lost, asking people for directions, and some aimless wandering. And why not.
Ooty was famously 'built' by and used by the British upper classes during the colonial era, and it was interesting to visit St Stephens church and see headstones and plaques in memorial of the British generals who lived and died in the town.
The Ooty of today would be unrecognisable to those generals, with its noisy and chaotic town centre full of chocolate shops, electrical goods emporiums and internet cafes. But away from the commercial centre I found quieter spots, and the fresh mountain air feels really good to breathe after the dust and dirt of Bangalore and Mysore.
Tomorrow I'm going trekking in the mountains, and on Wednesday I'm praying that my 'waitlisted' ticket for the Blue Mountain Railway turns into a 'confirmed' ticket so I can experience one of the most famous rail routes in the world. Fingers crossed!
Some more pics below, with yet more on Flickr at the usual place.
He explained that a state-wide Bundh was underway across Karnataka. A Bundh is a general strike in India that occurs fairly rarely and paralyses state transport, shuts down shops and basically brings towns and cities to a standstill. This Bundh had been called because a politician had been banged up, and the rural population, in particular, weren't happy. There were reports of buses being stoned for breaking the picket line, and other outbreaks of violence and arson across the state.
I had a train ticket already booked to Mysore and, knowing my travel plans meant only 24hrs in Mysore, I decided to try my luck with the train. In the event, I saw nothing of the Bundh - and the fact that the roads were a bit more empty meant I got to the station in no time at all. Bundh schmundh.
The Shatabdi Express from Bangalore to Mysore was a fantastic train. Two hours of A/C comfort, with a free meal chucked in:
I arrived in Mysore, finally managed to locate the free driver sent by the hotel and checked in to the basic, but pleasant Suhashini Palace. Bags dumped, and I negotiated a price with a rickshaw driver to take me to a couple of sights. Knowing I had just one afternoon to 'do' Mysore, this was the best way of getting the most out of a fairly sizeable town.
First we went up Chamundhi Hill. Because of the Bundh, all the petrol stations were closed, so my driver explained to me in broken English that whether we made it up to the top of the hill or not was 'in God's hands' - as the fuel gauge showed us to be worringly empty.
We chugged along at about 5mph up 6-7km of bendy road and, praise the Lord for he doth provide petrol, made it to the top without conking out. At the top there was a spangly temple:
And a monkey chewing on a coconut:
One quick 'comedy' snap of me taking the rickshaw reins...
and we rolled back down the hill - stopping for a couple of pics on the way:
Once back in Mysore we passed the zoo, so I asked him to stop while I went and had a look. The poor guy had no petrol to run any more jobs so agreed to wait an hour and a half while I took a walk around the massive zoo. I made sure to tip him at the end of the day.
I'm not overly keen on zoos, and how the animals are cooped up in pens, but to be fair to Mysore Zoo they rescued all the animals from captivity and appeared to be treating them very well. As far as variety goes, the only big beast missing from my list was a polar bear. There were lions, tigers, giraffes, huge bison, crocodiles, hippos and more. Here are some pics:
 |
| It's a white tiger! Just like the book said... |
Following the zoo, Mr Rickshaw was woken from his slumber to drive me to the palace. It's far and away Mysore's biggest tourist draw. I saw it in the daytime, then went and had a lovely Masala Dosa (pancake with potatoes) before returning to see it at night, all lit up with lightbulbs. This lighting-up ceremony only takes place on a Saturday and Sunday between 7-7.30pm so I was really glad my visit coincided with it:
Yesterday, Sunday, I made my way to the bus station to catch my coach to Ooty. Again, more rumours were spreading among locals and backpackers about the Bundh and the chaos it would cause - but we left an hour late, which is nothing in Indian terms.
I really enjoyed the 5hr coach trip, particularly the last couple of hours which was a meandering, sometimes scary, ascent up into the Nilgiri Mountains. We passed tea plantations, saw some incredible views over valleys, and got stuck once or twice negotiating hairpin bends in the face of oncoming traffic:
We arrived in one piece, and stepped out into the crisp air of Ooty at about 6pm.
I found my guesthouse, killed about 10 mosquitos in my room, had a quick bite to eat and a chat and went to bed. This morning I got a first proper look in the light at the guesthouse, and the fantastic view from my room/veranda over Ooty lake. It's a great spot.
I have two full days here so today was spent getting my bearings on a leisurely walk around town. My guidebook map is worse than useless, so I did a lot of getting lost, asking people for directions, and some aimless wandering. And why not.
Ooty was famously 'built' by and used by the British upper classes during the colonial era, and it was interesting to visit St Stephens church and see headstones and plaques in memorial of the British generals who lived and died in the town.
The Ooty of today would be unrecognisable to those generals, with its noisy and chaotic town centre full of chocolate shops, electrical goods emporiums and internet cafes. But away from the commercial centre I found quieter spots, and the fresh mountain air feels really good to breathe after the dust and dirt of Bangalore and Mysore.
Tomorrow I'm going trekking in the mountains, and on Wednesday I'm praying that my 'waitlisted' ticket for the Blue Mountain Railway turns into a 'confirmed' ticket so I can experience one of the most famous rail routes in the world. Fingers crossed!
Some more pics below, with yet more on Flickr at the usual place.
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| Ooty's commercial hub |
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| Bull On Parade |
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| Coconut time |
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| Botanical gardens, Ooty |
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| Reflections Guest House |