Sydney Series - Arrived on a stormy evening

We flew with Singapore Airlines from Bangalore to Sydney, and got about 80 SGD as gift, because we had opted for a round trip with SG Airlines, to shop at SG airport. Yay!

We arrived at Sydney on a stormy, rainy evening. Our cab driver was a talkative person; he briefed us about the city, the pubs and the gay pubs, and voiced his frustrations, the kind of passengers he gets and the issue that he faces with drunken people. Was surely a lot of good information!

That being a rainy evening, the streets were almost covered with dried Maple leaves; pavements had a few broken umbrellas; certain roads were closed for vehicle movement due to Vivid Sydney. We got off, paid and thanked the cab driver, and walked, dragging our suitcases on the wet pavements; that's when I heard a girl yelling at her friend, "Let's get wasted!"

Welcome to Sydney!

After a quick checkin at our hotel, we crashed at our room. Tomorrow was another interesting day!

Sydney during rains

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Regards,
Asha

Sydney Series - Applying for Tourist VISA

To apply for VISA to Australia (for Indians), check the VFS.GLOBAL website.

We traveled during the second quarter of 2016. From when I applied (for Tourist VISA), certain guidelines have changed now.

Here are the latest details.

• VISA Type: If you are unsure of what type of VISA to apply for, check the VISA FINDER page.

• Documents Required: Download the checklist from the VFS.GLOBAL website; also see the photo specifications, and fees involved. Download the latest application forms. 

• Applying for VISA: Check the How To Apply page. Check the nearest VISA application centre. Ensure to check the Security Regulations. For clarifications or questions, email VFS.

• VISA Processing Time: Check it on the Australian High Commission New Delhi website.

• Tracking VISA Application: Use the tracking number provided in your acknowledgement received after submitting application form for a VISA, to track your application. 

Notes

• From Dec 5, 2016 onwards, there’s a Priority Service or a Fast-track Service available. Please check the VFS GLOBAL website; as mentioned on their website, "Only Indian nationals residing in India are eligible to apply for priority processing."

• Check the Visa Options for Children.

• The Australian VISA may take about a month for processing; give yourself sufficient time. Sometimes, the eVISA may be sitting pretty in either your or your travel agent’s SPAM/JUNK folder; ensure to check. My VISA details were forwarded from my travel agent's SPAM folder!

• Also check the Tourist Refund Scheme details.

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Regards,

Asha

Sydney Series 2016

Hello friends!

It's been a while since I updated my travel-blog. Have traveled to a couple of places since I last wrote here. During June 2016, my husband traveled to Sydney on work, and I accompanied him. While he went to work, I went alone exploring the beautiful city. Was awesome fun!

In this series, I plan to cover information about VISA requirements as well; that may be useful for readers of this blog. Along with this information, I shall write about the various museums, places of worship, zoo, art gallery, iconic buildings, Vivid Sydney, Blue Mountains, about people, and so on. Will accompany text with interesting photos.

Sydney at a glimpse; the bridge, the opera house, the skyline, the cathedral, and the yum cake and coffee!

See Sydney Series - Applying for Tourist VISA.

Regards,
Asha

Sri Ramaprameya Swamy and Ambegalu Krishna temple, Dodda Mallur, Karnataka

The Bangalore-Mysore highway has a lot of interesting temples and places to see. Dodda Mallur is one such village, in Channapatna taluk, that hosts the famous Sri Ramaprameya Swamy and Ambegalu Krishna temple. The village is about 60 kms from Bangalore, and is located on the banks of the river Kanva, which has a dam few kilometers away.

We have been to this temple several times, and each visit is different. The temple is easy to locate. While driving on the highway, towards the end of Channapatna, you can see the temple entrance arch on your left-hand side. There is ample parking space available; Rs. 10 is collected as parking charges. The temple timings are 8:00 AM to 12:30 PM IST, and 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM IST.

This Vijayanagara-style temple/idol is said to be about 1500 years old, and the temple complex was built by Chola emporer Rajendra (4th century). The monolithic Dhwajasthamba is beautiful. It is said that Lord Rama himself to have stayed here; therefore, called Daskshina Ayodhya and the idol called Ramaprameya. Several sages too have stayed/visited this temple and composed songs in praise of the Gods.

The deity in the main sanctum is Lord Ramaprameya. The idol has been craved from Saligrama stone, holding Shanka, Chakra, Gada, and Padma in four hands. Don't forget to see the Utsava Murthy of this God! A walk towards the left of the main sanctum leads to the temple of Goddess Aravindavalli (Lakshmi), seated on lotus flower.

Continuing further, you see that sanctum of Lord Ambegalu Navaneetha Krishna. The idol is of infant Krishna, (seems to be) crawling towards the onlooker, and rests left hand on the peedham, holds a ball of butter in right hand, and wears Uda Dhaara (a thread made of silver) almost around the waist. sri Purandaradasa is said to have been inspired by this idol, and composed the famous song 'Jagadoddharana Adisidalu Yashodha!' It is believed that couples pray to this god to bestow them with a baby (, preferably a boy!). After the birth of the baby, the couples offer a cradle (made of silver/wood) to the temple, and perform puja or Tula Bhara (in front of the sanctum).

Walking further, you see Lord Vaikunatanath Swamy with His consorts. On the right-side of the Lord Ramaprameya sanctum, you can see the idol of Lord Hanuman. Interesting are the carvings on the pillars of various mantapas. You can see floral designs, chanka, naama, shanka, yaalis, and so on. A few portions of the pillars are left blank; not sure why. Outside the temple, opposite to the main entrance, you can see the Purandaradasa mantapa.

What interests me the most is the temple architecture, sculptures, and carvings. Here are a few photos of the temple complex; kindly note that photography of deities is strictly prohibited. I have tried to explain a few photos; still researching about a few others. If you have any information regarding this place, kindly leave a comment; thanks.

Sri Ramaprameya Swamy temple complex and Purandaradasa Mantapa

Carvings on pillars, within temple complex

Carvings of Hindu Mythical creatures, floral designs, Lord Shivalinga, elephant, and many others can be seen on the pillars. I have never before seen a creature with horse head and bird body; still researching about such a creature. In a Vaishnava temple, you can see carving of Lord Shivalinga; it's a beautiful and unique design. The circular floral designs are unique as well. Also note that almost all mythical creatures hold something in their trunks/beaks, as a symbol of offering to the Lord!

Carvings on pillars, Rathamantapa

This is a beautiful mantapa but neglected beyond comprehension. Various birds have made this mantapa their home, and their droppings have dirtied the mantapa. Some amazing carvings can be seen on the pillars. Lord Vishnu blessing the elephant, standing on the crocodile. Garuda with hands folded. According to my study of other temples, this carving can be Lord Hanuman with a bell, performing puja to the Lord. There are carvings of monkey kings in a combat, Lord Krishna on Kalinga Sarpa, Govardana Giri Dhaari, and Lord Vishnu on Garuda. Totally amazing!

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Regards,
Asha

Bygdøynesveien Peninsula and Kon-Tiki Museum, Oslo Norway

Continued from Holmenkollen and Frognerseteren, Oslo, Norway.

There's an article today about Thor's expedition, in National Geography Education;http://education.nationalgeographic.org/…/kon-tiki-sets-s…/…

This article reminded me about our visit to the Kon-Tiki Museum at Oslo, during 2012. My husband and I are always curious about the place we visit. We don't shy away from venturing into the unknown. We just enjoy.

The previous evening we had planned the next day's activities. A cold morning dawned; we had our breakfast, walked to the bus stop, and waited for the bus heading towards the city center. We were rather famous with the bus drivers; they must have thought that we had migrated newly to the place.

From city center, we hopped on to another bus that took us to Bygdøynesveien (peninsula). As always, we were early.; sat watching the rain, birds, cruise liner, stillness in the place, raindrops on cherry blossom flowers, and the amazing posh houses. We waited patiently. A cup of coffee would have been awesome in that cold weather. Well, cuddling was better than coffee!

After a long time, the bus that dropped us returned with another batch of tourists. That was when the museums (and toilets and cafes) opened. It's a beautiful cozy museum. Every bit of information related to Kon-Tiki and Thor Heyerdahl's expedition, Ra II, and the Oscar award are displayed. There's also a theater that airs a documentary about Kon-Tiki. A cute store sells souvenirs. The original Kon-Tiki documentary that won the Oscar award is aired everyday at noon.

And then we walked to other museums in the vicinity. The other museums that we visited were the Fram Museum, Norwegian Museum of Cultural History, Viking Ship Museum, and Norwegian Maritime Museum. Exploring the peninsula, on foot, was fun. We saw about 20-25 cyclists zoom past us. What a memorable experience it was! I have a terrible itch to visit Oslo again.

Sharing a collage of Kon-Tiki museum exhibits.

Kon-tiki museum

Regards,

Asha

Holmenkollen and Frognerseteren, Oslo, Norway

That day too was May 1; but the year was 2012. Oslo was on a holiday! We had a lazy day ahead, as travelers, because the museums that we wanted to see were all closed. Well, instead of wasting a day, we decided to explore without a fixed agenda. We stood at our favorite bus stop, hopped on to a bus taking us to city center, and randomly we picked a metro-line to travel. We bought the ticket and sat in the rail, watching the scenery change.

The rail moved out of city center, gradually started ascending, and I was like a kid at a candy store watching everything that went past our window. The weather was getting colder. As the rail halted at stations, children and young adults got in with their cycles. They were mighty excited. We wondered where they were going.

As the rail gradually ascended, wow, we saw the ski jump tower and snow. My jaws dropped. We continued our journey; had to see the end of this line. The cyclists got off, first, at the last station, and then everyone else. The cyclists sat on their mountain bikes, and descended downhill. They disappeared within seconds. We walked further up to admire the beautiful view. We followed the path that a few people took, and landed at the most romantic cafe I have ever seen. My husband and I were thrilled that our unplanned journey had treated us very well, and wondered where we were.

We had happened to take ticket to the last station on the Holmenkollen Line, had gone past Holmenkollen Ski Tower, and hopped off at the highest station in Oslo. We were standing front to Frognerseteren Restaurant and Cafe. We were ogling at the posh cars. We were smiling as well. We entered the cafe, looked around, and placed our order for coffees and some sinfully delicious desserts. We couldn't find a seat outdoors; sat inside and blissfully enjoyed our treats.

Smile stuck to our faces. Back at hotel, we did a happy dance. smile emoticon

The photo collage gives a glimpse of the place.

See Guide to Holmenkollen and Holmenkollen Line.

Frognerseteren Restaurant and Cafe

Regards,

Asha

Sighting Wild Life - Jungle Safaris at Kabini, Nagarhole Reserve, Karnataka

Recently, we decided to drive to Kabini, stay there for a day or two, and enjoy the jungle safaris. We opted for one jungle jeep safari and one boat safari; both were excellent. In this blog, I shall share photos of wild life that we saw in both these safaris but will narrate only about jeep safari. In the following blog-post, I shall share photos of birds and narrate about boat safari. Thanks in advance for viewing and reading!

We went on the evening jeep safari; we were transferred from our resort to the Jungle Lodge Resort, and from there the jeep safari began. The jeeps are in good condition. The guide, Mr. Soma, and the driver, Mr. Lokesh, were knowledgeable about the Kabini/Nagarhole Reserve. Our jeep had mixed crowd - professional photographers with their huge lenses occupied prime seats, and amateur photographers and everyone else took other seats.  

When the safari started, the guide spoke about the reserve and about having sighted leopards and tigers in the recent previous safaris. We were all enthusiastic about sighting these cats. As the jeep moved deeper into the forest, we were greeted by elephants, boars, spotted deers, monkeys, languars, gaurs, and so on. 

Saw a lot of birds but sadly the driver/guide don't stop, mainly, because everyone wants to see the wild cats! I spotted a jungle owlet and asked the driver to stop for a photo. Saw plum headed parakeets, kingfishers, and other birds; but couldn't click a photo nor stop to appreciate the beauty. 

As we headed deeper, everyone got restless, and each jeep that passed by indicated that they hadn't sighted the wild cats. The driver of our jeep went to most of the waterholes in anticipation of sighting of the cats but no luck. That morning they sighted two leopards with a kill, sitting on a tree; the driver drove past that tree as well; no luck. 

And then the driver received a phone call from another driver informing about the leopard sitting on the very same tree. Oh, what joy! He drove the jeep at great speed; thought we were flying inside the forest reserve. When we went to the spot, there was already a jeep positioned at the best angle, filled with pro photographers, clicking away to glory. We were able to get only a glimpse of the far-away leopard. 

People without a zoom lens/binoculars weren't lucky; they had difficulty in spotting the leopard. The guide offered his binoculars to whoever wanted it. I must add this tip - when you are on a safari, please get your own binoculars. Similar concept to packing-using your toothbrush vs borrowing from other travelers. Firstly, it's never good to ask someone else's equipment. Honestly. Secondly, not all guides have good quality binoculars or the binoculars maybe worn out. Thirdly, learn to use your eyes; try spotting using your eyes, and then use whatever equipment.

If you are a pro photographer, please click one or two photos, and then give way to the others in the jeep to see the wild life. Come on, you are a pro/expert; means that you don't need to click 100-1000 photos of the same subject! Remember that others too have paid for the safari. Otherwise, please talk to Jungle Lodge Resorts to arrange for a separate jeep. 

When on such safaris, please adhere to the rules/guidelines. Never ever get down from the jeep or climb the top of the jeep. Always respect the guide/driver, and listen to them. Your one stupid move can be unsafe for everyone. Don't mimic wild animals or irritate them. We saw vehicles that had stopped inside the reserve. One or two vehicles honked! 

All right, enough said. Here are photo collages of the wild animals that we saw during our jeep and boat safaris. ENJOY!

Leopard, wild boar, elephants, spotted deer, samba deep, monkey, languar, gaur, crocodile, and mongoose

Regards,

Asha