We were speeding down the Bangalore Mysore Road towards Mysore, the land of magnificent palaces and beautiful gardens. The sun had just risen, the sky was still red. The first blossoms of the Gulmohar trees lining both sides of the road soaked themselves in the early rays of the sun. The smooth road wriggling between the canopy of the green foliage and the orange and  yellow blossoms resembled a glistening serpent.

Our first stop is the Big Banyan Tree about 25 kms from the city at Ramohalli. This is a serene spot. The rustic settings and an enchanting view of the nearby Savandurga hills makes it an ideal picnic spot. We were amazed to see the sprawling 400-year-old Banyan Tree, which spreads over an area of 4 acres! It is called 'Dodda Alada Mara' in Kannada meaning Big Banyan Tree. The tree with its vertical root system is said to be the biggest tree in Karnataka. The main trunk has given life to several roots and branches with lots of leaves. Branches jutting on all sides have slanted towards the ground. The Banyan Tree restaurant run by the Tourism department caters to the needs of visitors.

This is a familiar setting for many romantic movie sequences.

Our next stop is Eagleton Golf Village. A 30 km drive away from Bangalore city brings us to this golf village complete with an 18-hole, 72 par, 168-acre championship course designed by internationally reputed golf architects, Pacific Coast Design Pvt. Ltd., Australia. This village has been designed to cater to the growing number of golf enthusiasts - Indian and foreigners who are seeking fresh challenges and new destinations. This professional golf academy has a 25 floodlight practice drive-in range and also sophisticated ball-picking and dispensing machines. Apart from the golf course the village also has other facilities of a well-maintained resort like a swimming pool, playing grounds, restaurants and comfortable rooms for staying. In fact, if we didn't have plans to go ahead to Mysore, we would have definitely stayed here for a couple of days. Away from the maddening crowd, this is a perfect place to chill out.

We started off again. It was past 11 am. We all were hungry. So we stopped at the next dhaba we saw. Some idlis and a cup of coffee later, we continued our journey.

Our next stop was Somanathapur, a small village 38 kms east of Mysore, famous for its 13th century Hoysala Temple. We were awe struck by the beauty of the temple. And the most fascinating thing about the temple is that in spite of being so old, it is remarkably well preserved and has frescoed exteriors depicting episodes from the epics. There is a 62 feet high statue of Venugopala (Vishnu) installed in the southern cell. The Keshava Temple was built in 1268 A.D. If you visit this temple don't miss the three shrines with "vimanas" (aircrafts) in the shape of a 16-pointed star.

There's nothing like a spray of water on your face to refresh you . A slight detour from the Mysore highway will bring you to Shivanasamudra where the river Cauvery divides into two streams and cascades 75 mts down a deep rocky gorge. The two breathtaking water falls named Barachukki and Gaganachukki are at their spectacular best during July-August. Shimsha - Asia's first hydroelectric project set up in 1905 is just 1.5 kms from Shivanasamudra.

Being nature lovers a visit to the Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary was a must. This sanctuary, set around a handful of tiny islands in the Cauvery River is on the way to Srirangapatna. It is home to many species of water birds, including cormorants, herons, ibis and spoonbills. Though we could see the birds from the neat walkways within the sanctuary, in order to get a closer look, we hired a rowboat and went close to the small islands. We also spotted a few crocodiles lazing on the rocks under the sun.

From the bird sanctuary Srirangapatna is only 3 kms away. So naturally this was our next stop. The hallowed capital of the Tiger of Mysore, is now Srirangapatna, a tiny sleepy suburb of Mysore. This island town is a place of legends and history. The river Cauvery divides itself before reaching Srirangapatna and the tributaries meet again about three miles downstream. Life goes on languidly. The formidable fort has decayed and fallen into ruins. Within the fort is the Water Gate, leading to the river Cauvery, where a memorial stone declares that Tipu, the Tiger of Mysore met his death fighting British soldiers on that fateful day. The place where the British troops breached the fort, to enter the town, has a small monument.
Though the palace of Tipu is totally destroyed, the other monuments in Srirangapatna are well preserved. The Jumma Masjid, the grand mosque constructed by Tipu, stands towering above the town. It has two lofty minarets noted for their majesty and grace. A flight of about 200 steps leads to the top of the minarets.

From Srirangapatna, we drove towards the city of Mysore to see the popular tourist destination: The Mysore Palace. The residence of the Wodeyars, The Mysore palace, is one of the largest of its kind in India. Built in 1912 in the Indo-Sarscenic style, this palace exudes a grandeur that is unmatched. The Golden Throne, the Durbar Hall, the Kalyana Mantap, the Gallery and the Amba Vilas are the main attractions here. After taking a tour inside the palace we visited the Sri Jayachamarajandra Art Gallery housed in the Jaganmohan Palace. The gallery is well known for its huge collection of exquisite paintings. In October each year, Mysore celebrates the world famous Dasara festival for ten days with brightly lit palaces, parades, an exhibition cum fun fair and concerts in classical music and dances that are held in the Durbar Hall of the Palace. A procession of ornately decorated elephants with one of them carrying the Golden Howdah, where the idol of Goddess Durga is placed (formerly the Maharaja would sit here) and horses resplendent in ceremonial finery bring the festivities to a grand close.

After a quick lunch we went to the Brindavan Gardens - the magnificent, well laid out gardens below the immense Krishna Sagar dam. The gardens are a popular tourist place and is crowded especially during late evenings when the numerous fountains of the gardens are illuminated. Since we didn't have a booking, we had to walk a pleasant 1.5 km stretch from the main gate across the top of the dam to the gardens. We sat on the smooth lawns for some time, appreciating the riots of colours the myriad flowerbeds presented. An hour later, we set off for Bandipur.

The Mysore Maharajas set up Bandipur sanctuary in 1931 as part of a private hunting ground, at the foot of Nilgiri Hills. Located in the midst of the Western Ghats, Bandipur is home to over 50 species of trees such as banyan, teak and sandalwood and nearly 200 species of flowers, plants and shrubs. It was an enthralling experience as we drove down the well-laid roads deep into the forest. Our eyes were glued to windows eager to spot some wild animal. Bandipur is famous for elephants, barking deer, quail, wild dogs, sambar, hornbill, giant squirrels and bisons. Though initially we did not come across any wildlife except some crows, fifteen minutes down the road, we saw an elephant busy scratching its back with it trunk. Later, we spotted few bisons as well. The sanctuary is also home to over 180 species of birds including Indian horned owls, kingfishers, tawny eagles, coucals and woodpeckers.

It was already getting dark by now, so we started our journey back to Bangalore. Tired but satisfied, we slept all the way back to the Garden City.

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