February 21, 2015
THOLPETTY (Kerala) to MYSORE (Karnataka) 126km
Parklane Hotel - 2100Rs/$34, deluxe, AC, without breakfast

Gaur, Elephants and Spotted Deer 

After breakfast, we said goodbye to the Swedish family. They had arranged a car and driver to take them to Kunnar, on the Keralan coast, where they will spend three days before continuing to Mysore. Shortly after they left, we took off at 9:30am. 

My body was still sore all over from hitting the tile floor during a fainting spell and my abdomen was tender. I do fear falling off the back of the motorcycle, ...Dave not noticing,... and a tiger having me for lunch;)
 
We opted for one of the longer Google recommended alternate routes, It took us through a wildlife sanctuary and by a National Park. We kept our eyes scanning, first the teak, then the mixed forest and underbrush. Several small communities, and sometimes lone house built of mud and brick tiled roof, were nestled in the forest. These people have regular wildlife encounters, I am sure. Women gathered twigs for their fires and I wondered if they live in constant fear of a tiger attack. 

Every few kilometers, speed bumps encouraged drivers to slow down. Dave eases over them, and on the washboard type, I stand up behind him. 
 
Except for the few towns we drove through, traffic was light. Several spotted deer crossed the road in front of us. 
 
We stopped to watch a herd of Bison graze then disappear in the brush. And just before we exited the park we spotted a small group of elephants in meadow near the reservoir. Fantastic. What an experience. 
 

Landing in the City
 
By 4:30, we arrived in Mysore. Our first impression was wonderment at the numerous tantalizing fairytale like copulas towered above walls and the impressive government buildings. 

We zeroed in on Parklane Hotel rather quickly. We had called ahead for a reservation because it can get crowded on the weekends. Soon we found ourselves checked into a comfortable deluxe room with the added luxury of a safe, fridge, a very useful his & her toiletry kits and hair dryer.
  

Pizza Squabble
 
We relaxed a bit and made our way to Domino's Pizza behind the clock tower. I had a one track mind. I knew I wanted a margarita pizza, Dave contrary needs to re study the menu in it's entirety. I sat down and told Dave just do a large one if you decide on the same. Fifteen minutes Dave still was at the counter and a simple order had turned into an argument. The clerk refused to Iisten. And after three tries, Dave told the clerk to "forget it." I think it was an easily avoidable misunderstanding but decided to keep my two cents out of it. The end result was that we walked out without eating. I was upset at Dave and told him I was going back to the hotel and eat there. Without saying anything else, Dave went his way and I went my way. I had a mediocre spring roll and returned the so called "garden salad" because the vegetables were totally dried out and it included no greens. I noticed a great looking sizzler type dish which entails grilled vegetables and / or meat. I'll get that next time, I told myself.
 
 
February 22nd to 26th, 2015 - MYSORE 
Parklane Hotel 2100Rs/$34
The City of Palaces 

Self Catered Breakfast
 
Breakfast wasn't included in our room rate. Since we have a little fridge in our room, we stocked up on yoghurt and milk, for our muesli, and oatmeal, which we most often prefer. We have our ground coffee and little filter too, so we made ourselves at home. Dave had done some reconnaissance yesterday and found a reasonably large supermarket.

  
Garlands, Papa John's and a Lakh of Bulbs
 
Since it was Sunday, and very likely teeming with Indian tourists, we decided to postpone our touring the Palace. For a brief time in the evening, only on weekends and special celebrations, they light up the palace with 98000 incandescent light bulbs. We planned head over there after dark to see the Palace lit up.

I feel a lot better. I am still a bit tender and have to keep an eye on ankles.

We walked to the Devaraja market. It turned out to be a wonderful colorful market. The flower section was particularly interesting. Piles of colorful flower petals were being transformed into meters and meters of gorgeous garlands. Other stalls were selling incense and sandalwood products for which Mysore is famous. Prices were low and the quality of oils suspect. We spent a good hour and a half perusing the colorful market. After we had our fill, we made our way to the supermarket Dave had discovered yesterday. We rickshawed back to the hotel. 
 

Then went for great pizza at Papa John's near our hotel. And even though I hate to admit it, that became our daily little bad habit. We did try another place that promised "multi cuisine", even had hummus and tabouli on their menu which they stopped making because lack of requests. So we settled reluctantly for a "non-spicy" spicy dish. "Never again", I proclaimed after we left the place with burning mouths and lips. So Papa John's it was.... every day. Dave has no great love for Indian food either so we're both on the same page on that one. 


Light Bulb Moment
    
After dark, we made it just in time to witness the stunning display of the palace lit up. A team of electricians illuminate the Palace from 6:00 to 7:45pm, on weekends. We assumed it would be lit until about 10 pm. Boy were we wrong. Entrance onto the palace grounds is free and we got there at 7:30 and at 7:45 sharp, all the 98000 bulbs went dark. 
 

February 23, 2015
 
By Invitation Only
 
When we arrived at the palace, we were told by several rickshaw drivers that the palace was closed today. Which we verified at the palace gate. 
 
A friendly young man just squeezed out of the gate. He approached us and told us he was the King's elephant trainer. He told us that today is the day that the new king will be sitting on the golden throne for the first time. There would be private ceremonies in the Palace today. That was the reason that the Palace is closed. He invited us to come by for an elephant show tomorrow, at 11:30, behind the temple on the palace grounds. Sounded fabulous to us. "What are your plans now?" he asked. We were not sure, maybe check out a museum or..."It's Monday. Go visit the old market., It is more interesting than the Devaraja Market" he insisted. Also nearby are wood craftsmen, oil and incense sellers and beedi rollers. Sounded great, we thought. 

Our new friend explained to the rickshaw driver what we wanted to visit and negotiated a rickshaw for us (70Rs). Our driver had a flair for theatrics as he squeezed his horn bell than continued to slowly flop that arm like a bird indicating a turn then effortlessly nosed in front of traffic. He turned out to be a fun guy who had many connections in old town. 
 
 
"Old Market"
 
Our first stop was the old market. Possibly because our timing was off, but was a bit disappointing. Most stalls were empty. 


Wood Craftsmen
 
Our driver then took us to a neighborhood of woodcarvers. It was fascinating to watch these guys sitting in a relatively dark room cutting intricate patterns out of different colors of natural wood, that were later inlayed, with precision, in tables, chairs, swings, door posts or decorative wall coverings. 


Rollin' Beedies
 
Next we visited a beedi rolling place. Beedies are those cheap little hand-rolled cigaretts that local (poorer) people smoke. We got to a small house in residential neighborhood. Under a long covered porch, a group of about 8 men sat behind large piles of the beedies in bundles of 20. Their supervisor sat inside behind one huge pile, doing quality control. One of the guys came over and demonstrated the swift rolling process.

A small amount of fine tobacco is put in precisely cut rectangle of tobacco leaf and expertly rolled into little cigarette. These guys manage to roll 4000 per day and get paid 6 to 700 Rs (about $10) per day.
  
The beedies get sold for 35Rs for bundle of 20. The guys seemed eager for us to take pictures of them and the thought that their image would go to America excited them. 

 
Yam Herbals on Turab Ali Street
 
Next, we stopped at the aromatic oil experts at Yam Herbals. They call their Sandalwood oil "Gold of Mysore". We were dabbled on with drops of different oils, mostly of flowers but also of herbs and animal musk. I particularly like the white musk, which Is made from flowers, and I bought some. 
    

Emporium Shop
 
Next we went clear across town to the Government Emporium and checked out some of the silks Mysore is famous for. One of the wood inlay tables, like the ones we saw being fabricated by the wood craftsmen, goes for $5,500!
 
We had a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon. We gave our rickshaw driver Mubarak a handsome tip and called it a day. We picked up a sweet papaya for dinner and retreated to our cool room. 
 

February 24, 2015 -  MYSORE 
Elephants and Palace Tour

Elephant Boys
 
Today, I read in the paper that the ceremony yesterday at the palace actually was an adoption celebration. The 26 year old son of the sister of the late King was being adopted by the childless wife of the late King, in order for him to become King after he finishes his studies. Unbeknownst to us, the Palace had been lit up again and the future King had gone in a colorful procession around the palace grounds on decked out elephants. 
 
 
Around 11:30 am, we entered the Palace gates and purchased our tickets. Before going inside the Palace buildings, we found our way to the elephant stable behind the temple. There were no other tourists in this part of the grounds. Our friend Mauri wasn't there but another kid was sitting in the shade of a tree near the four elephants. He told us that the trainer would be there in few minutes. He phoned some one and sure enough a guy on motorcycle appeared shortly thereafter and told us to follow him to the elephants. The elephants still had remnants of the elaborate painted decorations on their heads and they gave us blessings with their trunks. We got to sit on the big beasts and the guys were happy to take our pictures. Another guy arrived and he was introduced as the boss. He told us about the big celebration the night before and showed us pictures he had taken of the inside of the palace and the golden carriage which he sent to Dave's cell via Bluetooth. It was a fun experience and when we prepared to leave they asked us for money. We kind of expected that, so we gave them 100 Rs. That was not enough apparently and they asked for more. We acquiesced and gave them another 100Rs and left them all protesting behind.
 
     


Palace Tour

We had to hand in our cameras before we were allowed to go inside the Palace. We picked up audio guides, included in the ticket price, and followed the arrows through Mysore Palace, one of the grandest in India. 

The old palace had burned down (again) and was rebuilt in 1912. So this palace is not that old. Orders were to make this incarnation fireproof and so the roof support columns look like wood but are actually cast iron. There are grand meeting halls, intricately carved metal and wood doors, decorative ceilings, colorful glass windows and pictures of what palace life would have been like in its heyday.



We visited the well regarded zoo. We'll save that for our next entry.