Mysore, Karnataka, India
Stayed at the Green Hotel, an ecofriendly hotel, away from the hustle-and-bustle of town.
Mysore is known across the country for its Palace and annual Festival of Dasara. We arrived right around the eve of this 10 day festival (not the best way to escape the crowds). Perhaps due to the increased number of visitors at this time, we were faced with an increased number of beggars, young touts (children “practicing their English” with you, while trying to convince you to go to their family’s candle making factory), and greedy rickshaw drivers. Yet we were very fortunate to be there for part of one of the most important festivals in India (Festival of Dasara).
Mysore Palace
The Mysore palace is a very ornate building, and the guides love to point out the many imported furnishings and decorations throughout. But the most memorable aspect of the palace was standing on the lawn out front, amidst hundreds of families waiting eagerly for the festival lights to be turned on. Families were picnicking, children were playing, and everyone stopped and stared in awe as the palace lit up with thousands of white lights. The palace would then be lit every night for the next 10 days.
The next day, after struggling with a rick-shaw driver who insisted on trying to take us shopping, we managed to get to the government silk factory. We got to walk around the various workshops, where workers were eager to show off their stuff: women dying bundles of spun silk; others twisting the silk into double, triple, or larger threads. Men sweating away in noisy rooms filled with automated Japanese-made looms, transferring their pattern onto gold trimmed sarees (using punch cards). It was surprisingly interesting to see how the indian silks are made. I couldn’t imagine working in such hot, noisy, environments, though.
It was quite easy to get away from the hassles of the city. On the edge of town is a hill (Chamundi Hills), with 1000 steps to the top (or, for the lazy ones, a road), above which is a temple. Again, large crowds of people on the top, but the hike up and down was very peaceful and invigorating.
