Sunday, September 26, 2010

GangaikondaCholapuram & Tanjore Big Temple

Gangaikonda cholapuram -> PHOTOS

Is a wonderful place that is missed by many (including me thus far..!) for being similar to Tanjore big temple. It is similar...but has its own charm and uniqueness. A wonderful monument that every South Indian must visit...! I am already planning to visit it once again to spend more time and take a little more detailed set of photos.. I, already have an excuse to plan another trip , not being able to get into the temple during this visit as I reached the temple at 12:10. The temple closes at 12 noon. I could not wait till 4pm when the temple re-opens as I had a return booking from Tanjore that night...!

Dont Miss the Tanjore Photos and Videos...Contain close-up shots and Videos of Tanjore Big temple Tower (Gopuram) that can not be seen by naked eyes....! Read on for Tanjore portion in the same blog...!

                                                              Kumbakonam temples blog>>>>

Videos

Tanjore

Tons of information is available on Tanjore big temple on the internet..The photos are worth seeing again and again and each visit never fails to amaze you.


The Peruvudaiyar Kovil or Brihadeeswarar Temple is also known as Rajarajeswaram at Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu, is the world's first complete granite temple.

This temple is one of India's most prized architectural sites. The temple stands amidst fortified walls that were probably added in the 16th century. The 'Vimana' - or the temple tower - is 216 ft (66 m) high [4][5] and is among the tallest of its kind in the world. The Kalash or 'Chikharam' on the top of the temple is not carved out of a single stone as is widely believed. There is a big statue of Nandi, carved out of a single rock, at the entrance measuring about 16 feet long and 13 feet high. The entire temple structure is made out of hard granite stones.

When the temple was completed, it was 40 times larger and five times taller than any temple before. It's made up of 130,000 tons of granite...!. The 60-metre tall Vimana is still the tallest in South India. A European-like figure is carved on the Vimana, probably a warning of the arrival of the British. And the most important feature of the building is that at no time of the day the shadow of the Gopuram will  fall on the ground.
If you ever wanted to know how the close-up shots of this tower looks like visit the videos given below.





Tanjore Close up Videos

















Srirangam & Thiruvanaikkaval

Srirangam Ranganathar is close to my heart, ever since I made a trip with my father back in 1987. I'd been planning to visit Srirangam temple for quite a while after that. Could manage it just now. I made a trip during first week of Sep 2010.

The sprawling area , Gigantic Gopurams, Vast Mandapams make Srirangam temple an unforgettable place.
Not many know that , you can get on top of the I floor of the temple to have a nice view of all the gopurams for a charge of Rs 10/-per person.

What I liked in both Srirangam and Thiruvanaikkaval is that the Cameras are allowed inside the temple... (of course photography is not allowed in the inner sanctum-santorum..)


You can view the video here




I didn't imagine, it will be difficult to get accommodation in Trichy. But it turned out to be so. I could not book room in any decent hotel on the phone from Chennai since the days I wanted happened to be Muhurtha Day and happened to be the day when a popular local VIPs family wedding was taking place. I could finally book a room in a service apartment that proved to be too costly for Trichy's cost of living.. Rs 1500/-per day, Comfortable though. Too big for a couple. Two bed room flat. You can view the details on their website www.Trichytravels.com
For those interested, the photos of the apartment can be viewed below


Thiruvanaikkaval

Srirangam and Thiruvanaikkaval are like twin temples. You can not miss this when you visit Srirangam. Not a small temple by any means...!


For those who like videos


One can not but think of visiting Cauvery in Srirangam.
Amma Mandapam is a good place to go and view the river when there is enough water...!

Click here for Amma MandapamPhotos


I went to Gangaikonda cholapuram and Tanjore from Trichy. The photos and Videos are in my next blog post....!