ADHVAGATI

One of the benefits of living in an industrial suburb of a small town in Indonesia was the opportunity we got to visit some very exotic sites , scattered around Central Java. One of them was BOROBUDUR. The data about Borobudur : A World Heritage Site . The Largest Buddhist Stupa in the world. " The Temple With No Inside" . Built between 740 and 852 AD ( the precise years  as given by Britannica)    during the reign of King Samaratungga of  Shailendra Dynasty. Seismic activity ( or a war or cultural shift) caused  total  abandonment in around 950 AD ; swallowed by jungle and forgotten till 1814 when Stanford Raffles rediscovered the humongous rubble. Painstaking, continuous restoration by various nationalities .... Opened for pilgrimage and tourism in 1973. The monument is built like a stone ( lava-rock) cladding over a natural hill ( hence, "no Inside") in Central Java, not very far from the holy volcano Merapi. It is 9 tiered,(six of th...

GANGAIKONDACHOLEESWARAM :  The name seems actually longer than the little town end to end .  The Second of the GREAT LIVING CHOLA TEMPLES celebrated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site . And justly so . What Rajendra-I achieved , first as a co-ruler with his father Rajaraja and later as Emperor, is truly unparalleled in history of South India , as glorious as the best in India and as note worthy as any in the world of historic times . It is just unfortunate that not much press was given to him in our country's history books , either due to  poor initiative by southern historians or the preoccupation of pan Indian writers with Empires only north of The Vindhya Mountains. It is only now that there has been a rise , with a vengeance, in outpouring of pride and love for the Imperial Cholas , their achievements, their arts and Culture.  We know from documented evidence , that the great king Raja Raja Cholan was not quite in his prime when he finally inherited the Chola empire...

A Town As A Museum  Soon after overseas travel got de-Covid-regulated, we found ourselves teleported into a picture postcard of lanterns, conical hats and yellow houses . They call the place Hoi An . Sometime in ancient history , the Chams  had called it Panduranga .  In later historic times , the name was Faifo.  But, first things first : Where , What and Why . The Where : Hoi -An :  in Quang Nam Province of Central Vietnam , on the bank of River Thu Bon just before it enters the South China Sea . The What : Hoi- An Ancient Town , is a 30 hectare sprawl that was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999. , and is now a part of the Cu Lao Cham Hoi-An Biosphere Reserve also ( which area includes a few uninhabited biodiverse  islands that are home to the Swift which makes the much sought after delicacy Bird Nests - in fact , there is a "Ministry For Protecting and Regulating Harvest of Bird Nests" seen in Old Town !)   It is a remarkably wel...

Firenze or Florance is not a just a beautiful city ; its a live being that warmly engulfs you in an overpowering embrace of magical charm. One gets tossed between artistic riches , turbulent history, modern municipal efficiency, haute chic and the expansive demonstrations of public affability exhibited by its natives. It takes just a few hours for the place to get you totally besotted. If you like history, like I do, you will willingly place yourself in its thrall for ever .  This heartland of Tuscany is actually an open air museum. Go get a gelato from a jazzy neon-lit cafe and you have an exquisite 15th Century statue peering down at you from a niche by the entrance.  A mundane agriculture office will turn out to be a Renaissance Palace.  There are Banks established in Medieval times, and still very much housed in the same original fortresses.  The nerve center of the city is Piazza Della Signoria, a L shaped city square, close to the most famous landmark, The Du...

It wasn't yet winter. But there was a definite nip in the air. Driving up from the merry little town of Arachova situated at an altitude of 1100 mts., in the heart of the looming mountains of the Parnassos range, we could see the splendid vales and folds of the mountain covered with fir, olive and other alpine vegetation, the straggly peaks poking into veils of clouds . (The summit is 2500mts. high. ) The Parnassos, ( 180 Kms. from Athens) is the most beautiful mountain range in Central Greece with a cool climate year round. The limestone mountains have enjoyed popularity since time immemorial thanks to its place in the Cult of Apollo ; in modern times ,its a much sought after National Park with two Ski Centres. Our destination was DELPHI . The principal sanctuary of Apollo.  Tucked midway into the southern slopes just under two cliffs named the Phaedriadhes ( "The Glowing Ones "), Delphi sits in a dramatic and artistic setting. The first intimation of the...

A recent news report says that Athens is the most "flirtatious" city in the world. Really ? Athens was close to a "lifeless" city the day we landed there. A sunday. Mid morning already ,when we arrived. But not a soul in sight ! Gleaming buildings, well swept pavements, broad roads , parked cars. A couple of fully shuttered vans gliding soundlessly by. Not a single sign of any life anywhere ! It was almost eerie. The cabbie just shrugged at our surprise. " Sunday!" he declared, as though that explained everything. We saw a handful of Athenians out and about on the street only after noon. And no, I dont remember anyone being anything close to friendly, let alone flirtatious !!! ........................    THE ACROPOLIS dominates Athens. It is also called the Sacred Rock as it was the location of many Greek Mythological episodes. And people, since ancient times, have been visiting Athens mainly to see and experience The Acropolis. And like most ...

 ( "Moscow Kremlin and The Red Square" is an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990 )   It was suffocatingly crowded during our visit . There was a country Fair ( Jatre) atmosphere . We were told that it was the fag end of the visitors season  and soon, everything would shut down for the harsh winter season.  The Red Square is the historic City Square that separates The Kremlin from a merchant quarter known as The Great Possad. It is the heart of Moscow , with all arterial roads of the city passing by it.  The left side of the Square is lined by a long palatial two storey edifice , with glass skylights , dating from the 1890s . Built as a posh super market during the time of Peter The Great in a grand neoclassical style , it still functions as a super market . Called GUM ( acronym for the Russian phrase meaning ‘Main Universal Store’, pronounced ‘Goom’ . )   Dozens of souvenir vending kiosks outside the  old Market building were  doing great...

Darasuram is one of the three " Great Living Chola Temples " given the UNESCO  World Heritage Site tag for being the repository of glorious Chola Art and Architecture . The huge Airavateshwara Complex , built by Rajaraja II ( 12th Cent), is an outstanding open museum which demands that we spend at least two whole days examining and admiring each and every block of stone, to do any justice to its grandeur. The innumerable stone figures populating this exquisite storehouse of religious art each have individuality in expressions and demeanor. Each visit is a voyage of discovery for everytime, some new detail comes to notice. For one thing, since those bad old days of shameful neglect , something has been done to renovate and spruce up the monuments in the complex. That is a great Plus. Consequently, its rating in the tourist circuit has gone up, so that more and more people are getting to appreciate the treasures it holds. However the minus points is that...

Last week, i read a news bit that Italy's Ministry of Culture proposed a 60Million- Euro preservation plan to secure Rome's historical areas - something rustled up in a hurry only after the recent collapse of an ancient monument in Pompeii set the alarm bells ringing. Its imponderable what Rome would do without its history ! History is what brings the gaping hoards and the tourist lolly in. But for all that, its surprising that the Italians do not exert themselves too much to gift wrap their treasures and vend them more energetically. Since their everyday cityscape is so enmeshed with the historical remains, the locals seem to be quite cool to the charm and romance their invaluable heritage. On my visit, I got the distinct feeling that they were quite blase' about it . They had the same "chalta hai" attitude our countrymen have here . When in Rome,I dint feel the need to be Roman. Rome was " Indian" in character : The people there littere...

While making travel plans, we usually collect info. of the Footnotes kind from different sources, so that we are not thrown off balance by little "surprises" we may encounter in alien lands. So far, I have not experienced any great Culture Shock , anywhere. Except in - of all places - Hampi. In our own backyard ! Three years ago, I was given a Hampi Trip as a birthday gift by my son and it served as a cherished refresher course, as the memory of my first trip to the wonderful place, eons ago, is less than sketchy  (and the four B&W 3-inch photos are dismal souvenirs that speak nothing.) We ( Son, Sis and I) checked into a homestay "guest house" adjacent to The Bazar Street at 4 am, and stepped out, refreshed, at 7.30 to find ourselves an ordinary Idli -Coffee breakfast. The arterial street was fully abuzz with activity, with more than a dozen thatch-roof cafes open for business. Most of them with signboards proclaiming " Recommended by Lonely Pl...