Me being me didn’t go prepared for the rains and had to do most of the sightseeing from inside of the car. I would have happily continued to do just that if I hadn’t spotted some wild elephants on one of the plains surrounding the hill. The Bandipur Wildlife sanctuary is not far off from this hill and it’s not an uncommon sight to spot tuskers taking a walk around here. Best of all was a small elephant family (Papa Jumbo, Mama Jumbo and Baby Jumbo) grazing by themselves not very far from a large herd that didn’t seem to mind that the family chose to be by themselves!
I squealed with delight, jumped out the car, ran off the road, climbed atop the remnants of an old fort and ran towards the elephants. Just when I was about to jump onto the plains, a hand grabbed me from the back and the owner of it, in worried anger told me that they were wild animals and best admired from a distance! Darn! I had to comply. You don’t want to upset well meaning friends, do you? I stood and admired the elephants for a while and proceeded to click some pictures just when they started to walk off. The photos here aren’t the best ones around, but hey, don’t forget that my simple camera was braving heavy rain, fog and a shivering owner!
After the elephants became just a speck in the distance, back I went to the car for a drive towards the Gopalaswamy temple. Sitting on top of the hill, in the most gaudiest of yellow, red and white combo, is the 14th century temple, like an ugly crown on an otherwise handsome king. Why does the ASI allow such monsterity be done to beautiful temples? It would have been beautiful without the colours a la Mahabalipuram.
Completely drenched and shivering from running barefoot up the stone stairs to the temple, I was feeling a little self-conscious about wearing a pair of jeans into the temple. But neither the priests nor the people around cared. (Perhaps Kerala temples should take a cue!). The temple priests surprisingly recited mantras as soon as I entered even though we were just 4 around. One of them was even quite eager to voluntarily explain the significance of the Sanctum Santorum. Apparently, fog/mist perennially drips on the head of the Lord and also settles on the top of the threshold of the Griha Girba. The priest asked me to try to touch the top of the stone door frame to see for myself. . I tried; no luck to which someone quipped that too many people had tried and wiped it right off!
On the drive back from the temple, we stopped by a watering hole which looked beautiful in a somewhat mysterious way. I would have stayed on a little longer, had i not been completely drenched and made further uncomfortable by the still pouring rain, chilly winds and the gathering darkness.
Reluctantly but still happy, I headed back to Bangalore.
