My wife and I were in Mysuru from 20-Jan-2018 to 22-Jan-2018 to attend a friend's wedding. We visited the sand museum and the sea shell museum. My impressions on these places and Mysuru in general are shared in this blog post.
We caught a regular KSRTC bus to Mysuru at 10 a.m. Our driver believed in the "horn and drive" philosophy. Every time he changed lanes to overtake, he would blow the horn, put his hand out to indicate and then overtake. If we were sitting in the middle rows of the bus, I might have applauded his caution. As it transpired, we were in the second row. The blare of the horn constantly assailed our eardrums ! "I feel like I am in an ambulance !", quipped my wife. "If the noise continues, I will have a heart attack and then this may become an ambulance !", I remarked !
Near Srirangapatna, our road was blocked. A tractor with a trailer overloaded with sugarcane had toppled. "This must have happened just now. Look, a wheel is still spinning.", observed my wife. Indeed, the tractor had fallen on the left and its front right wheel was rotating freely in the air. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and the tractor was largely undamaged too. Quite a few people collected sugarcane stalks from the toppled trailer, which was unloaded by the men who had assembled there. Somebody brought ropes which were tied to the tractor and trailer. The other end was tied to a truck on the other side of the highway, which had stopped. The truck started and inched forward. The tractor and trailer were righted ! Soon, traffic resumed on our side. We used the time to eat brunch, before arriving in Mysuru.
My wife had planned that we should see the sand museum in Mysuru. I noticed on the map that there was also a wax house of horrors and a sea shell museum nearby. "Let us see what we can cover.", I said. We decided to go the sand museum first.
The web page http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/getting-creative-using-sand-and-water/article5960480.ece provides an overview about the sand museum, the brainchild of M. N. Gowri. The entry ticket is Rs. 40. If one chooses to go to the 3-D selfie museum, it costs Rs. 40 more. We decided to visit only the sand museum.
The sand museum has some gorgeous creations. A few of them are shown here.
I had noticed the sea-shell museum on the way to the sand museum. The web page https://m.timesofindia.com/city/mysuru/This-homemaker-turns-seashells-into-objects-of-art/articleshow/27464612.cms has more information about it. We could not believe our eyes when we saw the amazing works of art created from sea shells by Radha Mallappa. The lady was present in the sales counter. My wife asked her how she got the sea shells. "I have collected some and I have purchased some", was her reply. A few photographs from the museum follow.
The price of Rs. 40 and Rs. 20 per camera was well worth the money spent, I felt. We took an auto rickshaw to the zoo and walked to a restaurant. Later, we went to my wife's aunt's house, where we stayed for a couple of nights. My wife's cousin and her husband took us out for dinner that night.
The next morning, my wife, her aunt and I walked to Nanjumallige, a market that had the usual bustle associated with markets. The choicest of vegetables and greens were purchased by the ladies, with bargaining, of course ! Both of them were contented after the morning shopping.
After bathing and eating breakfast, I set out for a solitary walk on my own. My father used to work in Mumbai (or Bombay as it was then) in the '80s. When we came to Bengaluru (or Bangalore as it was then !), one of the simple pleasures for us was to walk in J. P. Nagar. The traffic was less and what impressed us were the grand houses and residences there ! Houses with gables ; houses with green lawns and colourful flowers and houses with novel architecture attracted our attention. Mumbai had only one direction for its residences : up ! In the '80s in Bengaluru, we could see houses spread out, delighting us not just in the main roads but also in the inner roads in J. P. Nagar. Even today if I spot a well designed house, I point it out to my wife. Mysuru still continues to harbour such stately houses. On my brief walk, I saw vast plots with old mansions, some dilapidated and some well "lived in" ! I marvelled to myself at the sight of such charming and quaint houses, treasuring those sights.
In the evening, we went to my friend's wedding reception. It was a good gathering of common friends and colleagues. The next morning, my wife and I attended my friend's wedding ceremony. Before we knew it, the time had come for us to leave for Bengaluru. We watched a Sudeep movie in the bus. On the way back in Bengaluru, we saw that there was a traffic jam. It was a rude awakening of sorts. Still, in my free time, my thoughts wander back to Mysuru and its stately residences - and to the creativity of two women who have transformed sand and sea-shells to magical works of art !
We caught a regular KSRTC bus to Mysuru at 10 a.m. Our driver believed in the "horn and drive" philosophy. Every time he changed lanes to overtake, he would blow the horn, put his hand out to indicate and then overtake. If we were sitting in the middle rows of the bus, I might have applauded his caution. As it transpired, we were in the second row. The blare of the horn constantly assailed our eardrums ! "I feel like I am in an ambulance !", quipped my wife. "If the noise continues, I will have a heart attack and then this may become an ambulance !", I remarked !
Near Srirangapatna, our road was blocked. A tractor with a trailer overloaded with sugarcane had toppled. "This must have happened just now. Look, a wheel is still spinning.", observed my wife. Indeed, the tractor had fallen on the left and its front right wheel was rotating freely in the air. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and the tractor was largely undamaged too. Quite a few people collected sugarcane stalks from the toppled trailer, which was unloaded by the men who had assembled there. Somebody brought ropes which were tied to the tractor and trailer. The other end was tied to a truck on the other side of the highway, which had stopped. The truck started and inched forward. The tractor and trailer were righted ! Soon, traffic resumed on our side. We used the time to eat brunch, before arriving in Mysuru.
My wife had planned that we should see the sand museum in Mysuru. I noticed on the map that there was also a wax house of horrors and a sea shell museum nearby. "Let us see what we can cover.", I said. We decided to go the sand museum first.
The web page http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/getting-creative-using-sand-and-water/article5960480.ece provides an overview about the sand museum, the brainchild of M. N. Gowri. The entry ticket is Rs. 40. If one chooses to go to the 3-D selfie museum, it costs Rs. 40 more. We decided to visit only the sand museum.
The sand museum has some gorgeous creations. A few of them are shown here.
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| The horses look majestic. |
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| The sea world comes alive thanks to the sting-ray, shark, octopus and the mermaid. |
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| A goblin, a gravestone and darker sand portray a world of horrors ! |
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| Notice the crescent moon and the star representing Islam. |
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| Santa Claus seems to say: "Ho ho ho !" |
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| Ganesha appears regal and commanding, unlike his usual avataar. |
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| This aquarium shaped like a fish, is composed of sea-shells. |
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| The petals of the rose are the typical sea-shells that I have seen in Mumbai. |
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The sea-shells are stuck together using Araldite to form the hands and thighs of Lord Ganesha here.
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| From end-to-end, this Ganesha idol is 22 feet tall. I like the proportion in this work of art, from the eyes to the fingers. |
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| The certificate is official proof of the remarkable nature of the sea-shell Ganesha. |
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| Zoom in to the Shivalinga to notice that it is constituted of "kavades". I don't know if the English language has an equivalent word. |
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| The lotus in the centre is also sea-shells ! The dasha avataar of lord Vishnu are arranged in a semi-circle. |
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| The white light inside this sea-shell work of art entices the eye. |
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| Broom sticks are transformed into a ship ! |
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| Some of the glory of the Taj Mahal is experienced in this work of art made of sea-shells. |
The price of Rs. 40 and Rs. 20 per camera was well worth the money spent, I felt. We took an auto rickshaw to the zoo and walked to a restaurant. Later, we went to my wife's aunt's house, where we stayed for a couple of nights. My wife's cousin and her husband took us out for dinner that night.
The next morning, my wife, her aunt and I walked to Nanjumallige, a market that had the usual bustle associated with markets. The choicest of vegetables and greens were purchased by the ladies, with bargaining, of course ! Both of them were contented after the morning shopping.
After bathing and eating breakfast, I set out for a solitary walk on my own. My father used to work in Mumbai (or Bombay as it was then) in the '80s. When we came to Bengaluru (or Bangalore as it was then !), one of the simple pleasures for us was to walk in J. P. Nagar. The traffic was less and what impressed us were the grand houses and residences there ! Houses with gables ; houses with green lawns and colourful flowers and houses with novel architecture attracted our attention. Mumbai had only one direction for its residences : up ! In the '80s in Bengaluru, we could see houses spread out, delighting us not just in the main roads but also in the inner roads in J. P. Nagar. Even today if I spot a well designed house, I point it out to my wife. Mysuru still continues to harbour such stately houses. On my brief walk, I saw vast plots with old mansions, some dilapidated and some well "lived in" ! I marvelled to myself at the sight of such charming and quaint houses, treasuring those sights.
In the evening, we went to my friend's wedding reception. It was a good gathering of common friends and colleagues. The next morning, my wife and I attended my friend's wedding ceremony. Before we knew it, the time had come for us to leave for Bengaluru. We watched a Sudeep movie in the bus. On the way back in Bengaluru, we saw that there was a traffic jam. It was a rude awakening of sorts. Still, in my free time, my thoughts wander back to Mysuru and its stately residences - and to the creativity of two women who have transformed sand and sea-shells to magical works of art !
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ReplyDeleteNice Kiran. You introduced two unknown gems in Mysore to a Mysorean. I will surely plan to visit these places on my next trip home.
ReplyDeleteI think you will like it ! However, one caveat applies : the museums are housed in plots around 50 feet by 80 feet or may be somewhat bigger. It will take around 20 minutes to cover them, each. Please don't expect a half day visit here !
DeleteNice writeup. The pictures are very good. Life in Mysore seems so stress free as compared to our own Bengaluru - would be nice to go and settle down there.
ReplyDeleteYes, my wife and I often discuss about how Mysuru is still the pensioner's paradise that Bengaluru used to be, from what my mother tells me ! One can cover Mysuru from one end to another in 30 minutes, my friends inform me !
DeleteNice post Kiran. Even I love the spacious settings of Mysore. It has that regal charm and offers lots of culture unlike Bangalore which is sadly reduced to a concrete jungle. The sand and sea shell museums look very interesting, hope to see it next time we are in Mysore
ReplyDeleteI am glad you liked it, Arun. Both the museums are on the road to Chamundi Hills, relatively close to the Zoo. The museums are not very big : you should be able to visit both in an hour's time. We missed visiting the Wax House of Horrors on the same road, which has been recommended by Mysureans ! It is something for you to consider during your next visit there !
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