Day 1: Arrive Chennai
Assistance on arrival at the International
airport and transfer to the hotel. Rooms booked
for immediate occupancy.
Overnight: Chennai (2 nights)
Day 2: Chennai - Full Day excursion to Mahabalipuram/
Kanchipuram
After breakfast at the hotel, we leave for
Kanchipuram, which is one of Hinduism's seven
most sacred cities. The city dates from the
2nd Century B.C, from the time of the early
Chola reign. Successive dynasties built hundreds
of temples, resulting in the name " The
Golden City of a 1000 Temples ", the
earliest surviving temple dating from the
6th and 7th Century. Apart from being a center
of pilgrimage, Kanchipuram is also famous
for its silk weavers who settled in this area
in the 16th century.
After this fantastic visit of temples at
Kanchipuram, we tour Mahabalipuram, where
tsunami that struck South Asia on December
26 2004, partially unearthed a legendary 1300-year
old Hindu temple on the shore of the Bay of
Bengal.
Already a treasure-trove of ancient stone
shrines and sculptures, Mahabalipuram, as
it is known today, is an extraordinary experience.
This open-air museum of Tamil art in living
rock is the work of students under the patronage
of the Pallava rulers. Strewn along the coast
are some outstanding examples of 7th Century
sculpture cave temples, an enormous bas-relief
depicting scenes from the Indian epic The
Mahabharta, and an amphi theatre of chariot
shaped temples. The landmark of this marvellous
collection is the Shore Temple, a world heritage
monument, and the only surviving one from
the complex, the others having been claimed
by the sea. We return to our hotel in the
evening.
Day 3: Chennai - Mysore (by Shatabdi Train)
Early morning assistance on departure, and
transfer to the railway station for Shatabdi
Express for Mysore.
Depart Chennai at 0600 Hrs Arrive Mysore at
1305 Hrs.
Assistance on arrival at the railway station,
and check in at our hotel. Late afternoon
we visit the city of Mysore.
Mysore is the former capital of the princely
state and is the second largest city in Karnataka.
It is a city of royal palaces with five plus
dozen mansions. Of these the City Palace,
designed by Henry Irwin and built in 1897
is the most extravagant and interesting in
terms of art. Built in the Indo- Sarascenic
style, seen so prevalently in Northern India,
the palace is enormous with domes, arches
and colonnades of carved pillars. It is one
of the largest palaces in the country and
has some priceless treasures.
Overnight: Mysore (2 nights)
Day 4: Mysore
After a comfortable and relaxing breakfast
we leave for excursion to Srirangapatnam.
The name Srirangapatnam come from the temple
of Vishnu that predates the fort or the town.
The town played a crucial part in the region
since its origin in the 10th Century. The
great Viashnavite philosopher and reformer
settled here in 1133 and the site was frequently
a focal point in South India's political development.
Today the area is better known for the beautiful
Daria Daulat Bagh which means the " Splendour
of the Sea". It was Tipu Sultan's summer
palace built in 1784 with lovely gardens,
and colourful frescoes of battle scenes between
the French, British and Mysore armies. The
interior has ornamental arches and gilded
painting on the teak walls and ceiling.
Late afternoon we visit the tiny village
of Somnathpur. It is one of the best preserved
and only complete one of the 80 Hoysala temples
in the Mysore region. This small Kesava Temple
built in the late 13th century is a jewel.
Excellent work on the ceiling shows distinctive
features of the late Hoysala style. It has
three sanctuaries and stands in the middle
of a rectangular courtyard with cloisters
containing 64 cells around it. A walk around
the temple will allow you to admire the bands
of the sculptured figures that are particularly
fine. Overnight at the hotel.
Day 5: Mysore - Hassan via Belur & Halebid.
After breakfast at our hotel, we leave for
Hassan, enroute visiting the famous Belur
& Halebid Temples.
Belur, was the first capital of the Hoysala
Empire. The temples are all clustered in a
courtyard. The one of particular interest
is the Chennakesava Temple dating to the early
12th century and took nearly a century to
complete. It celebrates the Hoysala victory
over the Cholas and is dedicated to Lord Krishna.
The winged figures of the Garuda, the winged
carrier of Lord Vishnu guards the entrance.
The whole is unimpressive on first sight since
the super structure has been lost. However,
the exquisite sculptures that cover the exterior
with friezes are amazing. 650 elephants, each
unique, surrounds the base, with rows of figures
and foliage. The detail of 38 female figures,
young musicians and dancers are perfect. The
unique Narasimha pillar at the center of the
hall is particularly fine, and at one time
could be rotated. The details of this temple
are astounding. To the west of this temple
is the Viranarayana Temple, which also has
some fine sculptures and smaller shrines.
The ancient capital of the Hoysala Empire,
Halebid was founded in the 11th Century, It
was destroyed twice by the armies of the Delhi
Sultanate, first in 1311 and then in 1327,
after which it was abandoned and later named
Halebid, which means Old Capital. Fortunately
the temples survived. It is worth visiting
the 12th century Jain Bastis or temples. Several
of these temples stand in a garden enclosure
and have carved ceiling. These temples are
quiet without the crowds that flock the Hoysalesvara
Temple. The Hoysalesvara Temple also set in
lawns has shrines both dedicated to Lord Shiva
with Nandi Bull, the traditional vehicle of
Shiva facing each. The largest of these temples
was started in 1121 but remained incomplete
for 86 years. There are extraordinary life
size statues of Hindu deities with minute
details surrounding the temple, whilst the
six bands of sculpture below, show the attention
to detail and skill of the artisans' craft.
After the visit we continue our drive to
Hassan and check in to our hotel.
Overnight: Hassan (1 night)
Day 6: Hassan - Bangalore - Yoga Retreat
After a late breakfast, we leave for Bangalore.
On arrival we check in to our Yoga Retreat
Centre for our 7 day Yoga Retreat.
Overnight: Yoga Retreat Centre (6 nights)
Day 7-11: Yoga Retreat
Yoga restores balance into our lives, resolves
our inner conflicts, enables total excellence
and allows us to fulfill our potential to
become complete human beings. According to
Yoga, each living being has a nervous system,
no matter how rudimentary, which acts as a
localized reflector of an all pervading Consciousness,
just as a mirror reflects light. Right understanding
and practice of Yoga enables us to reach beyond
our habitual thinking patterns and purify
the nervous system, thereby allowing it to
better express the qualities of this Consciousness
- Intelligence, Creativity and Bliss.
In the Indian tradition of Yoga, life is
a journey of experiences that leads us to
discover Shreyas ("all round excellence")
inherent within us. As such, this yoga program
is much more than the traditional physical
postures, and the aim is to catalyze your
thinking/living philosophy and harmonize it
with the timeless wisdom enshrined within
the Indian philosophical tradition. All programs
& yoga classes are dedicated to applying
the wisdom of the Vedas and Indian spiritual
tradition to enrich your professional and
personal life.
You will spend time reflecting and connecting
with your inner core. We provide a sacred
space for you, and structure your stay with
dedicated yoga classes, rejuvenation and relaxing
massages, light, but wholesome vegetarian
food, guided meditation sessions, mouna (silence)
and karma yoga (working with a selfless attitude).
These retreats are designed to help you achieve
a better understanding of your self, and hopefully,
the role and purpose of your life.
Yoga classes are based on classical Hatha
yoga & combined with Pranayama (breathing
related) and Pratyahara (internalisation)
processes drawn from the Yoga Sutras –
an ancient yogic doctrine that aims to integrate
our body, mind, heart and souls for complete
living. There is no dogmatic religion practiced,
and people of all faiths are welcome.
Our 7 day stay will include 30 hours of Hatha
yoga and Meditation classes & delicious
vegetarian meals, and is designed for you
to discover how this time tested science makes
your body/mind energies stronger, and helps
you find the right balance between the need
for a fulfilling and successful material life,
and the overall quest for peace and happiness.
Day 12: Bangalore - Cochin (By Flight)
Assistance on departure after breakfast and
transfer to the airport for flight to Cochin.
Depart Bangalore IC 909 at 1230 Hrs Arrive
Cochin at 1325 Hrs.
Assistance on arrival and transfer to our
hotel.
Late afternoon we leave for a tour of Cochin.
An ancient harbour town, Kochi (popularly
known as Cochin), reflects the influence of
many foreign traders who visited the city.
The Jewish synagogue, one of the oldest in
India, is set in the heart of the area known
as " Jew Town" surrounded by an
aromatic spice market, and interesting shops
selling antiques. The synagogue is decorated
with blue ceramic Chinese tiles, each distinct
in their design. We spend time in the surrounding
areas and walk to the Mattancherry Palace,
which was commissioned by the Portuguese for
the King of Kochi for trading rights. The
Palace is two storeys high and is built in
the traditional Kerala Style known as Nalukattu
(four buildings).The palace exhibits memorabilia
from the raja of Kochi's collection but it
is best known for its outstanding wooden walls.
Later we walk in the heritage zone, which
has preserved the original architecture of
the city. We visit the Chinese fishing nets,
which line the mouth of the Cochin harbour.
Overnight: Cochin (1 night
Day 13: Cochin - Alleppey. Overnight on Houseboat
After a comfortable and late breakfast at
our hotel, we drive for an hour and a half
to reach to Alleppey, to embark our houseboat
for an overnight cruise on the backwaters
of Kerala.
A visit to Kerala is incomplete without a
visit to its beautiful backwaters. A series
of canals, which thread their way through
the state to the sea, it allows you a glimpse
of life in Kerala impossible to get from road
transport. Along the way you will pass rice
fields, tiny villages, boats transporting
children to school and farmers transporting
their produce to the market, and women completing
their daily household tasks such as laundry
and washing utensils. You will disembark from
the boat to wander in the villages. At night
the boat will anchor mid stream, and your
meals will be specially prepared by the crew
from freshly bought produce.
Overnight: On Houseboat (1 night)
Day 14: Houseboat - Kumarakom
After breakfast, we disembark from our houseboat
and drive to Kumarakom. We spend the rest
of the day at our hotel on the backwaters
of Kerala. You can enjoy an ayurvedic massage
at the resort.
Overnight: Resort at Kumarakom (2 nights)
Day 15: Kumarakom
Full Day at leisure for Ayurvedic Massage
& Treatments.
Day 16: Kumarakom - Cochin - Chennai (by flight)
After breakfast at the hotel, we leave for
Cochin airport to connect our flight for Chennai.
Depart Cochin by 9W 492 at 1440 Hrs Arrive
Chennai at 1540 Hrs
Assistance on arrival and transfer to your
hotel.
Overnight: Chennai (1 night)
Day 17: Depart Chennai
Breakfast at the hotel and morning at leisure.
Check out at 1200 Hrs and enjoy a short city
tour of Chennai. We will tour this city starting
at Fort St George which marks the beginning
of Madras (now known as Chennai) as an important
trading center. Within the fort is St Mary's
Church, the first English church in India
and the oldest British building to survive.
We will also spend some time in the Mylapore
Temple area visiting the 16th century Kapleeswara
Temple and the fruit and flower market.
Late evening transfer to the airport for
our International flight.
(B = Breakfast; L = Lunch; D = Dinner)
NOTE: This itinerary is subject to change
due to conditions beyond our control.
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