Friday, February 1, 2013

THANJAVUR

I was planning for a long time to see the temple cities of Tn and this time on sakranti god fulfilled my wish.We made a three day trip
1 day..

we started from Chennai around 6 in the morning. whenever i get up early, it feels so fresh and rejuvenating that i promise myself that i am going to make it a routing, but sadly it never happens.Since I didnt know anything about either the cities or temple, my friend's DIL made a detailed itinerary for me, keeping in mind my preferences.and what a methodical person she is.I feel very grateful to her, as she did it on a very short notice.She had advised us to have breakfast at Neyvelli..ITC restaurant, but since we started a little late,(she had advised us to start at 5.30), our driver stopped somewhere on the way to eat..but the place was not good, neither the food nor cleanliness..

Around 11 we reached Chidambaram and saw Natraj temple its a very ancient temple of Shiv ,what a huge temple it is, one gets the feeling of complete awe.There were so many foreigners there and most of the women wearing silk sarees and I thought what an irony it is, our young generation finds it cumbersome and they are loving it.There all Swamis keep asking you about your address, but our friend had already warned us not to tell it to anyone.so we had darshan and came out. There are many restaurants outside, so one can have lunch there.

Then since it was closing time for temples we decided to travel to Thanjavur. On the way we had some tea and snacks.I found lot of thatched houses there, may be because of heat..In TN, it looks that govt hasnt gone to the interiors, development is limited to big cities only. There are narrow bumpy roads.But it was therapeutic to see so much of lush greenery.We reached there around 3.30 and went to see Thanjavur Palace first...Its not exactly palace like, just a reminder of that. Rest there are museums.for old manuscripts.and you will be surprised to know that even in 17th century medical people had full diagrams of our systems.There are different type of files,minute writings on tree barks...Then there are bronze statues and so finely carved that you can see the nails even beautifully...amazing craft and people we had..

Then we went to see Brihadeeshwar temple and it was the most beautiful and big temple I have seen, everything is so huge and amazing, even if one takes a parikrama it will take some time..I cant express in words..its impact on you...awesome..

THANJAVUR PALACE
CHIDAMBARAM TEMPLE
bRIHADEESHWAR TEMPLE
Then we looked for the hotel to stay. There were two good ones but they didnt have place and some were very expensive. Ultimately we found onePLA Residency..it was excellent, in everything.ambiance, comfort and cleanliness and reasonable too at 2200/ night inclusive of BF and what a sumptuous BF they had..perfect.Since the market was completely closed we had an early night.


20 comments:

Jeevan said...

I have been to the big temple; I will recommend being there at evening to capture spectacular sight of the gopural while sunset with golden rays. Nice photos and trip detail.
For people of south Chennai, taking ECR is shot to reach Chidambaram.

KParthasarathi said...

Yes,Chidambaram and Tanjore big temple are awesome places.I hope you had someone to explain the unique features of Brihadeeswara temple.I hope this is a part of a serial as the district abounds with innumerable temples especially in and around Kumbakonam.

anilkurup59 said...

Truly a marvel . I ve been there to the Thanjavur temple once and was awed to say so is an understatement.
Stayed in the same hotel you mentioned and paid as much. average I guess.

Anonymous said...

You seem to have had an enjoyable trip. The Brihadeeshwar temple photographs are lovely!

You have written about only one day. Are you going to write another post on the next part of your trip?

ra said...

i was in chennai for 5 years and i missed going to thanjavur ..

Sandhya said...

Good to know that you enjoyed this trip. Yes, both the Chidambaram and Brihadeeshwarar temples are huge. I did a post on Brihadeeshwarar. I had visited Chidambaram, long back!

Yes the diagrams are so clear in the old manuscripts. I remember seeing them.

Waiting to read more about this trip of yours, Renu!

Amrita said...

aaaaaaah roaming! Tabhi gayab the aap blogging se :)
place sounds good :)

Renu said...

Jeevan:We took a cab and he decided that going thru that route was better..We dont know much about the area.

Kparthsaarthi: I am going to write about all other places too..but it may take some time:)


Anilkurup:...hotel was not luxurious but nice...

Manju: I am going to write about whole trip but In am not getting time, been busy travelling..

Amrita: I have been travelling a lot..going again tomorrow:)..changed the profile pic:)..looking nice..

Renu said...

Rahul Aggarwal; You missed it..koi baat nahi, you can come again:)

Reflections said...

I've been to the Brihadeshwara Temple too....and the Meenakshi temple. And Mareena beach & Golden beech. They took us there from School;-D.

Good to read about ur trip Renu:-)).

SG said...

Thanks for the nice write up. Also, thanks for sharing those beautiful pictures.

Amrita said...

Thanks Renu :) Have a good trip :) and write about it :)

Zephyr said...

What a lovely nostalgic trip for me, just as it has been a real trip for you!

I had visited Thanjavur as a school girl and am sure the town has changed a lot since then. The Sarabhoji palace and the Saraswati Mahal are wonderful and I still remember them. At the Periya kovil, as Brahadeeswara temple is known, the sight of the Nandi sets the tone and the gopuram adds to the awe. Chidambaram was more recent -- a decade ago, and the vastness symbolises the the concept of the Vayu lingam there.

Oh, Renu, this was wonderful hark back to the past. Thanks a ton!

rudraprayaga said...

Beautiful pictures. Interesting write up.

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radha said...

We did this kind of a trip some 7-8 years ago. I loved the Tanjavur temple.

Avada Kedavra said...

have visited this place when I was a kid. Your post brought back some nice memories :)

Mana said...

Reading your blog after ages. Thanjavur is on my wish list. A must see place for beautiful temples. I own a Tanjavur Veena too. :)

Dilip said...

The pictures of our sacred temples are brilliant. Thank you for sharing. Regards.

Renu said...

Thanks everybody!

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