Southern Sojourn 1 - Exploring Madurai

As we came out of the temple, we did shopping around the area, as it is quite famous for shopping being the main market of Madurai. After shopping was over we moved ahead to Madurai Mahal, not far from Meenakshi temple (about 1.2 kms). A piece of advice, while traveling in TN, make sure to keep yourself well hydrated and carry a pair of sun glasses.

This is the main market area of Madurai

Madurai mahal is also known as Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal. It is a 17th-century palace erected in 1636 AD by King Thirumalai Nayak, a king of Madurai's Nayaka dynasty  who ruled Madurai from 1623–59, in the city of Madurai. This Palace is a classic fusion of Dravidian and Rajput styles. The building, which can be seen today, was the main Palace, in which the king lived. The original palace was four times bigger than the present structure. In its heyday, Tirumalai Nayak Palace at Madurai was considered to be one of the wonders of the South.

Upon entering gates of the palace, the visitor step into present day’s huge central courtyard measuring 3,700 m². 

The central courtyard with surrounded by pillars

Inside there were lots of sculptures and artifacts. The time when we visited, some restoration work was going on, so in the pictures below, one could see some as well. 

After independence, the Thirumalai Palace was declared as a national monument and is now under the protection of the Tamil Nadu Archaeological Department. This palace is open for the visitors from 9am to 5pm and the entry ticket price is Rs.10. There is a light and sound show which happens every evening at the palace in English & Tamil. Due to time constrain, we had to skip that.

Sharing some pictures taken inside the museum.

A vantage point for getting some good photo ops...

Detailing on the wall

These wall paintings were being restored

After a fresh coat of paint, this part looks gorgeous...

These are some of the stone figures exhibited by ASI...

I guess this is a durga idol carved out of stone...

Some of the ancient day art...

 

After the museum visit, we headed for lunch followed by an afternoon break of 2 hrs, as the heat was becoming unbearable. This gave me time to take an account back home how things are taking place. Came to know that rain has receded but there was severe water-logging across the city. After this took rest for an hour and half till the sun lessens down it's fury.

Later that afternoon around 4 we went to an old temple which was almost in ruins, but to visit that we had to go on top of a hill. Regarding the temple, it was a very old temple carved out of stone, but still it is a famous temple among the people of that area as they come here to worship. However, this temple was clean and maintained. Also it was not crowded, so spent some time there and thought about the plans for the next day, as we would be traveling a lot the following day. By the time we left the place it was dusk. The temple was about an hour from the hotel. It was not in the city, but was in Madurai district. By the time we entered our hotel it was evening.

The hill on which the ruin temple was situated...

And this is the temple, preserved...

By the time we returned it was evening.

Once back home I was preoccupation with call by my friends who called me to wish Dusherra. Back in North India it's a major festival and a day to wish ones friends and take blessings from elders. It also marks the end of Navratri/Durga Puja. One more information, though it's a public holiday across India, but down South Ravan Dahan is something unheard of! As far as I remember it was a normal working day in TN, something unseen in rest of India. No wonder why they call it Incredible India! India has lot of differences in language , geography and culture.

Soon we had our dinner and after bidding night to my loved one back home, I slipped inside my blanket for deep slumber.

Note: One can go to Kodaikanal for a day's visit, which is around 120kms from Madurai (about 3hrs). Its a hill station on the lap of Nilgiri hills. Since were time constrained, so we couldn't make it to Kodai. But my personal opinion would be a must visit if you have a day in hand to spare, but expect it to be crowded especially during holidays and weekends!


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Banjara_the nomadic