KSTDC: Weekend Getaway from Bangalore: Mysore Palace, Brindawan Garden, Chennakeshava temple, Hoysalehwara temple

Route:

Srirangapatnam:

- Dariya Daulat Bagh (Garden): This garden also has the summer palace of Tipu Sultan. The murals are very beautiful however gradually they are losing out to the vagaries of nature. In 2005 they were much brighter but now in 2018 the colors in some places are fading away. Photography is allowed however for religious reasons selfies are not allowed. The place is located in the larger fort complex of Sri-rangapatnam fort (Island fortress of Tipu Sultan). Plan for at least an hour for this venue if you are on your own.

- Sri Ranganathaswamy temple: is a temple dedicated to lord Vishnu and has a large statute of the lord lying on Sheshnag. The time will depend on the crowd but your should budget for 40 mins at least. Photography of the main deity may not be allowed.

Mysore:

- St Philomena’s Church: in built in the Neo Gothic style and draws inspiration from the Cologne Cathedral in Germany. The towers are 175 feet in height. The church has a crypt under the main altar and is quite beautiful.

- Hotel Mayura Hoysala is the destination for lunch on the KSTDC tour. Both buffet and ala-carte options.

- Mysore Palace is a must visit if you are in India. It attracts the second highest number of visitors after the Taj Mahal. The palace needs to be experienced in more than one ways. Given this is a private property only part of the palace is open to the general public and is quite an experience to see opulent lifestyle of the Maharaja of Mysore. The palace is also decorated with millions of light bulbs which are turned on in the evening and is a sight to behold in itself. May not be possible on a KSTDC package tour however.

- Mysore Zoo ( Sri Jayachamarandra Wadeyar): Given the tight itineary of the package tour most likely this venue will be skipped. It was skipped for us and could be skipped as well.

- Chamundi Hill , Sri Chamundeswari Darshan

- Brindavan Gardens

Located right next to the KRS Dam the water gushing out from the open gates of the dam is a sight to behold in itself. The garden has a backdrop of the dam wall and divided into the North and the South garden.



There is a light and sound show in the evening and all the lights come on around the garden providing a very different spectacle. There is not separate fee for the show.


Stay at Mayura Caveri KRS

Shravanabelagola

Chennakeshava Temple, Belur

These are a group of temples within the same premise with the main temple being dedicated to Vishnu. The name Chenna Kesava implies beutaiful Vishnu (Kesava being another name for Vishnu). There is no entry fee and the opening and closing times are from sun rise to sun set. 

It is recommended to hire the guides in my opinion, as it would be tough to appreciate the nuances of the carvings without the help of a guide (or other knowledgeable person in your group). 

However if you are first time visitor, I would recommend one as it was very informative and we looked at things in greater detail which we would have otherwise missed. 

The temple was commissioned by the Hoysalas king Vishnu Vardhan in around 1100 AD and have the typical Hoysala emblem (the boy fighting the lion-like animal). The temple is carved out of soapstone and the extent to which the sculptures (which took over a 100 years to build the temples) went to portray the mythological events as well as events of their times is what sets these temples apart. 

It is an active temple (Chennakeswara) has more of a traditional temple look to it. If one wanted to study the temple in greater detail, one can easily spend hours together looking at the various sculptures.

There is a parking fee to park your vehicle (or taxi) in front of the temple - which is valid for the day.

As you exit the temple you maybe approached by vendors selling various books, trinkets and other souvenirs. 

Lodging:

KSTDC operates a very basic hotel - Mayura Velapuri, within walking distance to the Belur Temple. It also has a restaurant. These a government properties and the maintenance is functional at best. It also has a restaurant.

If you are returning back from Belur/Halebid back to Bangalore, then you can consider stopping over at Shravanabelogala to see the giant Bahubali statue.

Hotel Mayura velapuri

Hoysaleswara Temple, Halebidu

Lord Shiva with Parvati

Veeranarayana swamy Temple, Belavadi

The temple is famous for its lathe pillars.

Amazing Craftmanship

Munnar

Rajamalai (Eravikulam) National Park

If possible pick a time based on what attracts you. You will see nature in its full glory during the rainy season with lush green landscape and water gushing down the falls however the probability of meeting the Nilgiri Thar is less as they would not come down as there is no dearth of water.

Pick a slightly drier month if you would like to see the wild goat but the falls may be a bit drier.
We visited the place in 1 week of Aug 2018 and the blooming had not started at all. 
Also you may want to book the tickets online to skip the queue. There is a per day limit to the number of visitors allowed. This is approximately 2500 normally and 3500 during the peak season.

Tea Gardens and Museum:

There are a number of tea estates in Munnar and number of them conduct a tour of the factory for a charge. A couple of them that I am aware of are the Kanan Devan and LockHart. Kanan Devan estae was owned by the Tata group however they sold off their Munnar estates in 2005 and hence the ownership has changed. The Lockhart estate is owned by the Goenkas (Harrison Malyalam). 

Now the tour operators will want to take you to LockHart because of their commissions. The entry fee to Lockhart museum is 200/- while that at Kanan Devan is 90/- per person (somewhere I read 125/-). I have not been to Kanan Devan so no first hand experience but the fee seems to be less. Moreover Lockhart does not allow photography inside the plant. Other than the cost my experience with Lockhart was good.

The guide walked us through the tea processing and also explained the difference in the process of making White, Green and Black tea. 

Please do update your first hand experience.  

KSTDC: Nagarahole – Madikeri – Nisargadhama – Golden Temple (Bylekuppe)

KSTDC:  Nagarahole – Madikeri – Nisargadhama – Golden Temple (Bylekuppe)

We reached the pickup point at Corporation circle at 0600. The bus arrived at 0700 about 15 mins later. The KSTDC staff called as well and are pretty cooperative and helpful. It is a normal non-ac bus. The low was that it did not have an additional folding step and therefore was inconvenient for the elderly passengers to board and alight from the bus.

There are 3 more pickup points before the bus reaches the Bangalore Mysore highway. The first stop was Kamat Upchar for breakfast.

Breakfast:

The food is average. We had Idly and vada. The place gets overly crowded as all the KSTDC buses stopped here and all the buses arrive at almost he same time. Probably KSTDC should tie up with some other restaurant as well.

There are two types of models in the restaurant. The back building is self service and you need to take a token first. If you find a seat in the first building then you can ask them to get the order as well. But way too crowded either ways because of poor planning on part of KSTDC.

You can also walk a little bit further and have food at other nearby restaurants as there are accessible options nearby.

Golden Temple (Bylekuppe): Formally known as Namdroling Monastery this is the second largest of people from came from Tibet after Dharamshala. The temple and the monastery were constructed in the 1960 and can house 3000 monks. The temple is quite beautiful with large gold plated statute of Buddha (hence the name  golden temple), with ornate carvings and paintings on the walls and even the ceilings.

Namdroling Monastery

There are three temples in the complex and they also have a model of the Palyul Monastery located in Tibet.

Golden Buddha, Temple 1

Temple# 2, Namdroling Monastery 

Entrance to the Central Temple Building

Stupa with ornate carvings

Model of Palyul Monastery located in Tibet

You can also try the Tibetan cuisines in the nearby restaurants and also some Tibetan style crafts.

Rating: 5/5

Lunch at Kushalnagar

Cauvery Nisargadhama: This is a park located on an island in between cauvery river. It has an enclosure with few species of deer and a parrot species. There is small zip line outside and inside the park and few artifacts depicting native dresses. If you are on tight routine this place can be skipped. However, the venue is good, lush green and peaceful.

Abbey Falls: It is a must that you time the visit to Abbey falls correctly which would normally be around end of July else check if it has rained adequately in the area. We were lucky as July of 2018 it rained exceptionally well in the area. 

It is about a 10 min walk from the entrance to the place from where you can view the falls. Even the elderly (senior citizens)should be able to navigate it. The place is somewhat crowded especially during the weekends. The best view is provided by the rope over- bridge which is closed as local authorities probably do not want to invest in crowd control. Without crowd control it would be a disaster waiting to happen.

Hanging Bridge

There are some snack counter if to turn left from the exist gate.

Raja's Seat: It is a view point from where you could look at he entire Coorg valley.

Hotel Mayura Kauvery: This KSTDC hotel is located around 40 km from Raja's seat and 8 km from Talacauvery. While the location of the hotel is quite good, the experience may not be great as the bed linen is stained. They hotel also has a restaurant with average food. The breakfast is relatively better.

Talacauvery - The birthplace of river Cauvery: There is temple dedicated Shiva and Ganesha in this complex along with the water stream which is the birthplace of Cauvery. Very similar to the source of Godavari in Tribkeshwar. Do not expect anything like the glacial rivers of the north like the Ganges/Yamuna which originate from the gangotri/yamunotri glaciers.


Nagarahole: Is a so called tiger reserve. As part of the package the bus will simple drive through the forest and you will get to see some deer on the way. There will be ample greenery. I guess again KSDTC needs to plan the tour better. A safari ride could be included as part of the package.

Ramadevara Betta Hill: Day Outing from Bangalore:

Day Outing from Bangalore: Ramadevara Betta Hill (Vulture Sanctuary)

Ramadevara Betta (Hill in Kannada) is about 60-70 km from Bangalore and is a good destination for a half day to a day outing. The hill is located within the premises of Vulture Sanctuary and the gates only open at 0900 hrs.

The entry fee for four wheeler is Rs. 20/- and for adults is Rs. 25/- per person.

Getting There: Follow google maps for the direction. From a landmark perspective a giant Hanuman statute will appear to your right. Take the U-turn on the highway and then you need to take the road besides the statue. Follow google again. The end of the road will take you to the entrance of the sanctuary.

The Venue: Consider yourself lucky if you spot a vulture :).  You can take you vehicle inside. There is ample parking space and I guess the forest officials will not allow if there are too many vehicles. The premises has a temple and a hill lock that you can climb.

The climb can be split into three parts.

First part is the easiest. Flight of stairs (about 400 odd steps) which will take you to the main temple.

Second part consists of a mix of muddy path and steps made of rough slabs of granite. You will continue to gain height and get some amazing views of the valley below.

Third part: Is the most interesting and a bit risky. At the end of the second part you will reach a metal stair case which take you to the large boulder which has grooves to help you climb. These take to to the top of the hill. The view are amazing but climb is very steep (almost vertical, 75 degree at least). The view from here are excellent.

In case you arrive too early: In case you arrive too early or would like to go early some of the nearby attractions that you could explore:
- Manchanabele Dam
-

Shanghai Wild Animal Park

Shanghai Wild Animal Park

Reaching There: Metro Line 16 Wild Animal Park Metro Station, Exit #2. Then take the Bus # 6. The second stop is the park. The Shanghai Public Transport Card is accepted on the bus. You can also get taxis near the Exit #2.

Timings: Check the website for the opening timings. I would suggest that you reach there by 8 or 8:30 am else you will miss some of the shows or ceremonies. Plan for an entire day. There are too many things to see.

Entry Fee: 130 RMB for adults. Check website for more details. This includes entry, Safari ride and the Shows (Sea Lion Sow, Dog Racing, Tiger/Lion Show). Check the pick for the tentative times of these shows. Get a map when you buy the tickets. Even if there is no English version the map will be helpful. All rent a quadri-cycle may be. Would be easier with small kids or elderly.

Additional Activities: There are rides as well if the kids are interested but I would suggest that you avoid these if possible.

Must See: 

- The Baby Animal Section:You can see tiger/lion cubs in various stages of growth and also for few other animals. You could hold them or feed them for extra charge.

Tiger cubs in playful mood

- The Dog Race: I guess they also conduct a Cheetah race although I missed it.

- Sea Lion Show: This one is awesome. They will dance play volleyball and basketball. They are really well trained. Take the 3rd or 4th row in the middle. Sometimes the seals are too enthusiastic and might drench you in water ;).

Sea lion show

- Safari: The normal safari is included in the ticket. For this you are taken in on a normal bus. You could pay extra around 40 RMB and get onto another smaller vehicle which will allow more time and a closer interaction as they may feed meat which will result in the carnivores coming close to the vehicle. Also try to take the first row seat on the bus and near the window on the right side. That will give you the best view as a lot of animals will be lazying around on the road if it is a sunny day.

Tip: The Dog Race and Sea Lion areas are next to each other so try to complete these together Their timings are 2:15 and 3:15 pm respectively. Check with local authorities if both are going to be held as it depends on the weather as well.

Tips on Living in China/Shanghai

This one is inspired from the first one which I had found to be very useful when I started. However the first one is a bit out dated now so I though of updating the content to the extent possible and will touch on some areas which were not as relevant in 2012 :).



Cell Phone:

The Indian mobile equipment should work in Shanghai. However the messages may not be readable if it is a feature phone as they may not support the Chinese character set. Smartphone would most likely support them but I am not sure (Moto E did).

However, you may be in for an initial shock as nothing related Google will work here: Gmail, Google Maps, Google Play Store etc. unless you have a VPN. So here are a few Apps that you should install before you land here (I am also giving the analogous App that you typically would be using in India or even globally):

India	China	Comments
WhatsApp	WeChat	Both are a must have. WeChat support voice calls and has slightly better call quality and has embedded translation capabilities. In fact wechat beats whatsapp hands down on pretty much all aspects. WhatsApp may be blocked at times as well.
	ExploreShanghaiMetro	Very Useful and Must Have: Provide all the information that you need for the Shanghai Metro network. Assuming that you do not know Chinese you would be relying on the metro very much.
	Pleco	Chinese dictionary and OCR software [Paid]
Youtube	Youku	Youtube is blocked unless you are on company or private VPN.
Gmail	QQ/Outlook.com	Gmail is blocked. QQ is the Chinese gmail although it’s very slow in accessing from outside China. You may want to setup auto-forward your Gmail emails to some other account till you get settled here.  Alternatively setup a Microsoft Outlook.com account.
Google Search	Bing/Baidu	Baidu is the Chinese Google Search.
Google maps	Baidu	I am not sure if an English version exists. Try your luck.
Twitter	Weibo	Chinese Twitter and Facebook equivalents. There may be others as well. Weibo features are somewhere between Twitter and Facebook.
Facebook	Renren	Chinese Facebook equivalent.

If you are an Apple product user you are in a better shape as Apple store is accessible. Windows store is also accessible but I heard that the apps on windows are very limited.

Food

If you are a strict vegetarian you will find it difficult here. Even for a Indian non-vegetarians it may not be that easy as in India if you eat Chicken you consider yourself a non-vegetarian.

Non-vegetarian here would typically be beef, pork and sea-food. These three are the most common although you will find Chicken as well.

Also if you are very particular you may have to check the oil that is used for e.g. with French fries. Oil derived from animal fat is very common here.

Also be careful if you are very particular about the veg and non-veg. Often all the ingredients will not be mentioned. For e.g. It may say Cabbage Dumplings and may have pork as the base with cabbage thrown in.

Known options for an Indian:

Chain	Comments
Sub-way	You can find the Veggie delight sub. That is the only vegetarian option. A small one costs 15 RMB. Large one 27 RMB.
McDonald's	No Vegetarian Burgers. I guess in morning they have the Egg option and other than that you have Chicken and Beef.
KFC	No Vegetarian option. Closest option is Chicken.
Pizza Hut	You have options of a couple of Vegetarian Pizza's but the taste is very different from India or even what you get in the US.
Domino's	Very limited Vegetarian Option. Two Veg Pizza’s were available. The Garlic bread is prepared very differently but you may like the taste. Oil I am not very sure.

Street Food:

There are at least few items that you may like with the street vendors and these are very cost effective and similar to what we get back home.

Jian bing guo zi (Chinese version of the Egg Dosa): Costs around 4 RMB. Instead of oil it is the egg that is used to roast the dosa. While this is a North China breakfast specifically from the Tianjin area you will find it in other cities as well. You can decide on the stuffing which could range from wafer to pork sausage. Ask them to add more of the chili sauce if you like it spicy.

Egg Paratha (Bread stuffed with poached Egg): You will find this in many street side yellow colored stall. The version without any meat goes for 3 RMB. They also give it with toppings of sausage or chicken. 

Grocery Stores

There are some Indian grocery stores in Pudong (it is a large area so do not get excited) however the other big departmental stores are Carrefour, CityShop, Metro, Auchan.

CityShop has a good website in English and will do home delivery also but they are a tad expensive.

Transport:

Sorted in Ease of Use Order:

Metro: Is by far the most convenient as they have all the details mentioned in English as well and the network is also very good and the fare very reasonable. Get the pre-paid metro card if you plan to stay for longer than a few weeks and will need to use the metro. The best thing about this card is that it is also accepted on the city's taxi, buses and even ferries. In fact there were plans to make the cards work across cities as well. You even get a discounted fare on using it across modes on the same trip. Worth emulating in any city aiming for a world class public transit system. Remember, while you can get the card on almost every metro station, you will not be able to return the card on every metro stations. Check with the Metro staff. They are very helpful.

Taxi: The taxi fare is also reasonable and you can use these provided you have the addresses printed in Chinese. Do not expect that the drivers to know any English. Some of the drivers carry a translator app but it is safer to carry the address in Chinese. The pre-paid card work on the taxi as well.

Bus: Everything is in Chinese so you may find using them a bit difficult unless someone has told you the number. But all buses do not have a number. The pre-paid card work on the bus as well.

Weather: 

July to August: is hot and humid (more comfortable than Chennai, India though) and and you can have heavy rains. The rains are unpredictable in Shanghai so it is advisable that you carry an umbrella or a rain coat. The cheapest umbrella should cost you around 15 RMB. The expensive ones could go upto 100 RMB. The hotels or service apartments provide one normally.

September to October: is the Autumn time and the weather is pleasant. Although there could be occasional showers.

November to December: is pretty cold with the chilly winds blowing most of the times. It also keep drizzling most of the time. Unlike most regions in India which has "Dry winter" Shanghai has a "Wet winter". The good part of that is you do not have to apply a lot of cold cream but chilly winds can make you a bit uncomfortable at times.

Legal Documents and Other Formalities:

1. TRRF: There are a number of documents that you need once you enter Shanghai, China. The first one is the TRRF (Temporary Residence Registration Form) and you should get it done within 24 hrs of your arrival. If you are going to a hotel/service apartment they will do it for you. You will need to give them your passport and they will keep it for a day.

Else you need to ensure that you get this document from the local police station.

2. Medical Checkup: If you are coming on a Work (Z), S1/S2( dependent) or a student Visa you need to undergo a medical checkup. This report is the basis on which you get your Residence permit and/or work permit.

If you have previously taken a Vaccine for Hepatitis it is advisable from my personal experience that you let the doctors know and ask them to check for Hepatitis during the first check-up itself. Else, your first report may show abnormal liver function and you may have to undergo a test again which will waste your precocious time and money.

3. Residence Permit: You need to go to No. 1500 Minsheng Road where the Public Security Bureau is located for this. Going by Metro would be most convenient and cost effective assuming you are staying near a metro station. Middle Yanggao Road station on Line 9 is one of the options. The bureau is at a walk-able distance from this station. The normal validity for the permit is 1 year however if your employer has a larger head count you may be eligible for 2 year permit as well. Check with your employer/agent on this. It will be helpful if you are trying to get dependents for whom you need to bear the permit cost as they automatically get a permit of the same duration as your permit.

Remittance to India:

The remittance process to India is not as smooth as from the US or some of the western countries as China still has strict capital controls. Here are few of the options:

Western Union: Agricultural Bank of China facilitates the Western Union money transfer. They charge around $20 per transfer. The normal limit is $500 per day. You need to carry your passport and fill up a form. If it the first time then you may have to complete some other forms as well. You can transfer higher amounts also but then you need carry the following as well:
- Tax Slip
- Chopped Pay Slip (Payslip stamped by the Company HR)
- Your work contract that you would have signed when you joined.

Indian Banks: Since only SBI and Canara Bank have 1 branch in Shanghai you may have to commute to a long distance. Then these banks do not open on the weekends so you may have to take a day off. Canara Bank does open on the first Saturday of every month.
They will require your passport and Tax Slip only. 
Canara Bank has a fee of $15 for amounts upto $2500. Beyond that you $1 every incremental $1000. However, with Canara Bank you need to carry cash to their branch.

Chinese Banks: You can visit the chinese banks as well and they will do it for you but what I have heard is that the remittance take almost 5-10 working days. However, since they are in close proximity you may not have to take a day off.

All these options have some trade-offs :).

Useful Websites:
1. Shanghai Expat