Next destination is a former capital of a princely state, the city of Mysore. The main attraction is the Maharajah's Palace, but there are plenty of other dilapidating grand gestures around the city. I figured a 12-hour city tour would be the most efficient way of taking in the city and its surroundings, even if it included more attractions then I cared to see.
Indeed, efficient it was. Some of the most active 12 hours I ever remember spending. We started in the Krishnarajah's Palace turn an art gallery of Mysore style paintings and other, somewhat forgettable displays; then we got bused to the zoo, which wasn’t actually half as bad, as I was afraid it might be and I got to see an elephant eating his lunch and another, very excited one. On to the temple on the Chamundi hill with a nice panorama of the city; until finally we had lunch around three o’clock. I just about bailed out after seeing the Maharaja’s Palace (again no photos inside, well almost), which was around 5 o’clock in the evening, but the three Indian IT feministas from Tamil Nadu, who were on the tour with me, wouldn’t hear of it, and so I stuck around till the late evening. There was a Neo Gothic St Phelomena's church, with neat catacombs, which house the remains of the 3rd century St Phelomena, then more temples, including the one with the
errant limbs, and for the great finale, we were taken to a fountain garden build over a dam. I couldn't find this attraction in the Lonely Planet, but I think it’s called Brindavan Gardens. Even though it might have been off the beaten track for the LP followers, this place was apparently VERY popular with local visitors, especially since this was a Sunday night. At the top of the hill, surrounded by the throngs of colorfully-lit fountains was the star of the show - a musical fountain that danced to techno and indian pop-music, while everyone in the crowd was recording the show on their mobiles. Just search for “brindavan” on youtube.com and you’ll see what I mean.
