It is monsoon time and best time to visit Chikkamagulur.
This time, it was time to explore yet another homestay. We booked our stay at
Thotadahalli Homestay (http://thotadahalli.com). This homestay is owned and run by a couple Prakash and
Pallavi. An excellent place to spend an extended weekend. The location is
superb, the food is yum yum (my mouth is watering even as I am writing),
the drive to the property is excellent. It is just perfect!
Friday Aug 8th was holiday for kids on occasion of
festival (Varmaha Lakshmi). Since this was a long weekend, we planned our stay
at Thotadahalli for 2N/3D and we had a lovely time at the property. They have 5
rooms, one of the rooms has an attic which accommodates a separate bed for
kids. We had booked this room. The rooms are very big and comfortable. All
rooms are good and open into the dining and garden.
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| Belur Temple |
We started from Bangalore at 6:30AM on Fri 8th Aug. The road to
Chikkamagulur is pretty good and would take about 4 - 4.5 hours. Good place to
stop for breakfast is Mayura, halfway between Bangalore and Chikkamagulur.
Since we had some time, we thought of visiting the famous Belur temples. We had seen
them about 10 years back and thought it would be good to see them now as
the kids may appreciated and enjoy it better - now that they are old enough to know some history.
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| Narshima - At Belur Temple |
Belur temples are of Hoysala style and have fine carved
temples. The temples are a must visit and would take about 1 – 1 ½ hours to
cover. A guide to explain the details is a must. The pillars, carving on the
temple walls and the sculptures are very artistic. 100+ years was spent to
build the main temple. It took 3 generations (started by the grandfather and completed
in the era of grandson). We explored the temples with the guide giving us all
the details and it was enthralling. Chikkamagulur is not very far from Belur.
We reached Thotadahalli Homestay by 1:30PM.
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| Homestay |
Though we visit Chikkamagulur almost every year, it still
provides the same freshness, relaxation as ever. It just connects you with
nature. The coffee, the pepper, the greenery, the foggy Mulayangiri , the rains,
yummy malnad food – the list is endless. The property is relatively new, but
very well designed. There are games like fose-ball, chess, Chinese checker
board (big ones), carom to spend time
with family. They also have friendly dogs. We trekked within the property. They
have huge coffee estates. There are streams running in the property and morning
treks within the property are very-very refreshing.
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| Bonsai Collection at Homestay |
Once we reached the homestay, we had hot lunch and just
relaxed at the property. Our room was with the attic. The kids were very happy
with the room. Around the property they
have lots of fruit bearing trees and also vegetable garden. Most of the food is
prepared with what is grown on the property. They also have a huge collection
of Bonsai plants. Late afternoon we went on a small trek within the property.
Walking amidst the coffee estate, with orange trees popping here and there was
exciting. The dog on property followed us through the trek. It started raining
in the evening and we spent playing games, reading and chatting with fellow
tourists who were staying at the homestay. We had nice dinner and slept.
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| Trek Within the Property |
Next day, we went for a long walk in the morning within the
property. We came across streams, falls and lots of interesting insects. After
a refreshing morning walk, hot breakfast tasted even more tasty. We had a good
breakfast, relaxed for some time and drove to
Mulayangiri betta. We parked our
car at the parking which is at the base and then started our climb. It was a long trek. During our last visit, we had taken our car to the top of Mulayangiri and just climbed the
400+ steps to the top point. This time, we wanted to do more trekking, hence
parked our car at the 1
st point. From here it is 3KM trek to the
foot of the steps which lead to the top point. We took total of 3-4 hours - to trek,
climb the 400 steps and back to the car. Weather was good – it was quite chill,
but luckily not raining. We really enjoyed doing this trek. Walking gives a
different kind of connect with the nature. You can absorb more and the
experience stays much longer in the memory.
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| Entrance to the property |
After the trek, we were really hungry. We came back to the
homestay (luckily the homestay is very close to Mulayangiri Betta) and attacked
the hot food. We had a good meal and spent the afternoon relaxing. In the evening, we
just drove by Hirekolel lake. The kids wanted to get in the water. They were playing
by the banks and there was lot of slush. Shrishti’s leg got stuck in the slush and
her leg was almost knee deep in the slush. We had to pull her, get her cleaned.
She was crying and laughing at the same time.
Evening was fun. The hosts served some home-made wine (Red
and White) from some berries. It was amazing. We ended buying few bottles to carry
back home. We spent evening playing lot of games, sipping wine and munching hot
snacks which were served. Could not ask for more – it is raining, you are in a
beautiful place with your loved ones, assorted snacks are served, you are
sipping home-made wine and having fun with your family. We had a lovely time
here – very memorable, fun and relaxing.
Next day was pack and get back to Bangalore. We accumulated as
much clean oxygen as we could and then returned back with more memories and fun
experience to remember and relish!
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