Know about Mysore

 

 

 

The Lalitha Mahal Palace is the second largest palace in Mysore. It is located near the Chamundi Hills. Lalitha Mahal Palace was built by the Maharaja Krishna Raja Wodeyar Bahaddur IV to host his most important guest, the Viceroy of India. Designed by E.W.Fritchley, a much patronised Mumbai-based architect of those days and constructed by B. Munivenkatappa, the building was built in 1931 at a cost of Rs.13.00 lakhs. Built on a raising ground, the palace was fashioned on the lines of the St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and is one of the imposing structures of the Mysore city.

The palace is pure white in color and also has a sprawling terrace and landscaped gardens. The palace has exquisitely designed viceroy room, a banquet hall, a dancing floor and an Italian marble staircase (has an arresting curve) and also embellished with small ornamentation’s, which are said to be replicas from various palaces in Britain.

The Lalitha Mahal palace was converted into a heritage hotel in 1974. The hotel has maintained the Palace well and its splendor is intact to this day. Now a popular venue for local film shoots and other social gatherings, a visit to the palace may help you understand the mystique of royal Mysore.

Mysore Zoo or Shri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens is one of the oldest zoo in India. It is home to a wide range of wild species and takes the credit for alluring vast number of visitors with its rich breed of flora and fauna. Mysore Zoo is a must in the itinerary for sightseeing in Mysore. Mysore Zoo is a pleasant experience also because most animals are kept in well spaced enclosures and it’s a delight to see them move around freely. The Mysore zoo abounds in natural vegetation cover and comprises of various rare species of plants & trees that are hard to find some where else. It is located inside the city unlike many other Zoos in India and Mysore Zoo is considered to be one of the best and oldest in the world.

The Mysore zoo is over a century old and has an interesting history of its own. Sri Chamarajendra Wodeyar had a vision to create a well laid-out city amidst the gardens, and founded the world famous Mysore Zoo in the year of 1892. The Mysore Zoo which has now spread over an area of 250 acres was initially meant for the exclusive visit of the royal family but public entry started as early as 1920. After India attained freedom, the Zoo was presented by the then Maharaja to the Department of Parks and Gardens of the Mysore State Government.

Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens houses a variety of species not only of this country, but from over forty countries in the World. The Maharaja in his travel abroad collected rare animals from different countries and brought them to the zoo’s collection. Animals available in the Mysore forests were exchanged for the animals procured from other countries and as a result acquisition of a large number of animals of different species was possible. It has beautiful landscape with good vegetation cover resembling to that of natural environment. Many animamysore ls which are imported from countries like Africa, America, and Australian countries. Mysore Zoo is among the few in India exhibiting African elephants, and the only one to breed them. Mysore Zoo was the first in the country to obtain gorilla and penguin’s.

The Mysore Zoo is not just a place of recreation, but is also serving as a good educational center for imparting knowledge on conservation of wildlife. Mysore Zoo is supporting the conservation of endangered species through coordinated breeding and rehabilitation. It is also credited with achieving considerable break-through in captive breeding of many animals.

Today though the Mysore zoo is over a century old it has spacious enclosures, walk throughs, a veterinary hospital, with facility for quarantine, operation theater, medicine rooms and wards for animals. The Mysore Zoo has a small museum which exhibits the stuffed animals and there is a fish aquarium too. A small library is also located in the Zoo. Painting and essay competitions are periodically conducted by the zoo authority the children to create awareness and love in them for animals.

To inspire the visitors to the Zoo and generate empathy for wild animals and also for maintaining ecological balance, in a way to involve people in Wildlife Conservation, Mysore Zoo has launched a novel scheme of adoption of animals under Adoption Programme, which means you can take care of the feeding expenses of an animal for a certain of time. Adopter will be entitled for the prescribed privileges like Certificate of Adoption, complimentary pass besides publicity in the leading newspapers.

 

Mysore Zoo Entry Timings	08.30 am – 05.30 pm Tuesday Holiday
Entry Charges	Adults   Rs.40/- Children (5-12yrs) Rs.20/-
Distance From Mysore	Mysore zoo is situated in the heart of Mysore city. It’s about 3 kms. from city bus stand and 2 kms. from Mysore Palace.
How to Reach From Mysore	Mysore City Buses ply regularly to Mysore Zoo.
Attractions Nearby	Mysore Palace | Chamundi Hills| Karanji Lake

Chamundi Hills can be viewed from a distance of about 8 to 10 kms and from all the corners of Mysore City. Chamundeshwari temple is situated on the top of Chamundi hill which is about 3,489 ft. above sea level and located at a distance of 13 kms. from Mysore. The temple is dedicated to Sri Chamundeshwari, the titular deity of the Mysore Royal Family also described as ‘Mahishasura Mardini’for having killed the buffalo headed demon Mahishasura. The temple has a very beautiful idol of the goddess wearing a garland of skulls. Goddess Chamundeshwari, also spelled Chamundeswari is an incarnation of Goddess Durga, Goddess Kali is also referred to as the Goddess Chamundi.

Mysore was ruled by the demon-king Mahishasura, he was a buffalo-headed monster. Hence, came the name of this place – Mahishuru, the city of demon Mahisha. Hearing to the prayers of Gods and Goddess to save them from the monster, Goddess Parvathi, (consort of Lord Siva), took birth as Chamundeshwari and killed the monster. After killing the demon, the Goddess resided atop the Chamundi Hills where she is worshiped with reverence and devotion. The goddess is also known as Mahishasura Mardini meaning She who slew Mahishasura.

The Chamundi temple has always been patronised by the rulers of Mysore. In 1659 Dodda Devaraja Wodeyar built 1,000 steps and huge Nandi, Lord Shiva’s Bull. This colossal Nandi is one of the largest in India, 16 ft. (4.8 meters) tall at the front and 25 ft. (7.5 meters) in length. The magnificent pendent bells around its neck are exquisite. Nandi and the temple beside it are located at the 700th step of the Chamundi Hill. Krishnaraja Wodeyar III repaired the shrine in 1827 and built the present beautiful forty-meter, seven storied Gopura (tower at the entrance) with gold finials, and set up statues of his and his three queens. In 1827, Krishnaraja Wodeyar III made arrangements for festivals and processions and gifted Simhavahana in 1843.

Brindavan Gardens

Brindavan Gardens – KRS Dam Mysore

Brindavan Gardens lies adjoining the Krishnarajasagara dam ( KRS Dam ) which is built across the river Kaveri. A dam at the length of 8600 ft. and height of 130 ft. above the river bed was built below the confluence of the three rivers – Cauvery, Hemavathi and Lakshmanateertha in 1924. The place was formerly called as Kannambadi after the Kanveshvara temple in the village submerged in the reservoir. Earlier to this, it was known as Kanvapuri, where the sage Kanva is said to have had his ashram and worshiped shiva.

The reservoir is named after Maharaja Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV, during whose rule Sir M.Visveswaraya, as Chief Engineer of Mysore got the dam built. Krishnarajasagara Dam is built using ‘surkhi’, a mixture of limestone and brick powder instead of cement. It was among the first in the world to use automatic sluice gates. The KRS dam is a civil engineering wonder and the garden is one of the major attractions near the city of Mysore, this engineering marvel is spread over 150 acres of land and provides irrigation to more than 1,20,000 acres.

A View of Brindavan Gardens

The Brindavan Gardens is a show garden that has a botanical park, with fountains, as well as boat rides beneath the dam. Diwans of Mysore planned and built the gardens in connection with the construction of the dam. The work on laying out Mysore Brindavan garden was started in the year 1927 and completed in 1932. The garden is laid out in 3 terraces which contain water fountains, Ficus trees, foliage plants such as Duranta plumaria and Euphorbia and flowering plants like Celosia, Marigold and bougainvillea.

The main attraction of the Brindavan Garden is the Musical Fountain ( Dancing Fountains ) in which bursts of water are synchronized to the music of songs. The musical fountains have a harmonic blend of water, colors and music. The Brindavan Gardens here is the best illuminated terrace garden in India.There is a statue of Goddess Cauvery in the garden. There are also a horticultural farm and nursery; fisheries pond and the Hydraulic Research Station here. The place is visited by lakhs of visitors annually.

Brindavan Garden Timings	All Week Days 06.00 am – 08.00 pm Saturdays & Sunday 06.00 pm – 09.00 pm
Musical Fountain Show Timings	All Week Days 06.30 pm – 07.30 pm Saturdays & Sunday 06.30 pm – 08.30 pm
Entry Charges	Adult  Rs.15/- Children (5-12yrs) Rs. 5/-
Distance From Mysore	Distance From Mysore 24 kms.
How to Reach From Mysore	Mysore City Buses & Private Buses ply regularly from Mysore City.