Dasara is the most important festival in Mysore.
As I mentioned recently, I will occasionally post some flashbacks to some favorite old trips and events. In 2008-09 we lived in Bangalore, India, and traveled extensively.
Today I’m remembering an incredible day in Mysore, a small city a few hours west of Bangalore, which we visited for the major Dasara festival. The parade was an incredible sensory experience, including elephants, bands, dancers, and more. Check it out!
Mysore is more than Dasara.
Mysore [location] is perhaps one of the most interesting places to visit within an easy drive of Bangalore, and we took advantage of the kids’ four-day school holiday to make the trip at the tail end of the Dasara festival. Dasara is the biggest event of the year in Mysore, and I describe the parade in my previous entry. But the rest of the weekend (see photos) was also fun and interesting. Read on!
We hired a car and driver for the weekend, an extremely convenient (and surprisingly economical) way to travel. Ramesh had decorated the car when he arrived to pick us up, with garlands strung across the front, a banana-leaf stalk on each front corner, a sprinkling of flower petals, and symbols of Shiva painted on the windows.
Continue reading “Mysore weekend”Dasara is the most important festival in Mysore; we attended the famous parade that includes colorful elephants and dancers.
It was 100˚ in the shade. Gosh! After four hours, I was wishing that we were sitting in the shade. After six hours, when the parade had come and gone, I was nonetheless glad that we staked out good seats early in the day. Read on, and be sure to see the photo gallery.
David Kotz 