Indian Columbus

Courtallam, the city of waterfalls, located in South India, is an important tourist spot. If you travel just 13 kms away from the highly crowded Courtallam, you would reach a quiet and calm place named Thirumalai in the Western Ghats. This small village is famous for its hilltop temple of Murugan. Thirumalai Murugan temple, located at a height of 400 m in the Western Ghats can be reached by 600+ steep steps from the foothills. Before you start climbing the steps, you can find the huge idol of Vallabha Vinayak along with Siddhi. The shrine of Meenakshi-Sundareshwar along with Ganesh is also found at the foothills. You can find some small mandaps and shrines such as Murugan with Valli-Devasena, Naduvatta Vinayakar and Idumban between foothills and the top of the hills. The main temple is located at the top of the hills at the backdrop of the Western Ghats and the breathtaking aerial view of the surrounding villages. The presiding deity Murugan is found with four arms in the stan...

Courtallam is a small town located in the southern most part of India. The town is one of the important tourist spots in South India thanks to the nine waterfalls located within this town. Near Courtallam, there is a village named Ilanji full of fertile land. With the backdrop of hills and green fields, the ancient temple of Kumaran is located in this village. The temple is popularly called as Ilanji Kumaran Koil. Ilanji is located at a distance of 3 kms from Tenkasi and 5 kms from Courtallam. Ilanji Kumaran Koil has been revered in Tirupugazh by the great saint Arunagirinathar. This temple is believed to have been visited by the saint Agastya. As per the mythology, he was sent to South India by Lord Shiva. Agastya visited this temple before visiting Courtallam temple. Although, this ancient temple is considered as Kumaran temple (Murugan aka Kumaran - the son of Lord Shiva) nowadays, it is originally the temple of Lord Shiva. The current structure of the temple appears to have...

St. Mary's Basilica is the oldest church of Bangalore city in Karnataka state of India. Also, this is the only church in the entire Karnataka  state which is elevated to the status of a minor basilica. The church attracts a large number of devotees from in and around Bangalore during the St. Mary's Feast in September every year. History : When the British captured Srirangapatna town from Tipu Sultan in 1799 CE, the French priest Fr. Abbe du Bois arrived at Bangalore and started restoring the Catholic religion. He built a small chapel in 1803 CE in the location where the basilica currently stands. IN 1813 CE, Fr. Abbe du Bois, with the help of the British, enhanced the chapel and named as 'The Church of Purification of Our Lady'. It was destroyed in 1832 CE during the communal violence. In 1882 CE, it was rebuilt by Rev. L. E. Kleiner. Architecture: The spacious church is built in Gothic style in the form of a cross. The magnificent tower of the church is 160 f...

One of the latest tourist attractions of Bangalore city, the IT hub of India, is the Shiva temple on Old Airport Road. This temple is on the backside of Total Mall, a.k.a. Kemp Fort Shopping Complex. The temple is open all 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. Unlike the other South Indian temples, it does not have a tower. The highlight of the temple is the massive icon of Lord Shiva.  It is a commercialized private temple. You can only enter the temple through the passage where the shops are on either side. After entering the temple, you can find an extensive list of specialized poojas and other rituals, and everything has a price tag. The temple authorities claim that the money goes to some charities. Near the entrance, there is a big sculpture of Lord Ganesha. After that, there is a shrine named Jyotirlinga, for which you must pay additional fees to enter. This is a long shrine where you can find the representation of all 12 Jyotirlingas. Similarly, there is another shrine named '...

Bangalore, also called as Bengaluru, is the capital city of Karnataka state of South India. It is nicknamed as the garden city and once it used to be called as 'pensioner's paradise'. The city has become very popular in the last two decades, thanks to a lot of IT industries started here. There are many places of interest in Bangalore. One of the interesting tourist site is Bangalore Palace. Although, it is not a little known place, I would say it is not often visited by many Bangalore residents. Nonetheless, I consider this site as one of the best places to visit in Bangalore city. Bangalore Palace The Bangalore Palace located in a locality called Vasanta Nagar is picturesque and magnificent. Anyone who visits this extraordinarily wonderful place would definitely fall in low with the site. The construction of Bangalore Palace was started in 1862 and completed in 1944. It was built to look similar to the Windsor Castle of England. The palace is surround by a huge ga...