The great thing about traveling is that you meet completely unknown people, often even for just one day, but you sometimes create shared memories that will last forever.
Such a day I experienced in Mysuru, the capital of the former kingdom of Mysore (1399-1947), capital of culture of the state of Karnataka and residence of the royal family of Mysore to date (Wodeyar dynasty). Here I met Prashanth, a dynamic Indian man who agreed to do his friends a favour and show his hometown to a foreign European woman (Thank you Ramya and Kaushik for enabling this for me! You guys are great :-). Prashant is a self-employed entrepreneur, passionate reporter, fan of his hometown Mysuru which he even has dedicated a website to:
Please find the link to askmysuru.com here
On a hot Thursday afternoon, Prashanth picks me up from my guesthouse with his car and an adventure begins to unfold. Thanks to his press card, we are on the guest list for a privately guided tour through the city's landmark: The Royal Palace. Together with 2 Japanese, a nimble museum guide leads us through the corridors of the palace, which is the most magnificent treasure chamber that I have ever seen in my life. Opulent porticos with turquoise ceiling paintings, gold-plated ornaments, meter-high hinged doors made of pure silver and giantic elephant heads staring at you from the wall, tiles with wonderful floral patterns as far as the eye can see. The generosity and richness of this building can be seen in every single detail.
The secret room in the palace
At the end of a side corridor, the museum guide leads us towards a slightly hidden door and tells us to go inside: Away from all tourists, we stand in a darkened room that is filled over and over with ancient sabers, robes of warriors and ... stuffed animals. The museum guide emphasises that taking pictures and making videos is strictly prohibited here. Huge tigers snarl at us silently, gigantic buffaloes stand row in row and crocodiles at the size of minibuses are lying on the ground. I shudder at the thought of all the hunts that must have taken place to equip this space... I stand in the middle of a room that belongs to a long-gone era and I am reverent of the ages people and animals have gone through in this country. What fights they have fought, what pain they have suffered, what obstacles they have overcome, what splendor they have created.
The miracle at Chamundi Hills ...
After visiting the palace, Prashanth and I decide that there is still time for a second adventure. We head for the sacred hill of the city, from which you can look over the entire valley plain: The Chamundi Hills. There on the rock of the hill, Sadhguru, who later became worldwide famous as a spiritual teacher, had his first moment of enlightenment at a young age. At the top of the hill is the Chamundeshwari Temple and people flock daily from near and far to pray there.
But, we have a problem: It is 5:50 p.m. and in 10 minutes the temple doors will close! There are still over a hundred people in front of the entrance, the temple is extremely popular due to its powerful energy and location. It is impossible to get inside the temple and my departure was already booked for the next day. And at this moment, a remarkable characteristic of Prashanth becomes evident, which is his great strength: excellent networking capabilities. Three phone calls later, we rush past the long queue, get steered through side doors by temple employees like VIPs and shortly before 18:00, we stand in the blessed Sacrament of the Temple to pay our tribute to the goddess Chamundeshwari. I can't believe it, we made it!
When I later ask Prashanth how he managed to get us into the interior of the temple against all the rules, he says these words that have been imprinted on me: "It is not helpful to call the highest representative of this temple; the cleaning staff and door porters are the ones that rule the place. I cherish the relationship with them and we help each other.”
A wonderful day is coming to an end...
In the evening, I am falling into my bed with the happy feeling that this day was one of those days that stand out like diamonds on my trip through India and that I still will remember at the age of 84. Today, I was allowed to visit secret rooms in the royal palace of Mysuru, I have experience a miracle at Chamundi Hills and enjoyed the generosity and smartness of a young Indian man whom I now can call a friend.
An Instagram reel was created from this adventurous day in Mysuru, which I am happy to share with you:
Lots of Love,
Your Salome
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