Bangalore Palace: 4 things you didn’t know about this Palais Royale

by Roanna Fernandes

Did you know that a two-seat wooden sofa within the palace could calculate your weight? The Bangalore Palace has some interesting elements finds Roanna Fernandes, just like its emperor’s bizarre fascination for taxidermy.



Bangalore Palace was built in 1862 by Rev. Garett, the first principal of Central High School in Bengaluru. If you observe the Tudor style architecture of the palace, you’ll find that it looks like a smaller replica of the Windsor Palace in England. The palace was built for King Chamaraja Wodeyar, and is currently owned by Srikanta Datta Narsimharaja Wadiyar, kin of the Mysore royal family. Here are four interesting facts about the palace you probably didn’t know.

The palace’s inner beast
King Chamaraja Wodeyar has a morbid fascination for stuffed animals’ remains. Definitely a little creepy! The palace has bar stools with cushions placed over a preserved mammal’s paws... further reading http://know.burrp.com/my-city/bangalore-palace-4-things-you-didnt-know/11141

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Top Ten Restaurants in Bangalore - Thalassa Suites

Bangalore is a foodie’s paradise. There is so much to choose from, so many concept restaurants, lounge bars, pubs, cozy snack places, fast food joints, theme cafes, and fine dining places. Here's a Pandora’s Box of restaurants with different cuisines that form a “top ten restaurants” list. Although I'm sure there are a lot of top ten restaurant lists out there - this one has been written solely from my viewpoint.

1. Sahib Sindh Sultan (Mughlai)
   Located on the second floor of Forum Mall in Koramangala, this is a fine dining restaurant that takes one through a dining experience in true colonial style ambience. One of the best Mughlai cuisines in Bangalore, it tastes just about as authentic as North Indian food can be in other parts of the country. The way the waiters are dressed and the way certain parts of the restaurant are done up is fascinating (for instance: the train coaches, and the royal chairs, and the grand curtains). I would be spoiling the surprise if I were to mention all of it in detail here. One has to experience it and savor it. An average meal for two here would cost about Rs. 500/- to Rs. 600/- .S3, as it is better known amongst the foodies in Bengaluru, is a must-visit for Mughlai food junkies.
2. Samarkhand (frontier)
   By far, the best for Frontier cuisine, this dimly lit restaurant has the waiters walking around in true Pathan suits and turbans and huge mustaches. The most innovative menu that they sport is designed in the form of a newspaper and has small write ups and notes in addition to the menu, of course. The kababs, grilled meat, nans, and also the huge pitcher type lemonade that they serve are worth the wait (the service is a bit slow, have to admit that). Here an average meal for two would be approximately Rs. 700/-. They also do the usual pampering of the customer who is celebrating his birthday there - clicking pictures, and giving you an instant copy of you with your group of friends on your birthday or any occasion you might be celebrating. Samarkhand is at Gem Plaza, in Infantry road.
3. Mainland China (Chinese)
   Just at the beginning of the 100 ft Road, Indiranagar, you will find a posh dining place that serves excellent Chinese food. There is a buffet that is quite filling, with a choice of soups, starters like wontons and momos, the main course with brilliant chicken dishes, fish as well as rice and noodles (I'd suggest the noodles) and ends with dessert. The a la carte is slightly more expensive but the chicken dishes and the sauces are worth trying out. Reservations are recommended as you could end up waiting outside the restaurant for more than forty minutes!
4. Sunny’s (Italian)
   A chic Italian restaurant in Vittal Mallya Road, Sunny’s is named after the owner’s pet dog. They have really friendly staff, nice interiors and great food. There are glass walls that let the sunlight seep in and make the setting perfect for a lazy Sunday lunch. The bread basket that comes with every meal consists of tasty garlic and other bread rolls and twists. Their pastas are recommended as against the pizzas. The penne in cream sauce and the Norwegian fish fillet/ grilled fish are to die for. The desserts in Sunny’s can be another separate discussion altogether. Chocolate desserts there just melt in your mouth and can leave you in a trance for a few seconds. The tri-chocolate mousse cake, the cheesecakes, tarts and the meringue cakes tempt you to... further reading http://www.chillibreeze.com/articles_various/Top-Restaurants.asp

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Top 5 things to do in Bangalore - Thalassa Suites Blog

Watch a match in the legendary chinnaswamy stadium

People from all over the world fly into Bangalore to watch the cricket matches, so what a shame it would be if you are in Bangalore and haven’t seen a match there. Take time out to watch a match in Chinnaswamy at least when India is playing.  Even if you just get a faint glimpse of Sachin batting, Man!! That would be a day to remember for a lifetime. 

Take a Bangalore heritage walk

There is so much history in Bangalore you will be amazed when you find out. Bangalore walks brings you weekend walks that will give you details about Bangalore’s history and culture.  It’s a 3 hour walk conducted every weekend by passionate presenters.  Ignite your passion for history and culture, for more info on these walks, visit their website bangalorewalks.com.

Enjoy a masala dosa and filter coffee

What do all Bangaloreans have in common?? They all love their masala dosa’s and strong filter coffee’s. Your options are immense, no matter where you are, there is a Darshini a stone throw away. If you want to experience the Bangalore’s best, then walk into MTR on Lalbaugh Road and enjoy the old world charm along with... further reading http://www.gobangalore.com/node/1981

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The World Famous Mysore Dassara….!

Mysore is 144 Kms from Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka. The word Mysore is a corrupted version of “mysooru”, which is derived from the word “Mahishasurana Ooru”, which means the town of Mythological Demon Mahishasura in Kannada. There is mention of Mysore in Sri Devi Bhagavatham. According to the story in the Sri Devi Bhagavatam, Mysore was ruled by the demon King Mahishasura was a buffalo-headed monster. In response to the prayer by the Gods and Goddesses to save them from the wicket demon, Goddess Parvathi, took the form of Chamundeshwari and killed the demon on top of the Chamundi hill near Mysore. After killing the demon the Goddess stayed on top of the hill, where she is worshipped with great devotion even to this day. Mysore Dasara is in honour of the Goddess Chamundeshwari and is celebrated as the victory of good over evil.

There is an inscription on Chamundi Hills that was done in 950AD during the reign of the Gangas of Talkad who ruled Mysore. The Cholas defetead the Gangas and ruled Mysore for over a century. Then Hoysalas of Dwarasamudra (Halebidu, Hassan) drove Cholas away from Mysore in the 10th century. After the Hoysalas came the Vijayanagara Kings and then Mysore was under Yadu dynasty who were feudatories of the Vijayanagara Kings. After the fall of Aliya Rama Raya of Vijayanagara, Mysore was ruled by Wodeyars.    

Dasara festival was started by Vijayanagara Kings but it was continued Raja Wodeyar I in the year 1610 at Srirangapatana which was their capital then. The festivities begin with the Wodeyar royal couple performing a special puja to Goddess Chamundeshwari in the Chamundi Hill. This would be followed by a special durbar (royal assembly)...

Further reading http://www.speakingtree.in/spiritual-blogs/seekers/faith-and-rituals/the-world-famous-mysore-dassara  

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Places to Visit Near Bangalore – Nature is Not Over!

A good friend of mine says,  ”Life in Bangalore city has gone totally mechanical, nature is totally destroyed, and it’s just over!”

I say, “Cities are always like that.”  They keep growing, spreading, pushing and consuming the villages, and people from the current generation cannot keep up with the speed of the cities’ growth.  We sit inside and curse  the government as we share black and white photos of the old city market over the social networks.  Today our street might have lots of trees along its edges, but tomorrow they could be gone.

Why?  Because we ask for it.  We cry for better facilities; we cry for metro trains, less traffic, and more convenience.  It all results in one thing: CHANGE.   Then we grow old and lose our hot-blooded passion.  We start complaining just like our fathers and grandfathers did.  The same friend asks me angrily, “What is your solution, then?”

I say, “Head out for just 15- 20 kms from Bangalore.  You will see beauty and happenings you would never even imagine!”

There are tons of places to visit near Bangalore. Let’s check out the west side of Bangalore, which is my favourite place to visit.  Hundreds of people visit Big Banyan Tree and the Manchanabele Reservoir, which offers a decent picnic spot for families and friends.  But many will not notice the clean, tree-lined roads passing through lovely little villages on the way.  Ramohalli Road on the way to Big Banyan Tree runs past two lakes which look like heaven during the early morning and... further reading http://shuttermonks.com/places-to-visit-near-bangalore/

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The area that’s now Shivajinagar

Blackpally, the name formerly given to the area that is now Shivajinagar, remains puzzling for researchers looking to unravel its origins. The most well-known stand on the matter comes from the historical records of St Mary’s Basilica, which refer to a village named “Bili akki palli” that had become a settlement for a group of Christians moving in from the panchayat town of Gingee in Villupuram (formerly, South Arcot district) in Tamil Nadu, in the late seventeenth century. As documents at the church have it, the settlers found the land to be fertile for a variety of white rice that was also grown in parts of Ulsoor, and different from other local kinds, such as the red “dodda bair nellu” variety found in the Kolar region. This lent the village its name, say the church’s records; “bili akki” literally translates to “white rice” in Kannada.

That these rice fields were home to flocks of wading birds, egrets and herons, lends the related theory of the area being named after the Kannada word “bellakki”, which is commonly used to describe cattle egret. SK Aruni, Director of the Indian Council of Historical Research, Southern Region, in an attempt to unravel the mystery of Blackpally (in his report entitled “Tracing the architect of the Cantonment”) supposes that the area might have been named after John Blakiston (1785-1867), a British military engineer and lieutenant of the Madras Engineers, who is known as the one assigned to drawing up plans for the Bangalore Cantonment area.

Old-timers in the area insist that the name Blackpally was nothing but a denotation of the dark-skinned natives that the British colonisers had come upon. Records at the Basilica also speak of a “black plague” that struck the area in the late nineteenth century, during when the church offered recourse to locals. Soon after the plague, the figure of Mother Mary was attributed with the name “Annai Arokiamarie” (literally, “Our Lady of Good Health”), say these records. The chapel had been founded by the French priest Abbe du Bois under a thatched roof in 1803, and referred to at the time as the Kaanike Mathe Devalaya (“Church of Our Lady of the Presentation”). Abbe du Bois arrived in Bangalore in 1799 – after the fall of Tipu Sultan’s Srirangapattana to the British – to preserve the Catholic practice in...

Further reading http://www.timeoutbengaluru.net/bangalore-beat/features/many-origins-blackpally

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Tribute to Namma Bengaluru

Here's a nice little video about the city of Bangalore. The video is a reminder that you can never get enough of this city!

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