Little Tibet in South India

Bootsnall (BnA) is one of my favourite travel websites. They have just published an article written by me. Click here.

For those of you who may ask whether they pay, well they don't. It is just that I love contributing to them and being a part of BnA.

Can you imagine there is a country within a country? Well, Little Tibet exists in South India, with all its flavours intact.

Now for some teasers. Below is an extract of the article:

I stepped in and was amazed. A profusion of color hit me. The few tourists around, did nothing to abate my feeling of having walked straight into a Bollywood movie set. Why, one of them was asking his companion to pose in myriad dance forms, despite a board stating — this is a temple and a religious place.

As I settled myself on a blue circular pillow and looked around, I became a bit acclimatized to my surroundings. Three larger than life giant statues, once again gold plated, took centre stage; these were placed on a platform. Buddha around 60 feet tall held prominent place, flanked by Guru Padmasambhava and Amitayush (each around 58 feet tall). Also occupying the platform were two rich thrones, one of which had a framed photograph of the Dalai Lama and the other, the head of this monastery.

Richly painted murals were everywhere, on all walls and even the ceilings. Dragons twirled up the walls on two sides of the platform, beautiful gongs duly protected within padlocked chains stood in a corner. Incense burners were seen here and there and I also spotted a sole donation box. It was breathtaking. Moreover, after the din of the tourists died down, (presumably they had come together in a bus and had now thankfully gone ahead to another destination), a quiet peace descended.

For the rest of the story, including travel details, click on the link above. Happy reading!