Mysuru Dasara 2024

Since we didn't celebrate dasara gombe habba at home this year, we planned to visit Mysore for Dasara. 2 things which can be done only during Dasara at Mysore, are watching Vijayadashami Jambu Savari Procession and Golden Throne which is displayed in Amba Vilas Palace only during this time. Since we never wanted to miss gombe celebration at home, we never planned visiting Mysore on Vijaya Dashami day. Unlike ganesh chaturthi, where in festivity starts from chaturthi and can be ended on 1st, 3rd, 5th or 10th day, gombe habba has to end on Vijaya Dashami day, whether you plan to display dolls for 1, 3, 5 or 10days, which you start accordingly. So we never got to be in Mysore on Dashami for Jambu Savari procession. In recent years the lighting in the city has also being extended beyond 10 days of dasara and we plan for the immediate next weekends after festival to get to watch lighting every year. Mysore exhibition which starts during dasara, extends till December, so you have enough time for that too. 

While hubby and daughter had never watched Dasara Procession in person, I had watched it might be 3decades ago. Being studied at KV, I remember we never got long holidays during Dasara, but my cousins who studied in Karnataka state board used to get a month holiday during Dasara, on account of Mysore Dasara. So it should back in 1980s that I watched Jambu Savari last in Mysore. 

Lot has changed over the years, especially with the crowd. Mysore is flooded with people from across the world during Dasara. While we watched the procession sitting roadside back then, you can't expect to watch it at peace these days. So we planned to go for tickets which offer seating arrangement inside the palace campus. 

Tickets don't come with seat numbers and you need to be on time to get a seat closer. We had checked on the muhurtha for nandi pooja(start of the procession), which was at 1PM and we knew we had to be in by 11:30 at least, to get the closer seat. The procession had 50 tableaux from 31 districts and 19 boards, corporations and departments of Karnataka. The procession also included 81 folk troupes from across India. Veeragase, Dollu kunitha, Keelu kudure, kolata, Rajasthani dance naming the few.

Depicting ISRO Gaganyaan, which is supposed to carry fruit fly to space, tableau of Dharwad district

Udupi Tableau depicting Kambala, Kola, temples of costal Karnataka, fisher men and women

Depicting Onake Obavva

First prize winning tableau - Department of Information and Public Relations

Lot of talent and creativity goes into making of tableaux and the performances by artists. The one which steals the show in Ambari, elephant carrying goddess chamundeshwari idol inside golden howdah. Jambu Savari Procession starts with 7 elephants and ends with Ambari, this time carried by Abhimanyu, along with 2 other elephants.

Useful links

For tickets https://www.mysoredasara.gov.in/tickets

For events across Mysuru https://www.mysoredasara.gov.in/dasaraevents 

For Dasara Illumination round trip in double decker bus https://www.kstdc.co/tour-packages/mysuru-sightseeing-by-ambaari-2/

Skywatch Friday - Marina Beach Chennai!!!

For this week's Skywatch Friday is the view of Marina Beach and around, from the iconic Madras Lighthouse, clicked during one of my travels to Chennai few years ago.. Blend of sky, water, sand, greens, civilization and development.. 

Dasara Gombe Habba

Dasara gombe habba has always been my favorite festival forever and I never missed celebrating the festival at home from 2011, the year I started. But this year due to a birth in the family, I didn't get to celebrate the festival at home. Here is a tour of my last year celebration. 

The overall setup

My Pattada gombe collection, which has reached 4 sets now

Aadisi nodu, beelisi nodu - dancing dolls, maharaja couple dolls, Rajasthani couple face. Had dedicated wedding set along with all couple dolls for this step

Few theme dolls - half saree ceremony doll set which I had created for daughter's half saree ceremony, Bengali wedding set up, Gruhapravesha/house warming set- again hand crafted by me

Bead set, and temple scene with few vendors

Don't miss the year on the bead wall hanging - that was done by mom back in 1974, it completed 50years officially

Forever favorite Shetty and the miniatures, that peacock glass frame is also around 85 year old done by my grandpa as a kid

Last year was also the year of Chandrayaan 3, we had to make one. Crafted by daughter.

We had dedicated place for all dolls of Krishna - Vasudeva carrying baby Krishna, kalinga mardana, Krishna holding matka in hand, Yashoda mayya with baby Krishna, gopala Krishna, Krishna and Sudhama, dahi handi Krishna, ISCON Krishna devotees, along with Radha and Krishna dolls.

Mysore Maharaja and Maharani set dolls

Kondapally wedding set doll

You can check all the posts related to Dasara gombe habba on the link Dasara Gombe Habba

Skywatch Friday..

 Sky from my part of the world.. 

Floral Friday Photography - Flora at Kshemavana

World Menstrual Health Day

Its World Menstrual Health Day today and the theme for this year's WMHD is Period Friendly World... Its high time we move to sustainable alternatives for chemically loaded disposable sanitary pads.. Cloth pads can last for 3-5years if maintained.. I have been using these cloth pads by Bumpadum from later 2years and don't find any discomfort.. 

There are as well compostable  alternatives, which are plastic free, perfume free and biodegradable, which are not just good for mother earth, but also for your health.. Specially for teens who can't manage cloth pads..

Lets say no to disposable sanitary pads and move to sustainable alternatives..

Kshemavana - A Photo Essay

In continuation to my post on Kshemavana, here is a photo essay of Kshemavana. 

Authenticity, culture, tradition, rustic, greenery, earthy textures, grounded to roots is all that you can find here.

Garuda Block - Main block with reception, lecture hall, acupuncture, physiotherapy department 

Kurma block - Yoga hall, meditation room, gym, pool and Hydro

Nandi - The dinning and other treatment block

There are separate halls in dinning for raw, boiled, this is juice hall 

Recreation center 

Snakes and ladders game in sustainable cloth board and wooden pawns and dice

The stay area

Seating area outside my room

Library in the Garuda block

The rustic wooden furniture and ambience

That's vintage car of Sir CV Raman gifted to Dr. D. Veerendra Heggadeji

Kshemavana - Wellness Retreat

"Love Your Liver Retreat"

12th August to 15th August 2023

Kshemavana, SDM Institute of Naturopathy and Yogic Sciences, Nelamangala, Kunigal Bypass Road, near Sambrama Hotel, Mahadevapura, Karnataka

As mentioned in my Mom Power 360 Conference post, Kshemavana was one of the sponsors of the conference and guess what I had won a stay option at Kshemavana as part of their lucky draw. Post the conference I was contacted by Kshemavana marketing team and they informed me about their retreat which was scheduled from 12th to 15th August, which was Independence day long weekend. As 11th was a second Saturday and I had off, I thought of planning to attend the retreat. It was "Love Your Liver" retreat. I was not sure whether that would be of any help to me, but the team assured it need not be attended by people with liver ailments only and anybody could attend to experience the service they offered. So I planned to attend the 4 days retreat. 

The retreat was with 12th morning check-in and 16th morning check-out. I took metro to reach Nagasandra and had booked Kshemavana pick-up service from Nagasandra metro, as Kshemavana is on the outskirts of the city and I didn't want to travel alone in local cab. By the time I reached Kshemavana, the property tour was already done and the introductory session with Dr. Narendra Shetty was going on. I checked in and Dr. Manohar gave me a brief about the retreat and handed me over with schedule for the 4 days and also a journal to record the session and stay experience. 

Kurma, the yoga block

The retreat is beautifully curated with lectures, treatments which included acupuncture, reflexology, massage, mud bath, amena, liver pack and more. Our day would start at 6 in the morning with yoga and kriyas, followed by treatment, breakfast from 9:30 to 10:00 which would be smoothie/herbal tea. First half of the day would be for lectures, lunch at 1PM, resting, treatment, followed by session. At 4PM would be evening drink, which would be smoothie, yoga/bhajan by 6PM, dinner at 7PM followed by relaxing yoga/meditation and end the day by 9:30PM. 4 days were completely packed keeping us engaged in the activities throughout the day. The diet pattern is curated based on the retreat goal. Its very challenging to cope up with hunger for first 2 days, but by the end of the retreat we were all so used of the diet and didn't want to even come back to regular food. The take away on diet by our doctor was to replace one meal completely with raw, other 2 meals need to have at least 350gms of raw, which helps with portion control on your meal. Also to include fruits/raw mid meal. 25 varieties of fruits and vegetables( together) every week, its not challenging at all, if you start listing the varieties of fruits and vegetables that are available in India, and I still stick to local ones and not exotic. 7 varieties of millets for 7 days of the week. 

Its been 9months since I attended the retreat and I have never come back to regular eating habit during weekdays at least. I have stopped wheat and included brown rice and unpolished dal, along with the varieties of fruits and millets as instructed by doc. I lost 6kilos in the first 2 months and have maintained the same since then. Since I also reached 40 this year, it was much needed for me to make a lifestyle change to combat hormonal changes. Diet with early dinner by 7PM, yoga/meditation in the morning, walk in the evening, makes me feel lighter, more energetic, sleep better, lesser mood swings. 

I would highly recommend the retreat to everyone, for those who want to make lifestyle changes for better or have any ailment to be treated in particular. Attending the retreat would motivate you to have a check on your physical and metal well being, especially when you go off track your food, sleep, physically active life.