Temples of South India

This is a collection of my travel writings from my blog. The focus is on the temples of south India and I have chosen only those that may be of interest to the general reader. These temples not only are famous for their artistic beauty, but are also story tellers of the south Indian past. The Chalukyas, Cholas, Kakatiyas , Hoysalas, Pallavas - who built these houses of worship , also made sure they stand to tell their story. I tried to write as much about that history as well as the trip itself. The trips were all taken either alone by myself or with my family and have covered some of those details as well. We tend to go to places which are not very common and in fact , the cover of this book has the picture of the beautiful Torana from the Ikkeri temple - in Shimoga district. So, I believe the mix of the known and unknown will be of interest.Following table of content will give an idea as to what to look forward to in the book.KarnatakaShimoga - Jog falls 6Ikkeri 10Keladi 16Shivappa Nayak palace 22Kudli 28Belur, Halebidu & Hulikere 34Karla caves 46Hampi Chronicles - 1 56Hampi Chronicles - 2 63Hampi Chronicles 3 73Hampi Chronicles - 4 84Hampi Chronicles 5 99Tamil NaduVellore - Kanchi trip 113A Ponniyin Selvan trip 117Chennai - Viranam Eri - Gangai konda Cholapuram 117Kumbakonam - Darasuram - Thirunageswaram - Oppiliappan temple 121Kudanthai - Thirukarukkavur - Tanjore 124Thiruvarur - Kodikarai 128Adi Kesava Perumal temple 130Walking with the dead - 1 135Walking with the dead - 2 143The Body of God 155The Divya Desams of Trichy - 1 162The Divya Desams of Trichy -2 168A ride along Cauvery 172A ride along Cauvery 179A ride along Cauvery 190Theppakulam 197TelanganaOru gallu - 1 209Oru Gallu - 2 221Oru Gallu - 3 231MuseumsArt - For who's sake? - A visit to the Met 240Museum of Islamic Art (MIA), Doha 248Museum of Islamic Civilization - Sharjah 257Another city, Another Museum - 1 270Another city, Another museum-2 277Bahrain National Museum 288