Early Morning Bangalore

    Bangalore is getting as well known for its infamous traffic as for being India’s Silicon Valley. To avoid the stress and rush hour hassles, we’ve come up with a tour that takes you around the city in the early morning to see some of the major monuments, and you’ll get to see the early-to-rise locals in action in the markets, temples and parks. At dawn, we’ll head to KR Market, a wholesale vegetable and flower market, so you can watch the morning trucks arrive and unload their colorful wares – it will be a whirl of color and chaos and a perfect photo op!   Next we’ll drive to one of Bangalore’s oldest neighborhoods, Basavanagudi, to visit the famous Bull Temple for which the area is named and indeed the very street is known as Bull Temple Road! Then we’ll stroll through Bugle Rock Park, where the main rock formations have been dated to 300 million years ago! A visit to this area would be incomplete without a stop in Gandhi Bazaar for the famous local coffee and breakfast of South Indian specialties at a famous local café.   Then we’ll head to the central part of Bangalore so you can see two of Bangalore’s most famous parks, Lalbagh Gardens and Cubbon Park, the VidhanaSoudha (Government building), and the High Court.  

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The Bangalore Cuisine Tour - Home Cooking & Lunch

    A special experience for any tourist would be a visit to a local home and a home cooked meal. The Bangaore Cuisine tour offers you this and more – you will also get to participate in the cooking and learn about the dishes, and watch your hostess prepare a range of typical South Indian vegetarian delicacies for you. While not a formal cooking class, you’ll have the chance to watch the home chef in action, ask any questions you have, and learn of traditional recipes handed down through the generations. Please let us know in advance of any food restrictions or preferences and we’ll create the menu accordingly.  

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The Bangalore Cantonment Tour

    In the early 1800s, the British built a military Cantonment in Bangalore, the largest garrison in South India. The military establishment went on to include clubs, churches, shops, cinemas and bungalows. The area around the Cantonment became a native settlement filled with Hindus, Muslims and Anglo-Indians and English, Urdu and Tamil were spoken. Today, the area around the Bangalore Cantonment is still a bustling, multi-cultural area, sans the military presence.   We will begin our exploration at Hatworks Boulevard, a 145 year old heritage building that now houses boutiques, an art gallery and a coffee shop, where once stood the Imperial Hat Works. This bungalow has Burma teak windows and doors associated with Bangalore bungalows of the era. Next we’ll drive to St. Marks Cathedral, an Anglican Church dating back to 1808, built for the British garrison. St. Marks is known for its grand pipe organ, architecture and a music academy. A drive through the M.G. Road area will then bring us to the Holy Trinity Protestant Church which has tablets dedicated to the British who lived in Bangalore.   Old Airport Road is where you will see the sections belonging to the Indian Armed Forces. We will drive by Ulsoor Lake and go to the bustling Shivaji Nagar bazaar. An exploration on foot of the neighborhood, famous locally for its street food, will be next. We will also see Mariamman Temple and St Mary’s Basilica. Russell Market is a place for great photographs and we will traverse this market with its sections for flowers, vegetables, fruits, fish and meat. Our last stop will be Shivajinagar to see the old furniture and bamboo bazaar. After this, we will drop you back at your hotel.  

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The Story of Bangalore Day Tour

    Spend an entire day discovering this bustling city and its various angles. You will see the city on foot and by car and your personal guide will share with you the history and legacy of the city. Built in the 1500s by Kempe Gowda, he marked the boundaries of the city with four towers. Your first stop will be at Lalbagh Gardens (The Red Gardens), where one of the towers is. With a lake, aquarium and tropical plants, it’s a popular spot with locals and is a distinctive part of the landscape in South Bangalore. Lalbagh plays host to the annual flower show in August, held in its famous glass house and is also a popular spot with birders. Next we’ll head nearby to Tipu’s Summer Palace – Tipu Sultan is one of the significant rulers whose contributions are still reflected in the local landscape. The palace, though derelict, is representative of the wooden architecture of the period. After the palace, we’ll head to the Cantonment area, established by the British in the 1800s after they defeated Tipu Sultan. You will visit the bazaar, army residential areas as well as a well-known old church. The rest of Bangalore, away from the Cantonment was nominally still under the Maharajah of Mysore (the Wodeyar family) and we will visit the Palace of the Wodeyars as well.   The Vidhana Soudha is an arresting government building that was constructed post-Independence, featuring hybrid architecture and Indian motifs. You will be able to take photographs of the buildings in the area as we drive by, and then we will take a stroll through another of Bangalore’s parks, Cubbon Park. If it’s of interest, before you are dropped back to your hotel, a drive through one of the city’s tech hubs will give you a feel for India’s Silicon Valley and a look at the new face of Bangalore.  

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The Bangalore Art Tour

    Not just garden or IT city, Bangalore is also home to numerous art galleries featuring traditional and contemporary South Indian art. An English speaking art student will be your very own guide for the Bangalore Art tour. Though not an expert on art, (s)He will be familiar with the various galleries. You can pick and choose from the spots on our list and also ask for any other you’re interested in, and we’ll be happy to arrange it. Our list of galleries on the tour include:   NGMA Bangalore: The National Gallery of Modern Art with paintings by India’s best modern and contemporary painters.   Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat: This art institution and gallery always has an art exhibition to visit. Students here learn painting, sculpture, applied art, graphic art and art history.   Venkatappa Gallery: Houses art from 2000 BC to the medieval period and is a popular stop.   Galleryske: Displays modern art and has an interesting building worth checking out.   Shanti Road Gallery: Has courtyards where artists display their work, and is popular for student art shows.   Gallery Sumukha: An art gallery that showcases contemporary Indian art.  

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The Maharajas of Mysore Day Trip

    We will take a day trip to Mysore, which is about 3 hours away from Bangalore (depending on traffic could be more), to take in the highlights of this Kingdom city, one of the wealthy Deccan kingdoms of yore. The Wodeyars are the founding family and rulers, and Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan ruled for two generations, also contributing to the splendor of the city. With a strong appreciation for art, culture and music, the influence of the Wodeyars is apparent even today. Though there is plenty to see in the city, we will cover the following during our day long visit, with a stop for lunch at the Royal Orchid Metropole.  

• A visit to Chamundi Hills to see the Chamundi Temple dedicated to the city’s patron deity, Chamundeshwari.
• Mysore Palace, which has the official name of Amba Vilas Palace, still the official residence of the erstwhile rulers of Mysore, the Wodeyars.
• Devaraja Market and the Chikka Ghadiyara clock tower: Devaraja Market is one of Mysore’s busiest thoroughfares, and you will see people going about their daily market and shopping. Fruits, vegetables, flowers, traditional household items and lots more. The market boasts around 800 traders in all! Chikka Ghadiyara translates from Kannada as “small clock” and is the local name for the Dufferin Clock Tower (named in honor of the visit by the then British Viceroy of India, Lord Dufferin) located at one end of the market.
• The District Collectorate Office, Mysore University, Oriental Institute and nearby college campuses: See the British influences in these buildings in the city and see the humming student life of Mysore, known for its universities.

 

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Day Trip to Belur Halebid

    Another great day trip you can take from Bangalore is to go see the wonderful Hoysala (the Hoysala was a Kannadiga empire that ruled the area between the 10th and 14th centuries) temples at Belur and Halebid. This is a full day excursion to the Hoysala temples at Belur and Halebid. The drive time from Bangalore is around 4 hours. Belur was originally the capital city of the empire, until the switch to Halebid in the 12th century. Your guide will regale you with the stories and history of the time. The temples at both cities are very beautiful and representative of the culture and art of the era. The Hoysalas were patrons of the arts and architecture and these temples are testament to the workmanship and sentiments of the time.   We will begin with a stop in Halebid to visit the Hoysaleshwara temple, dedicated to Shiva. Then we will stop for lunch we will stop at the Hoysala Village Resort at Hassan, after which we make our way to Belur to visit the Chennakeshava temple. Dedicated to Vishnu, the idol is of Vishnu is his handsome or as they in Kannada, “chenna” form. Using soft soapstone to create their intricate carvings, these two temples are the best examples of Hoysala workmanship. After this temple, we will return to Bangalore and drop you back to your hotel.  

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