Holy Trip to Rameswaram (Madurai, Rameshwaram & Kanyakumari)

Following The Footsteps of Lord Rama in Rameswaram

"Rameswaram has, since antiquity, been an important pilgrimage destination." By A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

It cannot be summarized better than what APJ has said. Rameswaram has been a very important and integral part of Hindu pilgrimage and it is one of the most important places to cover in Southern India. It is one of the four Dhams (sites.abodes/seats) or pilgrimage sites in India that are widely revered by Hindus. The four pilgrimage site comprises Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri and Rameswaram. Rameswaram got its importance in the Treta-Yuga when Lord Ram built a Shiv-ling here and worshiped it to get the blessings of Lord Shiva. The Rameswaram means "the God of Lord Ram". Ram himself is considered an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

It is said that things happen when they are supposed to happen, more so, in the case of divine interventions. Man proposes, god disposes seems very apt in this situation. I planned this trip many times, but gods will was something different. It did not happen for last couple of years. I guess that was not my time to visit. My extended family was visiting me (My Mother, my Aunt and sister in law and kids) and they wanted to visit Rameswaram. This time the plan did work and it worked out very well.

The usual practice is, when you plan for Rameswaram, you include few other places in and around Rameshwaram like Madurai, kanyakumari etc. We had 4 days time and wanted to utilize most of it, I included Madurai and Kanyakumari along with Rameswaram. We conveniently covered three places in four days. Though i have visited Madurai early, it was my first visit to Rameswaram and Kanyakumari and indeed a wonderful and memorable trip.

This blog wouldn't be complete if i don't thank all those who made a difference and ensured we all have wonderful and memorable trip. I want to express my sincere thanks to my friends and their extended families for helping in planning the trip, making all arrangements and making sure the trip was memorable. It wouldn't have been such a wonderful trip without their help. Thank you for everything.

Planning

I am a traveler at heart and always prefer driving than any other mode of transport as much as possible. I don't think twice for driving even if it mean driving whole day. However, this time there were few things that made me think twice and hence had to consider other options as well. The dilemma was over the following points:

The number of people were more (5 Adults, 5 kids) which means we cannot possibly adjust in my own car
Cannot fit in Innova or any other eight seater taxi, more number of people and multiple luggage
Two old age ladies, both having knee pain and hence their convenience of travel by train
Hiring a TT from Bangalore means sitting for long and considerable increase in cost in terms of toll and interstate taxes etc.
Flight would work out to be too costly

With all these thoughts, travel by train got priority. This at-least ensured couple of things: one, it suits the days we were planning to travel, and two, it was convenient for most of the family members. This also looked to be most cost effective. I did not think much about self-drive cars,only because of one reason. I don't trust those self-drive cars as they are not maintained well and i cannot risk my family's lives. I have experienced self-drive cars and seriously they are very poorly maintained. So the decision was made in favour of India's most preferred mode of transport -Train. Its been ages that i traveled in train and saw a good opportunity to experience that, especially for kids as they haven't had a train trip for long. Accordingly, plan finalized and train tickets booked.

While going from Bangalore, we booked the train tickets to Madurai and while coming back from Nagarcoil to Bangalore. The train timings and days of travel all worked out as per the plan. From Madurai we hired a Temp Traveler till Kanyakumari. I will explain in more details when i write about each place later in the blog.

Our plan was as follows:

Day 1: Start from Bangalore, Train from Yeshvantpur to Madurai at 21:15 PM on 5th Jan 2017
Day 2: Reached Madurai at 8:00 AM, took a room in Hotel for couple of hours to change and freshen-up
Finished Meenakshi Temple Darshan and leave for Rameshwaram, night stay in Rameswaram
Day 3: Visit Ramanathaswamy Temple and other places of interest in Rameswaram, night stay in Rameshwaram
Day 4: Leave for Kanyakumari, visit Vattakottai fort on the way, visit local market in Kanyakumari, visit places as per convenience, retire in the hotel. night stay in Kanyakumari
Day 5: See sunrise, Visit Vivekananda Rock Memorial, Gandhi Mandapam, Pdamanabham Palace and Thottipalam and get dropped at Nagarcoil station for 7 PM train

Barring few things, we were able to cover most of it and we finished as per plan. Our train journey was good and the drive was wonderful, thought the road between Rameshwaram and Kanyakumari was not that great, mostly single road and for some stretches the road work was going on and hence the road was in pretty bad condition.

Day 1: Madurai

The first halt of Journey was Madurai. There are many places to visit in Madurai, however we decided to just visit the famous Meenakshi Temple and move on to Rameswaram.

If you are interested, following are some of the places which you can visit in Madurai:

Meenakshi Amman Temple:

Picture taken from Internet

This is the focal point of Madurai. It is said that the city was built around the Shiva Lingam which is inside the temple. The complex is spread over 15 acres, with 4,500 pillars and 12 towers and pretty massive. The temples four main towers and entrances face one of the four directions -North, South, East and West. The southern tower is thetallest one, stretches nearly 170 feet high. Inside the temple, there are two shrines. One dedicated to Goddess Meenakshi, also known as Goddess Parvati and other dedicated to Lord Shiva. Temple Timings: Temple is open in the morning between 5:00 AM to 12:30 PM and 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM. Between 12:30 PM to 4:00 PM the temple is closed for Darshan. There are lot of places to shop outside the market if someone is interested. There are guides available inside the temple who will help you understand the history and significance of various places. At the same time, you have audio guides available too. If you are running short on time, it would be good to hire a guide as he can take you directly to the main temples and save you time of searching and asking for directions. If you have time, explore but keep in mind the temple closing time. The guides would charge anywhere around Rs.300/- . I had taken a guide as i was getting late and wanted to make sure i complete Darshan on time.
Gandhi Memorial Museum: Gandhi Museum was constructed in memory of Gandhiji after his assassination.The museum houses a Picture Gallery, which presents Gandhiji’s visual biography. The history of Freedom struggle is depicted with 265 illustrations in the Special Exhibition section. The ‘Hall of Relics’ preserves some original and replicas of Gandhi’s personal belongings. Cultural programmes are conducted in the open air theater here, which can accommodate 8000 people. The library in Gandhi Museum has a vast collection detailing India’s cultural background and books by Gandhiji.
Tirumalai Nayak Palace:

Photo Courtesy Wikipedia

This is around a km from Meenakshi Temple on the southeast. Built in 1636 by King Tirumalai Nayak, it was his residential palace. Its open from 9 AM to 5 PM with one hour lunch break between 1 - 2 PM. There is a sound and light being organized every evening.

There are many other temples mentioned on various sites across internet. Depending on your stay and timings, you can take a call and decide what all places you want to visit.

Stay: We used a hotel for freshen-up and changing only and had take the hotel for couple of hours. We stayed in Hotel Tamilnadu which is very close to Meenakshi Temple. The place is ok if you just need it for coupe of hours, but if you want to stay you may want to consider other options as the toilets and rooms and not very neat and clear.

Food:

Picture courtesy web (Adharshghost redeyes)

There is a hotel called Hotel Ashok in Periyar (Madurai Main, near Hotel Tamilnadu) , a pure vegetarian restaurant. We liked the food here and would recommend if you are looking for pure Veg options. Though the place might not look very attractive from outside but the food is good.

If you are visiting Meenakshi Temple in Madurai, keep these points in mind:

Temple is open between between 5:00 AM to 12:30 PM and then again from 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM. The temple is closed between 12:30 PM to 4:00 PM.
You can deposit your shoes near the entrance and hence dont have to leave them in the bus or car.
Guides available at the temple, usually charge around Rs.300/-
Audio guides are also available
If you want to shop, there are lot of places around the temple. You should know what you want to shop or you are looking for
There are multiple parking's, one near the temple which is usually full. There are two other parking's which is nearest to the east entrance, its walk-able distance
Remember which gate you entered from otherwise you might have difficulty locating your vehicle or parking
Mobile phones and small handbags are allowed, mobile phones to be kept in silent mode and no photography is allowed inside the temple (especially inside the main sanctum)
Dress code like any other temple (no specific dress code)

We finished temple visit by around 12:15 or so and then visited my friends parents house. From there, we straight away headed towards Rameshwaram. Madurai to Rameswaram is about 170 kms and took us more than 4 hours as we took breaks as well in between. We headed straight to our Dharamshala (guest house) where our rooms were booked and retired for the day. We kept all sight-seeing in Kanyakumari for next day. A good day overall with all as per plan. We did all planning for next day with our guide who was helping us with all arrangements and sight-seeing in Rameswaram and decided to leave at 6 AM for main temple darshan to avoid the rush and finish the most important part of the entire trip. With the planning done and dinner completed, we retired for the day.

Day 2: Rameshwaram

Day 2 was main day of the entire travel and started quite early as well. We wanted to leave the hotel by 6 AM and hence had to get up early and get ready. We left the guest house around 6.10 AM and reached sea shore within 15-20 mins. Sea shore is right across the parking area, but it was crowded and hence we had to walk a little to find place to get in the sea and take a dip. Our guide was with us and he was making sure we are comfortable in every aspect. You have to take bath at Sea Shore which is called Agni Theertham before you proceed to main temple premises to take a bath in 22 holy wells and to have the main temple Darshan. Its interesting to know that all these 22 wells are not too far from each other still every well has a different taste of water and a different story behind these wells. Almost all temples in Southern part of India have the concept of VIP Darshan or Quick Darshan, in some places its really quick in others it saves lot of time. The temple witnessed heavy rush that day, infact Dec and Jan is considered to be most crowded months in a year along with other months where the temple observes various festivals for a duration of 6-10 days. So, whenever you plan please do check the dates unless you specifically want to go during festival time.

Rameswaram is like a small island but a major Pilgrim Centre. It is connected to the mainland by Pamban Bridge. It is said that on his return from Ceylon after defeating Ravan in Lanka, Sri Ram offered his repentance prayer to Lord Siva to absolve his sins that he had committed by slaying Ravan. There are 22 holy wells (Theertham) in the temple and it is believed that the number of wells denotes 22 arrows in Ram's quiver. It is believed that bathing in 22 wells and Darshan of Ramanatha Swamy will absolve oneself from all sins.

The journey to 22 Holy Theerthams starts with a dip at Agni Theertham. Agni Theertham is referred to the sea shore near the temple. It is siad that Lord Ram had requested Sea Goddess to remain calm and sea is said to be obeying the same, now as well, sea was very quiet here. You have to take a dip or bath here and then proceed to the 22 Theerthams inside the temple premises. One thing that i dont understand, though its considered to be holy, people don't keep the place clean. It is very unfortunate that such a beautiful place is kept dirty. I hope common sense will prevail some day and this place will be maintained. After the so called holy dip at Agni Theertham, we proceeded to the 22 wells to take bath and absolve ourselves of all sins, as they say.

The journey to the 22 wells (Theerthams) in itself is interesting. You keep walking from one well to another and there are Sevaks (helpers) who will pour water on devotees using a bucket. If you are with a guide, it happens quick and you get to bath with little more water as compared to those who are in general queue. At some places the guide himself will pour water on you without wasting time. After completing bath at 22 wells, you can change your clothes at the so called changing rooms. There isn't much in terms of changing rooms, its just four walls with a roof, but something is better than nothing. Carry your clothes in a separate bag which is water proof. Even though the place was crowded, we finished Agni Theertham, 22 Theerthams and main temple Darshan in about 2 hours time, all thanks to guide who swiftly managed everything for us. He even managed to keep our clothes bag somewhere safe and at the end of the 22 wells, provided us the bag for changing. The names and significance of 22 Theerthams in Rameshwaram is listed below for your reference:

S.No	Name of the Theertham	Place
1	Mahalakshmi Theertham	Location : South of the Hanuman Temple. Significance : Dharmarajan bathed here and became rich.
2	Savithri Theertham	Location : West of the Hanuman Temple. Significance : King Kasibar got rid of his curse.
3	Gayathri Theertham	Location : West of the Hanuman Temple. Significance : King Kasibar got rid of his curse.
4	Saraswathi Theertham	Location : West of the Hanuman Temple. Significance : King Kasibar got rid of his curse.
5	Sethu Madhava Theertham	Location : The Tank at the third corridor. Significance : One will get lakshmi's blessings and purification of heart.
6	Gandhamadana Theertham	Location : In the area of the Sethumadhava Temple. Significance : One will get riches and their sins will be absolved after getting rid of their penury.
7	kavatcha Theertham	Location : In the area of the Sethumadhava Temple. Significance : One will not go to hell.
8	Gavaya Theertham	Location : In the area of the Sethumadhava Temple. Significance : Shelter under karpaga Virutchaga Tree.
9	Nala Theertham	Location : In the area of the Sethumadhava Temple. Significance : One will get Soorya Thejas and reach Heaven.
10	Neela Theertham	Location : In the area of the Sethumadhava Temple. Significance : One will get the benefit of Samastha(entire) yaga and receive Agni Yoga.
11	Sanku Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : Vathsanaba, the Sage, got rid of his sin of ingratitude.
12	Sakkara Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : The Sun got His hand turned golden.
13	Brahmahathi Vimochana Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : Brahamahathi was absolved of his sins.
14	Sooriya Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : One will get the knowledge of the past present and the future and reach the worlds they want.
15	Chandra Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : One will get the knowledge of the past present and the future and reach the worlds they want.
16	Ganga Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : Gananasuruthi Rajah attained wisdom.
17	Yamuna Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : Gananasuruthi Rajah attained wisdom.
18	Gaya Theertham	Location : In the inner corridor of the Temple. Significance : Gananasuruthi Rajah attained wishdom.
19	Siva Theertham	Location : South of nandi Deva in the Temple. Significance : Completion of Bhaira Brahmahathi.
20	Sadyamirtha Theertham	Location : In the Amman Sannathi. Significance : Emperor Bururoonu got rid of his curse.
21	Sarva Theertham	Location : In front of Lord Ramanatha's sannathi. Significance : Sutharishna got rid of his blindness(from birth), illness and old age and then he prospered.
22	Kodi Theertham	Location : In the first corridor of the Temple. Significance : Sri Krishna got rid of his Sin of killing his Uncle, kamsan.

*Source: Official website of Arulmigu Ramanatha Swamy temple, Rameswaram http://www.rameswaramtemple.tnhrce.in/inside-theertham-rameswaram.html

There are many places in Rameswaram which has historical significance and are often visited by tourists. To name a few:

1. Gandamadana Parvatham: It is a hillock situated 3 kms away and it is the highest point in the island. One can see the imprint of Lord Rama’s feet on a chakra here. The entire island of Rameswaram is visible from this point.

2. Sugreevar Temple/Theertham: It is situated on the way to Gandamadana Parvatham near the Doordarshan Kendra. Sugreeva is the elder brother of Vali,a mythical character in the Ramayanam.

3. Satchi Hanuman Temple : It is 3 kms from the main temple, on the way to the Gandamadana Parvatham. This temple Is the place where hanuman delivered the good news of finding Sita to Rama with Satchi [evidence] the Choodamani a jewel that belonged to Sita. Hence this temple is called by this name.

4. Badrakaliamman Temple : This is a temple for Devi Durga, around 2 kms from the main temple on the way to Gandamadana Parvatham.

5. The Panchamukhi [Five-Faced ] Hanuman Temple : It is located just 2 kms from the main temple, the deity of the hanuman is drawn with senthooram (Vermillion). Idol of Lord Ram, Sita and Hanuman brought from Danushkodi during the 1964 cyclone are placed there. The Floating Stone used to build the Sethu Bandhanam or the bridge between India and Lanka too can be found in this temple.

6. Jada Theertham : It is located 3.5 kms from Rameswaram. It is believed that, Rama on his return from Lanka after Ravana Vadham, washed his Jada [hair] in this theertham to purify him before proceeding to worship Ramalingeswarar. Hence this holy water body is called Jada Theertham.

7. Nambu Nayagiamman Temple : This temple is greatly venerated by the people of Ramnad District. It is situated 8 kms from the main temple in Rameswaram on the way to Dhanushkodi.

8. Villoondi Theertham : This Theertham is 7 kms from the main temple on the way to Pamban.

9. Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge [12 kms] or the famous Pamban Bridge:

Picture Courtesy www.tamilnadutourism.org

This is also called as the Pamban Bridge that connects the Rameswaram island with the main land. It is the longest sea bridge in India and its length is nearly 2.2 kms and stands as a fine example for Indian Architecture. The bridge was constructed with sufficient elevation. This bridge with a clearance of 45 mts, is being supported by 79 pillars out of which 64 pillars are erected in the sea. The islands near by and the parallel rail bridge below can be viewed from this bridge.

10. Vivekananda Memorial House: I would suggest you to skip this place, there is nothing there. Just a small hall in memory of Vivekananda. There is an entry fee as well, though its very small amount, i think they charge Rs.2/- per person and Rs.10 for vehicle parking. The charge Rs. 5 for toilet, which in itself is a mystery. The sign boards are prominent but toilet is still under construction and hence don't expect much. The only thing good about this place was big shark statue where the kids enjoyed. You can go to the beach as well but the tides are too high so be careful.

11. Dhanushkodi is another famous tourist spot in Rameswaram. It is strip of land one km wide and 18 km long on the eastern end of Ramesaram. This land piece is on in between the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal. These oceans were called as Ratnakaran and Mahodadhi. Their confluence looks like a bow and the strip of land looks like an arrow ready to be released. While visiting Dhanushkodi, make sure you carry enough food items especially if you have kids along. Though there are shops where you can get chips, biscuits, cold drinks etc. but wound find any decent food so be prepared.

Picture Courtesy www.tamilnadutourism.org

Hindus consider the Adi Sethu or the arrowhead as a sacred place to perform religious rites. It is exotic beach stretch with bird life. This was completely washed away by The 1964 cylone. Tourist enjoy surfing here. However we coudn't go to the extreme end of Dhanushkodi but one of the beaches in that area is called Dhanushkodi Beach. We spent sometime there, but couldn't venture much as the sea here is very aggressive and we didn't carry spare clothes as well. There are small 4 wheel drive tempos which will take you to the end point. This is the place where Ram Sethu or Adma's bridge is located. This natural bridge connects India with its neighboring country Sri Lanka. This is what is referred to as Ram Sethu in mythology which Lord Ram constructed with the help of Hanuman and Vanar Sena. You can see and experience the floating stones when you visit Panchmukhi Hanuman temple. Such rocks have been placed there for public display inside the temple.

(c)praveenjangira

12. House of Kalam: Another place to visit and people visit is Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam's house, called as "House of Kalam". His house has been turned into a sort of museum where in pictures and wall frames tell a story and throw more light on APJ's life and journey. He was a man who believed in simple living and high thinking. I was really touched visiting his house.

Another visiting place, which is very close to Kalam's House is the Shopping Arcade which is right next to Kalam House. Your guide or bus or temp will take you to the shopping arcade first. Its a good place do to shopping and they have variety in all sections. I have not seen anyone going out of the place empty handed. But it will be crowded and the crowd at the billing counter will get on your nerves. The staff or the management there is not helpful at all and people don't maintain queues of maintain decorum. If you have a guiode or a local person along with you, ask there help if its crowded.

I am not sure which all places we visited, but i think we visited majority of them. Most of these places are within 3-4 kms of the main temple. We missed visiting the marine museum and water sports in Rameswaram. Sharing some random pictures that i took in and around Rameswaram.

Dhansuhkodi Beach (c)praveenjangira

Dhanushkodi Beach (c)praveenjangira

Goat enjoying Tender Coconut (c)praveenjangira

Eagle taking an aerial view of the place (c)praveenjangira

Tower (c)praveenjangira

We reached back to our Guest House in the evening between 6:30 - 7:00 PM. It was a hectic day as we covered many places during the day. No complaints though, we had good Darshan at all the places.

Shopping in Rameswaram: You can do shopping from the local market of head towards Kalam Arcade which has mostly everything that you need and at a good price. The only drawback is it gets too crowded at the billing counters sometime and hence might be little irritating when people break queues and don't follow a decorum.

Photo Courtesy Google.com

Stay in Rameshwaram: There are lot of options in Rameswaram for stay depending on your budget and range. We stayed in Goswami Madam Trust and took three AC rooms, 2 three bedded rooms and 1 double bed room. The price was decent, for 2 Bed room it was Rs.800 per night and for 3 Bedded rooms it was 1200 per night with 24 hours check-in and check-out. The room and toilets are neat and clean with ample parking. I am including two pictures here for your reference and that has their phone number as well.

Entrance of Goswami Madam Trust

Goswami Madam Trust Guest House

This is about 15-20 minutes from the main temple. However, if you want to stay close to the main temple there are options there as well. One of them is Hotel Tamilnadu which is right next to Agni Theertham or the she shore and looks to be a good place to stay, right next to Beach.

Food in Rameswaram: There are many choices for food as well. Many restaurants in and around the temple premises which provide all kind of food. We however we preferred Hotel Aryaas which was pure vegetarian restaurant and right next to Goswami Madam Trust guest house, in-fact it shares the same premises. They don't have all the options at all times but have decent food menu and good food.

Picture courtesy google

Road Conditions: Rameswaram is about 170 kms from Madurai. The roads are more or less good except that its mostly single road. It takes about 4 hours from Madurai to Rameswaram.

Route:

Madurai to Rameswaram Route

Points to keep in mind while visiting Temple and 22 Wells:

Take a dip or bath or sprinkle water at Agni Theertham (She Shore near the temple)
There is enough paid parking areas near the sea shore (close to entrance of Hotel Tamil Nadu), if you are using GPS to navigate, you can use Hotel Tamilnadu as the destination
After taking bath, proceed towards main temple
There is free shoe stand near the main entrance and hence you don't have to walk barefoot till the temple
Mobiles, camera's or any other electronic devices are not allowed, its better to keep them in your car of leave them in the hotel room as there aren't decent lockers anywhere near the temple
If there is rush, you can hire guides for Rs.100 or Rs.200 per person
There is a Rs.25 per person ticket for entry for 22 wells, there is no ticket for kids below 5 years
Plan early and reach temple early
There are no lockers to keep your dry clothes and hence you will have to carry them along with you
Gents can wear shorts for taking bath in 22 wells, there is no dress code as such
Carry dry clothes or spare clothes in a water proof bag or cover so that they remain dry while you take bath in 22 wells, if you hire a guide check with him and he might be able to keep them securely somewhere
Don't expect much in terms of changing rooms, even for ladies. There is a separate room for ladies and separate for gents without any facilities, not even toilets in the changing rooms
Patience and faith, will help everywhere
Take a call on hiring a guide depending on the crowd, if its crowded hire a guide but if there isn't much crowd, well there is no need to hire a guide. Hiring a guide does help as they get you much closer inside the temple.

We finished our dip in Agni Theertham and in 22 Theerthams along with main temple Darshan in about 2 hours time. All these 22 Theerthams are fresh water wells and tastes good even though Rameshwaram is surrounded by sea water on all sides. Though there is some saltiness in the water from some of the wells. After completing this, it is said that you absolve oneself of all sins. Our Day 2 was also as planned and we finished on time. Next day was a long drive from Rameswaram to Kanyakumari and hence decided to leave from guest house by 8 AM. We decided to retire early that day and have good sleep.

Next day we planned to visit Subramaniya Swamy Temple in Thiruchendur and Vana Thirupathi in Thoothukudi while driving from Rameswaram to Kanyakumari. It was suggested by my friends father from Madurai. Day 2 finished as per plan, no deviation.

DAY 3 - Kanyakumari

It was day 3 of our journey and plan was to visit couple of Temples on the way to Kanyakumari along with Vattakottai Fort near Kanyakumari. We started as planned around 8 AM from Rameswaram for Thiruchendur. On the way we made a stop at Pamban Bridge which is a marvel in itself. Spent some time there and took few pictures.

Pamban Bridge Picture (c)praveenjangira

Pamban Town Picture (c)praveenjangira

After spending some 10-15 minutes there and taking pictures, we bid goodbye to Rameswaram and moved on to next stop in the journey.

Rameswaram to Trichendur is about 225 kms and took almost 5 hours as the road was under repair at many places. It was a single road and bad conditions at many places added more time. When we reached Trichendur we realized that today was not a good day to visit. This was a season as told by the driver and to add to that it was Ekadashi on that day. There was literally no place to walk as well. In no way we could have completed Darshan in that temple before 3-4 hours. With old age parents and kids in the group, we decided to skip it. Realizing the situation at Tiruchendur we thought for a moment and realized that Vana Tirupathi would also be crowded today and hence paid our respect to both the gods from vehicle parking area and decided to move straight towards Kanyakumari. Tiruchendur to Kanyakumari is about 100 kms, which means around 2 hours drive. However the road was pretty bad at many sections and it took longer than expected. Since it was taking long, we decided to skip Vattakottai Fort as well and headed straight to Kanyakumari hotel where we had booked our rooms. It proved to be a long journey and everyone was almost tired by the time we reached the hotel.

We reached the hotel around 4 PM, checked in and relaxed for sometime. We stayed in Tri-Sea hotel which was right next to the main market and beach-road. Even though we were tired, ladies saw the market and were ready to go shopping and the kids, well they found something of their interest - swimming pool. Yes Tri-sea has a small swimming pool, though the depth is 5 feet but kids enjoyed in adult supervision. It was evening well spent, ladies did what they liked best and kids did best utilization of their time in swimming pool. Even though we were tired we had good evening and decided to go out for dinner somewhere in the main market area. There are many choices and you will get all kind of food here. Few names that i remember: Sree Punjabi Dhaba, Delhi Punjab Dhaba, Shree Mahavir Marvadi Bhojanalaya, Annapoorna Marwadi Bhojanalaya, Pappu Tiffin, Hotel Sarvana and Juiceataria and many more. We choose Sree Punjabi Dhaba, wanted to eat good north indian food. Like any other Punjabi Dhaba, the food was served quickly and hot, the taste was good but wasn't too happy with the cleanliness and hygiene. Didn't take any pictures but its right next to Bhagvathi Tours, in-fact i think that's also owned by the same owner as we were seated there. Post dinner we had Goli soda (Bantaa soda as know popularly), after decades we tasted this and man i loved it. Everyone enjoyed ice-cream and soda. While paying the bill i realized that the shop-keeper is actually charging Rs.5 extra on every ice-cream, tried to reason with him but he didn't buzz. I paid the amount and decided not to buy anything else from there and just moved on. Though i could not understand the shop-name but i am including a picture here and if you happen to be there don't buy stuff from this shop. This shop is somewhere opposite to Shree Mahavir Marvadi Bhojanalaya.

Beware of this shop

We did some window shopping post all this and went back to hotel. We were on the top floor and hence had nice open area outside and terrace to sit. We chatted for long time enjoying the view and atmosphere. We could actually see Vivekananda Rock Memorial and the statue from our hotel itself and it was glowing in the dark with all the lights around.

Night View of the Beach Road, Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Statue from hotel

It was a long day and finally decided to call it a day, though ladies were still busy chatting. Even though we couldn't follow the schedule and missed many things but everything is well that ends well. Kanyakumari is known for Sunrise and Sunset and we decided to enjoy the sun-rise next day. With that thought in mind i didn't even realize when i dozed off.

DAY 4: Kanyakumari

It was the day 4 of our journey. Today's plan included watching sunrise, visiting vivekananda rock memorial and statue, beach road, Gandhi Mandapam, Padmanabham Palace and Thotti Palam and then head to Nagercoil railway station to catch the train at 7 PM. The start of the day was as per schedule and we were off to sunrise point by 6 AM. We didn't realize that we are not the only ones who want to see the sunrise, the place was crowded and it took us some time to find a suitable place. The sunrise was mesmerizing and very beautiful. Here's some pictures that i captured.

Crowd started gathering early in the morning (c)praveenjangira

Sun-rise between the statue and Vivekananda rock memorial (c)praveenjangira

Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Statue early in the morning with lights (c)praveenjangira

We came back to hotel around 7:30 AM, ordered for tea and relaxed on the terrace. We didnt realize the time and it was already 9 AM. We had a long day and many things to cover, however kids wanted to enjoy Swimming pool once more before we leave the hotel. We are there to enjoy and if that's what kids will enjoy, why not. That's one of the reasons why I booked this hotel. After few rounds of swimming, we all got ready and started for Vivekananda Rock Memorial. Before that we had our Breakfast at Shree Mahavir Marvadi Bhojanalaya, it was ok and not that great and hence wont recommend. After finishing our breakfast, we all got into the Ferry queue to get the tickets.

In order to visit Vivekananda Rock Memorial, you need to take a ferry. Here are some things for you to remember:

Every member of the group needs to get in the queue, old or young doesn't matter
Ferry ticket is Rs.34 per head, its a two way ticket
Kids below 5 years are not charged
There is a VIP queue as well, per head Rs.169, this provides priority entry in the queu but does not provide any VIP seating or VIP treatment while returning
In my opinion VIP ticket is not needed, the general queue moves pretty fast. Even though there more than 100 people in front of us, we got the tickets in about 25-30 minutes.
There is separate ticket at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial for Rs.20 per head
You can spend as much time as you like but its usually hot, nothing to eat or drink and hence not much option to return back after couple of hours
There are book stalls at rock memorial where you can buy books or diary etc.
There is a meditation hall as well if you want to sit in silence

Ticket Counter for Ferry (c)praveenjangira

Once you get the ticket, there is a separate way to go till the ferry. You can see the pathway in the above picture on the right side, that will lead you to the ferry. The have a waiting room inside and will allow exit only when the ferry has arrived. There are usually three ferry's doing rounds and takes usually 5 minutes for Ferry to arrive. Each Ferry carries about 150 people. It takes few minutes before you reach the Vivekananda Rock Memorial. As mentioned above you have to buy ticket again to visit the memorial.

Ticket Counter at Rock Memorial (c)praveenjangira

Its a must visit and a very beautiful place. There is a shoe counter where you have to leave your shoes before visiting the temple and memorial. Some random pictures from the place.

Ferry Service from Rock Memorial (c)praveenjangira

Memorial (c)praveenjangira

Statue as seen from Rock Memorial (c)praveenjangira

Vivekananda Rock Memorial (c)praveenjangira

Beach and boats at Kanyakumari (c)praveenjangira

We came back from Rock Memorial around 2 PM, packed our bags, checked out from Hotel and went out for lunch after keeping our luggage in the Tempo Traveler. We were thinking to complete visit to Padhmanabhan Palace atleast before we complete the final leg of our journey but didnt realize that we were running behind time. By the time we finished our lunch and started from there it was already 3:30 PM and the driver said it will become too tight to reach back in time for train if we go to Palace now. He was right and agreed with him. But before we reach station we thought of having good coffee somewhere on the way. We looked for some decent hotel in Nagercoil, had coffee and reached station around 5.30 PM. The scheduled departure of the train was 7 PM. We paid the driver and parted our ways.

Shopping in Kanyakumari: Head to beach road and just keep moving around to find what you are looking for. The prices are good and you would get good stuff at good prices.

Food in Kanyakumari:

Shree Punjabi Dhaba has good food, good service but not very high on hygiene.
Shree Mahavir Marvadi Bhojanalaya the service is pathetic and food is just ok, not recommended.
Juicetaria looked good to me, very neat and clean but we didn't try there. They mostly have fresh juices, sandwiches etc.
Hotel Sarvana has two branches, one regular restaurant and the other is luxury. Though the prices in luxury restaurant is little high, the food quality was excellent and very neat and clean. It is close to the temple. You have to take right at the cross road after first Sarvana hotel. Highly recommended, you get all variety of food.

We didn't try any other restaurant but there are lot of choices and you can find a place of your interest.

Stay in Kanyakumari: There are many options in Kanyakumari, matching all budgets. From simple rooms to luxury rooms as well. Most of them are near Beach road and that should be the preferred spot as everything will be at walk-able distance then. I stayed in Tri-Sea hotel which is very near to beach road. We booked 2 four bedded rooms.

Pros:

- Hotel location is good, walk-able to beach road and Ferry service

- Good view from hotel, you can actually watch sunrise and sunset from the terrace of the hotel

- Top floor rooms are good

- Swimming pool, small but decent

- Decent room service

- Rooms are clean

- Free wifi

Cons:

- There were no closets in the room to keep the clothes

- Room design was little odd

- If you need to refill the water, either you call the service desk or go to ground floor to fill the jar with filter water

- Windows had no grills and hence cant leave windows open anytime, anyone can get in from windows if left open, security risk at night

Overall we find the hotel to be decent and if you are staying there prefer one of the rooms on top floor if you want some fresh air and open space. Book the hotel directly instead of makemytrip or alike as they are charging much higher, realized when checking out. I paid almost 2k extra for the rooms.

Places of interest in Kanyakumari: There are many places in and around Kanyakumari. But the most prominent ones and the ones i recommend are:

Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Statue
Vattakottai Fort
Padmanabhan Palace
Thotti Palam
Sunrise and sunset

Gandhi Mandapam is right on the beach road but its a waste of time and nothing much to see except for historical significance.

Points to keep in mind when visitng Kanyakumari:

The sunrise and sunset place will be crowded and hence reach little early and find your perfect spot
Be careful not to venture too close to waves, sometimes tides are high and not easy to move quickly in case of emergency
Parking is strictly in designated areas, there are tempos/three wheelers to ferry you to and fro from any place to parking or vice versa
To go to Vivekanand Rock memorial, everyone needs to get into the queue
Beach road is full of places to shop
Vivekanand Rock Memorial is open between 8:00 AM and 4:00 PM only and hence plan accordingly
Patience and faith will make the trip even better

Kanyakumari is a beautiful place and take time to enjoy the scenary, sea and the places around. Sharing some more random pictures before i complete this blog.

Mosque in Kanyakumari (c)praveenjangira

Ferry Service to Rock Memorial (c)praveenjangira

Beach Road Market (c)praveenjangira

End of Journey at Bangalore (c)praveenjangira

Train journey was un-eventful and we got our desired seats and places. Our train was from Nagercoil to Bangalore (SBC), but luckily it stopped at Karmelaram station for passing giving us enough time to alight as this was the closest place to our home. I guess we were lucky or maybe we were blessed after completing Rameswaram trip.

I have enjoyed my journey and tried to capture all aspects of the journey to make it easier for you to plan yours next time. The blog is long, have patience while reading it. Hope my experience will serve you as information and you can plan your travel better. When you visit, don't forget to leave a comment.

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