MUMBAI/CHENNAI FAMILY PAVOOR VISIT DAY1-1311

It is taken as the bounden duty of everyone in the family to visit the KULA DEIVAM OR FAMILY DEITY atleast once every year for the benefit of every one in the family .

After failing to find an apt  way to categorize the relationships with which to describe my guests which is better off being labelled simply as precious family friends ,   ( relations - 2 from Mumbai and one from Chennai ) visited us before the ensuing Kovil Kodai Fastival at Vadakku Vaasal Selvi Amman Kovil at Mela Pavoor .

It is a done thing to visit places of interest Around Ambasamudram during such visits by  many of my relatives who visit us from time to time . After a sumptuous lunch and a short afternoon nap we left home at around 3.30 pm  for the  Yerichudayar  Kovil Ambasamudram , the places of particular interest to us on the way , like the erstwhile EWART HOUSE AND NOW VIKAASA SCHOOL where both Anoo and Haarish studied  and which was my first place of abode after my marriage   , Ambasamudram Railway Station , Omega Threads where I worked as a Manager for almost 5 years were Shown/Seen , Explained and Shared with much pride .
The bathing ghat near the temple and the cinematic beauty of the place  , being  the Piece de Attraction in umpteen movies was the high point here . After a  couple of snaps taken to mark our own presence there ,  we were on our way to Tirupudaimaruthur, but first things first , can a bath in the River Thambarabarani be missed ? . No way , the free spa/pedicure  of the fish tickling your feet and the clean water is  inviting even to the most water phobic person . My Chennai and Mumbai friends had a whale of a time in the water and enjoyed every minute of it in the water .

The huge 1200 year old Narambunather Temple on its bank leaves one awestruck at the skill of the artisans who with the primitive tools at their disposal in those days  could create such places and pieces of wonder . After praying for the well being of one and all we left for the Balaji Gajendra Moksha Temple at Athazhanallur .

We were there at around 5.15 pm . The scheduled opening time of the temple was 5 pm . The doors were kept closed and we were not allowed inside . By 5.45 pm people waiting  outside the huge doors started getting restless . We were informed that Govt Officilas were busy with auditting work inside . When we and I in particular questioned him about making us wait at a place which is remote and devoid of any frequent bus or other transport services , he had the audacity to say that we the people should be prepared to wait for The  God .

NOW MY QUESTION IS  " SINCE WHEN DID GOVT OFFICIALS TURN GOD " .

After offering our prayers there , our next place of visit was the Kailasanathar Temple at Brahmadesam .
This Temple is even older than the earler one which we had visited . There are many structures here which is difficult to be explained and can be only seen and admired for their sculptured beauty.
Pitchadanathar Sabhai is one such place . The stone  crafted one piece bell with the tong hanging on the ceiling is another .

As it was already getting late we decided to call it a day and headed to  the "RAMANAS* for our night  food .
My guests from the city were amazed at the variety of items on offer and the services provided . What was even more surprising was the amount in the bill . They opined that it was less than half of what it would have been at their place .

Tired but happy that we were able to see places which were always there in our minds , we returned home for our next morning visit to Pavoor .

To be continued ,