VAIKOM VISIT- IN GODS OWN COUNTRY - 686

 VAIKOM VISIT - IN GODS OWN 

                   COUNTRY 

Kerala has always been my favourite place of visit over the years . Its cleanliness , its greenery,  waterways , not to forget its spirituality and beautiful people in more ways than one  have always held  a special attraction for  me .

We , that is me and my Better Half have visited Kerala before  and visited many of  its  Temples and Tourist Attractions. 

One place missing in this list has been the Viakom  Sri Mahadeva Temple . We decided to embark  on  a visit to this place and Mami was spot on to point out that there was a direct Train from Ambasamudram to Vaikom Road by the 16792 Palaruvi Express starting from ASD at 11.57 PM and reaching Vaikom Road Station at 7.30 Am the next morning . Nothing could be better , 

We made the Reservations for both the Up  and Down Jorneys on the 11 th and 13 th June with our  return slated from Ernakulam Town as we planned to visit the Chottanikara Bhaghavati Amman Temple on the 13 th morning .

What remained was a place of stay at Vaikom . We made the Reservations via Booking .com and chose our place of stay  at THACHATTU HOMESTAY which is very close to the Temple itself . More about the Thachattu later .

The journey from Ambasamudram to Vaikom Road was comfortable except for finding an Auto to take us from Agasthiarpatty to Ambasamudram Railway Station at  around 11.30 in the night . The tension of waiting for the pre arranged Auto was nerve wracking till sighting the Auto .  

Vaikom Road to Vaikom Town is a fair distance and it  took us  almost 20 minutes  to reach there by Auto . Mr Krishna Kumar the owner of the Homestay met us at a spot as agreed with the Auto Driver over the Mobile and guided us to Thachattu Homesay.  It was very neat and  comfortable with all basic needs and provisions provided for Tea or Coffee if one so desired . 

Having worked in Coimbatore,  Krishna Kumar was fluent in Tamil also and this made all things easy. He informed us that no Visit to Vaikom Temple is Complete without visiting all the 3 Mahadeva Temples at Vaikom , Kaduthurthy and Ettumaanur . These are reportedly the Oldest Temples in Kerala and a sure attraction for piligrims all through the year .

We were at the Vaikom Mahadeva Temple at 9.30 AM and had a Good and Long Darshan . The Bhel or Vilva Leaves taken from our house at Agasthiarpatty were offered for the Puja . Being a huge complex it was almost 11.30 AM when we finished our Darshan . This included a visit to the Krishna Temple in front of the nearby Theppakulam . Lunch provided at the Temple is special and there were nearly 2000 people if not more on that day . People wait for hours to partake the lunch provided here .We were lucky to get the tokens for the same . Their Payasam is a special attraction here . We were back at the Homestay around 1.00 pm after the lunch . 

Krishna Kumar had arranged an Auto to take us to Kaduthurthy and Ettumaanur Mahadeva Temple . This calls for a round trip of almost 60 Kms .

Both these Temples are Equally big. The Darshan in the temples were both very fulfilling and sacred . 

After a light dinner at Udipi Hotel we were back at the Homestay .

Our plan was to make an early morning Darshan again of Mahadeva at Vaikom , then visit the Udayanapuram Murugan Temple also at Vaikom  and then Proceed to Chotanikara Bhagavati Amman Temple and visit any temple after that as our return train was only  at 6.30 PM from Ernakulam Town Station .

Krishna Kumar had arranged a Car to pick us up at 5.00 AM for the entire trip till we were dropped  off at Ernakulam Town Station after our Temple Visits . 

Driver Kalesh was there at 5.00 AM sharp . The early morning visit to Vaikom Mahadeva Temple and Darshan is hard to be describe in words . Very Satisfying is hardly the correct word to describe the same as was the visit to the Udayanapuram Murugan Temple .

We were on our way to Chotanikara Bhagavati Amman Temple . The halt at Amba Vilas Hotel in Angamali  for Breakfast brought back memories of my early years in Madura Coats when we would visit  these parts for the Annual Inter Unit Cricket Matches where teams from Ambas, Madurai and Koratti took part .

We were there at Chotanikara Temple at 7.30 AM and were fortunate to have Darshan at the Nirmalaya Seva there . 

The Darshan at Bhadrakali Amman was even more special as the chanting of the Mantra and the  accompanying Conch and Drums cast their own spell .

With Kaladi being just 35 odd Kms from here we decided to visit Kaladi and offer our prayers at Bhagavat Pada of AADI SHANKARAR .

VERY FULLFILLING AS REVATHY CHANTED THE ENTIRE SRI RUDRAM AT HIS BHAGAVAT PADA .

Next was the Sri Krishna Temple in Kaladi itself .

It was just 10.15 AM and our driver Kalesh had made enquiries about the DATTATREYA - ANJANEYA Temple between Aluva and Ernakulam . This a Temple which is more recently built is dedicated to Dattatreya and Anjaneya . There is a Huge Statue of Anjaneya . This Temple too attracts a lot of visitors everyday . 

Temples in Kerala open very early in the morning at 4.00am and close around 11.30 AM . We were lucky as it was a Thursday and this being a Gurusthalam it was still open for an extra 30 Minutes. 

Kerala Backwater Boating has always held my fancy and when Kalesh suggested the same , we decided to give it a try .

Blue line  Boat Service took us on a Backwater Exploration for close to 90 Minutes along the Mangroves and Various places of interest in Ernakulam/Cochin . The cool breeze and the Motor Boat with a covered top was  really cool . The Pelican , Kingfisher and other Birds going about their job of finding their food made this even more interesting as was the place very close to the shore where Two Huge Skyscrapers were recently demolished .

We had our lunch at Aryaa s Hotel and Kalesh dropped us off at Ernakulam Town Station at 4.00 AM for our 6.30 PM PALARUVI EXPRESS Return to Ambasamudram. Spending 2 Hours in this Busy station was not an issue and we took rest in the comfortable waiting room .

Dot on Schedule,  Palaruvi Express was at Ambasamudram at 3.30 AM and our pre arranged Auto Driver Christopher was there to pick us up  .

I am sure many might be wondering about my visit to the Siva Temples and Kaladi . Folks , 12 th June happens to be the 47th Anniversary of the Day when you know what !!!

TAILPIECE: 

Thachattu Homestay and their Owners Krishna Kumar go out of their way to make the stay very Comfortable and take pains to Achieve this . 

CONTACT NO 73061 71075 

There are no separate queue for any category at any of the Temples .

Not a single Paisa is collected for entry into the Temple . 

Veshti and Angavatsaram is the most common Dress Code for Men as is the Sari or Salwar , Kameez for the Ladies .