Trip to Guruvayur and athirapally Falls:
We started to Guruvayur (Me,wife and two kids) from Chennai during Pongal Holidays.As usual during Pongal holidays all trains were overbooked and private bus fares went through the roof.Somehow we managed to book the SETC bus to Salem and from Salem we booked the second sitting train to Thrissur which starts from Bangalore.(12677 Ernakulam Express).From Salem bus stand you will get 13 Number bus to Salem Railway station (Called as Junction stop locally) or you can book the auto for 100 Rupees for a distance of 5 KM.There are many Hotels opposite to Salem Railway station to have your breakfast.
From Thrissur railway station you can walk for some half a kilometre to reach the bus stand.Government buses are not so frequent and you have to wait for atleast 40 to 60 minutes whereas Private buses are frequent and are just outside the Government bus stand.It may take 1.30 hours to reach Guruvayur from Thrissur.
There are lot of hotels near the Government bus stand at Guruvayur.We booked Sree Kamal Residency hotel near the bus stand and since it was off season we got the AC room for 900 Rupees/Night.After refreshing ourselves we started to the Guruvayur temple.
We went through the West Nada which is actually the back side of the temple and we have to go out of the temple to reach the East Nada for the darshan queue.Dress code is strictly followed and we have to deposit all Electronic items,Purse,Belt,etc in the Temple cloak room or you can leave them at the Hotel or Car.Temple is beautifully constructed and there are some dance programs running in the adjacent temple Hall.There are no special paid darshans and only one special queue is there for the Ayyapa pilgrims.The queue even though is quite lengthy but it moves fast.They have provided seating arrangement for the pilgrims in the queue and they also provide drinking water in the queue.
My daughter at the West Nada Entrance.
The temple's walls are beautifully painted with narratives from Shree Krishna's avatars.
After the late evening darshan of Guruvayurappan,we reached back to the Hotel.
Guruvayurappan Statue Photos taken from the internet,since no photography or electronic item is allowed inside the temple.The temple closes around 9 PM and there are closing rituals with Decorated Elephants which are a treat to watch.
In the morning we started to Mammiyor Siva Temple,here also Cloak room facility is provided and Dress code is strictly followed.It is said that the trip to Guruvayur is incomplete till we visit the Mammiyur Siva temple.Mammiyur Mahadeva Temple is situated at a short distance of around a km from Guruvayur Temple.
The main deity is Lord Shiva who is in the angry mood.Hence, an idol of Lord Vishnu is also installed, by the side, to reduce the anger of Lord Shiva.Goddess Parvati is sitting on the lap of Lord Siva. In the same premises other Gods namely Lord Ganesha, Lord Murugan and Lord Iyyappa are also found.
People who miss this temple, can pray to this God from the Guruvayur temple itself from the corner where Goddess Lakshmi is sitting.
We checked out from the hotel and reached the Private bus stand to travel to the Thrissur and there are lot of private buses that go to the Thrissur.It takes 1 to 1.30 hours to reach Thrissur.You have to take bus to reach Chalakuddy.There are lot of AC volvo bus to reach Chalakuddy or trains are there from Thrissur to reach Chalakuddy.It takes nearly an hour to reach Chalakuddy.From Chalakuddy lot of Private buses are there to reach Athirapally (Frequency of 30 Minutes).It takes an hour to reach Athirapally falls.The ticket booking counter closes at 5 PM.Adult entry fee is 30 and kids they charge 2 Rupees.
You can spend time till 6.30 PM maximum at the Athirapally Falls after which security guards ask you to leave the falls and exit gate is closed around that time.The waterfall is majestic and many films has been shot in and around this area.There are many shops in this area for snacks and food.Buses run every 30 minutes from here to Chalkuddy Bus stand.From Chalakuddy bus stand frequent buses are there to reach Thrissur.The main problem is no route numbers are mentioned in the bus and we used Google translator to search for the Thrissur spelling in Malayalam or otherwise you have to ask the local people for guidance.
We returned back to Chennai from the Thrissur by the late night train with happy memories.
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