SOUTH EAST INDIA

Orissa and Treasures of the South

The tour starts from Kolkata, capital of West Bengal, which is often the first choice as a base for traveling in Eastern India. With Imperial edifices, teeming bazaars, temples, clubs and golf courses, museums and elegant hotels and the River Hooghly winding through the city are all part of its charm whereas Orissa has a vast tribal population belonging to diverse races and culture. In the well-planned city of Bhubaneswar, there are temples built over a period of one thousand years reflect the grandeur of high quality workmanship of Kalinga (ancient name of the state) temple art. Chennai, capital state of Tamil Nadu, is the perfect place to start the tour of southern India. Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram), close to Chennai, is a marvelous open - air museum with sculptural panels, caves and monolithic rathas (chariots) set along a fabulous beach with an arrow of sculptured edifices, cave temples and bas reliefs. Further down the coast, Pondicherry shows off its French heritage to fine effect in its seaside villas and in the names of its streets. The Meenakshi Temple in Madurai reflects architectural excellence of a bygone era. The state of Kerala along the south west coast of India is noted for its beautiful beaches, historic port towns and pretty hills. With delightful beach at Kovalam and the port town of Kochi with old Jewish Synagogue, St. Francis Church, the oldest European church in the sub-continent, Kerala has some magnificient palm-fringed backwaters that are perfect for soothing sailing on a locally crafted boat. Four days long extravaganza arranged by the tourism department of Kerala can be observed when 101 caparisoned elephants march from Thrissur on the 17th of every January reaching Thiruvananthapuram on the fourth day with stopovers at Cochin and Alleppey.


Day 01: Kolkata
Arrive in Kolkata. Transfer to the hotel.

Day 02: Kolkata - Bhubaneswar
Sightseeing tour in Kolkata taking in some of the city highlights; drive past the Maidan, Fort William, Raj Bhawan visiting Victoria Memorial possibly the most awesome reminder of the Raj to be found in India. Visit Kali temple, the Jain temple, Parasnath and Missions of Charity, Mother Teresa’s Home. Evening fly to Bhubaneswar (1 hr).

Day 03: Bhubaneswar
Full day tour in Bhubaneswar with its myriad wayside shrines and temples, the most outstanding of which is the 54m high Lingaraj Mandir dedicated to Tribhubaneswar, the lord of the three worlds, Bindu Sagar - an ancient water tank believed to contain water from every holy stream in India. Scattered around this holy tank are smaller temples and shrines. Also visit the Parsurameswar Mandir, one of the best preserved ornate Shiva temples in the capital built in about 650 AD with cluster of 20 smaller temples around.

Day 04: Bhubaneswar - Puri
Morning visit Udaigiri & Khandagiri caves located some 6 km west of city. These two hills are riddled with caves some ornately carved and are believed to have been chiseled out by Jain ascetics in the 1st century BC. Visit the Museum of Man, an anthropological research centre for tribal customs, beliefs, rituals and languages. In the afternoon, drive to Puri (50 Km/1.5 hr) visiting Pipli village en route, notable for its brilliant appliqué craft. Puri is one of the four most important Hindu pilgrimage sites in India and situated on the Bay of Bengal. In Puri, visit the great Jagannath Mandir (from outside) dedicated to Vishnu, the lord of the universe.

Day 05: Puri- Konark - Gopalpur on sea
Morning drive to Konark (35 Kms/ 1 hr) to visit the mighty Sun Temple, a World Heritage site and one of India’s most astonishing temples. Drive to Gopalpur on sea (210 Kms/ 4-5 hrs) visiting Chilika Lake en route. Chilka Lake is one of the Asia’s largest brackish lagoons 1100 sq.km in area and host to a million or more migratory birds.

Day 06: Gopalpur on sea - Taptapani - Rayagada
From the peaceful, blue water beach of Gopalpur drive to Rayagada (226 Kms/6 hrs) visiting the hot springs of Taptapani on the way. Rayagada lies close to the rolling hills and forests of the Eastern Ghat, home to Orissa’s indigenous tribes.

Day 07: Rayagada - Chatikona - Jeypore
Morning proceed to Chatikona to watch the interesting colorful weekly market (on Wednesday) of Doms, Desias and Dongoria Kondh Tribes. Dongoria Kondh tribe is one of most primitive tribe of the Kondh’s living in the high slopes of the Niyamagiri Hills. These people are horticulturists. Men wear ear- ring, nose-ring and keep their hair long like women making a side-bun. Later drive down to Jeypore visiting Desia Kondh & Jharia Paroja villages. (205 Kms)

Day 08: Jeypore - Onkadeli - Lamptaput - Jeypore
In the morning drive to Onkadeli to see the fierce Bonda tribes when they come down for the trade at the weekly market on Thursday. They live in the remote hills and keep themselves isolated. The Bonda women are noticeable by their bead necklaces, striking brass and silver ornaments and their shaved heads decorated with leaves. Later proceed to Lamptaput and the nearby villages to see another interesting and primitive tribes of Orissa called Gadabas. They are one of the early settlers of this country and trace their origin to the time of Ramayana. (180 Kms)

Day 09: Jeypore - Visakhapatnam - Chennai
Drive to Visakhapatnam (180 Kms/5-6 hrs) to connect the flight to Chennai (1 hr) in the afternoon. Rest of the day is at leisure.

Day 10: Chennai - Kanchipuram - Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram)
In the morning, tour of Chennai city, the capital of Tamil Nadu, along with the visit to bronze gallery in the government museum (closed on Fridays and public holidays), which has a superb collection of Chola bronze art. Later drive to Mahabalipuram (127 Kms) en route visiting the golden city of Kanchipuram, one of the seven sacred cities of India famous for its temples and silk saris & weavers.

Day 11: Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram)
Full day tour in Mahabalipuram, which includes Shore Temple which is architectural wonder created between 600 - 750 AD, Arjuna’s Penance - one of the world’s largest and finest relief carving constituting a rich and engrossing tale of Hindu mythology and the Ganesh Rathas.

Day 12: Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram) - Pondicherry
Drive to Pondicherry (135 Kms/ 3-4 hrs), the former French colony, which is a charming Indian coastal town with few enduring pockets of French culture and an Ashram. In the afternoon drive around the city.

Day 13: Pondicherry - Chidambaram - Thanjuvar (Tanjore)
Drive to Chidambaram (55 Kms/ 2 hrs) to visit the famous Lord Natraja’s (dancing Shiva) Temple, Tamil Nadu’s stunning Dravidian architectural highlights. Afternoon drive to Thanjuvar (117 Kms/ 3 hrs), the ancient capital of Chola kings.

Day 14: Thanjuvar
Full day tour in Thanjavur, which includes the visit to Brihadishwara Temple - the crowning glory of Chola temple architecture and the fascinating monument enlisted in world heritage site, Thanjavur palace and the museum.

Day 15: Thanjuvar - Tiruchirappali (Trichy) - Madurai
Drive to Madurai (207 Kms) via the historic town Tiruchirappalli (Trichy). In Trichy, we visit the city’s famous landmark, Rock Fort and the Temple situated on 83 m high rock and the island of Srirangam Temple. Trichy is also described as Rome of the east.

Day 16: Madurai
Madurai is one of south India’s oldest cities and has been a centre of learning and pilgrimage for centuries. Visit Sri Meenakshi Temple - a spectacular pastiche of Dravidian architecture, Tirumalai Nayak Palace – an Indo-Saracenic palace and the museum. Evening visit Madurai market

Day 17: Madurai - Cape Comorin - Kovalam
Drive to Kovalam visiting Kanyakumari en route (325 Kms/ 7-8 hrs). In Kanyakumari, visit the Vivekananda memorial located over two rocky islands about 400 m offshore.

Day 18: Kovalam
Day is at leisure at this renowned tropical beach. Possibility of optional Ayurvedic massages and to see the Kathakali dance performances

Day 19: Kovalam - Quilon (Kollam) - Alleppey (Alappuzha)
Drive to Quilon (88 Kms/ 2 hrs) to board the houseboat for an overnight backwater cruise to Alleppey. With the Arabian Sea in the West and a vast network of lakes, lagoons and fresh water rivers criss-crossing it, Alleppey is a place of immense natural beauty with diverse animal and bird life.

Day 20: Alleppey - Cochin (Kochi)
Disembark houseboat and drive from Alleppey to Cochin (60 kms/ 2hrs). Afternoon, sightseeing in Cochin, which includes the visit to Mattancherry Palace, St. Francis Church, Jewish Synagogue, Chinese Fishing nets, Fort Cochin. Evening watch the world famous Kathakali dance performance or enjoy optional Kerala body massage.

Day 21: Cochin
At leisure in Cochin. (Possibility to include the elephant festival which is a four days long extravaganza arranged by the tourism department of Kerala. 101 caparisoned elephants march from Thrissur on the 17th of every January reaching Thiruvananthapuram on the fourth day with stopovers at Cochin and Alleppey).

Day 22: Cochin – Departure
Transfer to airport for departure flight from Cochin.