Rickshaw Hijinks and Maharaja Living in Mysore

Trip Start Oct 12, 2005

Trip End Mar 31, 2006

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Where I stayed

Green Hotel Mysore

(Mysore hotels)

Flag of India Mysore, India
Friday, February 10, 2006

The trip to Mysore was our first long distance bus trip in India. Besides the fact that it took almost five hours to go 160 kilometers, it was like many other bus trips. The roads in India are definitely slow going as the buses must constantly dodge cyclists, motorcycle drivers, pony carts, cows, other buses, delivery trucks and of course cars. Upon arrival we found a friendly rickshaw driver (I should say he found us), who agreed to take us to our hotel The Green Hotel for about 50 rupees (a little more than a dollar -- pretty good price considering it is 5 kilometers out of town. We settled in the rickshaw and the drivers friend jumped in the front seat with the driver. We didn't think too much of it until a policeman hopped in front of the rickshaw and demanded that the driver halt. After much heated discussion between the driver and the policeman, it was decided that we must get out of the rickshaw so the policeman could take the driver away to be fined since it is illegal to have two people in the front of the rickshaw. We couldn't believe that was the reason he was stopped since we've seen 8 - 10 people in the back of a rickshaw with no consequence. We jumped out of the rickshaw with our bags and got into the next empty one we came across. To our complete amazement, another guy jumped in with the driver in the front. We looked at each other and began to yell at the guy to get out. We were screaming -- "Get Out" and practically pushing our unwanted front seat passenger our the moving rickshaw to avoid getting stopped again.

01 Green Hotel

(We've become very hard people here!) When the passenger finally got out the driver just looked back at us sheepishly and smiled as if to say, "It was worth a try!".

Our hotel -- The Green Hotel -- was definitely worth the rickshaw hassle. An old summer palace for the Wodeyar princesses, it is a simple palace that has been converted into a boutique hotel. It was a bit pricier than our normal guesthouse fees, but this was Kristy's anniversary gift to Matt so we splurged. When we weren't sitting around the Green Hotel garden soaking up the Raj atmosphere, we toured the city taking in some historic sites. Until Independence Mysore was the seat of the maharajas for the princely state of Mysore. One of the main attractions of the city is the Maharaja's Palace which was build in 1912 by an English architect. It's a whirl of color inside nad includes some beautiful historic paintings of the lives of the Edwardian Raj. Sorry, no cameras inside so we weren't able to take any photos.

We also visited the Chamundeswari Temple where Matt paid some money and received a red blessing mark on his forehead. He looked quite fetching and the remains of the blessing powder only stained his forehead yellow for the rest of the day. We tried our hand at shopping but the streets were packed, prices were high and we were just not up for the constant barrage of the shopkeepers. But Matt did get his sunglasses fixed at a shop. One of the sidepieces had fallen off -- What are those pieces really called? The parts that rest on your ear? Anyway the guy stuck it back on for good and it only cost 25 rupees (about 50 cents). We also witnessed another Indian traffic accident. This time a motorbike crashed into a metal roadway divider and threw the driver and his rider. Of course, the whole street converges on the scene and everyone begins lifting the guys up off the ground and dusting them off. Apparently no one here has heard of neck injuries and the idea that you should just stabalize someone on the ground. One of the riders looked a little worse for wear and promptly passed out upon being lifted up. Another confirmation that we are right not to ride motorbikes in India.