Delovely

The final day of the kids' break, we trekked out to Cubbon Park. It was the last thing on our list of things to see in Bangalore. Bangalore isn't exactly known for its tourist attractions... Cubbon Park is downtown- there is an entry fee (20 rupees - about 13 cents) and there are some attractions inside that need to be paid for separately as well. We got there a little before opening and wandered through the aquarium next door. Admission fee there was 5 rupees. It was two floors of fish tanks. But the kids were happy.

Our first stop inside the park was to ride the train which makes a giant loop around the whole property. We can always count on Grant to capture the excitement of any occasion with his face...

A chunk of the park is closed and in need of repair. There used to be paddle boats and canoes and twice as many play grounds. It is too bad, really. Some sites seen along the way:

There is a large castle fort that everyone ran around on for a while. I went to take a picture of Jeffery and turned around to find the G's and Eden getting sucked into another family photo. What do people even do with these pictures of other people's kids and families? I'd really like to know.

We didn't do any of the carnival rides. Carnival rides are terrifying enough (from a safety stand point) in the U.S.. We were not tempted to test fate in Bangalore. So the kiddos ran around the large playground. We tried to stay within arms reach of Eden and Jeffery to ward off other well-meaning photographers.

Before heading home, we dove into some local fare for lunch. Cokes, fried veg noodles, onion dosa, and ice cream cones for about $8 total.

Cori took some time off the next day too. Having enjoyed so much family togetherness the day before, he and I availed ourselves of our household helper, Selvi. We left all the children at home with her while we went to see the Bangalore Palace.

The Bangalore Palace was built in the time of maharajahs. It took over 80 years to complete (1860's through 1940's) and midway through construction it was purchased by the royal family of Mysore (A city about 3 hours drive from Bangalore). To this day, Bangalore Palace is owned by this royal family, and there is great dispute about this and the palace of Mysore. The government runs all the tours etc. and would like complete control of the facilities. The royals aren't ready to give it up though they are in financial difficulty. The disrepair and lack of upkeep was very evident. Also evident was the lavish ways the Maharajahs lived.

Our tour guide kept claiming that John Nash (architect of the Buckingham Palace) was the architect of the Banglore Palace. Everything I can find suggests that the architecture found in the Bangalore Palace was purposefully designed to resemble Nash's style. But that's all. The main royal family recognized in India today is the Mysore crew. Mysore Palace is the main royal seat of India. But the queen and her children still keep residence at Bangalore Palace and visit there often. We missed them by a week. There is a huge ceremony held at Mysore Palace for Dessurha that the royals were in the midst of completing.

Teakwood carving and inlays.

Gold leafing across the entire ceiling.

The palace is filled with fine things from other countries. Brightly colored blown glass chandeliers from Glasgow. Tile from Morocco and Spain. Stained glass from all around Europe. Cavernous rooms lined with Italian marble.

The "Indian Mona Lisa"

Our tour guide nearly drove us bonkers. He was so happy and anxious to put us in the closest proximity with antiquity and for us to take many, many pictures. There had been a table and a velvet rope in front of the Indian Mona Lisa which he quickly moved out of the way so we could get up close and personal.

"Madam. Here is the throne chair of the maharani {queen} where she was made to sit for hours. *removes protective barriers* Come, come, sit! Now Sir, take the picture."

"Now, both of you. I will take the picture"

"This is a foot stool made from the elephant you saw hanging in the entry. Very old. Very priceless. Here, Madam. You sit on it. And Sir, stand behind. I will take the picture."

"Now Sir, you sit on it and Madam stands behind."

"Now, hold it. No, not like that. Like this. *positions our hands* Good. Now I take the picture."

"Madam, go be the maharani in her bath"

"Now, sir. This is where the king himself would sit to take the sunshine" You can see how Cori was feeling about these photo ops at this point...

"And here is the tile bench where he would take his massage. Come, madam. Give sir a massage."

"Now, make him to lie properly for the massage..." Oh what the other tourists there might have been thinking!

The last male heir of the Mysore line passed away just over a year ago. This has also brought some difficulty to the Royal line. This was his office.

Principal income for the site comes from massive events (marriages mostly) held in the grounds behind the palace. Our tour guide took us back to see the facilities. It is an enormous covered platform. There are fans and lights suspended here and there, and the platform is tiered. It is easily a football field in size. The tour guide said that the facility rents out for a cool 50K USD, and that they can handle upwards of 80,000 guests. Good. Grief. The ceiling of the shelter is draped in the gold and silver fabric. I can't even describe the amount of fabric this would take.

Our tour concluded where it began in the main courtyard. We noticed some outbuildings around the side of the palace and inquired if we could see them as well. The tour guide told us that those structures were just the old green house, kitchens and servants quarters. He told us we could go explore if we wanted but that there was nothing to see. Of course, we went exploring.

The green house was filled with old carriages.

Walking though the kitchens and servants' quarters was one of most interesting parts of our visit. Courtyard opened into subsequent courtyard. They stretched as far as the palace is long. We could make out where vats had been for laundry as well as where the living quarters had been. So incredible to imagine what life was like for those people inside and outside of the palace.