Mysore is a city located in the state of Karnataka in India. Mysore is a well planned city with beautiful gardens, historical monuments, and intricately carved temples. It is a city which is wrapped in scenic beauty and is full of various kinds of fragrances like that of sandalwood, jasmine, and rose. It is also known as the ‘sandalwood city’. It is situated at a distance of about 120 kms from Bangalore. It is well connected to the nearby places by trains and buses.
Mysore is a quiet place with a very placid lifestyle. The place was the official capital of the royal families of Karnataka. The city still has a royal aura and this reaches its peak during the birthday celebration of the goddess Chamundeshwari and the famous Dussehra festival.
This festival usually falls during the months of September and October. The city is beautifully decorated during this festival. All the major monuments and government buildings are decorated with lights. Even the streets are decorated with innumerable lights.
The entire city is lit up during the night making it look really enchanting. Dussehra is a 10-day festival and on each day various kinds of programs and cultural events are organized. Tourists throng the city from all over the country and even abroad.
On the tenth day, a royal procession is taken out by the Maharaja of Mysore. The procession comprises of elephants, camels, horses, silver coaches, standard bearers, and cultural groups. The procession is worth seeing and it’s a big event for the local people as it is a part of both the royal as well as religious festival.
The main attraction of Mysore is the Mysore Palace which was built during the years 1911-1912. The palace was built in the Indo-Saracenic style. The palace has beautiful sculptures, archways, ornate domes, colonnades, stained glass ceiling, and mosaic floors. There are huge wooden doors which are intricately carved. The Durbar hall of the palace looks magnificent with a gold throne weighing 200 kilograms approximately.
It also has precious stones embedded in it. The palace is illuminated on Sunday evenings with innumerable light bulbs making the palace look enchanting. The bulbs make the palace look golden and it is a sight worth seeing. If you want to see the palace lighted then you should visit it between 7pm and 8 pm on Sundays and on public holidays.
Mandakalli Airport which was previously just open for the Air Force is now being used to run commercial airlines also. The airport is now connected to the major metros of the country and people coming from these places can now easily come to the city by air.
Bangalore airport is couple of hours away from the city. The Mandakalli Airport is now being improved to make provision for more air traffic. Once, this service is expanded travelling to Mysore would become even easier.
Mysore is one of the top travel destinations due to its rich cultural and historical heritage.