Date::18-Jan-2010
The entire Sunday (17th) Jan went by just getting the car checked as there was a radiator leak. Unfortunately the radiator repair guy “in shift” and was expected to be present only early next day. Came back to the garage with hope from the mechanic that he would try and fix the radiator. ( put a smile on my face so I don’t have to visit him again tomorrow for another wasted weekend.)
Now to the main part .. oh yes.. the trip..
How ?? Now that the car had to be tested, I just couldn’t just make rounds for a couple of kms and say “AAL EEZ WELL!!!!! So Koti-Lingeshwara, here we come.
Who ? My mother, brother and I. Brother had college late morning so distance mappings had to be done and I also was worried about the road conditions. I had been there once on bike with my friend but the roads were horrid after the right at the level crossing just beyond Hosakote on the way to Bangarpet. Wondering about the alternatives and covering this notorious stretch, we started by 5:30am.
Route
Kavalbyrasandra >> Outer Ring Road >> Old Madras Road >> towards Kolar/Hosakote >> Right at the first level crossing >> Bangarpet >> Kammasandra >> Kotilingeshwara.
Hand on heart, I feared the worst and headed for the highway. For the next couple of kms the roads were giving a good fight to my car’s handling ability and my driving skills. Then voila!!!! the road turned out as smooth as Makkhan. Newly laid tarmac was an absolute treat. I was seriously considering reaching Mulbagal and taking an alternate route from there though, it is a longer detour. But I’m glad I didn’t. So we reached Kotilingeshwara at 7:00am. As per google search results a couple of websites mentioned the distance to be within 70kms. But what was the final Odometer reading ?? 200Kms.
Why Koti-lingeshwara? My mother’s request to see the temple.
Quickspecs on Kotilingeshwara - As on 2008 there are about 87 lakh lingas. You could do a Linga Pratishtapana for Rs.3,500. (Installing a linga within the premises. Please pardon my technical jargon.) Now a trick with the count of the linga.
In the picture to the right, each linga contains smaller lingas embedded on the main structure, so each one counts.
This is the big statue of Nandi facing the giant linga.
Goddess Santhoshi's shrine inside second partition of the main temple.
This is the big nandi facing the giant linga.
Started for bangalore by 9:30AM and reached home within 11:30AM. Stopped on the way to shop for vegetables. Was a little tired so relaxed for a while and watched a telugu movie Oye. ( remake of A walk to remember) and slipped into a deep slumber. A nice place for a half a day out!!!!
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