Where in the world- at least within India- am I going? MYSORE!

Jul 7, 2014
2 min read

Everyone asks me where I will be visiting when I go to India. This trip is simple- I am only going to Mysore. I am setting up my research project and only have seven weeks to get everything going. So I will only be taking short and local trips while I am there. The plan is to organize a study abroad beginning in 2016 that focuses on culture, health and gender in global contexts. This means I will be back in the near future, and able to take time to explore more of India and South Asia.

I do know it will take at least 23 hours to get there from Toronto, not including the extra three hour car ride I must take from the Bangalore Airport to my accommodations in Mysore. I will be downloading lots and lots of movies.

At this point, I am so focused on what I need to get my project going that I really have not thought in depth really about where I am going, what to expect, and what Mysore is known for. So some quick and interesting facts about Mysore I found online:

Every year, thousands of people flock to study yoga in Mysore. It's one of the most popular yoga destinations in India, and over the years has achieved world-wide recognition as a center for yoga. Mysore is known as the international center for Ashtanga yoga. Similarly, it is the home of Mysore Yoga.
Mysore is known as the cleanest city in India and an urban center where slower pace of life is more appreciated. It was described in the LA times as a "clean and orderly city of broad boulevards lined with shade trees, well-kept buildings and gardens and parks offering the aroma of jasmine and roses"
Mysore is called the City of Palaces because of several ornate examples in the city. One of the most visited monuments in India is the Amba Vilas Palace, or Mysore Palace. The Maharajah's Palace, one of India's largest, also overwhelms Mysore visitors with size.

Mysore is noted for its thalis, a vegetarian meal usually served on a tray of small dishes that could contain soup, cabbage, lentils, mixed vegetables, yogurt, rice and dessert. It also has a reputation for India's best masala dosa , a mix of curried vegetables wrapped in a lentil-flour pancake

Am I writing this all down for my own benefit and to convince myself of something?

Possibly.Likely.

I really have not fully thought through this trip in terms of where I am going specifically. I have so much to do and so little time- I leave in less than two weeks and still do not have my plane ticket, funding released, medical insurance, travel clinic appointment, and shopping list. But that's for another blog.