Yercaud, Tamil Nadu

This is a compilation of things to do in Yercaud

The route - Bangalore - Electronic City - Hosur - Krishnagiri - Dharmagiri - Salem - Yercaud (222kms).

En-route - Just before the road begins to climb up the mountains to Yercaud, do look out for an interesting group of brightly coloured idols to the left of the road. These guardian deities, found only in Tamil Nadu, are worshipped as protectors of villages and are often known as Aiyanars. On the way up the winding hill road with its 20 hairpin bends, stop at a thatched wayside stall selling 'Fresh Garden Produce': packets of cloves and pepper. Then come the coffee plantations before entering cottage-dotted Yercaud.

Sky Roca - is where the lush, verdant delights of nature surround you, where exemplary service and modern comforts are at your beck & call. Hotel Sky Roca is situated on Salem – Yercaud main road at 3 km before Yercaud town. The hotel has 23 rooms with spectacular view of the valley, impeccable privacy and the most modern in-room amenities like Flat Screen Plasma televisions, DVD players, in-room Coffee makers, mini-bars, shower cubicles, etc. Uncle Sam"s Restaurant serves multi-cuisine, there is a mock tail bar and barbeque lawns. There are conference and banquet facilities. Sunset from Sky Roca. Uncle Sam's Kitchen.

From The Hindu newspaper: Buildings that seamlessly blend the old and the new, clouds that glide past, your own terrace lawn, and birds that sing to you from the stately silver oaks around the coffee plantations below – The Sky Roca, has all these, and some more.

The best part is the location. It is so near Yercaud, (altitude 1,500 MSL), but not fully there. So, it happily lacks the hustle and bustle that tourists bring to a hill station. The resort, developed by the Sekar Coffee family, is set amid 60 acres of coffee plantations and silver oak in the Shevaroy hills.

Care has been taken to not fell a single tree while building the resort. So, the rooms are at different levels. Antique carved iron and wood chairs from Karaikudi grace the common sitting areas, while the interiors are tasteful with a lot of wood and glass. Tribal paintings hang in every room, and the bathrooms are very fancy, with a Jacuzzi and shower jet cubicle.

Every room has been built to provide a great view of the still unspoilt hills, and the plains below. So, at night, one gets a breathtaking view of the dancing lights in Salem, on the foothills. A wonderful surprise is a section of glass flooring in some rooms that allows you to look down into the valley below.

Best of all, each room opens out into a private lawn, lush with grass. Benches have been put up on either side, and bamboo screens separate the terraces. Perfect for an intimate party with friends.

On the way to the restaurant is the Sky Walk bridge that spans the deep valley. Sheer glass sections underfoot let you know just how deep the valley is. And, the faint whisper of water greets you everywhere, thanks to the artificial cascades that thunder down in front of the suites, across three levels.

Places to see:
In Yercaud -

The Big Lake Or Emerald Lake: The first thing one sees as you enter the Yercaud town is this placid lake in a wonderful surrounding of hills and natural shoals. Also a beautifully landscaped garden on one bank. It has boating facility. This lake is the only natural lake among all the hill station lakes in the South. A floating fountain is constructed by MALCO, at the center of the lake. The lake is surrounded by a "Deer Park" and " leisure park" and "Tamil Nadu Hotel". Boat services are available at reasonable rate [Rs. 75 /- for 2 seats and Rs. 95 /- for 4 seats ]. Self Pedaling [15 min] and Rowing boats [30 min] are available. You have to pay the same amount as caution deposit. The safety measures are followed strictly. The minimum time can be spent: 20 min.

Deer Park: Situated in the Lake. Suitable for Kids to playground. It will be closed by 5.00 p.m.

Kiliyur Waterfall: This is 3 km from the Yercaud Lake. The best time to visit this place is immediately after the monsoons. The surplus water from the Yercaud Lake and the other reaches of the Shevaroys Hills fall deep into the Kiliyur Valley in the form of a 300 feet waterfall. This delightfully breathtaking water falls is 3 km from the Yercaud Lake and should be visited after the South West or North East Monsoon. The views from the bottom and top of the falls are breathtaking. The view from the top of the falls into the Valley is heart stopping. The trek to the bottom of the falls is only for hardcore trekkers as it takes about one hour from the lake to reach the bottom of the falls which is heavily wooded, but a good 2½ hours to get ones breath and trek back again. 7 km from town.
NOTE: The road to the falls is very narrow and only one vehicle can pass at a time. It is advised not take a vehicle to the falls. If you do so, park it at the big platform after about 3 km. Beyond that the road is very narrow & steep and you cannot turn your vehicle back. The only way back down is to drive it in reverse gear on steep and winding slopes: that is life threatening.

Anna Park: The park is situated next to the Lake. It is typical park used to host the "Flower Show" in the month of May. The "Japanese Park" inside Anna Park is a must see. Children can play around and elders can take rest. The entrance ticket will be Rs. 2/- for adult and Rs 10 /- for Camera. The minimum time can be spent: 30 min for laymen.

The Natural shoal: seen around the Petrol Bunk, Round Tana and adjoining the Anna Park are about the oldest shoals of natural species of trees that one can see around the Shevaroys. Another shoal of this type can be seen adjoining the Orchidarium. In the interests of conservation this last stronghold of original trees should be preserved and replenished for the future.

To the North -
Arthur's Seat: This is a vantage point, which can be reached by taking a steep road going north from the center of the town, 1 km from town. It gives a bird's eye view of the Big Lake, Yercaud Town and the Shevaroyan Peak.

The Servarayan Temple: This temple is situated on top of Servarayan hill. The temple itself is a narrow and dark cave and seated inside are the god Servarayan and the goddess Kaveri representing the Shervaroy Hills and the Cauvery river. The local people believe that the god Servarayan is the guardian angel for the 67 villages in and around Yercaud. It is believed that the temple's cave is so deep it touches the Cauvery river. The local tribes celebrate their annual festival in this temple during May.

Bear's Cave: This is situated within a private coffee estate owned by a Mettur based business man. The main part of the cave is situated about 7 feet below the ground level and contains a deeper gorge which is believed by the local people to lead up to the cave situated in the Shervaroyan Temple.

To the South -
Lady's Seat: This is a cluster of rocks on the south west of the Yercaud hills overlooking the ghat road and the city of Salem to the south. There is a sheer drop of about 200 feet at this point into a private estate in the valley below. It has a telescope house with a panoramic view of distant Salem and the winding road up. On the right of Lady's Seat are Sterling Resorts, Gents Seat and Children's Seat. During the night, the Lady's Seat offers a spectacular view of the lights of Salem city. There is a natural rock formation in the form of a seat where reportedly a white English Lady of yester years spent her evenings viewing the magnificent panorama before ones eyes. There is a mini park and it is a breath taking spot for a picnic. 2 km from town.

Tipperary View Point: One can reach this southern most view point of Yercaud by taking the Tipperary Road. From there one can see the Elephant Tooth Rocks. Which are reportedly said to be the remanants of a meteorite which fell to earth. It is pure white rock compared to the Black Granite available on these hills. The Estate adjoining known as Tipperary Estate was once a posh hotel catering to the elite of British India from 1930 to 1940. The night view from this spot-with the lights of Salem in the distance is mesmerizing. 2 km from town.

White Elephant Tooth: One is located on the Southern Spur of the Shevaroys below the villages of Guntur and the other is located in the east overlooking the Ghat road, above the 60' bridge. The larger one next to Guntur has two rocks about 120' high and consists of pure white quartz, which is in stark contrast to the greenery around and the black of the granite available around. Easy to climb up but hard to climb down as the material is soft and crumbles beneath your feet. 9 km from town, it is a days trek up and down. Alternatively one can trek down to the plains and catch a bus to return to Yercaud. The Smaller one which can be reached on the short cut to the 60' bridge from Tipperary Estate is said to have seen some Gold Mining Activity. It can be reached in about 2 hours time and from there another 1 hour to the ghat road, from which one could catch a bus to Yercaud or Salem.

To the East -
Pagoda Point, also known as Pyramid Point: This is on the eastern side of the Yercaud hills. The name comes from four piles of random stones in a pagoda or pyramid formation, made by the hill tribes. Today there is a Rama temple situated between these pagodas. One can get a grand view of Attur and Ayothiapattinam from this picnic spot. 5 km from town.

And Misc -
Grange: This is one of the oldest buildings in Yercaud, built in the 1820s by M.D. Cockburn, who was the District Collector of Salem District at that time.

Botanical Survey of India: Well maintained Botanical Garden by the BSI contains a rich collection of plants. It is a treat for "Botany" Students. A "Bell Rock" in the BSI campus makes bell sound when you hit with stone. You have to climb to reach the rock. The entrance ticket will be Rs. 3/- for adult and Rs 10 /- for Camera. It remain closed on Sundays and National Holidays.

Horticulture Farm: It has "Rose Garden" and "Children Seat". The Rose Garden is filled with various verities of Roses from Button Rose to Very Big Rose. A "Green Rose" plant is grown along with beautiful rose plants. Saplings of various plants are available at reasonable price. The entrance ticket will be Rs. 2/- for adult and Rs 10 /- for Camera.

Silk Farm & Rose Garden: One can see the cultivation of Mulberries, the growing of silk worms and the method of spinning silk. The Rose Garden – one can see a good collection of colourful Roses and also purchase nursery plants from here 2 km from town.
Kottachedu Teak Forest: The hills tribes who cultivated these lands are said to have abandoned this area after plague struck the area. These lands were than utilized by the Government for a Teak Wood plantation. Vaniar River passes through this Teak forest and leads to the Vaniar Dam. Bisons are frequently seen in the Teak Forest. 11 km from town.

How we prepare for a trip

What with us visiting so many places (averaging one every month), we have developed a sort of mental checklist of things we do before we set off for our travels. Our preparation for a new place goes thorugh many phases:

1. Introduction: Since we are living in a part of the country that we are not familiar with, we usually hear about a place from a multitude of sources -
(a) Friends/Relatives
(b) Travel blogs (especially the rediff travel blogs)
(c) Outlook 52 Weekends from Bangalore
(d) HolidayIQ
Once we finalise on a place, or maybe even keep a couple of places as options, we move to phase two.

2. Research: Kudos to Anshu for that! Extensive research goes into making a great trip. Things like where to stay, what to do there, how to get there, etc. is all done well in advance. Sometimes, an excel sheet is also made :) Apart from the usual research on the place itself, we also pay attention to these pointers -
(a) what is the best route to take. For that, we sometimes refer to Ok Tata Bye Bye.
(b) what we can see along the way. One can refer to Wikipedia or any of the tourist websites or travellogs.
(c) places to eat and catch a break en-route. This can sometimes be tough, but there is always information available on the net.
(d) whats the weather like at our destination. We certainly don't want to be stuck indoors, if theres lots to see and do. For weather, we check weather.com, and other travel sites.
Once again our sources for this research are mainly travel blogs and HolidayIQ. After we have finalised on which hotel/resort to stay in, we move to phase three.

3. Plan freeze: Once we know where we're going, we book our stay and then eagerly count down the days! Since, during our planning, we keep more than one option open, if a place is over-booked, we can always fall back on another option.

4. Preparation: This is my favourite part! Apart from the usual travel stuff, we never leave home without -
(a) Digital camera
(b) Video camera
(c) Charging cable for the video camera
(d) Cell chargers for the the digital camera
(e) Ipod - to hook into the car stereo for places where there is no FM reception.
(f) Jackets
(g) First aid kit - mainly some odomos (mosquito repellent), avil (for allergies), disprin (for headaches)
(h) Snacks
(i) A 5 litre cannister of drinking water
(j) Google Maps/MapMyIndia/Yahoo Maps printouts!

5. Car servicing: For any long drive, it is important that the car be in tip-top condition. If required, we give the car for servicing one week in advance. We fill up the petrol tank, get the tyre pressure checked, and check the coolant and wiper fluid. Once everything is upto the mark, its onto phase six.

6. LIFT OFF!

Genting and Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia

It's been more than a year since we went on that truly memorable trip to Malaysia and Singapore. We had very few days before we both started work and so the trip was shorter than what we would have loved (isn't that always the case?). The iternary was clear and planned out well. We were to fly to KLIA (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) and from there be taken to Genting Highlands. After a couple of days there, we were to spend a day in Kuala Lumpur and then travel by train to Singapore (a unique experience in itself). We were to head home after two days in Singapore.

It was my first international trip, and I was totally pumped up for it. Pallavi on the other hand had travelled to Germany for her M.S. and so was the more sedate of the two. We reached the Indira Gandhi International Airport at Delhi a couple of hours in advance, and began the long check-in process. Pallavi knew her way around the airport, and so I was not as tense as I tend to be when I fly! We checked in and browsed the few shops around just to spend some time. Soon it was time to board and I was very excited about travelling on an international flight. I was a little apprehensive, because I had never been in a flight that took more than 2 hours.

After takeoff we decided to catch up on our sleep, so that we could spend more waking hours in our destinations. It was the wee hours of the next morning that we landed in Bangkok. Since I was on my first international trip, I forced myself to wake up and see where we were. The same plane was to fly onto Kuala Lumpur, so we were not allowed off the aircraft. Sitting in the cramped seats can get quite tiring, but we were soon asleep again! We next woke up when the flight began its descent into the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

We were on the ground again, and we were glad for that. Interestingly, we were transported in a airport metro from the landing area to the baggage claim! The airport was huge and so very impressive. Now thats how an international airport should be like! After our baggage claim, we headed towards the exit, where we came across an interesting person shouting out "Bhuchar" and some other names. I walked up to him and introduced myself and it turned out that he was the guide who would take us to Genting. He thrust an itenary and some other touristy documents into my hands and continued shouting out names of the other tourists.

After getting all the required families into his Mercedes van, we set off for the drive to Genting. En route, we stopped at a couple of duty free shops (We have realised that if we go on a package tour, we are bound to get stuck with this!) and at the Batu Caves. There are 272 steps to climb to actually get into the cave and it is quite a towering sight.

We were already quite tired from our long flight (I say it was long because we were travelling against the sun!) and did not quite have the energy to climb the steps. We performed our ritual of taking some pics and then got ready to move to Genting. Now adrenaline was flowing through us. We had read a lot about Genting on the net and were really excited about going there.

Now the first thing one notices about Malaysia is the infrastructure. The roads are majestic, and there is greenery on both sides of the roads. Their road network is very well developed. However, what is slightly surprising is that the roads which befit a Mercedes or a BMW or a Audi are filled with the idegenously produced Proton cars.

Straight away the guide took us to Gohtong Jaya from where the world's fastest and South-East Asia longest cable car took us to Genting Highlands. This cable car is called Genting Skyway. The drive up was fantastic. Never before had we seen such wide mountain roads. It would have been a pleasure to drive on those roads.

View Larger Map

The guide sent us on the cable car and told us that he would meet us outside the Highlands Hotel. It was a majestic ride through some hills and straight onto the market foyer of the Highlands Hotel. Below the cable cars, one can see some fake animals put there to give the tourists the impression of travelling above the jungle.

As we approached the end, we saw the Highlands Hotel looming up through the clouds. We actually passed the clouds in our cable car and entered the hotel.

On meeting the guide, he drove us to our hotel, The Theme Park Hotel.

Now, our guide was quite a hilarious one, even though he did not intend to be! Some of his statements were just so funny, that we nearly laughed in his face many times. One of the most memorable moments of the entire trip was his famous statement. He pointed at The First World Hotel and said "This is the world's second largest hotel. It has 6118 what Bhuchaaaaar?????" The answer: Rooms! What I said was BEDS! :) The guide found that pretty amusing, because its not really a hospital!!!

We settled into the hotel well, around lunch time and decided to check out the place. We had heard that there was an Indoor Theme Park, an Outdoor Theme Park and a Casino. On day one, we decided to roam a little in the Indoor Theme Park and enjoy a bit. We went on the following rides:
- Venice Gondola - A slow moving gondola, travelling near the roof of the indoor theme park. It gives an amazing view of the entire theme park from above.
- Euro Express - A fast moving open-top-mini-train ride that zips through the main attractions of the indoor theme park at the height of one-storey.

- Adult Bumper Cars - This wasn't much different from what we had already experienced in India.
- 4D Motion Master - A small 4D theater. One needs to wait in line for entry, because the theatre is pretty small. We were given special glasses to wear at the entrance. They showed us a short nature movie, in which we could see, hear, feel and smell.
- Archery - Real live archery! It was not as easy as I expected.

We ate some amazing Chicken Satay at one of the many restaurants there and after roaming around a little more, we headed back to our room.

After a short rest, we went out again. After eating dinner (again it was delicious), we went for a walk around the other hotels. There is a connecting walkway above the streets, that connects all the hotels and leads tourists to all the important points in Genting. We did a little bit of exploration, but the walk was quite long. We walked as much as we could and then went back to hit the sack.

The next day we woke up early, and looked out of the windows of our hotel to see the most majestic sight. We were actually above the clouds!

For the next day, we had entry passes into the Outdoor Theme Park. Unfornately, it was raining in the morning and so most of the rides were closed. We waited till the rain subsided and the rides opened up and we went in with child-like enthusiasm. The outdoor theme park was a lot of fun. We experienced the following rides:
- Monorail - A slow ride that takes one around the entire outdoor theme park at an elevated level. Once again the view is fabulous.
- Antique Car - Since I love antique cars, this was not a ride we were going to miss! We got to drive a really really old car around the outdoor theme park, this time at ground level, so the view is different. Of course the cars would not go very fast.
- Grand Prix Fun Kart - That is exactly what it is, fun kart! The karts are painfully slow for a person like me. The track was nice and long though.

After another fun day, a lot of photo taking and a lot of walking, we decided to go eat dinner at Burger King and have some late night coffee at Starbucks. We roamed around some more in the Indoor Theme Park and later when we felt we had seen enough, we decided to call it a night. That was the end of the Genting leg of the trip.

Early next morning we checked out and were driven down to Kuala Lumpur. It was a tearful bye that we said to Genting because we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves there. The drive down to Kuala Lumpur was again very comfortable and scenic. We were driven straight to our hotel, The Mapel Suite. After settling in and having had a relaxing lunch, we were taken on a half day city tour of KL which included some duty free shops, a distant view of the Petronas Twin Towers, and some more duty free shops.

We were also taken to see the Palace from outside, which is quite a tourist attraction because the guards don't even smile all day!

We also went to see the National Monument, which is a structure that commemerates all those who lost their life in the freedom struggle of Malaysia.

After that we also saw a museum where we picked up some knick-knacks for our families. Our last stop was the Independence Square in Kuala Lumpur where we saw the World's tallest flag pole!

On the way back to our hotel, we were taken for some more duty free shopping, this time to a chocolate shop and a leather shop. The chocolate shop was interesting because we saw chocolates made out of patato chips, green chillies, and many many more things! After another tiring, but exciting day, we were driven back to our hotel where we ate and slept early as we had an early train to catch to Singapore.

Singapore

We were up early to catch the train to Singapore. We had heard a bit about the ride, that it was a very scenic one. The KL central station was large but was bustling with activity early in the morning. We found our platform, got onto the train and found our seats. Very soon the train was off, leaving at about 7:00am. The train journey to Singapore was a 7 hour journey through a lot of vegetation and coconut groves. It was indeed a scenic ride from the capital of Malaysia on to Singapore.

At one station, we were to get down, go through customs, get our visas checked, and re-board the train for the final leg to Singapore. It was a very enjoyable and comfortable ride from one country to another. The seats of the train were very comfortable and large.

The Singapore railway station is very antique. We had to hunt around a lot for our guide here, but having found him, were led away to our hotel. Our hotel, The Grand Central was very well located. It was walking distance from Orchard Road, the retail and entertainment hub of Singapore and was also very close to the Singapore metro station Dhobi Ghaut. By the time we had checked-in, it was already late afternoon. We decided to relax a bit before we plan what to do in the evening. We already had a half day city tour of Singapore planned for the next day.

In the late evening, we decided to roam around the Orchard Street and look around for fun things to do. We walked around looking at the shops, looking for a decent place to eat (the Hotel seemed too expensive). In a small lane, we came across a long line of international eateries. There were Indian, Mexican, Oriental, and many more. After a lot of thought and moving from one joint to another, we decided to try the Mexican fare. It was quite delicious and spicy. There was a particular salad made of onions, tomatoes and some spice which was quite delicious. After enjoying a hearty meal, we headed back to the hotel.

For the next day, we had a half-day city tour lined up. We got on the tour bus which would take us around the city-state. We only hoped that we would not be visiting too many duty free shops again! The tour operator had different tours line up for the tourists, there was the half-day city tour, then the full day tour including Sentosa and some other tours. We were on the hal-day city tour which did not include Sentosa. However, we were very intrigued by the thought of visiting Sentosa Island and having a look at the famous underwater world. Anyway, we got onto the bus and the tour began.

As we started out, we were shown the Raffel's Hotel from the bus. The guide explained its significance to us. Our first stop was a visit to the Esplanade, where we were introduced to the Merlion and were also shown the Singapore Theatre.

After a short 10 minute session, we were again on the bus travelling around Singapore. We were taken to the Financial hub of Singapore where all the banks and other financial institutions had built their towering skyscrapers. We travelled through quaint China Town and headed upto Mount Faber to get a great view of Sentosa Island. Actually at the top of the Mount Faber, there are arrows on the ground to indicate in which direction the various neighbouring countries are.

After that began the torture for what we were not ready. We were taken away for duty shopping, first there was jewellery and then there was another shop with jewellery and watches and other accessories. We were quite sick of that and decided to explore Singapore entirely on our own! So we took out our trusty notebook and asked the guide for all the information on how to get to Sentosa Island and what is a good place to eat dinner and roam around in the evening. Anyway, the next stop was to a Tiger Beer factory for a free tour of the place and also some free beer! The tiger beer factory we went to was right next to the Vivo City Mall, which is one of the largest malls in Singapore and provides very easy access to Sentosa Island (via monorail and cable cars).

The tiger beer factory folks welcomed us in warmly and showed us around the place. There was also a short movie shown to us. Imagine a room designed in the shape of a hexagon and some scenes were shown on one wall, and some on another. So we kept moving around, trying to see the entire movie. Quite an experience. the movie was about how Tiger Beer came about and how it grew. There were also some interesting facts about the growth of beer as a drink. After the movie, we were led to a bar, where we were explained the nuances of pouring beer for oneself.

The person who was guiding us asked everyone "What time is it?" Some people actually looked at their watches, but we answered "It's tiger time"!! And that was the right answer :) Interestingly, the glasses are stored at a temperature of -4 degrees celcius. Also the tap from which the beer is poured is also maintained at a similar temperature. We were taught how to hold the glass while pouring beer, because you don't want your body heat to be transfered to the beer and heat it up from it's chilled state! After going through the entire demo, someone was to volunteer to "go behind the bar" and pour himself a beer. There were no takers! So I volunteered to go pour myself a chilled beer.

I held the glass as was instructed, tilted it at 45 degree to the horizontal so that minimum froth is formed and started to pour. As the beer fills into the glass, the angle of the glass is increased, till 90 degrees to the horizontal. I did it pretty well, but did manage to waste some beer. After this exhilarating experience, it was time to drink the mug of beer which I had poured for myself. The beer was amazing. It was perfectly chilled and had such amazing texture. It was the smoothest, most chilled and yet not frozen, and the best beer I had ever had. Pouring it for myself added a lot to the entire experience.

Finally it was near lunch time and time to move on. We left the tour bus, because there were some more duty free stops on the way, and entered Vivo City Mall. First, we walked around in the Mall. There was a bit of rush, and it seemed like any large mall we had seen in India. There were some beautiful, shiny cars lined up on the ground floor.

Since it was near lunch time, we headed to the top floor to the food court so that we can have something unique to Singapore. Believe us when we say that being non-vegitarian was an advantage because there were so many options to choose from.

Once lunch was done, we picked up some brochures of Singapore and Sentosa and were ready to head out to Sentosa Island. The only reason we were going to Sentosa was to visit the Underwater World. To get to Sentosa, we chose the monorail over the cable car, because there seemed to be too long a line at the Cable Cars. The monorail was a very comfortable and short ride from inside the Vivo City Mall, passing over the Singapore Port (currently the world's busiest port in terms of total shipping tonnage) and finally entering Sentosa Island.

We got off at the last stop and set foot on Sentosa land. There are multiple transportation options within Sentosa, but we chose the Tram because it look more interesting. As we passed along the beach, we saw some international beach volleyball competition in progress.

We got off at the last stop, and walked over to the Underwater World entrance. The ticket is slightly expensive, but it is a great place to go. There are a variety of fish, turtles, crabs, etc. that one gets to see. One of the most interesting sights was the sword fish, which actually looked like it was smiling.

After looking at and admiring a huge variety of fish, we decided to head back towards our hotel because it looked like it was about to rain.

We quickly caught the tram back to the Sentosa Monorail station and boarded a monorail back to the Vivo City Mall. The monorail station is on the top floor of the Mall and in the basement is the MRT station! We went down to the MRT station and boarded a metro towards Clarke Quay.

Clarke Quay is basically a quay with a lot of eateries along the water. At night time, this place is very colourful and lively. After a lot of walking around and a lot of indecision on which place to eat in, we settled for some good old Italian Pizza! We took a table right next to the water and enjoyed the sight as we eat our Pizza. We walked back to the MRT station and got a metro back to our hotel. This was our last day in Singapore, and we had utilised it to the maximum.

The next morning a cab took us really fast to the Changi Aiport. The Airport is quite majestic. It is huge, to say the least and boarding for our plane was to happen from Gate 42! We had a little time to spare, so we spent some time in the viewing bay watching planes land and take off. By the time we were to take board, we were both quite sad that our amazing holiday was over. We silently boarded, both absorbed in our thoughts, recollecting our experiences from the past 5 days.

Innovative Film City, Bidadi - Wholesome Family Entertainment

My parents were in town and they were to leave on Sunday. So we planned for a nice one-day outing from Bangalore for Saturday. We asked around and had zeroed in on the Innovative Film City at Bidadi, just outside of Bangalore. The thing that was making us consider our decision was the fact that it was not complete, and open only for a trial run. For a change, we did not make elaborate plans to leave at 7:00am because the Innovative Film City is just 42.5 Kms from home! So we woke leasurely and left home at 9:00am. The traffic was dense in spite of it being a Saturday. We took the Mysore Road route, headed to Kengeri satellite town and were in Bidadi by about 10:45am.

View Larger Map

The complex was open and there were only a few cars parked outside. The flow of people was just a trickle. The entry looks very impressive. Mind you, there is still some amount of construction going on and things are not complete. However, it provides wholesome fun for the entire family. The entry ticked is INR 50 per head and to take a camera inside one must shell out another INR 100. At the entry desk, you are handed a detailed map which also marks out the major fun points, that is, Dinosaur Land, Fossil Museum, Haunted House, Mirror Maze, Ripley's Believe it or Not, Cartoon City, Aqua Kingdom, Go Karting, Mini Golf, Miniature City, Fun Plex and Louis Tussaud's Wax Museum. Some of these are still being completed, but some are open and fully functional.

The entire place was so huge that we got tired walking and could only see a few of the things. We walked in through High Street, which when completed will be the main market place. One can visualise the sellers selling their wares in the crowded market place. As you walk on, you come to a sign board that directs you to the various entertainment points in the Film City. We will describe to you the points that we visited.

Haunted Mansion:
We wanted to visit this. However, it was still under construction. We could visualise how it would look once completed. It looked really interesting.

Ripley's Believe it or Not:
This was the most talked about and was suppossed to be really good and entertaining. We decided to go here first because the crowd was still thin and we could spend some good quality time in there. We actually ended up spending one hour inside this maze of unbelievable things. At the entry, the walls are lined with some of the amazing facts from the World of Ripleys. Each one is worth a read. As you walk along, you hear a voice saying something, but you cant quite point out what it is. You are so engrossed in the facts written on the walls. The most interesting sight here is the magic tap. It is suspended in mid air with nothing to hold it up. Below it (about a foot and a half below) is a cask that is being filled up by water from this tap! See it to believe it.

Now you walk on and come to know the source of the voice you heard. Inside a room, you see Robert Ripley welcome you into his world. This is a must see. You walk on through this maze of amazing and sometimes repulsive facts. The world's tallest man, the world's fattest man, longest moustaches, 12 cigars smoked at the same time are just some of the amazing things you come across. Room upon room of fascinating facts welcomes you as you walk along this maze. There is even a small theatre which shows non-stop shows of Ripley's believe it or not. You exit from this building partly educated and excited and partly tired.

Louis Tussaud's Wax Museum:
Right next to Ripley's believe it or not is the Wax Museum of Louis Tussaud. He is the great-grandson of Marie Tussaud (of the fame of Maddam Tussaud's). The wax museum is not the best in the world. It was average, with some of the celebrities not looking like themselves! There were even some wax statues of cartoon characters like Hansel and Gretel, Beauty and the Beast, etc. Only the Dalai Lama and Mahatma Gandhi looked like themselves. We passed through here, taking the cursory pictures. In fact, the wax statues look more realistic in the photographs than in person.

The Food Court:
Very often we are told not to judge a book by its cover. On this occasion however, we suggest that you do. The food in the food court IS as bad as it looks! There are many options, from Rajasthani to Madrasi to Chinese, but nothing looked or tasted any good. The good news is that many more eateries are coming up, one we saw was McDonalds. It is better to get your own packed lunch and eat it here.

Ripley's Mirror Maze:
Next stop was the Mirror Maze. Actually its very small, but the mirrors are placed in such a manner that it is difficult to make out where you are headed! At the entrance we had to wear plastic gloves so that we do not leave our fingerprints on the mirror. That way, another person coming through would know that there is a mirror there. We had a lot of fun trying to find our way through the maze, so much so that even after we found the exit, we decided to go back in to explore some more! There were a couple of people (or maybe just one person!) inside the maze cleaning the mirrors. That definitely added to the confusion.

Dinosaur World:
Our next stop was the Dinosaur World and the Fossil Museum. Now on the surface of it they might seem the same, but they are not. The Dinosaur World is a theme park with Dinosaur models, some large, some small. The Fossil Museum contains replicas of the actual fossils of Dinosaurs. Once in the Dinosaur world, you are led to a small theatre in which a movie is shown. We were least interested in that, and so exited ASAP! We walked through the Dinosaur World, enjoying the sights and sounds. All the dinosaurs were making their characteristic noises (or so we think) and some were even moving their heads a little. This was a good fun place to see. We spent about 10-15 minutes inside, clicking a lot of photos. The greenery here was real, and that added a lot to the atmosphere.

Fossil Museum:
The second of the Dinosaur series, it was not as interesting. It is a large hall that contains replicas of real fossils of Dinosaurs. There are even a couple of PS2 games that one can play in here. In the center of the hall is a huge replica of the bones of a Dinosaur put together, similar to the one in Jurassic Park.

Velocity - Go Karting:
It is a very short track with about 4 bends. However, what is interesting is that there is a choice of two types of karts. There is the family kart that seats 2 people and then there is the racing kart which seats one. The family karts are much slower and the racing karts are much faster. However, at one time only one type of kart is on the track. We decided to try out the family karts. So there were 4 family karts on the track, we started last. We managed to overtake all other karts and infact even lapped a couple of them! It was a total of 6 short laps, but thoroughly enjoying.

Funplex:
The Funplex is a building which houses the 4D cinema hall and also a lot of interesting video games. There was even a football simulation, which sadly was under maintenance while we were there. We were anyway quite tired and wanted to see the 4D movie before we left. There is a 4D movie every half an hour. The 4D movie was very entertaining and was much better than we have ever seen (we have seen one in Genting Highlands, Malaysia). The movie shown is an Ode to Mankind, and is about evolution. It is very interesting and "interactive". Basically 4D not only shows the objects in 3D, but also includes a dimension of feeling, where the viewer gets to feel the sights and sounds of what is being displayed on screen. For ex: if a lion roars at you, you feel it's breath on your face!

After doing so much we were very tired. We stopped at the Cafe Coffee Day to freshen up a bit and get ready for the drive back. It was only 42.5 kms, but the Bangalore traffic made it a 1hour 30 minute drive back. It was a real fun day. We will surely go back there soon and see the attractions that we missed out on. We hope it is completed soon, because it will be a great destination for families.

All-in-all it was a really enjoyable day. All the entertainment centers were very well done. They were all realistic and aesthetically arranged (for ex: The marine section of Ripley's believe it or not was arranged in a dark blue room, with a shark model). It's a must-visit.