Warangal The Kakatiya Capital: 14th March 2011

Thousand Pillar Temple

We had planned to start for Warangal early at 6 am. The excitement of the tour helped me wake up really early however this is India and after several follow ups the car arrived only at 9 am. We were now on the move to Warangal our destination.

On the way we stopped for brunch to taste the MLA pesarattu. It is a complete meal of moong dal dosa with upma stuffed in it and sprinkled with onion and tomato shreds. The accompaniments of Potato Masala bhaaji, chutney and sambhar. Yummy with an excess of ghee. One MLA pesarattu stuffs you until dinner time.

We reached Warangal city at 11.30am and decided to see the 1000 pillar temple first. This is a small temple in the heart of the city. The pillars are carved from black granite.

The locals suggested I visit Ramappa temple which was about 75 kms from the city center but before that we decided to go to the Bhadrakali temple instead. It turned out that going there in the afternoon was a wrong decision. The temple was closed but since this is a huge complex we enjoyed the surroundings. The location of this Bhadrakali temple is simply awesome and it made up for not being able to get darshan of the Devi. The lake is such a scenic backdrop. We almost hopped around on the hot paved floor of the complex finally resting ourselves under some shade to take in the views of the lake and the boulders around. Perched on the hillock were Shankar and Parvati idols that overlooked the visitors.

From here we proceeded to the Ramappa temple. This temple dates back to 1213. If you are in Warangal you can't miss the Ramappa temple. It gets its name from its builder. The exquisitely carved temple was under restoration when we visited. Each pillar, ceiling and the brackets supporting the roof are intricate and ornate.

Before we were on our way to Bhadhrachalam for the night halt we just had to visit the Warangal fort which gives the city its identity. Warangal fort is home to the Kirti Torana or the Gates of Victory famously constructed by the Kakatiya rulers. They stand proud over the time even today in the four directions of the ruined fort. The other ruins too are interesting, like the huge stone throne fascinated me. The temple and the platform in front of it too has amazing details but everything there indicated that the race there was really short.

Enjoy the more of the beautiful Warangal captured in my camera...