Mudigere, Karnataka, India

A three day weekend in Bangalore in the middle of the summer seemed like a good time to head to the hills. The particular hills we chose were located in Mudigere, in the Chikkamaguluru district. We had a home stay for a day and a half so spent the extra day driving around to random spots and staying overnight in a nearby town called Kadur. Kadur, not because it is a touristic destination but because that was only place that had availability in hotels that night. The only memory anyone in the group has of those few hours is of a large Bengali family sounding and acting Bengali in the guest house corridors.

Shetihalli Church

The Shetihalli church is quite a sight from the road. You can take your car off road and drive the 200 odd metres to get right to it. Some French junta built it way back, and later someone built a dam near it which now results in the structure getting partially submerged for a part of the year. Since the Bible doesn't carry the walk on water DIY guide, the devotees had no choice but to abandon it. A more enterprising person could have put up a wire fence between the church and the reservoir, purchased tubes and floats, put up a bar outside which serves drinks in coconut shells, and made it the funnest church in the world. The business model would be called congregators.

A sharp fall from being a magnificent, shining, Gothic structure, to looking like a stale frosted donut.

A lot of people disapprove of eugenics.
Here is a double wedding shoot, playing loud Sia music, at what would otherwise be a serene spot.

Good looking, but nothing behind it. Like how one would describe Alicia Vikander if one were objectifying her.
If you're shaking your head in disapproval right now, note how I stopped short of calling it an entrance.

"Master, moving stones around is one thing. This is totally different."
"No! No different! Only different in your mind."

Being Pistorius.

Chennakaseva Temple

Belur has a famous temple from way back. There probably isn't a whole lot I can add to your information which isn't on Wikipedia already except that it's conveniently on the way so you can visit.

Donald Trump's head's colour scheme.

A guy with a donkey head, a lady with a giant ridge gourd, and another with the
reggae hat in what can only be hipster medieval Indians doing the Harlem shake.

I sometimes wonder whether these guys had planning sessions and estimated hours and all that.
They'd miss their deadlines anyway and then the client, the king, would have the project manager flogged.

Someone is not impressed by their salsaing.

Ayyana Kere Lake

There is a beautiful lake near Kadur that a lot of people don't seem to know about. The appearance on this blog isn't going to really add to that so it should still be relatively isolated if you visit it in the near future. The drive to it involves a stretch through narrow winding roads, surrounded by lush greenery. Activities include trying to, or managing to not, knock over bikers on the way, and skipping stones at the lake.

Ripe settings for a tough game of Chinese Whisper

I thought the alignment was fine when I was clicking it.
Now I try to pass off as a person who likes chaos.

You could sit back in that booth with a warm thermos of whatever you prefer and snipe people all day long.
Watch out for climbers.

Where the really rich nomads from Saudi Arabia live.

Crosshills Homestay

They feed you, and the puran poli is to kill for. You can get a dorm or a private room, play one-tip-one-hand cricket in the courtyard, or go splash around in the pool which was probably on someone else's property because you have to climb over barbed wire to get to it. They have life jackets but you need to carry your own cricket gear and a football for the pool. And maybe a lawyer. If you stay in the pool for long enough, you can get a nice inverse-lifejacket shaped sunburn to take back. A pictorial description of the same had some nudity, the sort of the thing that the internet loves, but my modesty prevents me from flashing all that skin.

Despite all the water, there weren't too many mosquitoes.
There was a mouse though.

The sort of place where you expect to see pairs of eyes
shining in the night, not co-guests drinking beer on the porch.

Apart from the life jackets, they even send along one of their chaps as a life guard.
Or he comes of his own volition, just to watch.
Don't ask, don't tell.

Devaramane Peak

Devaramane peak is an hour's drive from Cross Hills but didn't seem worth it. There's a famous temple there which was under renovation so we didn't see much, and a pond in front of the temple which wasn't producing much excitement either. I took some pictures anyway.

One of those mountain ranges around Mordor. You can see Mount Doom in the distance.

When you've recently watched Rang de Basanti but are too old to be drunk and dancing on a car.

People who talk nonsense.

Chinna Tibet

Chinna Tibet is a peak just behind Cross Hills and makes for a nice, short, hike just around dawn. One of their folk wakes up and walks you up, least interested in the view but grateful for getting signal on the peak.

Jujubee plant.

Claustrophobic person investing in real estate.

In such conditions, spider webs get overzealous and catch water droplets also.

If you're bad with colours, then this could look like a tricolour to you.

One of those situations where you can't afford to miss the left.
Like an election alliance in West Bengal from the 1990s.

If you go down in the streets today, you better open your eyes

Streams (?) of fog were getting over the hills, where the spirits fly.

PS: If you didn't get the last two caption, you need to listen to this. And baby, baby, baby, do you like it?