HOTELS IN AGRA

MYSORE PALACE
The beautiful profile of this walled Indo-Saracenic palace, the seat of the maharajas of Mysore, graces the city's skyline. Inside it's a kaleidoscope of stained glass, mirrors, gilt and gaudy colours. Some of it is undoubtedly over the top but there are also beautiful carved wooden doors mosaic floors, as well as a whole series of mediocre, though historically interesting, paintings depicting life in Mysore during the Edwardian Raj. The palace even has a selection of Hindu temples within its grounds, including the Shweta Varahaswamy temple whose gopuram (Dravidian gateway tower) influenced the style of the later Sri Chamundeswari temple on Chamundi Hill.

St. PHILOMENA'S CHURCH

In the Gothic stule, is one of the largest churches on the country and has beautiful stained-glass windows.

JAGANMOHAN PALACE
The Jayachamarajendra Art Gallery in the Jaganmohan Palace, just west of Mysore Palace, has a collection of Kitsch objects and memorabilia from the wodeyars, including weird and wonderful musical machines, rare instruments and paintings by Raja Ravi Varma. The palace was built in 1861 and served as a royal auditorium.

CHAMUNDI HILL
Overlooking Mysore from the 1062m summit of Chamundi Hill, the Sri Chamundeswari temple makes a pleasant half-day excursion. Pilgrims are supposed to climb the 1000 - plus steps to the top. The Chamundeswari temple is dominated by a towering seven storey, 40 m - high gopuram. The statue in the car park is of the demon Mahishasura, who was one of the goddess Chamundi's victims.

MYSORE ZOO
Mysore has one of India's better kept zoos. It's set in a parched but pretty garden on the eastern edge of the city centre. Among the attractions are a couple of white tigers and several Bengal tigers as well as the usual range of primates, elephants, bears, birds and rhinos. Come in the morning or evening if you want to see the tigers roaming in their enclosures rather than in the depressing cages.

RAIL MUSEUM
Mysore's rail museum boasts a maharani's saloon carriage, complete with royal toilet, dating from around 1899. It's east of the train station, just across the railway track.

FOLKLORE MUSEUM
This small museum is in the Mysore university campus, north-east of the city centre. Among the exhibits is a superb collection of carved wooden figures from Karnatakan villages, decorative masks and ceremonial head wear and a display of leather shadow puppets used to perform stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharata - similar to the wayang Kulit of Java in Indonesia. There are also wooden puppets, including one of a 10 - headed demon Ravana.

SOMNATHPUR
The Keshava Temple stands at the edge of the tranquil village of Somnathpur, 33 kms east of Mysore. It was built in 1268. The walls of this star shaped temple are covered with superb sculptures in stone depicting various scenes from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavad Gita and the life and times of the Hoysala kings. No two friezes are alike. The carved frieze, which goes around the temple has six strips, starting with elephants at the bottom, followed by horses, a floral strip, scenes, crocodiles or lions and finally geese.

SRIRANGAPATNAM
Srirangapatnam was built on a long island in the Cauvery river. Inside the fortress walls there is a mosque and the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple. One kilometre east of the fort, set in ornamental gardens is Tipu's summer palace known as the Daria Daulat Bagh. Its highly decorated interior now houses a museum with a motley collection of family memorabilia and paintings depicting Tipu's campaigns against the British.

BRINDAVAN GARDENS
These tranquil ornamental gardens are laid out below the immense Krishnaraja Sagar dam, The gardens are a popular picnic spot and huge crowds come each night to see the illuminated fountains.

BANDIPUR NATIONAL PARK
Situated eighty kilometres south of Mysore on the Mysore to Ooty road, this wildlife sanctuary covers 865 sq kms and is part of a larger national park that also includes the neighbouring wildlife sancturies of Mudumalai in Tamil Nadu and Wynad in Kerala. The sanctuary is one of 15 selected in India for Project Tiger. It is noted for herds of gaur, chital, elephants, sambar, sloth bears and langur. The best time to see wildlife is March to April, but the most comfortable time to visit is winter.

NAGARHOLE NATIONAL PARK
This 643 sq kms wildlife sanctuary is in an isolated pocket of the Kodagu region, 93 kms south-west of Mysore. Until a few years ago, it was one of the country's finest deciduous forests. There are currently 55 to 60 tigers as well as leopards and elephants, but you are more likely to see gaur, muntjac, wild dogs, bonnet macaques and common langur. The best time to view wildlife is April to May but winter is a much more pleasant time (November to February).