Exploring Odisha: The Garden of The Heaven

           Nandankanan Zoological Park is a 400-hectare (990-acre) zoo and botanical garden in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. Established in 1960, it was opened to the public in 1979 and became the first zoo in India to join World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA) in 2009. It also contains a botanical garden and part of it has been declared a sanctuary.

           Nandankanan, literally meaning "The Garden of Heavens",is located near the capital city, Bhubaneswar, in the environs of the Chandaka forest, and includes the 134-acre (54 ha) Kanjia lake. [Source: WIKI]

Exploring Odisha: A Short Trip to Cuttack

         Cuttack is the former capital and the second largest city in the eastern Indian state of Odisha. The name of the city is an anglicized form of Katak which literally means The Fort, a reference to the ancient Barabati Fort around which the city initially developed. Cuttack is also known as the "Millennium City" as well as the "Silver City" due to its history of 1000 years and famous silver filigree works. It is also considered as the judicial capital of Odisha as the Odisha High Court is located here. It is also the commercial capital of Odisha which hosts a large number of trading and business houses in and around the city. [Source: Wiki]


Barabati Fort:

Barabati Fort is a 14th-century fort built by the Ganga dynasty near Cuttack, Odisha. The ruins of the fort remain with its moat, gate, and the earthen mound of the nine-storied palace, which evokes the memories of past days. Today it sits next to the modernBarabati Stadium, the venue of various sport events and cultural programs. There is also a temple dedicated to Katak Chandi, the presiding deity of the city, not far away from the fort. [Source: Wiki]

Rasagola at Pahala:

When you come to Cuttack, you can't miss the Famous Rasagola at Pahala. In Odisha, we make Rasagolas like they were since its origin. Much unlike the Bengali counterpart, here they are very light, are not that spongy and are made to melt in mouth. They don't last more than a day.

Too hot, I burnt my tongue eating one of these.

Exploring Odisha: Caves of Udayagiri and Khandagiri

Udayagiri and Khandagiri Caves (Odia: ଉଦୟଗିରି ଓ ଖଣ୍ଡଗିରି ଗୁମ୍ଫା) are situated in Bhubaneswar, on two adjacent hills, Udayagiri and Khandagiri, mentioned as Kumari Parvat in the Hathigumpha inscription. They have a number of finely and ornately carved caves. It is believed that

Udayagiri means "Sunrise Hill" and has 18 caves while Khandagiri has 15 caves.

Most of these caves were carved out as residential blocks for Jain monks and ascetics during the reign of King Kharavela.

 [Tentuli Gumpha (cave no-4), Khandagiri]

[Khandagiri Hill as seen from Udayagiri Hill]

 [Jambeswar Gumpha (cave no-11), Udayagiri]

[Sarpa Gumpha (cave no-13), Udayagiri]

 [Tiger (Bagh Gumpha) (cave no-12), Udayagiri]

 [Rani Gumpha (cave no-1), Udayagiri: a double storeyed monastery]

 [Hathi Gumpha (cave no-14), Udayagiri]

 [Ganesha Gumpha (cave no-10), Udayagiri]

[Udayagiri Hill as seen from Khandagiri Hill]