Trip to elephanta caves

elephanta....the shape of the island does not bear any resemplance to the gentle giants or there aint any elephant ka sculpture either...... elephanta means elephant in portugese.......there was an elephant sculpt which is now in one of the museums in the main land mumbai.........the name is after that......the ferry ride to the elephanta caves was for an hour @ rs 100 which includes the fare for the return ride as well........we started from the hostel at 1:00 and took a ferry at 2:30........once again the trip was dotted by the usual sightings of ships, yachts, katamarans etc.....

after an one hour ride u reach the ferry point of the island........i would have been happier if i had used the toy train ride th the foothills.....but we walked down to the foothill....the path is dotted with eateries, butta stalls, handicraft stalls selling chimes made of shells - shell malas etc.......the walk to the caves (which is midway on a hill) takes about half an hour.....inspite of paying toll tax at the foothills (rs 5) u have to pay rs 10 to get inside the caves.......that makes it rs 15 ..... my perception about caves was totally different before going to elephanta.... i was only disappointed when i went inside the cave...... but i had to appreciate the ppl (whoever built the cave) for their artistic work......the cave is a huge hall with stone pillars....the cavess are carvd in a huge rock.....the main cave or the cave no 1( the most beautiful cave according to the security guard) has a main room which has a shivlingam....the room has 4 doors and the doors are guarded by 8 sacred guards accompanied by their dwarf assistants.....one of the guards was leaning on his assistant.......there is also a carving of natarajar, athanarishvarar and parvathy...... most of them are destroyed.....probably by the muslim invaders............there was also a well kind of thingie with clear water.....even after a thorugh investigation i couldnt find the source of the water......its a pity that there ppl throwing coins in the water for god knows what............there were many more lingas (smaller versions) in the cave........... the other four caves do not have anything worth mentioning except for a hole through which probably a kid can enter...the hole connects the 3rd and 4 th caves.........

the hills where the caves are carved had no interesting fauna or flora.......the majority of the fauna is monkeys and dogs.......... both of them looked starved inspite of the umpteen number of eateries in the hills.......

the best part of the hills is a cannon which is fixed on top of the hill......the next best thing is the trek to the top to catch a glimpse of the cannon as well as the vast expanse of the sea and the surronding islands......there is also a port called the mora bundhar......mora means mauryas....the place has a mauryan connection too.......the view fro the top of the hill is amazing.........there is also a village on the other side of the hills........ planning to trek to the village the next time i go to the elephanta hills...........

the cannon was probably installed by the navy to attack enemy ships!!!! though dilapidated it was newly painted and was shining.........so much for the cannon..............i had to run back to catch the last ferry at 5:30..........overall it was a worthwhile experience though was disappointed....

tip for those who are gonna visit the place - carry a digi cam with extra batteries.........if i have convinced u that the caves are useless and the only worthy thing is the cannon then u dont have to pay the 10 bucks.....go directly to the cannon top without paying anything................may be the trek to the village is a gud idea....probably one can even stay there......govt bungalows.....