Wild flowers, leaves and history at Nandi Hills

October 1, 2007

Apart from the birds that we try to spot, Nandi Hills is such a beautiful spot for seeing majestic trees that have grown untrammelled, and a variety of wild flowers, plus many historic spots.

Because of the rain, the tree trunks are full of moss and lichen, and this picture of a millipede amongst the moss appealed to me:

So, too, did this picture of this leaf with the raindrops on it:

There was this wild balsam plant:

And there was the morning glory:

There were several lime trees with their characteristic white flowers:

And then there were these flowers which I can't identify:

Then there was this fruit tree which looked rather similar to the custard-apple tree:

And, of course, history walks hand-in-hand with Nature at Nandi Hills. Tippu Sultan (click on this for the Wiki entry) has been a historic name associated with this area from the 18th century. Here's the lodge that Tipu "used occasionally as a summer residence"

The beauty of the lodge is set off by the depressing blandness of the modern building behind it! Here's the board giving information:

And the plaque on the building itself:

And here's KM clicking us from the arch of the building:

This old building is in the area where the nursery is now; you can see the rows of pots behind the building:

old building in the nursery area nandi hills 300907

And here's another view of an old pavilion, which will give you an idea of how verdant the place looks:

Even the water-tank, built much later, has its own sense of history. Here are the water-lilies blooming in the tank:

Here's another angle:

another view of the water tank nandi hills

And the plaque about its construction:

That's nore than 70 years old!

With History,Geography,Botany, Zoology,Ornithology, all going hand in hand to produce so much beauty, is it any wonder that Nandi Hills should be one of the prime attractions of a visitor to Bangalore? I enjoy the place on many different levels when I visit!