Little Blue Birdie's Diary:

An evening at Brindavan Gardens

Dear Diary,

After the accident at Mysore Palace, I haven't been feeling well. I had a small bump on my head, and my bill (my projecting jaws) was also aching. Mama Bird applied some cream on it.

We are still at Mysore city. In the early morning, Papa Bird and Robin went sightseeing around the city. At lunch, Papa Bird asked me, "My Little Blue Birdie, there's a nice place to visit, shall we go?" I was feeling tired and I didn't want to fly a long distance. So, I said "No". Then, Papa Bird started describing this place to me. Mama Bird and Robin also joined in, saying, "There are dancing fountains, beautifully maintained lawns and flower beds". Listening to their description, I felt the pain disappearing.

At last, in the evening, we were on our way to this heavenly place. It was the Brindavan Gardens. It was just 15km from the Mysore city, and so was only a short flight.

The garden was situated by the side of a dam. According to Robin, this was the first irrigation dam built in India. It was constructed in 1924, by Sir M. Vishweswariah, the engineer who designed and built the dam. He was also responsible for turning the dam site into a wonderful garden. This dam is known as Krishnaraja Sagar Dam.

You may remember reading about the Wodeyer Maharaja family, who resided at Mysore Palace. Krishnaraja Wodeyer, who was the Maharaja of Mysore at the time, had financed this project.

Earlier, I had thought that the Brindavan Gardens held the only magic in this place, but this dam was an equally amazing work of civil engineering. The dam had been the first in the world to use automatic sluice gates (sliding devices for controlling the flow of water). The dam had been constructed to get water from the River Cauvery (Kaveri) for agricultural purposes.

Brindavan Gardens, as I mentioned earlier, is another wonderful piece of art, built beside the dam. The highlight of the garden were the fountains. Papa Bird and Robin had failed to properly describe this eye-catching scene to me, earlier, at lunch.

They themselves were astonished, when around 7.00pm, the fountains started not only to jump and dance to the tune of music, but were also shining because of the different coloured lights. The variety of flower-beds also glowed in the light, all leading to a scene of breathtaking beauty.

I saw Mama Bird sitting on a garden bench, and staring at the garden as if she couldn't take her eyes off. I'm sure she must have been planning how to change our home garden, based on this lovely sight. She loves gardening and is sure to be missing it a lot.

The Brindavan Gardens had been the location for many Indian and foreign movies. During the 60s, it had been the prime location for shooting all song and dance scenes of Indian films. According to the old crow who had been living here for a long time, this had been one of the favourite sites of film directors, but today, shooting films here is strictly prohibited.

The garden is one of the most popular picnic sites in the area. It was crowded even during our visit. People choose this place as the ideal site to spend the day. Of course, they never miss the sight of the colourfully illuminated fountains.

Robin said the best season to visit the garden is June and July. When the monsoon rains start, the water from the River Cauvery gushes through the sluice gates, which automatically open after the water reaches the maximum height of 124 feet. The beauty of the garden and the dam can be enjoyed all through the year.

I also met a friend at the Brindavan Gardens. Her name was 'Suzeme', which she said, means 'Tree Sparrow' in Japanese. She was from Japan and had also come to visit the garden with her parents. She described her motherland to me and invited me and my family to come and visit her country.

So, in two weeks, we'll be joining Suzeme to visit the Tokyo Tower and other wonderful places in Japan. See you soon in the Land of the Sakura blossoms.