Evening at Varkala Papanasam Beach

Varkala Papanasam beach is one of the important tourist places in Kerala. In addition to a tourist spot, this beach is a famous pilgrim center. 

In tourism season you can see many international travelers at this beach.

 
The presence of a top view of the beach from the cliff differentiates Varkala Papanasam beach from most other beaches in Kerala.

You can see the photos we took at Varkala beach below.

Vavubali at Papanasam beach

In Malayalam month Karkkidakam, thousands of pilgrims will come to Papanasam for the Vavu Bali function. Vavu Bali is an important Hindu custom for their departed relatives and ancestors. Varkala beach got its name Papanasam (means destroy sin) from this custom.



Another major attraction at Papanasam is Janardhana Swamy Temple. To read more about this temple, click on the link below.
Janardana Swamy Temple Varkala


How to Reach Papanasam beach

Papanasam beach is situated at Varkala. If you are coming by train, you should stop at Varkala station, and the beach is about 6 km from there.

Where to Stay at Papanasam

There are many "tourist homes" available on Varkala beach. However, if you plan to come here in peak season, better book rooms in advance.



Best time to visit

The best time to visit Papanasam beach is between September to May. However, there is a chance of rain in the months of September, October, and even November. So plan your visit according to the weather.

Janardana Swamy Temple Varkala -Dakshin Kashi

Janardana Swamy Temple is situated in Varkala, also called Dakshin Kashi. According to traditions, this temple is 2000 years old. The main deity of this temple is Lord Vishnu.

Lord Vishnu is called Janardana Swamy, and this temple is a famous Hindu pilgrim center.

Janardana Swamy Temple situates on the way to the famous tourist spot Papanasam beach. You can see the Janardhana Swami Temple Pond in this photo.


Origin of Janardana Swamy Temple Varkala

According to traditions, this temple is built by Devas (gods) to recover from the curse by Lord Brahma for abusing him. 

According to this story, Narada (son of Lord Brahma) once visited his father, who was invisibly followed by lord Vishnu. 

By understanding the presence of Lord Vishnu, Brahma deva bowed in front of him.

1. Alleppey- Venice of The East
2. Golden Valley Tourist Spot
3. Kollam Beach
4. Vazhvanthol Waterfalls At Kanithadam

However, Lord Vishnu was invisible to Devas present there, and they thought lord Brahma was bowing to his own son. They laughed by seeing it.

This incident made lord Brahma furious, and he cursed Devas. Repenting Devas asked to pardon, and according to the advice of Narada, they built a temple for Lord Vishnu at Varkala.

How to Reach Janardana Swamy Temple

Janardana Swamy Temple situates 25 km from Trivandrum City. To reach the temple, you should stop at Kallambalam, and the temple is 3 km away from there.

1. Thirparappu Waterfalls Kanyakumari
2. Bekal Fort Kasargod
3. Kumarakom Backwater
4. Photos of Trivandrum Museum

Golden Valley Tourist Spot near Trivandrum

This time we had a trip to Golden Valley tourist spot. As its name mentions, it is a good picnic spot for families and small teams.

Golden Valley tourist spot is situated on the way to Ponmudi from Trivandrum city. When we reached the location, one danger board welcomed us. 

As in the warning board, the rocks are a little bit slippery. Right now, the river has not much water, so the rocks are dry.

Five persons were on the team, me, Vino, Jaison Joseph, Jibin P, and his brother Jithin. At first, we planned to visit one waterfall at Vazhvanthol, but the forest department closed the entry for a short period. So we decided to come to Golden Valley.

Some of the pictures we took at Golden Valley are:

When we reached the golden valley, it was evening time, and most of the visitors were about to leave.

The major attraction of this place is the small river and the surrounding forest.

Of course, you cannot miss the beautiful rocks.

We made an attempt to travel through the jungle, but it was too late, so we canceled the program.

It is the summer season in Kerala, so there is not much water in the river. In Monsoon season, you can see full of water in this river.

1. Thirparappu Waterfalls Kanyakumari
2. Bekal Fort Kasargod
3. Kumarakom Backwater
4. Photos of Trivandrum Museum

We plan to come back to this location in June (monsoon season in Kerala).

In addition to a tourist spot, you can see this place as an ideal location to take a rest during your journey to Ponmudi.

1. Janardana Swamy Temple
2. Manimala River
3. Alleppey- Venice of The East
4. Varkala Papanasam Beach

Pradeep's Marriage at Palakkad

After celebrating Christmas, the next journey was to Palakkad to join Pradeep's marriage function.

Pradeep's marriage was at Palakkad on 28th December. The proper location was Mangalamkunnu, around 30 kilometers from Palakkad town.

I reached Palakkad at 3 pm after a few hours of journey from my home on the 27th.

 Jineesh and Pradeep came to pick me from the bus stop. Then we moved to the tourist home where our stay was arranged.

Some of the photos we took are:



There is a paddy field opposite Pradeep's house.






We spent our time as a group on the paddy field. Soon Ranjan, Kurian, Madhu, Sumesh, and Jineesh joined our group. 

By early morning, Madhu also reached our tourist home. 

 When we came back to Pradeep's home, we met Sumesh, Kurian, Ranjan, etc.

Pradeep's marriage was at this temple.

We took some photos from the temple.





At night we started our journey back.

1. Thirparappu Waterfalls Kanyakumari
2. Bekal Fort Kasargod
3. Kumarakom Backwater
4. Photos of Trivandrum Museum
5. Alleppey- Venice of The East