To me Guruvayur temple and town is a childhood memory like for most malayalees I think .
Around five to seven years is the youngest I can think of I remember staying there for more than a week .
My dad was insistent on that .
Those days it was literally empty just a famous temple mostly known to people from Malabar .
My grandfather hailed from Maankaavu kovilakam of Samoodhiris and temple belonged to them originally till the Dewasom stole it and are still looting it .
My mother used to tell during my Choroonu or ceremonial rice feeding at 6 months of age my grandfather had come along and we were taken in VIP style as they still had powers then .
Of course crowds too were much less .
One could just enter temple through front door and walk into sanctum when open pray and come back .
We stayed mostly in Chatram of Dewasom once formed .
very few hotels were there then .
Chatram cottages were in the present Kowsthubam area .
The chatram restaurant I remember even had a thatched roof later tiled .
Food used to be brought into cottage swiggy style even than though mother used to cook in the small kitchen .
She carried vessels and provisions and a small stove .
By evening lamp was lit and me and my elder sister had to tell naamam or prayers just like in house .
Reaching Guruvayur too wasnt easy .
no trains were there .
One had to get down at Kuttipuram or Pattambi and take a bus to Guruvayur via chaavakaad .
Later Guruvayur was venue for so many weddings
myself my nieces and so many friends and families
With more than 100 weddings per day it at times was a comedy of errors .
Crowds had increased and one waited for 2 to 3 hours for darshan .
Finally we bought a small homely apartment to stay too .
My darshan as a local ( owning property ) takes just half hour at specified times .
I had today at 4.45 pm .
no mobiles are allowed no pants too only dhoti for men so I quickly returned took rest and around 9 pm went out to temple area
I wanted to check out a food truck famous in insta on West nada .
thats my next post .
