Leaving Bangalore

Pressing the nuts to expel the oil for biofuels

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We woke up by 5am so we could leave the hotel by 6am. We drove to Hassan and saw some small villages and rural areas along the way. The land is pretty dry with red soil and big rocks. Most of the population is farmers, with only a few other jobs in rural areas such as shopkeeper or teacher. We stopped at a biofuels center that provides farmers with seeds. The farmers plant the seeds on waste lands and then harvest the nuts. The nuts go into an expeller machine to extract the oil. It seems like a good idea if they are not using agricultural lands to grow the biofuel crops.

We also traveled to Belur and Halebid to see the famous temples there. They were both very large and had lots of people. They seemed to be more catered to tourists than the local temples in Bangalore. Many people were yelling at us and trying to sell us things. It was a bit overwhelming.

Hoysaleswara Temple in Halebid

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Chennakeshava Temple in Belur

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