Get moving around 1130hrs after fueling up. Decide to go via Ahmednagar to include Shani Shingnapur in the routine.
Traffic between Talegaon and Chakan slows down progress.
Notice that the houses in the village short of Shani Shingnapur have no doors.
The temple itself is pretty different. The deity, in the open, is a solid black pillar like rock which is bathed in sweet oil offered by the worshipers.
Start for Shirdi around 1800 hrs. The stretch from Rahuri to Shirdi is patchy and potholed. Reach Shirdi by about 2000 hrs. Total distance from Navi Mumbai to Shirdi - 355 km.
Plenty of hotels along the highway.
Ask around and I am advised to visit the temple right away, rather than in the morning, as crowd tends to be higher on weekends.
In about an hour’s time, the serpentine que through the hall and up a flight of stairs suddenly puts me in front of Sai Baba.
Tired and hungry, but much satisfied with the Darshan, the MTDC restaurant – Neem, adjacent to the Mahalaxmi Temple, comes to the rescue with some great food. As compared to the other joints around, this place is quite. Decide to come here in the morning for breakfast too.
Captains Log; Star Date 0607.2014
After a quick round of the temple, primarily to get a view of the temple from outside in daylight, and a light breakfast at MTDC, get started for home at about 730 hrs.
Head to Nashik via Sinnar. The road between Shirdi and Nashik is decent. Traffic is heavy between Sinnar & Nashik. At Nashik, the super flyover from Dwarka puts me right outside town on the super slick NH 3. Total distance to Navi Mumbai - 280 km.
Traffic between Talegaon and Chakan slows down progress.
Notice that the houses in the village short of Shani Shingnapur have no doors.
The temple itself is pretty different. The deity, in the open, is a solid black pillar like rock which is bathed in sweet oil offered by the worshipers.
Start for Shirdi around 1800 hrs. The stretch from Rahuri to Shirdi is patchy and potholed. Reach Shirdi by about 2000 hrs. Total distance from Navi Mumbai to Shirdi - 355 km.
Plenty of hotels along the highway.
Ask around and I am advised to visit the temple right away, rather than in the morning, as crowd tends to be higher on weekends.
In about an hour’s time, the serpentine que through the hall and up a flight of stairs suddenly puts me in front of Sai Baba.
Tired and hungry, but much satisfied with the Darshan, the MTDC restaurant – Neem, adjacent to the Mahalaxmi Temple, comes to the rescue with some great food. As compared to the other joints around, this place is quite. Decide to come here in the morning for breakfast too.
Captains Log; Star Date 0607.2014
After a quick round of the temple, primarily to get a view of the temple from outside in daylight, and a light breakfast at MTDC, get started for home at about 730 hrs.
Head to Nashik via Sinnar. The road between Shirdi and Nashik is decent. Traffic is heavy between Sinnar & Nashik. At Nashik, the super flyover from Dwarka puts me right outside town on the super slick NH 3. Total distance to Navi Mumbai - 280 km.
