Ballia is a holy city situated in eastern most part of Uttar Pradesh and has one of its corners touching the sacred River Ganges and River Ghaghara. Once you are in this holy city and you will want to explore the city. Here we give you an ideal way to utilize your time in Ballia. You can take the help of the below itinerary which will not only tell you where to visit but will also tell what to eat in Ballia.
Surha Taal
You should start your day by visiting the famous sanctuary; Surha Taal. Always prefer to leave as early as 5.30 AM in order to witness various species of birds here. This sanctuary is about seventeen kilometres away from Ballia. Here you will many migratory birds from Siberia and other colder regions. Most of these migratory birds would be visible in the winter months. There is quite high probability that you if you visit the sanctuary early in the morning, then you will get a glimpse of maximum of the species. You would require at least an hour to enjoy at this sanctuary.
Breakfast Time in Ballia
After seeing the various species of birds and animals in the sanctuary, it is time for you to satisfy your hunger with a delicious Bhojpuri breakfast. Bhojpuri breakfast includes a variety of breads including roti and paratha. The same is served with a sabzi and curd or raita. You can also enjoy the famous Chole – Bhature, Jalebi, Kachori and Puri- Sabzi.
Local Sight-seeing in Ballia
Once you are done with viewing the bird sanctuary, you can start your city tour. In order to explore the city you can either walk down or take a hand pulled rickshaw. You can start your tour by taking the blessings of famous saint Bhrigu at Bhrigu temple. There is Bhrigu temple and Bhrigu ashram built in Ballia. This temple has its own significance and is very important for the local people of Ballia. Near this temple, you can also see the famous Dadri village; this is the place from where the famous Dadri festival begins. Each auspicious occasion in Ballia is commenced after taking the blessings of saint Bhrigu in the temple.
After visiting the Bhrigu temple, you can now move forward to visit another well known temple in Ballia called as Ballia Baleshwar temple. Here, the big ghantas or bells are form the attraction of the temple.
You can offer your prayers and seek blessings at both the temples by buying the pooja material which is sold outside the respective temples.
Lunch time in Ballia
After taking the blessings of Saint Bhrigu you can go on for your Bhojpuri Lunch. You can visit any of the Bhojpuri restaurants located in the market of Ballia where you will get authentic Bhojpuri Lunch. Bhojouri lunch is generally rice based and includes Dal as well. Various dishes like Pulav, and biryani are also served. Along with dal and rice, sabzi or korma is also served. Chutney, papad, pickle, curd, bhujjia or French fries are all accompaniments served with the meal.
Evening Sightseeing in Ballia
After enjoying the Bhojpuri snacks which includes dry fruits like cashew nuts, peanuts and others, it is now time to move out for local sightseeing in Ballia. In the evening you can visit Shahid Smarak which was built in the memory of freedom fighters of Ballia. Later after paying respect to the freedom fighters you can now visit the Botanical garden. Do not forget to click some pictures with the flowers here.
Dinner Time
Now, after exploring the whole city, it is time to have some Bhojpuri dinner. An ideal Bhojpuri dinner is generally made up of roti which is broken into pieces and mixed in hot milk called ‘Dudhroti.’ This is served with vegetable korma or chicken or meat korma. In the end, you can have the famous Gulab Jamun as a desert.
A day in Ballia comes to an end with a delicious dinner and desserts with lovely memories of the holy city.