Tourist Bungalow. Either hire a private car for about Rs300 for an 8-hour day (from OTDC and major hotels) or use cycle-rickshaws to get round town; taxis and auto-rickshaws seem only to ply the airport circuit. OTDC’s conducted city tours are a cheap, convenient way of covering the widely spread out-of-town sights. Also use OTDC for quick, comprehensive day-outings to Puri and Konarak.The Temples (by cycle-rickshaw/on foot, 3-5 hours)Brahmeshwar-Raj arani-Mukteshwar-Parum eshwar-Lingaraj-S isireswar-Vital Deul Temples
Though covered by the city conducted tour, Bhubaneshwar’s famous temples are best first seen at leisure, and on your own. The quietest and coolest time of day to visit is the early morning.
From the new town, it’s a short ride/walk down Bhubaneshwar Marg (south of the railway track) into the old city. Turn left into Tankpani Rd, and proceed straight ahead (10-15 mins on foot) until you come to the huge old banyan tree. Turn right here for short walk/ride to the 11th-century Brahmeshwar Temple 2 km (1 1/2 miles) from the town centre. 
Brahmeshwar is situated in the quietest of settings: a pastoral clearing right on the outskirts of the old city. Nearly all Bhubaneshwar temples are dedicated to Shiva, but this one is different. Shiva is the presiding deity, but the temple itself is the home of Brahma. A rickshaw man gave one explanation for this: ‘Father Brahma live here to be quiet—all rest of noisy family [Shiva, Ganesh, Parvati, etc.] live in big Lingaraj temple.’ Apart from the elaborate ribbed architecture of Brahmeshwar, a feature of the whole group of temples, appreciate the preponderance of dancing women, attractively carved in relief on the exterior walls; also, the beautifully sculpted Orissan lions on the higher levels.
Returning down Tankpani Rd, Rajarani Temple looms up on your left, just across the canal. This 9th-century monument is set in green gardens, and features unique erotic carvings of women and couples. The interior is very plain and the temple has long ceased to be in worship. It is however a fine example of the mature period of Onissan style.
A few hundred yards further up the road is the 9th-century Mukteshwar Temple, one of the most refined temples in Orissa. Small and compact, it is famous both for its ornate entrance arch and for its rare interior carvings. On the ceiling of the inner shrine can be seen lotus carvings, also representations of the whole pantheon of Brahman gods. Mukteshwar is set in a compound of several temples, ringed by mango and jackfruit trees and surrounded by most of Bhubaneshwar’s small population of temple beggars. 
The ancient Parumeshwar Temple, built in the 7th century, is located at the top of Tankpani Rd, near the northern edge of Bindu Sagar Lake. Ganesh lives here, along with his warrior brother Muruga (Parumeshwar). Renowned for its simple charm, and for the dense volume of its carvings (note the beautiful latticed windows) this is the best-preserved example of the early group of Onissan temples. It comprises a flat-roofed rectangular pillared hall attached to the central sanctuary or deul, which contains a small lingam (don’t trip over this in the gloom). The temple appears on the left-hand side of the road, and is easy to find. It is marked by a huge old mango tree, often with a bus driver or a security guard sound asleep under it.
Skirting the Bindu Sagar Lake, keeping to the left bank, you come at last to the most notable of Bhubaneshwar’s temples, the 11th-century Lingaraj Temple, dedicated to Shiva as Lord Lingaraj (Lord of the Universe). Built during the reigns of three kings, and soaring to a height of 54 m, it contains one of the 12 prized jyotirlingas (symbols of Shiva’s creative power) of great antiquity and represents the quintessence of the Kalinga style of temple architecture. The vertical lines of the stronglydrawn ribs, of which two on each side of the walls show miniature replicas of the whole, create an illusion of great height. The temple comprises four structures: the deul sanctuary, the mandapa or great hall, the dancing hall and the hall of offerings. The last two were added later by the Ganga kings. Sadly, the massive temple compound is completely walled round, and entrance is denied to non-Hindus. No matter, carry on up the road right of the entrance until you find the small viewing platform on the left–hand side. It was originally 
erected for Lord Curzon, and you can peer over it and take photographs. Don’t let touts charge you for this service. The Lingaraj is the only temple in the Bhubaneshwar circuit where the ‘whole family’ of gods live. There’s a big festival here on the night of the February /March new moon, Mahashivratri, when hordes of devotees gather to celebrate the night off Shiva.
To complete your tour, head up the road running alongside the eastern wall of Lingaraj, then bear right until on the far side of Bindu Sagar you come to the small Sisireswar Temple. This very decorative 8th-century structure closely resembles the Parumeshwar in architectural form and has fine carvings. It adjoins the famous Boital or Vital Deul Temple, also from the 8th century, which has particularly well-preserved carvings of the demon goddess Durga. The name boital derives from the word for ‘spirit’ and harks back to the days when a few temples were used for tantric practices, and when human sacrifices were made to the presiding eight-armed Chamundi deity. This is one of Bhubaneshwar’s few non-Shiva temples, being dedicated to Durga.
