Monsoon Diaries... :)

It is time for yet another Trip!!!

Yes, this time we planned again for Karnataka. Karnataka seems to be our favorite location for the time being. We have made plans for few more places in Karnataka like hampy , shravanabelagola, chikmagalur. That does mean that you will come across few more blogs in our bucket list soon.

It was a Thursday, 20^th of July 2017. After our daily routine of work we left early from office at around 3:30PM. As usual our companion rain was pouring while we were on our way. Our plan was to stay at my home that night and then to start from there next day at around 8AM. After driving for around 8 and half hours of driving we reached my home at around 12AM. We had just 2 stops on the way, one for coffee and another one for dinner. As we had to start by 8AM the next day we went to bed after talking with my Achan and Reejamma for a while.

Day 1 – 21^st July 2017:

The next day I got up at around 6:20 and got ready and woke up Rakeu to get dressed up. After having our breakfast from home off we go for our road Trip!!!

There were many tolls on the way, we paid a small amount in each one of the tolls. Crossing Kannur and Kasaragod we reached Mangalore by afternoon. Rakeu had a collections of eat outs at Mangalore among them we choose Woodlands Hotel which turns out be a pure Veg hotel. We had an authentic Karnataka style meals from there. After a sumptuous meal we started off to Murudeshwar Temple. The roads in Mangalore was an extravaganza for our trip. Rakeu was like its ok to pay for tolls if roads are maintained in good shape because that’s one thing which was missing in Kerala. Our roads are really in a bad shape compared to other states. We were enjoying our long drive in NH, and on the way we saw a beach and we stopped our car and got down to enjoy the fresh air. There were few families who were enjoying their dip in the sea and there was a boardwalk as well. And there were some stalls where people were selling snacks, drinks, etc. Google helped us in identifying the beach name which is Maravanthe Beach. After spending some time in the sea shore we started our journey to Murudeshwar. Murudeshwar is another name of Hindu god Shiva.

Maravanthe Beach

By the time we reach Murudeshwar it was around 4:40PM and we could see some crowd in the temple. We parked our car in the parking lot and walked inside the temple. The big Gopura through which we can enter the temple was 20 storied. To tell you the truth whoever had constructed the temple have spent some penny on it. The big sculpture of Lord Shiva, which is the world’s second tallest Shiva statue is visible from a long distance but I didn’t feel any kind of devotion while I was inside the temple. These days’ temples are turned out to be a business material. 

Murudeshwar 

After getting Darshan we came out of the temple and enquired how to go near the big sculpture. One guy informed us that we have to go behind the temple to get a good view Lord Shiva. As we walked past the temple and reached the stairs Lord Shiva was getting near and near. We climbed the stairs and reached another temple like structure where we could see that one guy was selling some tickets to enter the cave which costs us INR 10/- per head. We were in a misunderstanding that if we enter the cave we could reach near Lord Shiva’s Sculpture so we took tickets and went inside the temple. It was a disappointing fact that we could not reach near sculpture but instead the cave was constructed with sculptures which explains the story of The Lanka King Ravana who tried to obtain immortality using Atma-Linka. (PS: For the complete story please refer Wikipedia￿). And my disappointment vanished by the time we came out of the cave. 

Story of Ravana - Statues inside the cave

There was a chariot and sculpture of Sun which we could see from a distance. The temple was located on the shores of Arabian Sea. And from the top of this building we could see a good sight of the sea as well as the village. It was already past 5. As we were running out of time and we were new to this place we hurried up and started off to Gokarna where we have already booked our rooms. And after the whole long day drive we reached our Resort, Sanskruti Resort at around 7PM. As we were really tired we thought of having our dinner from the Resort itself. We went to our rooms and got freshen up. We didn’t like our rooms that much and we were not expecting much as well as the reviews were not that great about this Resort but as there were very few hotels/Resorts in this part of Karnataka we didn’t had much choice but to book our rooms here. I saw few mosquitoes as well in our room so when we went to have our dinner we asked the receptionist to do something about the same. He gave us Good Knight and we pugged it in for some time. After a tasty dinner we came back to our room. We thought we will stay there only for 2 days and then we will check out and go to Dharmasthala. So we checked for the availability for rooms at Dharmasthala and fortunately we got rooms which was under the authority of temple. Was it the food or the tiredness we both slept off pretty early.

Day 2 – 22^nd July 2017:

The next day I got up at around 6AM and got ready and woke my husband and we both were out of the Resort by 7:20AM. Today would be the biggest day as we had saw many places to visit. Gokarna is famous for its beaches. The scenic beauty of beaches and the luscious greenery is a mind blowing sight. Our first destination was Om Beach. Om Beach is shaped as two semi crescents joined together forming the shape of Om-Hindu Symbol, hence the name Om beach. On the bank of Om beach there was a café called ‘Namaste Café’. As we have heard about this café we just checked whether it was open and we were informed that it will be open only by 8AM. There was a park chair placed on the rocks at the sea shore. We went and sat there watching those waves crashing the rocks as if it is dancing to the music of nature.

Om Beach & Kudle Beach 

From there we went directly to Kudle beach which was just 5 minutes away from Om beach. The way to beach was steep and slippery and we could see many cows roaming around the place. There were many workers carrying big cut stones through those slopes. We felt really bad that these people started working so early in the morning. We were feeling difficulty in climbing the slope even when our hands were free whereas they were carrying those big stones and walking.  We didn’t spent much time at Kudle beach as the beach was not kept clean. From there we went directly to the famous Mahabaleshwar Temple at Gokarna. We reached at the Temple premises in 10 minutes. The roads in front of the temple was narrow one and there were many small temples nearby. While we were approaching the temple many ladies started accompanying us asking us to buy flowers to offer for God. One lady was bugging us to buy flowers which were placed in a small leaf and finally we too bought one. And finally when we entered the temple there were many Pujaris (Hindu Priests) surrounded us asking us to do many Puja’s and abhishekams. We felt like we entered a business place but this is the place where Atma- Linka was placed by Lord Ganesha as per the story which was depicted in the caves of Murudeshwar temple. The temple is one of the seven sacred Muktikshetras or Muktistala ("places of salvation") in Karnataka. It is a place where many Hindus of Karnataka perform obsequies (death rites) for their departed. The six other Muktikshetras in Karnataka are at Udupi, Kollur, Subrahmanya, Kumbasi, Koteshvara and Sankaranarayana.

According to legend, the Atmalinga was perforce placed at Gokarna, in the temple precincts where it is now deified. It was Ravana, the demon King of Lanka, known from the epic, Ramayana had carried it there from Mount Kailash in the Himalayas.

Here people can do Abhishekam themselves. And there was some rush to get Atma-Linka darsan. The Atmalinga is enshrined in the temple on a square Saligrama Peetha (pedestal). The pedestal has a small hole at its centre from where devotees can touch the top of the Atmalinga. After touching Atmalinga we came out of the main building and saw a big white cow which was being worshipped as God Nandi. I too touched that cow and after that we started off to Karwar. When we came out of the temple premises we saw the Arabian Sea and there was a beach nearby. It was raining heavily outside. We were feeling hungry but none of the restaurants were open. We had some snacks which we had with us. Time was 9:30am and we were wondering whether we will be able to find some good restaurants nearby. On the way we saw a small shop selling Tender coconut and we could see some people drinking tea. I asked that lady whether there will also be coffee in whatever Kannada language I know. From what she said I understood that it is there and I ordered one coffee and one tea. I thought she understood my language and I was waiting for a coffee but when she delivered us the drinks it turned out to be 2 cups of tea. Rakeu were forced to drink both tea. We took tender coconut water in a bottle and we started off from there. On the way we saw Kamath Uphar, a restaurant and we got down to have our breakfast. We had one plate Neer Dosa (which is a famous Dosa type in Karnataka) and Ghee Roast. After finishing our breakfast straight we went straight to Krawar which is located at the north end of Karnataka. It was around one and half hours journey. From Karwar it is just 85kms to Goa. On the way we saw Karwar Naval base. We went directly to Rabindranath Tagore Beach. Rabindranath Tagore has said these lines for the beach: "The sea beach of Karwar is certainly a fit place in which to realize that the beauty of Nature is not a mirage of the imagination, but reflects the joy of the Infinite and thus draws us to lose ourselves in it. Where the universe is expressing itself in the magic of its laws it may not be strange if we miss its infinitude; but where the heart gets into immediate touch with immensity in the beauty of the meanest of things, is any room left for argument?"

In and around Karwar 

Yes, of course the beach was a beauty. We strolled across the beach enjoying its beauty and watching people playing around. There was INS Chapel Maritime museum nearby. INS Chapel was a missile boat of the Indian Navy which is converted into a museum ship on Rabindranath Tagore Beach in Karwar. We went inside the ship. This was the first time I was entering into a ship. The whole ship was maintained in the same way with rooms of captain, kitchen, the whole engine parts, etc. The view from ship deck was really awesome. I would say this museum is a must see of its type as we will rarely find any ships turned out to be a museum. After our visit to the museum we got into our car and our next destination was nearby fish market. As Karwar is a coastal area we could find different variety of fishes. You could say that you will find all sorts of fishes here. Mostly ladies were selling the fishes. In fact we could find some ladies cleaning and cutting the fishes for their buyers. We just strolled across the whole fish market and then we just went out. 

Fish market at Karwar 

Our next photoshoot location was a sea shore where many fisherman boats were aboard. After that we went straight to Gokarna. It was around 12:30PM when we started from Karwar. On the way we had our lunch from Hotel Niharika. I would say this as a nice hotel as food was tasty and hotel was neat. After a sumptuous meal we went directly to Mirjan Fort. As we have visited many Forts I was not expecting much from this Fort. When we reached the Fort it was 2:30PM and we saw that the gate was closed. We were disappointed to see the closed gates but then one guy told us you can just open the gates and go in. He asked us to close the gate once we get in. We were wondering why this guy is asking us to close the gates and why they are closing the gates always. When we got in we saw that one cow was running and coming towards the gate we closed the gate immediately after getting inside. Then we understood why the other guy was asking us to close the gate. 

Mirjan Fort 

The Fort view was really amazing and breathtaking. As it was rainy season the complete fort was filled with grass. The green grasses decorated the fort with its charm and beauty. There was a deep well and big well in Mirjan Fort which was covered with metal. You could find steps which will take you to the well. The end of the steps were also closed with a gate. There is a tree in the mid of the Fort and a statue of Hindu Goddess Mahishasuramardhini is placed under the tree. It started drizzling, as we had an umbrella with us we enjoyed the Fort view and calmness. Finally we bid adieu to Mirjan fort and started off to Yana at around 3:15PM.

View from Mirjan Fort 

It was around 1 hour’s journey to Yana and we lost the GPS on our way. Fortunately we had installed the offline maps and we depended on our offline map. Though we enquired with few people to confirm that the route we are following is correct. Finally we came across an uncle and aunt to enquire about the route. They said they are also going nearby that place and they asked us to give them a lift. We asked them to get inside. We were a little worried as we were not sure what kind of people they are. I did some adjustment with my mirror so that I can see them. Actually I was checking that they don’t have any chloroform which they will use to faint us :P. he he… Effect of movies that we watched. On the way I simply asked the aunt with my little knowledge of Kannada whether they are also going Yana. That was it, I provoked a person who was sitting silent till that time and she poured me with Kannada. Fortunately I could understand what they were saying but I couldn’t utter even a word to them in response. My dear husband was laughing at me by sitting beside me.

They got down after some time and told us after some time board will come and you just read it and go. (Nodi nodi hogu :P) Luckily the boards were written in Kannada language and we could not read even a single word. And there were not even a single person to whom we could check the route. So as expected we lost our path and we reached somewhere else. At that point we saw some houses and enquired the route. And finally we reached Yana at around 4:15PM. Yana is famous for two massive rock outcrops known as the Bhairaveshwara Shikhara and the Mohini Shikhara ("Shikhara" means "hill"). The huge rocks are composed of solid black, crystalline karst limestone. The two rock monoliths surrounded by thick forests and streams, rise sharply above the surrounding area near Yana village. They are part of the Sahyadri hill range in the Western Ghats in South India. This trekking was really interesting. When we started trekking itself we could hear the sound of crickets (cheeveedu) and streams. The sound of flowing streams were really soothing as these rare scenarios where we could hear and enjoy the sound and music of nature. On the way we saw a stream which was flowing from one end of the path to the other end and there was no way to cross the stream without our shoes getting wet. Apart from this the path was slippery and it started drizzling as well. We saw few guys who were getting down and enquired them how long it will take and they said total an hour it will take. There were many boards with pictures of leopards and all. Thankfully it was written in Kannada so we couldn’t understand whether it was warning saying that there might be leopards around. :P After climbing the steep slopes we reached near a Ganesha temple and from there we could see the emergence of Monolithic stone. From the temple onwards you have to climb the steps to reach the top. We walked for some more distance and it was getting dark now as we were inside the jungle and Rakeu said we can go back. So we stood there for some time looking at the black Monolithic and then climbed the whole way down. We reached at the bottom at around 5:15PM and off we go to our room at Gokarna. We went for a walk and then we took our car and went to get some food. We bought food from a nearby hotel called Ashokavana and then we went for a drive. Then we came back to room and had our dinner. The food was tasty. Then we explored the resort and informed the resort guys about next day check out plans. Asked them to make our bills ready. We were really tired after a long day so we went to bed at 9:30PM itself.

Day 3 – 23^rd July 2017:

I got up at around 5:30AM and got ready. We packed all our stuff and checked-out of the resort at 7AM. Our plan was to go to Jog falls. On the way we stopped at a place to do a photoshoot in fields. There was a pond which water lilies in it. We took many photos in ad around that place. The next check list was a hotel and we had our breakfast from Makara Village (a restaurant name). We reached our destination, Jog falls at around 10:15AM. There were 2 view points for Jog falls we could cover only one due to time constraints. Jog Falls, Gerosoppa Falls or Joga Falls is the second highest plunge waterfall in India located near Shimoga district in the state of Karnataka. We got a good view from the view point. As I said there was one more view point which we could see from a distance. The number of steps which were going down was enormous and we couldn’t count it from the spot we were standing. There was a view point which was a bit down the lane and was closed due to Monsoon and slippery floor but there were many people who were going down there by risking their life. We enjoyed the view from the points where we have access to and it was an awesome view. I felt like someone is doing Abhishekam (a devotional activity) with milk. The falls were looking like flowing milk from that distance. After enjoying the view we left the place and started off to Dharmasthala.

Jog Falls 

On the way we saw there was another way to Jog falls through a bridge so we just gone on to the bridge just roamed around and came back to our route. It was around 11AM and we have to cover around 245kms to reach Dharmasthala. There was no network in these areas and as we had offline map with us we depended on that to get the route. On the way we saw a beautiful path with paddy fields on both sides. We didn't even think twice before stopping there to take few snaps.

We were on our way and at one point of time I noticed that all of a sudden the time we reach changed by 30 minutes in the map. We realized that we lost our way and we turned and drove the whole way back. Instead of a left turn we took a right turn and we realized only after 10-20 minutes. Even though we reached back to the route we were a little worried because of the language problem and we didn’t had Dharmasthala planned in our trip. The plan changed at the last minute and we didn’t do much investigation on the route. Fortunately we found and MH registration truck and we enquired about the route. That driver told us we have to go straight and we are on the right path. He told us that we have to go via Theerthahalli and then to Agumbe. He told us one more city names but we didn’t understood that name but we felt relieved that we got next two city names about which we can enquire with local guys. The people in these areas were not that educated to tell us the route to a place which was around 200+ kilometers apart. At least they will be aware of these nearby towns.  We stopped our car for lunch break and off we go through Agumbe. Rakeu told me that Agumbe is called "The Cherrapunji of the South" because this place receives second largest rain in India after Cherrapunji. Apart from that this is the place where large number of King Cobras are found. From Agumbe we entered into Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary. We had to go through so many hair pin bends and you could see only trees on both sides of the road. Yes, in fact we were going through one of the rainforests of India. Finally through the beautiful roads and after a tiring drive we reached Rajathadri Guest house at around 5:30PM. After freshen up we went to the famous Sri Manjunatha Swamy Temple, Dharmasthala. Luckily there was not much rush when we reached the temple so we got the Dharshan pretty fast but by the time we reach near the idol we could find the crowd behind us was double. And after dharshan we went to Annapurna (temple’s food court) where Annadanam (food distribution which will be free of cost to all deities) will happen from 7PM. Here as well we were lucky or you can say the food court was very big to accommodate many people at a time. So we went inside and had our dinner from there. The food was served in a leaf (not exactly one leaf but many leaves stitched together). People started serving us food initially they served a sweet followed by rice and curry. Then a second round of rice distribution followed by another curry, rasam and butter milk. They even served water. Usually we have seen in temples water will be placed in some place and people have to go and take it from there. So after having our dinner we went straight to our rooms. After a long day we were really tired and we didn’t even know when we slept off.

Day 4 – 24^th July 2017:

We didn’t kept alarm the previous day as I said you we didn’t knew when we slept off. Even then we got up early the next day. We took bath and went out for a stroll. We saw a restaurant Annapurneshwari and had our breakfast at around 7AM. Then we went to see Bahubali state which was near the temple itself. We could see a board saying Bahubali Vihar near the Dharmasthala Arch (Temple gate). Temple gate built by Sri. Ratnavarma Heggade. Bahubali Vihar was to the right of the arch. We were a bit confused whether we could take our car to the top as we came to know from our receptionist that we have to climb 1000 steps to reach near the statue. We enquired to an auto rickshaw driver and he said we can take the car up so we drove our car to the top. The statue was located at one corner of a garden. We took few snaps of The Gomateshwara statue at Dharmasthala. Then we saw the history, how and who erupted this statue and all were written in a small shelter nearby. The statue is 39-foot (12 m) high. After that we went straight to our rooms and checked out. Then we thought of visiting a temple which we saw the previous day on our way

Dharmasthala 

. We went to the Shri Rama Kshetra which was pretty big in size. The temple was beautifully constructed and there were many idols placed inside the temple. The whole idols were carved out of marbles but the maintenance was not good enough so there were leaks from roof and I almost slipped and fall down at one place. If temple authority had taken care of this temple this could have been a good site for tourists. From there off we went to Mangalore.

Kudroli Temple and Holy Hill,  Mangalore 

One of my friend gave me few suggestions about the places to visit at Mangalore. So we went straight to Kudroli temple at Mangalore. Kudroli Sri Gokarnatheswara temple was one of the biggest temple I have visited so far in my life. The temple was inaugurated by Sonia Gandhi & Rajiv Gandhi. There were 2 big elephants at the entrance itself. And once you enter the temple you could see the temple has Gopuram (tower like structure) decorated with murals of various gods and goddesses. Murals depict scenes from Hindu epics and legends. There was big structure of Lord Nandi and a juggernaut with Sri Krishna and Arjuna depicting the story of Vedopadesha. There were two Kalyana mandapas (marriage halls) and a big temple pond. There were statues of Lord Shiva and Lord Durga on all the sides of temple pond. And to our surprise these statues formed a fountain which will be operated from 6:30 PM to 8:30PM. After enjoying the big structure of the temple and getting Dharsan from each Gopurams we went straight to Holy hill. As the name depicts it is a small church (Chappal) located on top of a hill. From here you will get sky view of Mangalore city. We found it a bit difficult to reach this place as the roads were very narrow and steep. So we parked our car downhill and climbed the whole way up but when we reached the top we found that there were parking slots available and we could have taken our car to the top. It was afternoon and sun was at its peak so we felt really tired and was getting a little bit of headache. So we thought of taking a big break and went directly to City Centre mall. We went to the food court and ordered many varieties of food from different vendors. After ordering many dishes we realized that we were behaving like starved people :P. he he …Our plan was to do a bit of shopping after our lunch. We rested at the food court for a while and then off we go in search of Hampenketta market. We lost our way thrice and by this time I was like I don’t want to do any shopping let us go home. So we decided that we will skip the shopping option this time and went to one sweet shop to get some sweets and bakery items and then we bid adieu to Mangalore city. Yes, this was the last destination of our trip and on the way back itself we started planning for our next trip. So let us see when and where we could make it up. Good bye for now and see you soon!!!

Through Munnar Tea plantations to the Mesmerising beauty of Mother Nature!!!

The long weekend was fast approaching and we were thinking where to go this time. Goa was the first destination that came to our mind. We both visited Goa previously but we didn't go there together. My Dad and Mom was coming to our place and he once asked us to take him to Munnar. So we thought let it be Munnar this time. We didn’t have much time to plan anything. So we randomly choose few destinations in Munnar. 

Day 1:

Finally on Saturday, 29th of April we started off from Cochin at around 12:45PM as we had some things to be done before our journey. On the way we stopped at Hotel Mahanami  near aluva to have lunch. From outside the hotel was looking grand but when we entered the hotel we felt like it was not a good one but thankfully food was good :) . After filling our stomach, we started off to Kothamangalam. Nearby Kothamangalam there was a place called Oonjapara which was one among our check list. We reached Kothamangalam and enquired people how to go to Oonjapara and we started off to the place. On the way it started raining accompanied by heavy wind. It was raining heavily so we stopped near a petrol pump and waited some time for rain to cease. When the force of rain reduced a bit we started off our journey we could see that many tees where uprooted due the heavy wind and people were cutting and removing the trees from the roads. We wondered how fast these people started removing the trees as there was not much gap. It looks like in this place it is a common incident. So we dropped the plan of visiting Oonjapara and we went straight to Adimali where we booked our rooms. On the way to Adimali we saw Cheeyappara waterfalls. We stopped there to enjoy the view and took few snaps from there. After staying there for another 5 minutes enjoying the view we got into our car and started our journey. On the way there was one more waterfall called Valara waterfalls. This was the next photo stop location. The next stop was tea break. We had coffee, tea and some snacks and then started off to Adimali. We reached Adimali at around 6PM at Jannah Residency where we had booked our rooms. When we enquired there they said that the rooms were cancelled and they mailed Agoda agency the same. Rakeu was bit worried and started calling customer care of Agoda to enquire the same. After half an hour discussion they said they will arrange another stay for us and we waited at the hotel reception itself. We enquired the receptionist whether there will be any rooms vacant in any nearby hotels. He told us it would be difficult and said only hotel that would have rooms will be Le Prime Inn. Rakeu immediately went there and enquired whether there are any rooms vacant there and was relieved to know that there were rooms available. We waited for some more time to get any confirmation from Agoda and we called them again to check about the confirmation but they couldn't find any. We were really frustrated so I asked them to cancel the reservation and we went directly to Le Prime Inn and took 2 rooms. Just because of Agoda's mistake our 2 hours of our time was wasted. We got refreshed and went to a nearby hotel and had our dinner from there. The food was tasty, so after dinner we came back to room and did some chit chat and went to bed.

Day 2:

Near Mattupetty Dam

The next day early morning at around 6:30AM we checked out of hotel and started off to Munnar. Our first destination was Top station and I used google maps and set the location. Unfortunately maps was not up to date with Munnar destinations we ended up at Munnar town with a comment from maps saying you have reached your destination, that is Top station. We were searching our way to Top station and came to know that it will take an hour to reach the place. So we kept google maps aside and started to enquire to local guys and the navigation boards. We came to know that around 5 tourist locations are on a stretch and we can cover many places on the go. The first destination was Mattupetty Dam we stopped at a place next to Mattupetty Dam to

enjoy the view and click few snaps. We strolled down and reached near lake and could see that many people were fishing from the area. We stayed there for a while and after clicking few snaps left off the place. Before getting into the car we had tea and coffee from a nearby 'chaya kada'(tea shop). On the way we saw a traveller halted in road side. We too hopped out of our car to find a herd of cattle eating grass. We went near the cows taking pictures of them and us. And when we were about to leave the place we saw one guy shouting at other people who came in the traveller to get out of the place. We were wondering why he was shouting but then we came to know that it was a private property and trespassers were not allowed inside the place. There were no boards or notice outside the place so any one would have got into this place. We left the place and the next stop was at Kundala Dam. We walked across the Dam and saw that at one side of the dam, a turbine was open and water was flowing out of it with full force. We watched the water flowing out of it for a while and walked towards the lake crossing the dam. It was around 10AM and we thought of having our breakfast on the way but couldn't find any proper restaurants anywhere. So searched one hotel nearby and could only find one small shop selling bread omelette and Maggie noodles. So we ended up having these for our breakfast. After having breakfast we walked across the lake to find many horses along with its owners. These horses were brought there to attract tourists and to earn some money out of horse rides. There were horses with white, coffee brown and white and black mix colours. I went near the horses touched it, I wanted to pamper them but felt a bit scared too. Rakeu took few snaps of me and Mom along with horses. 

From there we directly went to Top. This is the view point from where the whole Munnar hills can be seen. While climbing the hill we could see many ladies selling fresh carrots, passion fruit, beetroot and all. We thought of getting all those on our way back and kept climbing. When we reached the spot we could see jam pack crowd taking pictures and enjoying the view. We too entered into the crowd for enjoying the beauty of Munnar. After staying there for some time we started back and on the way we saw a dog was fast asleep. Rakeu took few pics of the sleeping dog and we climbed down the place. We got into our car and Rakeu said we can go to Vattavada as well.  From top point we had to go in another direction to reach Vattavada. And I saw a board saying Strawberry Farms,Vattavada. I was so thrilled as I never saw Strawberry Farms before. So off we went to Vattavada. There were only few cars on our way so we doubted whether we are on the right track.  

  

We kept going and reached Pambadum Shola National Park check point. Achan and I got out to check the conditions and the security person told us that forest stretch for 5 kms and you are not supposed to get down in between 5kiometeres to take any pictures as there might be animals. And it is not allowed to take pictures there. He also mentioned that there are cameras placed everywhere so be careful if you are caught you will be fined 2000 INR. Total there were 8kms to reach Vattavada. So we entered the forest in a hope to see some animals but it was noon and none of the animals were on stroll. So we missed the chance. When we reached Vattavada a small kid came running asking to see Strawberry Farm and he took us to the Farm. I was assuming the Strawberry to be a crawler and was expecting a farm similar to grapes, but to add to my knowledge I found the plants to be on floor just like cabbage and all. The kid gave us Strawberry jams and wines to taste. Also the owner gave us passion fruit to taste. We bought some wine and passion fruit from there and we started back. While we were returning that kid gave me one more passion fruit and asked me to keep it with me. I was so delighted and wanted to give the kid something. Rakeu was suspicious and said that the kid might want some money that's why he is doing it. I said that’s fine and we gave him some money but he denied the offer in a humble manner. I was so touched by his behaviour so I gave him one of the hats that we had with us. We bid adieu to the kid and started our journey back. 

We reached back to top station and took right turn to climb down the whole hilly area. While we were going down we could see the whole Munnar was jam packed with vehicles. Traffic was in such a way to test our patience. We started from Top station at around 12:45PM and finally reached Munnar town at 3:30PM. So just imagine how much was the traffic. Note that while climbing up we took only 1 hour. Everyone was feeling damn hungry so we went to a nearby restaurant to have our food. We all grabbed our food and we thought that enough for the day so we thought of retiring to our Resort. We had a good expectation from our resort so we thought we will reach the resort early and enjoy the resort surroundings. We have  mapped the resort in Google maps and started off to the resort. Rakeu was a bit confused whether to believe google or not so we confirmed the way with some passengers as well. Finally we reached our resort,The Sienna Village at around 5:30PM. The resort was situated in a sloppy area so we find difficulty in parking our car. After parking Rakeu went to reception. 2 room guys came with Rakeu and took our luggage and guided us to our rooms. The rooms were good. In fact the whole resort was lovely with beautiful garden and small small cottages. Behind the resort we could see scenic view of  hills. We had 2 rooms booked in our names. All of us decided to fresh up so we just got inside the room and fresh up. We got ready by 7PM and went to Achan's room. We sat there and chit chat for some time. We decided where and all we should go the next day. One of my friend Riya once told me about Kattapana so we thought of visiting Kattapana the next day. I messaged here checked about the places. And she said Anjuruli and Kalyanathandu would be best places to visit at around 10AM. As we were planning to reach there only by that time.  After deciding the destination for the next day we got out for a stroll. We walked through the mild lighted area of resort and enjoying fresh air. This part of the city seems to be in a good condition and unpolluted. Dinner was served in 2 areas. One for buffet and another one ala carte style.  We opted ala carte as buffet was for 400 INR and we were not that hungry. We went to the restaurant and placed the orders. After our dinner we roamed around the resort again. We explored the areas near reception and took another route to go back to our room. This route was seriously amazingly lighted and there was camp fire as well. The climate was chill so when we reached near the camp fire we could feel the warmth. :) There was a port like structure with chairs inside where we sat for some time for relaxation. It was really nice to be away from work like this some times. We were tired so we retired to bed at 9:30PM.

Day 3:

Inside Anjuruli Tunnel

On May 1st we got up at 6:30AM, got ready by 7:20AM. And then we roamed around the resort to feel and enjoy the beauty of resort in day light. Breakfast was complementary and was starting at 7:30AM so we reached the restaurant at 7:40AM to have our breakfast. The varieties of items that were served there was tremendous. The list will go like Methi paratha, Lemon rice, curd, pickle, Bread, butter, jam, corn flakes, chocos, puttu and kadala, grape juice, tea, coffee, dosa, idli, sambar, tomato chutney, coconut chutney, methu vada, French toast, omelet, cut fruits,etc. Apart from this you can order ghee roast, masala dosa, omelet,etc. On order basis. After having a tremendous breakfast we said the receptionist that we will be checking out in 10 minutes and we went near our cottages. But when we reached there I was like do we really need to go anywhere. The climate was lovely and I felt like sitting at the balcony for hours without doing anything. Even Achan was saying the same thing, but Rakeu said in that case we will spend half an hour more there before starting off. So we sat there chatting for a while enjoying the resort ambiance. Finally we checked out at around 9AM and off we go to Kattapana. On the way near Anayirankal we could see tea plantations were spread on both sides of the roads making the view amazingly beautiful. We went through the scenic view of Poopara as well before reaching Kattapana. From Kattapana Anjuruli was around 12km way. We reached the Anjuruli and we got down a slope to get a view of the lake. We didn't knew exactly what was there at Anjuruli. So when we saw the lake view we thought that’s it. We thought of spending some time there and return. Meanwhile Acha walked to the right side of the lake to find that there is a big cave carved out of a single rock.  Anjuruli was highly noted for the 5.5km long circular tunnel that carries water from Erattayar dam near Kattappana to Idukki reservoir.  We were thrilled to find this out unexpectedly and we went inside the tunnel to find few writings saying that oxygen will be less when you go inside and chances of finding snakes inside. Still we went inside to a distance and came out as lighting was very less when you go inside. We should have got a torch light to explore this place. And there were water inside the tunnel as well. As this was not monsoon season water level was very less. Still in some areas the water level was kind of deep. There were many more tourists who came to visit the place. I guess when dam is open the water flow would in such a force we wont be able to stand in the tunnel. And water from this tunnel was flowing down to the nearby lake just like a small waterfall. But in monsoon seasons this would in fact be a larger waterfall. :)

View from Anjuruli 

We took off from Anjjuruli in search of Kalyanathandu. We saw a navigation board saying Kalyanathandu was just 1.5kms from that place but we enquired the people they said if you want the real view then this part of Kalyanathandu is not the place. So we went in a different route and we were confused which way to go and enquired one uncle about the place. He too was not aware of the place he said Kalyanathandu is a big hill and the are spread across for many kilometres and he asked us which part of that place exactly we wanted to go. We said there is nothing like that we heard about a view point which is exactly the spot where we wanted to go. Then he said in that case you better go to Patham mile which would be the best place to visit for tourists. So we started off to Patham mile by enquiring to many people on the way. On our way we grabbed our lunch as well. Finally we reached the place which was on top of a hill, yes The Calvary Mount. This part belongs to Govt. Of Kerala and we took tickets to get inside the place. It costs us 20 per person and 20 for the vehicle. Once we entered the place and walked towards the end of the mount we were mesmerised by the beauty of the place. The view was breath taking. I would say that God himself has come down to this place and painted the look and corner by himself to make it a perfect picture. 

The Calvary Mount!!!

Wow!!! This would be the only word that you will be uttering each and every time you visit this place. We were not feeling like coming back from this place. I wanted to stay there forever enjoying the beauty of mother nature. I can promise you that you will never be disappointed once you reach there. This should be a must see place in your list. We sat on a rock for some time enjoying the picturesque view. The look of mother nature was getting changed from time to time. The distant view was getting faded away with time. When it started thundering we started our way back as we didn’t want to take the risk of driving in the rain. This was our last destination for this trip and we started off home. We saw Idukki Dam from a distance keeping in mind to cover few more spots in our next visit. There were many hair pin turns on our way back so we were driving a bit slow. We choose Thodupuzha route instead of Kothamnagalam. On our way back we saw Kulamavu dam. And when we reached near Thodupuzha it started raining cats and dogs. Many trees were uprooted due to wind. We stopped in a shop for a tea break and immediately started off home and reached at around 8PM. That was the end of the story. ;) As you know the story doesn't end here. Until we see in our next trip bidding a small bye!!!

Road Trip to Karnataka!

One fine evening, when all of us as in me, my wife, my bro, his wife, mom and dad – were sitting and chit chatting, my bro was like – lets go for a trip. We  said ‘yay’ almost in unison.
“where? When? How?” I asked, knowing my bro, and being kind of the less risk taker.

“Mangalore, Udupi, kollur..kudajadri..murdeshwar..gokarna” he continued.
“vaaoh, well how ? and when?”
“Tomm evening, we rent an innova, and lets go.

Almost all were OK, except me. What? I said. Almost all eyes on me. The dramatic moment.

Like, its close to 500 odd kms to gokarna, and like we are going tomm, we haven’t booked the room and all.

That’s OK, we shall not book the room, and find any random hotel on the way and stay there. I resisted.

I insisted that, we book the rooms and then that would ease our travel burden. I took it upon myself to take up that task. By next day morning, our rooms for that night and the next day were booked.

By evening, we were all set, and then came the sad news. The Innova we were planning to rent, met with an accident and wont be available. So we immediately decided that we travel in 2 cars. Me my wife and mom in our Swift and my bro his wife and dad in Wagon R.

We started off by 5.30 on 9/9/2016 and being the holiday weekend, we were in for a huge traffic block. It took us close to 2.5 hours to reach Thrissur, there in we halted and had our dinner from Thrissur Food mall. We then realized that we had booked our rooms in kasargod, and getting there would be a hectic task. So we changed plans, we decided that we shall drive till, Kozhikode and then stay there, and early morning head towards our destination.

By 12 we reached Calicut, there we found a relatively budget hotel accommodation, we slept like logs because all were pretty exhausted by the journey. Next day morning, we got up pretty early, we were all fresh, and then continued our journey. We went directly to Kasargode Ananthapura lake temple. I was longing to visit this temple because of the news I heard about babiya, the vegetarian crocodile.
Sorry guys I am taking over from here from my hubby ;) Yes, we were visiting the Ananthapura lake temple. The temple had a unique beauty, it was constructed in the middle of a lake. Once you enter the you will feel the divinity. The pujari who was in charge for the day explained us about the complete history of the temple and also about Babiya, the crocodile. He told us that  ‘Prathista’ or idol is not made of 70 medicinal materials. And long back this idol was thrown in a lake and they replaced it with another metal idol but those idols didn’t stay there for much. They replaced many idols but nothing worked out. When they searched for the reason they found out that only the medicinal idol could be placed in this temple. So they searched for the old idol and repaired this idol and placed it back in the temple. Apart from this pujari told us that many years back a boy came in this temple and he sat at this temple for many days. And when the pujari of that time waved him off he felt down in the lake and escaped. A cave formed in the place where he fell down. The cave is preserved there even now. It is believed that this cave leads to Padmanabha swami temple in Thiruvananthapuram. The boy was none other than Lord Vishnu and when pujari waved him off he left Ananthapuram and went to Padmanbhapuram. The other story he explained us was about the vegetarian crocodile. He told us that the crocodile is there for past 1000 years. When one crocodile dies another one comes out of nowhere. No one is aware from where and how. He took us to another lake nearby and he called babiya many times and the crocodile showed his head after a long effort from him. This crocodile only eat the rice which the temple authorities gives it. After such a wonderful experience we started off from there and went to Bekal fort.

Kudajadri

I know almost what will be ringing in your head when you hear about Bekal fort. Uyire…Uyire.. song from Bombay movie. This is the place where their film song was shot. We parked our cars in the parking area and took tickets which costs Rs.90 for 6 of us. We walked into the fort and started taking snaps here and there. We found that this is one of the biggest forts available in Kerala. The Fort was spread over the whole area and the sun was hitting hard on us with his hot rays. Even though we walked in the hot sun enjoying ourselves. We could hear the distant voice of waves so we walked to the end of the Fort to enjoy the beauty of Sea. Kannan wanted to go to Sea shore but it was difficult to get down to the beach from the Fort so we decided to go to the beach after the Fort visit. After visiting the Fort we came out and we could see people selling tender coconut and juices. We were feeling thirsty so we bought tender coconut and ice creams. After rehydrating our self we paid the parking fee and off we go to Bakel beach. While we rested at the park Rakeu and Kannan went and took a dip in the sea. After spending some time at the beach it was time for our lunch. We were new to the place and didn’t know any nearby hotels. So we decided that on the way if we find any good hotels we can have our food from there. And yes, we found one hotel and had a good meal from there.  We didn’t had any other plans for the day. Our next destination was RSB Bhavan, Manipal where we have booked our room. It was a long drive to Manipal and on the way we took a tea break. Finally at around 9 PM we reached our hotel. Everyone was tired, so me and Rakeu decided to go and parcel our dinner. We went in search of a good restaurant and found a good one at a walkable distance. We got some rice items, roti, etc. and apart from this we got into a fast food center and got 2 wraps. After finishing our dinner we had a good night’s sleep.

Bakel Fort

The next day early morning we got up and drove to Uduppi Sreekrishna temple. There was a long queue to enter the temple. We stood in the queue for some time and found that it was to see the idol from nearby. We satisfied ourselves by watching god from a little far away as we didn’t want to miss our Kudajadri trip. After having our breakfast from there we went to Mukambika temple. We brought ladoo prasdam and after that we came out of the temple. Outside the temple we saw there was a bid going on for Saree. We went there out of curiosity and Amma brought one Saree by bidding for 300. After that we came out and enquired about Kudajadri. There were many Jeeps which was going to Kudajadri. So we enquired to a Jeep driver about the same. He offered us a trip for Rs.3000. And off we go to Kudajadri in the Jeep. When we started the journey we felt that it was better to take a car and come instead of going in the Jeep because the drive was smooth. He took us through forest and we reached a spot from there he took a turn in to a road. You can say that there is no road, then only we realized that this is why we should take Jeep and not car :P The journey to Kudajadri was a real adventure, we were amazed by driver’s skill. On the way driver told us that he gets 2-3 trips a day. While we were moving up the slope we could feel the cold breeze. We reached the spot at around 1PM and driver asked us to be back by 3:15PM. We walked up the steep slopes, on the way a guy gave Amma a stick which will help her on her way. We split up into teams and started our stroll. We went for the hiking journey and when we reached a spot there was abyss on one side and I felt bit afraid. We hiked for some more time and rested there and started capturing the beauty of nature. Dad was the only one who went the whole way up. We waited there for Dad to return, after a while Rakeu became restless and went in search of Dad. By that time Kannan and Dhanya reached the spot I was standing. We enquired to people coming back what is there up and they informed us that there is one Shiva temple and Ganapathy temple. So we thought of going up as well. We 3 started off and found that Ganapathy temple was very nearby the spot where we were standing. In between we found a person selling lime juice and cucumber, as we didn’t had our lunch we grabbed the cucumber as well as lime juice. As we were thirsty we felt lime juice to be so yummy. The shop keeper showed us way to Ganapathy temple. You can’t exactly say it is a temple but an idol of Ganapathy was placed inside a cave. The ambiance was superb, it was so calm and quite. When we kept out bare foot on those rocks we felt a chilling feeling. We prayed there and thought we will go up and visit Shiva temple as well but by that time Rakeu was back and it was time for us to return. So we started downwards, and our Jeep was waiting for us in the valley. We started our adventurous ride back and reached Mukambika. From there we set off to our next destination which was Mangalore.

We drove straight to Mangalore City Centre. We came out of city Centre thinking that we can find a good restaurant outside the mall but as it was Sunday market was closed down. So we went back to City Centre food court and had our dinner. The food was really tasty and we tried different variety of items from different shops. Finally after our dinner we went to ‘Sun Royal Residency’ for taking rest. The next day early morning we started off our journey back to Cochin. We have the to cover 400+kms to reach our place so Rakeu and Kannan wanted to cover maximum distance before the traffic starts. On the way we had our breakfast from a hotel at Payyannur. My home was on the way so Achan called us and asked us to have lunch from there. We reached my home at around 11, it was too early to have lunch so we packed our food. We spent around half an hour there and started off. We reached our home at around 8PM and after such a long road trip every one of us were damn tired but all were happy about a memorable trip.

Ananthapura lake temple

Coorg - The land of Kodavas

 In December we started planning for our next holiday. This time we selected Tanjavur and Srirangam as our destination. Tickets and rooms were all booked but just before one week of travel there started a crisis in Tamilnadu for Jellikett. So we were forced to cancel our trip to Tanjavur. Rakeu and I decided to travel to my native place for the holidays. Then all of a sudden Coorg, yes 'The Scotland of India' struck our mind. So we started planning for Coorg and everything was planned within 2 days.

On 25th January 2017 we started off to my house at Thalasseri at 4PM as it was a working day for us. As it was a long weekend we were struck in traffic here and there. At around 8 we reached Puthanathani, Calicut and we had our dinner from there. After that we started off to my house and reached my place at 11.10PM. As we were starting our journey to Coorg next day morning we didn’t spent much time talking and everyone went to bed.

Omkareshwara Temple

Day 1: 26th January 2017

Raja's Seat

Next day morning after having breakfast we, as in Rakeu, Achan, Reejamma and I started our journey to Coorg at 8:30 AM. The route was via Mattannur. After passing Koottupuzha bridge we entered Karnataka. One side of bridge is Kerala and the other side is Karnataka. Through the forest we continued our journey. At one place the route will split up, one to virajpetta and the other one to Gonikoppa. As we wanted to go to Madikkeri we took Virajpetta road.  We could see Coffee plantations on both sdes of the road. On the way when we reached Kadanga we saw a scenic beauty so we stopped there for a while for a photo shoot. It was a small hill and the dry grass gave it an orange shade, and yes that’s the reason why we felt an attraction towards it. There was nothing much to do there so we continued our journey. Our first destination was Omkareshwara Temple, I have read in net that the temple will be closed by 12PM and so we were in a little bit hurry to reach there. Finally we reached our destination at 12PM we were worried that we couldn’t get Darshan but we were lucky enough to get Darshan J . And just after we did Pradakshina the temple got closed. We felt happy that we made it on time and then we started off to Madikkeri fort. Madikkeri Fort was very near to the temple, it was just 550 meters. There were 2 big elephant statues at the Fort. We strolled across the Fort taking few snaps here and there. View from Fort wall was amazing, we could see the whole city from there. There were small room like structure from which guides could watch the city. I entered inside and could feel the coolness, this obviously protects guides from the hot sun. The museum was closed as it was Republic day.

Madikkeri Fort

After Madikkeri fort our next destination was Raja’s seat & garden. We took tickets which costs Rs.5/- per person. We thought it was just a garden and I read in net about Raja’s seat from where Raja used to watch sun set and sun rise. I was wondering what was so great about this place. When we reached the mandapa where Raja’s seat was located we were amazed by the scenic beauty. The view was absolutely magical, no wonder in King watching the sun set and rise from this place. When we reached there it was mid-day so we planned that if we have time we will come back in the evening to watch sun set.  After relaxing for some time there we got out of the garden and we had our lunch from Rajdoot Family Restaurant which was just opposite to the garden. The food was good. After treating our stomach off we go to Gaddige Raja’s tomb. There were totally 3 tombs built for the royal dynasty. The kings were Shiva’s deity and so Lord Shiva was placed and worshipped inside the tomb. On the top corners we could see carvings of Nandi. It is believed that Nandi will protect the tombs. When we entered the tomb we could feel the chillness of the floor and even walls were so cool. The tombs were built inside a garden and a park and children’s play area was there at one of the corners of the garden. After taking few snaps we set off our journey to Abbey falls. We reached the Abbey falls at around 3PM. We parked our car in the parking area and paid Rs.30/- for the same. After that we walked towards the falls. It is amidst of lush spread of coffee plantation. The falls is in the midst of thick coffee bushes and tall trees entwined with pepper vines. The hanging bridge was closed, might be for safety purpose or for renovation. We ejoyed the beauty of the place for quiet some time and started our trek back. There was a jeep safari available from there to Mandalpatti, we were bit confused whether to choose it or not as we were in a doubt whether Reejamma could do a trekking again. We checke the rates and it was Rs.1500/- for a jeep. We skipped Mandalpatti trip and started off to Raja’s seat thinking to see sun set. On the way we stopped at chinnama’s veg Restaurant to have coffee and tea. We reached Raja’s seat at around 5PM. We parked our car a little bit far away to avoid the parking fee. They were charging a parking fee of Rs.40/- for parking at road side. We were ready to give the parking amount if it is a proper parking area. Again we took the tickets and first Reejamma and I went to toy train journey :P. It was a small train and a small track, still I wanted to try it out so we just hopped in after taking tickets. After the train journey we went inside the garden and we went and sat at the steps. There were seats arranged similar to the ones in amphitheater to view the scenic beauty. We saw people going towards the end of a cliff and Rakeu and I started off for the trekking. On the way we took few snaps and the view was really amazing. We spent some time there and came back to our seat. We sit there and took some rest. As it was a cloudy day we couldn’t see the sun set so we thought of going to our rooms. I posed in front of flower garden and then off we go to our room.  For the whole trip we were getting help from google maps, and so for the hotel. Map told us that it will take 1 hour to reach the hotel so we asked Achan and Reejamma to take a nap. Our hotel was near Golden temple, Kushalnagar. We reached our hotel, Maharaja Palace Resorts at around 7:30PM. The way to hotel was so dark that we thought for a moment that we are in a wrong route but the route was correct. Rooms were good but as I said the route was not properly lighted. After fresh up we went out to have our lunch. There were two hotels nearby as one hotel was overcrowded we choose the other one. We had our dinner from Annapurna pure vegetarian restaurant. Food was not that great but not bad too. There was some shops nearby so we just did some shopping. After that we came back to our rooms, chit chat for some time and then we went to bed.

Day 2: 27th January 2017

Gaddige, Abbey Falls, Nisargadhama,Chickly Hole 

The next day morning we got up at around 7AM and got ready by 8AM. There was complimentary breakfast which was from 8AM to 10AM. We had our breakfast which was traditional Karnataka style one. We checked out of the hotel and then started off to Golden temple which belongs to Namdroling Monastery. We reached temple at around 9AM which was just 10 minutes away from our resort. The first temple was closed for renovation. So we went to the next building which was opened. At the entrance itself there was a curtain made up of big beads, it was really a good idea and beautiful décor. We were amazed by the size of the Buddhist statues inside the temple. There were 3 statues inside the temple and the whole temple was decorated with mural painting. We just walked around enjoying the creativity of painters. On the top of the pillars there were many carvings like dragon, flowers, etc. We sat there for some time and then we saw a lama we requested him to pose with us for a photo and he happily agreed. After taking few snaps we came out of the temple building. There were 2 lions on both sides of the temple, I was crazy enough to take a picture with the lion. Then we saw a prayer hall and tourists were not allowed inside this building during prayer time. So went to the next building, this was again a prayer hall and we were in a doubt whether we were allowed inside. One Dalai lama was coming out of the building when we checked with him he said we can enter. So we went inside the prayer hall and we could see them chanting some prayers. In fact there was a book with each one of them and they were reading loudly from the leaves. There were many musical instruments like trumpet, cymbals, etc. which they were playing during the prayer. I really loved the way the prayer was going on. We sat there for a while listening to the prayer. Meanwhile a lama got up from his seat and performed some rituals. He was going on doing namskara by laying down and getting up. It continued for some time. And then we started from there and we saw a replica of Tibetan monastery and yes of course next thought was when to visit Tibet. After that we came out and there were 2 shops outside which were selling some show pieces, wind chimes, ornaments, etc. We did some shopping and we started off to Cauvery Nisargadhama at 10:30AM and reached there by 10:50AM. After parking our car and paying Rs.30/- as parking fee we took entry tickets which costs us Rs.10/- per head. Nisargadhama is an island formed by the River Cauvery. You should cross a hanging bridge to reach there. While crossing the bridge we saw people boating in Cauvery and there were nearly hundreds of big fishes swimming across the river. We walked inside the park and we saw bamboo forest, 2-3 bamboo houses like tree houses, deer park, etc. There was a way to river and we got down the steps and enjoyed the beauty of the place. After that we got out of the park and there were many stalls from where we got some home made chocolates, coffee powder, tea powder, etc. By 12:30 PM we started off from there. We went to Fish Curry Rice restaurant and had our lunch from there. From there we started off to Chickly hole. This one was not in our list but we saw the picture of Chickly hole in the restaurant and felt that it is an attractive place. And more over our next destination was Dubare Elephant camp and Chickly hole falls on the way. From hotel it was 15kms, so we started off to Chickly hole. On the way to Dubare you have to take a right turn and through the forest you have to travel 3kms.This is a reservoir and when we reached there we saw a river on the downside. We walked down and the panoramic view was amazing. The view was picturesque and we strolled across enjoying the view. We could see many monkeys on the other side of the river. Reejamma saw few animal foot prints saw we were bit worried and walked back. After that we walked on top of the dam and saw Chickly hole at the far end. There was no water in the hole and after taking few snaps we started off to Dubare Elephant camp which was 7kms from Chickly hole. When we reached there it was drizzling, but the elephant camp was closed for 3 days. L We felt sad and was thinking what to do. River rafting was available there but we were not in a mood to go for rafting so we got down in the river enjoying the cool water. We paid the car parking fee Rs.30/- and started off from there. We saw many shops selling homemade wines so we bought Pineapple wine from there. Our next and last destination was Talakveri. On the way to talakaveri we saw a hanging bridge we stopped there for taking photos. We could see rafting boats of Dubare from the bridge. By 3:30PM we started off to Talakaveri. Suddenly it started raining heavily, heavy rain stopped after 5 minutes and drizzling continued. Once we entered Suntikoppa rain stopped and after 5 minutes it started drizzling again. After a while it started raining heavily again, even our sight was blocked for some time. We bought fruits on the way when rain stopped for some time. Again it started raining. It was pouring cats and dogs. Finally somehow we made to Talakaveri. We were informed that it will be closed by 6PM. We reached there by 5:30PM, as we have only one umbrella Rakeu and I went inside first. We were totally drenched despite of having the umbrella and I felt too cold on top of the hill. There was a Shiva and Ganapathy temple on top of the hill. This is the place of origin of river Cauvery or you can say birth place of river Cauvery. We finished our prayers and came back fast to hand over our umbrella to Achan and Reejamma so that they can also visit the temple. After them visiting the temple we started off and on the way we had coffee, tea and biscuits. On the way back we asked one uncle about the route as net was not available in that area. The uncle told about a different route and we took that one. Unfortunately it started raining heavily and there were no street lights on the way. So our sight was totally blocked by rain and when I got the net I searched for Virajpet and by giving instructions to Rakeu that you have to take left , right, sharp bend, etc. somehow we managed to reach Virajpet. It was really an adventurous tripJ. When we reached Virajpet rain has stopped. Finally we reached Mattannur at around 9PM and we had our dinner from Kanal restaurant. The food was awesome, and after that we started off to our home at around 10PM. We reached my place at around 11PM and we were happy about our road trip.

Namdroling Monastery.