God’s own country
Kerala has many beautiful places to visit. I have already visited Thekkady , Ashtamudi, Poovar, Waynad, Alappy, Munnar and Kumarakom. But Munnar was one place I wanted to visit again as we were looking for relaxing place on the hill top. Our path to Munnar from Thekkady was lush green with Cardamom and Tea plantations. The cool breeze welcomed us along the way. Water flowed in thin strings in between the rocks blending with the trees and plantation around them making it truly scenic.
About Munnar
Munnar is 137 kms east of Cochin. Munnar in native language means 3 streams Muthirapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundala which tumble down to meet at Munnar ,which later join the famous Periyar river. It is at an altitude of 5500ft among forest covered hills. It is also the second highest rainfall region in the country next to Cheerapunji.
Club Mahindra – Lake View. The place where we stayed.
As we entered the resort we were received by warm hospitable welcome staff of the resort. We drank the welcome drink and headed towards our room which was neatly kept and well maintained. We freshened up and decided to go around the resort which had a activity center with various indoor games like TT, Snooker, Carrom and Chess. In one of the corners was a painting zone where Gargi tried sketching and mirror painting. In the late evening we enjoyed the campfire and headed towards the dining room which was so spacious with open doorways. As we relished our dinner we could gaze the canopy of stars through the large window panes. It was truly an out worldly experience.
Eravikulam wildlife sanctuary
The next day we headed towards Eravikulam wildlife Sanctuary where we had planned to take a few snaps of Nilgiri thar, a mountain goat which is a near extinct species of Ibex. It was a long wait to take the tickets. We drove up the mountain in one of the forest department mini buses. As we were up the mountain we could see breathtaking view of the tea plantation and the jungle on the mountain top. Though it was misty we walked a km uphill. The whole sanctuary was detached from the modern world. As we walked further the mist cleared and we could see the extraordinary natural spectacle of green mountain ranges. A shimmer of golden light was cast on them by the evening sun. We also managed to take few pictures of niligiri thar. It was of course a rewarding experience.
Lunch time
The next day we decided to cook and have lunch amidst nature. Just a few yards from the resort was asst .managers bungalow facing water falls. Having lunch there was a delighting experience for all of us. Gargi collected wild flowers for her herbarium and Gautham was busy taking snaps of various endemic birds. Bird watchers are rewarded with rare sightings of birds here.
Return
Our return journey was equally exciting as we saw a number of beautiful waterfalls and had an opportunity to click lovely photos of the Malabar giant squirrel. We also enjoyed the wild countryside that surrounds Munnar. As we drove down Munnar I was reminded of these famous lines
I gazed and gazed but lil thought
What wealth the show to me had brought
Then my heart with pleasure fills
Dances with the daffodils.
-William Words Worth
About Munnar
Munnar is 137 kms east of Cochin. Munnar in native language means 3 streams Muthirapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundala which tumble down to meet at Munnar ,which later join the famous Periyar river. It is at an altitude of 5500ft among forest covered hills. It is also the second highest rainfall region in the country next to Cheerapunji.
Club Mahindra – Lake View. The place where we stayed.
As we entered the resort we were received by warm hospitable welcome staff of the resort. We drank the welcome drink and headed towards our room which was neatly kept and well maintained. We freshened up and decided to go around the resort which had a activity center with various indoor games like TT, Snooker, Carrom and Chess. In one of the corners was a painting zone where Gargi tried sketching and mirror painting. In the late evening we enjoyed the campfire and headed towards the dining room which was so spacious with open doorways. As we relished our dinner we could gaze the canopy of stars through the large window panes. It was truly an out worldly experience.
Eravikulam wildlife sanctuary
The next day we headed towards Eravikulam wildlife Sanctuary where we had planned to take a few snaps of Nilgiri thar, a mountain goat which is a near extinct species of Ibex. It was a long wait to take the tickets. We drove up the mountain in one of the forest department mini buses. As we were up the mountain we could see breathtaking view of the tea plantation and the jungle on the mountain top. Though it was misty we walked a km uphill. The whole sanctuary was detached from the modern world. As we walked further the mist cleared and we could see the extraordinary natural spectacle of green mountain ranges. A shimmer of golden light was cast on them by the evening sun. We also managed to take few pictures of niligiri thar. It was of course a rewarding experience.
Lunch time
The next day we decided to cook and have lunch amidst nature. Just a few yards from the resort was asst .managers bungalow facing water falls. Having lunch there was a delighting experience for all of us. Gargi collected wild flowers for her herbarium and Gautham was busy taking snaps of various endemic birds. Bird watchers are rewarded with rare sightings of birds here.
Return
Our return journey was equally exciting as we saw a number of beautiful waterfalls and had an opportunity to click lovely photos of the Malabar giant squirrel. We also enjoyed the wild countryside that surrounds Munnar. As we drove down Munnar I was reminded of these famous lines
I gazed and gazed but lil thought
What wealth the show to me had brought
Then my heart with pleasure fills
Dances with the daffodils.
-William Words Worth
Comments
very nicely written :-)