An Ode To the ‘God’s Own Country’

After our marriage, I and my husband decided to visit Kerala for our honeymoon. We wanted to spend our time in the lap of Nature embraced by the serenity and for us, no other place complies with this other than Kerala. We (especially I ) had always wanted to visit Kerala. I remember browsing through zillions of beautiful pictures on the internet. Nature has blessed this land in abundance. The greenery, the waterfalls, the beaches, the hill ranges, the backwaters, everything about Kerala captivates me. My husband has two main reasons for loving Kerala. The first reason is definitely the natural beauty of the small state and the second one is quite funny. We are Hyderabadis and my husband finds it very convenient that Kerala is somewhat close to Hyderabad( which means lesser travelling hours and fatigue). Moreover, he also found a tour package to Kerala which was made for travelers from Hyderabad. This tour package was offered at really low prices by the travel planners named Lelagoon Holidays. This particular fact made my husband, even more, happier that he instantly fell in love with the idea of travelling to 'God's own Country'. He asked me to pack the bags as he had booked the package and was even going to book the flight which was set to leave for Kerala in two days. I did back my bags and we did leave for Kerala and we had the time of our lives in the small southern state. Wherever you go for a trip, there is just one prayer in your mind that the trip should go as planned. Well, guess what, my trip was way beyond my expectations. Kerala was way more beautiful than the pictures that I saw. Be it the places, the food or people, Kerala is beautifully unique and considerate. The love that the Keralites have for one another is so uplifting. There is no religious or any sort of barriers separating these people from calling one another brother. You can see Muslim children walking hand in hand with Hindu and Christian children. If you want to witness such beautiful sights, you need to come to Kerala. Where else can you see such a wonderful atmosphere?! Well, it isn’t called ‘God’s own Country’ for nothing. Kerala has a huge influence in my life and it has helped me become a better person too. Kerala has become so close to my heart now, that I have started considering it as my second home. I could go on and on about 'God's own Country'. In this blog, I am going to ramble about my most favorite places in Kerala. Those places which took us to another world of tranquility and peace, making our simple honeymoon a beautiful time to cherish for an entire lifetime. Of all the places that we visited in Kerala, we found the Athirapilly Waterfalls and Ezhattumugham to be completely mesmerizing. We all know that travelling is just not about gazing at places. It is also about learning new things, discovering yourself and finding peace and detaching yourself from the worldly concerns. For all this to take place, you need to feel emotionally connected to the destination that you are in. Athirapilly had the same effect on us which is unforgettable. We literally found out the meaning of true bliss on that day.

Athirapilly Waterfalls, the cascading falls of Elixir

Athirapilly is located in Thrissur district of Kerala. These humongous cascading falls are considered to be one of the biggest waterfalls in India. It is advisable to hire a cab to Athirapilly, as there are fewer buses( both private and public) to the place. But if you are planning to take the bus whatsoever, you must first get down at Chalakudy from where you can board a bus straight to Athirapilly. As for us, our travel planners in Kerala had already hired a cab to Athirapilly as part of our honeymoon package. I still remember it like yesterday. The drive to Athirapilly was wonderful. The winding route cuts through dense forests. I couldn’t take my eyes off the window for it was adorned by the scenic beauty outside. It felt as though the thick canopy of trees were painting the azure sky with splashes of green. I was already beginning to love the place. And after half an hour’s drive, we reached Athirapilly. But that was not all, we had to travel almost an entire km to reach the humongous waterfalls. To be frank, I actually enjoyed every step that I took. It was like trekking through the beautiful land that Nature has provided. As it is said, the fruits of patience are sweeter and true to every word, it was.  I was bowled over by the magnificence that was gushing out in front of me. The milky falls cascaded with such force that they seemed to be touching the sky. I stood transfixed. I couldn’t feel the world that was bustling around me. All I could hear was the majestic roar of the Athirapilly falls and the water bubbling as it nears the cool pool of water. That is when I felt something nibbling my dress and I looked down to find a baby monkey. That brought me out of my trance in a jiffy, because I believe no one in this world is as scared as me when it came to monkeys. I ran away to find a ‘monkey-free’ spot just to find out that there wasn’t such a single spot free of monkeys! But to my surprise, I found out that they are harmless unless you have a bag of food. Luckily, neither I nor my husband had one and so I went on to enjoy my trip without a single worry in mind! One of the best parts of my Athirapilly trip was sitting by the pool of water created by the falls to gaze at the children playing and splashing water all around and their amusement as the water flowed bubbling its way through their little feet. As I watched them I wondered whether Life would ever give me a chance to be as happy as those innocent lives.

Solo Escape into Mother Nature at Wayanad

The people who traverse through various places are those who undoubtedly have more dreams to accomplish. While most of the people find it too hard to plan a trip, I have always found it easy to follow what my heart says and hence it has been easy for me to travel. For a long time, I had been mind-boggling about the place I could visit and came down with the perfect destination which would help me capture all that I wanted to. Kerala, the Gods own country was the place and everything I wanted to pursue could be done in this gem of a place. So without having second thoughts on it, as usual, I planned a quick trip on which I got some guidance and help from Lelagoon Holidays. The solo traverse hence began where I took a bus ride from Bangalore for you should always know the ways through which you get to reach the destination. Little did I know that it is not really tough task to reach the place and that I should have already made a trip to the destination much earlier. The Kerala tour package was hence much powered with every enthusiasm. On reaching Wayanad, I got out of the bus and the travel began where I met the official driver who would be taking me through the destination. The first task was to head on to places that were perfect for sightseeing. 

I have never been a traveller who has always wanted to see everything in a destination. I often pick out the places that I have always wanted to see and then tries to know everything regarding the places through the internet and from the friends who have been to the place. The first place for my visit was Pookode Lake. The freshwater lake had something very attractive about the pictures I had seen of it and hence a travel to the place was bound upon reaching. I got to the Lake where the driver dropped me. I carried my camera along with me where the lake had been in front of me and tourists had been cruising through the lake in pedal boats. After fetching 10 rupees entry ticket, I entered inside and decided to take a boat journey. The place was very serene where greenery spread out on the banks of the river.  I got in for the bat ride after paying 30 bucks and began pedaling to a spot from where I could get a beautiful shot of the place captured into my camera. And after being satisfied with the pictures, I got back on time and walked to the aquarium that was located nearby. A spice and condiments shop was also located close by. After feeding the tiny fishes in the aquarium, I decided to get back to the car where we were bound to visit the next place. 

The journey was to Banasura Dam. I have not been to a lot of days before and the fact that this dam is the largest earthen dam here was one reason that I decided to be at the place. On reaching the place I took a panoramic shot of the dam. Here again, boating was going on but I did not really want to take another cruise again. After wandering around the place for some time, I decided to get back to the driver. It was time for lunch and the driver asked me if a typical Kerala Sadhya was preferred. I was ready for any trail and wouldn't mind eating anything from the places where I tour too. After having a delicious platter of amazing vegetable dishes where I had not had this good vegetarian food from Bangalore, The travel proceeded and this time to the Edakkal Caves. Caves were again one thing that I had never visited at many places. On reaching I realized that the walk was more a mini red where walking through all the steps I reached about the rocks that had inscriptions from the past. It wasn't really something that any of the people could understand.  Also on walking further inside, I got to sight a small piece of rock between two huge rocks. The view from the top was also priceless where the widespread greenery was worth staring at. It was time that we climb back and hence the walk back dropped me at the car. I was almost tired after the sightseeing that I asked the driver to drop me at the residence booked for the stay. We reached the resorts and I checked in. Even the resorts and hotels located at Wayanad provided perfect views of nature. After walking through the garden there, I took a dive in the swimming pool and the next day had to be a fresh start.

The second day is when I decided to set off on a trek which was the ultimate reason for the visit to Wayanad. The Chembra peak and the Meeshapulimala were two places that were the best for trekking when I had googled. I decided to make my ultimate trekking through the peak and the driver dropped me early in the morning. I got in touch with a guide who would be leading me and other guys on the trek. The other guys who had been with me had been pretty more enthusiastic and friendly at the same time. They had come from the neighboring district, Kozhikode and had come with quite some food to eat as the trek was an 8-hour expedition. The walk began where the guide had been the best pouring out a lot of information and letting us rest so that we do not get tired at the end of the day. The walk finally came out a point where we got to see the heart-shaped lake. It is told that this lake is man-made. But was quite a wonder while trekking and one of the best that I got to capture at Wayanad. The trek continued further where the next stop was the top. The view from this place was the ultimate where the rolling Western Ghats spread out in beauty. We spend over two hours there sitting where all of us talked and had the treats that had been bought.  And then walk began where we got back and realized that a whole day of full spirit had been over. By night I had return back to after the Kerala tourpackage from Bangalore and hence I decided to get back to home and rest. Wayanad had indeed been the best treat that I had got from traveling at Kerala