Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
The Bangalore-Ooty Road Trip - Part 2, the 24hr Ooty Stay
15th August,2008 13:30 hrs, Glanton Manor , Charring cross, Conoor Road, Ooty!!
We checked-in to our hotel which was impossibly arranged by a friend. The reception gives you a nice feel and you expect a decent room. Well You get one too. Ignore the little details you may not like about the room, you are not going to spend your time indoors in Ooty now are you?!
With all the luggage still in our Spark, we decided to walk around the town after freshening up. There was not even a little tiredness that had set in after the 6.5 hours drive. Nice hot tomato soup for the soul followed by some serious lunch.It was 3pm. After the meal we decided to explore Ooty on foot. It is easy to find tourist spots around because of Information boards installed in the town. The Botanical Garden was just about 1 km from our hotel. Sights of bunches of fresh, orange carrots with its plant still on it put smiles on our faces. we had to buy a couple of bunches and much on them on our way back!
The Botanical Garden is a huge place with myriad , beautiful gardens and trees that could have easily been as old as time!
The Glass house with uncountable flowers was very nice.
2 hours later we walked out of the Botanical Garden and headed towards the hotel. On the way we bought some carrots and rose apples.
The Rose Garden , about 1.5 km from the Botanical Garden was our next stop. We stopped at the hotel, which was in between got into our car for a drive through the town. We drove to the Rose Garden. How many types of roses are there!!
Then we drove to Ooty lake only to find out that it was closing time. We thought we could come there the following morning.
Another thing Ooty is famous for are Ooty Chocolates. Lots of them! We bought paper bags full of Dark Arabian nuts, rum and Raisin, and lots more! Paper bags because use of plastic is avoided in Ooty.Nice!
After a quick dinner at a nearby hotel we thought of experiencing Ooty in the night. A fountain at the square caught our fancy.
The walk had done us good and we thought of retiring for the night.Snuggled inside the covers with sweaters and socks we faded into happy slumber with excitement of a day most loved!
DAY 2
6am, Michelle and I had to go for a refreshing,morning walk amidst nature. How many times can you do that in Bangalore! Walking up an incline we came across horses, chirping birds, an art college and pretty bungalows.
A little away we could see a white edifice that had THE TEA FACTORY written across it in bold red letters. How we wished we could walk till there. A 2 rupees chai at the roadside and a plan for the day, we walked back up to our room.
Since hot water is available in the hotel only between 7-9 am , we had to finish getting ready by then. We had asked the hotel to arrange for a taxi to take us to Dodabetta Peak, the Second Highest peak in South India. From an indica to a van, for both of which I expressed my concern if it would climb the peak, we were pleasantly surprised to find a sparkling new Sumo as our drive. Upgrading is always a good feeling. The driver was also a very enthusiastic chap who enlightened us about a lot of things about Ooty and its demographics and geography.
To our advantage, he even took us to the same Tea factory which we would have missed had we taken our car to the peak. The tea factory gives youa tour of the process of tea manufacturing and also gives you to sample a cup of tea. My third for the morning! It also has a shop from where you can buy different types of tea like chocolate tea,Cardomon Tea,Green Tea,Black Tea, Orange Pekoe and CTC. Oils and essentials are also available.
After the factory stop we arrived to the tourist crowd of Dodabetta peak. Althought the views of Conoor, Mysore border,Ooty and the Green Valley are vey nice, the crowd of people makes you want to run away! Tip, if you do plan to visit, be there early. It opens at 8am.
The road back was by then jammed up with cars both parked and moving! It was only at 11 am that we finally managed to reach out hotel. So boating plans were cancelled. We had to make a move if we were to reach Bangalore before Dusk.
Lunch, hotel check-out, petrol refuel and air pressure check, and cash withdrawal later, we bid adieu to the old hill station of Ooty nestled in the laps of the Blue Hills, Green Flora and misty white fog! It was 13 30 hrs.
The drive down the Kalatti ghats was obviously much faster,but only at the region limits did we realize that the route back to Mudumulai was not the same as the one we had come on. So did the unexpected detour cost us? To find out, you will have to read Part 3, the return !
We checked-in to our hotel which was impossibly arranged by a friend. The reception gives you a nice feel and you expect a decent room. Well You get one too. Ignore the little details you may not like about the room, you are not going to spend your time indoors in Ooty now are you?!
With all the luggage still in our Spark, we decided to walk around the town after freshening up. There was not even a little tiredness that had set in after the 6.5 hours drive. Nice hot tomato soup for the soul followed by some serious lunch.It was 3pm. After the meal we decided to explore Ooty on foot. It is easy to find tourist spots around because of Information boards installed in the town. The Botanical Garden was just about 1 km from our hotel. Sights of bunches of fresh, orange carrots with its plant still on it put smiles on our faces. we had to buy a couple of bunches and much on them on our way back!
The Botanical Garden is a huge place with myriad , beautiful gardens and trees that could have easily been as old as time!
The Glass house with uncountable flowers was very nice.
2 hours later we walked out of the Botanical Garden and headed towards the hotel. On the way we bought some carrots and rose apples.
The Rose Garden , about 1.5 km from the Botanical Garden was our next stop. We stopped at the hotel, which was in between got into our car for a drive through the town. We drove to the Rose Garden. How many types of roses are there!!
Then we drove to Ooty lake only to find out that it was closing time. We thought we could come there the following morning.
Another thing Ooty is famous for are Ooty Chocolates. Lots of them! We bought paper bags full of Dark Arabian nuts, rum and Raisin, and lots more! Paper bags because use of plastic is avoided in Ooty.Nice!
After a quick dinner at a nearby hotel we thought of experiencing Ooty in the night. A fountain at the square caught our fancy.
The walk had done us good and we thought of retiring for the night.Snuggled inside the covers with sweaters and socks we faded into happy slumber with excitement of a day most loved!
DAY 2
6am, Michelle and I had to go for a refreshing,morning walk amidst nature. How many times can you do that in Bangalore! Walking up an incline we came across horses, chirping birds, an art college and pretty bungalows.
A little away we could see a white edifice that had THE TEA FACTORY written across it in bold red letters. How we wished we could walk till there. A 2 rupees chai at the roadside and a plan for the day, we walked back up to our room.
Since hot water is available in the hotel only between 7-9 am , we had to finish getting ready by then. We had asked the hotel to arrange for a taxi to take us to Dodabetta Peak, the Second Highest peak in South India. From an indica to a van, for both of which I expressed my concern if it would climb the peak, we were pleasantly surprised to find a sparkling new Sumo as our drive. Upgrading is always a good feeling. The driver was also a very enthusiastic chap who enlightened us about a lot of things about Ooty and its demographics and geography.
To our advantage, he even took us to the same Tea factory which we would have missed had we taken our car to the peak. The tea factory gives youa tour of the process of tea manufacturing and also gives you to sample a cup of tea. My third for the morning! It also has a shop from where you can buy different types of tea like chocolate tea,Cardomon Tea,Green Tea,Black Tea, Orange Pekoe and CTC. Oils and essentials are also available.
After the factory stop we arrived to the tourist crowd of Dodabetta peak. Althought the views of Conoor, Mysore border,Ooty and the Green Valley are vey nice, the crowd of people makes you want to run away! Tip, if you do plan to visit, be there early. It opens at 8am.
The road back was by then jammed up with cars both parked and moving! It was only at 11 am that we finally managed to reach out hotel. So boating plans were cancelled. We had to make a move if we were to reach Bangalore before Dusk.
Lunch, hotel check-out, petrol refuel and air pressure check, and cash withdrawal later, we bid adieu to the old hill station of Ooty nestled in the laps of the Blue Hills, Green Flora and misty white fog! It was 13 30 hrs.
The drive down the Kalatti ghats was obviously much faster,but only at the region limits did we realize that the route back to Mudumulai was not the same as the one we had come on. So did the unexpected detour cost us? To find out, you will have to read Part 3, the return !
The Bangalore-Ooty Road trip!
PART 1 - the journey!
The Chariot: Red Chevy Spark, 1.1L Petrol
The Knights(or knightesses?):Michelle , Sudipta, Komal
The Date:15th August 2008,Friday 0700 hrs
The Mission: A Road Trip to Remeber
The Distance: 300 kms (one way)
The Route: Bangalore-Bidadi-Ramnagaram-Channapattana-Maddur-Mandya-Mysore-Nanjangud-Gundlupet-Bandipur-Mudumalai-Theppekaddu-Masinagudi-Kalatti-Ooty !!
On the break of dawn, while Bangalore sleeps, 3 zealous women awaken to embark upon a trip they would like to tell the world about.
Now that I am done with the 'start with a bang' effect, lets get to the details.
After 2 days of frantic search for accomodation and last minute lists and preparations, my rommies and I left towards Maratahalli! Not that it was part of our bizarre plan, it was a desperate necessity. You did not think that we could go on such road trips without a camera! No, I still do not have my SLR , and neither did I have my C702 then. So we had to wake up sleepy head Nigel, after travelling in the opposite direction, to borrow his camera for the trip. Once the last item on our check list was ..well..checked..we finally drove towards Mysore Road at 0700!
Since it was infact India's Independence Day, we were feeling patriotic and so "Maa Tujhe Salaam' played in a loop for a while in the car. The goosebumps never stop do they!
The NICE Road was as usual the start of a beautiful journey. Sudi was at the wheel!
First Stop was MTR,Maddur for breakfast, and it was one of the most delicious breakfasts!Lovely,crisp medu vadas and idli sambar! And of course, can't do without my chai. A couple of muffins were bought from the adjacent CCD to oblige to the use of its certain services.
With souls refuelled, we were off for an ambitious drive!Next stop,Bandipur. The SH7 did little to slow us down.The bypass takes you through less developed areas and MSIL. With the Chamundi Hills in far distance, and an old roadstone marking our destination, we could not resist shooting some "Jab we Met" snaps! Well that's what my roomies baptised them as!
At this junture , I took over the wheels for a non stop drive to Bandipur.At least that is what we thought.It was close to 10am. Little did we know that the stretch through Gundulpet would go through innocent country side with blue mountains, lust green fields and bright yellow sun flowers! Absolutely heart warming!! Happy locals and Happy us!
A small interjection to point out that the scenic sights were arrived on terrible roads. Thankfully it is a small stretch and there seems to be evidence that repairs are imminent.
Stop at CCD just before Bandipur ,I could not resist a cool ice tea in the pristine breeze. After freshening up, and driving through some irritating traffic we entered the Bandipur National Forest. The roads winds through tall and full bamboo groves of the most delightful green colour.The steady drizzle only wanted to make our hearts sing. The rhythmic,lone sound of the wipers brushing against the glass almost made us hear lullabys. No heards of elephants greeted us but we were not very disappointed.
The state border stared at us in a distance!The territory of Tamil Nadu beckoned us with a completely different flora. The inspector questioned us on our source. Surely he had seen 3 girls on a road trip before! The lady officer seemed proud of us!
The Mudumulai National forest is more of a deciduous forest dominated by tropical trees like Teak. Ooty is 17kms from here through Masinagudi.However since the last stretch is a climb through Kalatti Ghats and its numerous hair-pin turns the time taken is a little less than an hour.
Ooty charms you. The houses,the streets and without a doubt, the weather and the tall pine trees with tops covered by thick fog. The drizzle continued. Its pleasantly cool. At 1pm, we had arrived at our destination:Ooty,a hill station that has attracted weary urbanites to its cozy laps of tea estates and lakes. Will the journey that had so livened our spirits be ousted from its position as the best part of the holiday by a hill station balancing its charm with the growth demand of a developing India full of getaway-thirsty sapiens?
Find out, in Part 2: Ooty - the 24hr stay!
The Chariot: Red Chevy Spark, 1.1L Petrol
The Knights(or knightesses?):Michelle , Sudipta, Komal
The Date:15th August 2008,Friday 0700 hrs
The Mission: A Road Trip to Remeber
The Distance: 300 kms (one way)
The Route: Bangalore-Bidadi-Ramnagaram-Channapattana-Maddur-Mandya-Mysore-Nanjangud-Gundlupet-Bandipur-Mudumalai-Theppekaddu-Masinagudi-Kalatti-Ooty !!
On the break of dawn, while Bangalore sleeps, 3 zealous women awaken to embark upon a trip they would like to tell the world about.
Now that I am done with the 'start with a bang' effect, lets get to the details.
After 2 days of frantic search for accomodation and last minute lists and preparations, my rommies and I left towards Maratahalli! Not that it was part of our bizarre plan, it was a desperate necessity. You did not think that we could go on such road trips without a camera! No, I still do not have my SLR , and neither did I have my C702 then. So we had to wake up sleepy head Nigel, after travelling in the opposite direction, to borrow his camera for the trip. Once the last item on our check list was ..well..checked..we finally drove towards Mysore Road at 0700!
Since it was infact India's Independence Day, we were feeling patriotic and so "Maa Tujhe Salaam' played in a loop for a while in the car. The goosebumps never stop do they!
The NICE Road was as usual the start of a beautiful journey. Sudi was at the wheel!
First Stop was MTR,Maddur for breakfast, and it was one of the most delicious breakfasts!Lovely,crisp medu vadas and idli sambar! And of course, can't do without my chai. A couple of muffins were bought from the adjacent CCD to oblige to the use of its certain services.
With souls refuelled, we were off for an ambitious drive!Next stop,Bandipur. The SH7 did little to slow us down.The bypass takes you through less developed areas and MSIL. With the Chamundi Hills in far distance, and an old roadstone marking our destination, we could not resist shooting some "Jab we Met" snaps! Well that's what my roomies baptised them as!
At this junture , I took over the wheels for a non stop drive to Bandipur.At least that is what we thought.It was close to 10am. Little did we know that the stretch through Gundulpet would go through innocent country side with blue mountains, lust green fields and bright yellow sun flowers! Absolutely heart warming!! Happy locals and Happy us!
A small interjection to point out that the scenic sights were arrived on terrible roads. Thankfully it is a small stretch and there seems to be evidence that repairs are imminent.
Stop at CCD just before Bandipur ,I could not resist a cool ice tea in the pristine breeze. After freshening up, and driving through some irritating traffic we entered the Bandipur National Forest. The roads winds through tall and full bamboo groves of the most delightful green colour.The steady drizzle only wanted to make our hearts sing. The rhythmic,lone sound of the wipers brushing against the glass almost made us hear lullabys. No heards of elephants greeted us but we were not very disappointed.
The state border stared at us in a distance!The territory of Tamil Nadu beckoned us with a completely different flora. The inspector questioned us on our source. Surely he had seen 3 girls on a road trip before
The Mudumulai National forest is more of a deciduous forest dominated by tropical trees like Teak. Ooty is 17kms from here through Masinagudi.However since the last stretch is a climb through Kalatti Ghats and its numerous hair-pin turns the time taken is a little less than an hour.
Find out, in Part 2: Ooty - the 24hr stay!
Monday, July 28, 2008
The Kite Runner-the movie
One of those few books whose movie was eagerly awaited by me. And I finally got to watch the movie. While the movie captures the essence of the whole book, I think the book does more(no surprise here). And while it omitted one scene from the book that had got my eyes misty,probably because it was too depressing to film it too, the last scene leaves your heart happy and overwhelmed for just the right amount of time.
"For you, a thousand times over!!" - Amirjaan
"For you, a thousand times over!!" - Amirjaan
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Stimulus!
Have been on a reading marathon the last few weeks. Here is the list.
1)Playing for Pizza- I know more about american football now. Whatever.
2)Louisa May Alcott's Little Women - A Must read while growing up, you can read it again anytime.
3)Jeffrey Archer's Prisoner Of Birth - Rather read Fourth Estate or Kane and Abel again.
4)Jean Sasson's Princess: Welcome to the real World, its not great out there.
5)Jean Sasson's Daughter's Of Arabia - Its still a ruthless world out there.
6)Chicken Soup for the Indian Soul - Guess I needed it to restore my faith in humanity following the previous 2 books
7)Chetan Bhagat's 3 mistakes of my life - Ok, its your life.
The books lined up next:
1)Conversations with God Vol 3 - looking forward to a good read. Haven't had one since a long time.
2)The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
3)Amitav Ghosh's Sea Of Poppies
4)Kiran Desai's The Inheritance of Loss
Something is missing, a good murder mystery. Where are they?!
Recent Plays - 5 Grains of Sugar - Simple. Nice.
New word: complaisant - exhibiting a desire to please
Still looking out for "The Kite Runner" , the movie. The book moved me to tears. Have to see how the movie is made. Until the next post, Ta!
1)Playing for Pizza- I know more about american football now. Whatever.
2)Louisa May Alcott's Little Women - A Must read while growing up, you can read it again anytime.
3)Jeffrey Archer's Prisoner Of Birth - Rather read Fourth Estate or Kane and Abel again.
4)Jean Sasson's Princess: Welcome to the real World, its not great out there.
5)Jean Sasson's Daughter's Of Arabia - Its still a ruthless world out there.
6)Chicken Soup for the Indian Soul - Guess I needed it to restore my faith in humanity following the previous 2 books
7)Chetan Bhagat's 3 mistakes of my life - Ok, its your life.
The books lined up next:
1)Conversations with God Vol 3 - looking forward to a good read. Haven't had one since a long time.
2)The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
3)Amitav Ghosh's Sea Of Poppies
4)Kiran Desai's The Inheritance of Loss
Something is missing, a good murder mystery. Where are they?!
Recent Plays - 5 Grains of Sugar - Simple. Nice.
New word: complaisant - exhibiting a desire to please
Still looking out for "The Kite Runner" , the movie. The book moved me to tears. Have to see how the movie is made. Until the next post, Ta!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Climbing Up!
I recently got the opportunity to try out a new sport: Vertical Wall Climbing. I always wanted to do Rock Climbing, I guess this was the closest I could get for now.
I registered for the event as soon as the invite to participate was received by my Inbox. The day was 4th June,2008. The only problem was the time. 7 am, at Kanteerva Stadium! Well, what the heck, it was one morning. Every other I get the luxury to leave the house at 7 30, so I should not crib about leaving the house at 6 45 am on one morning!! (Readers new to me, the previous sentence was oozing sarcasm!)
Well I reader well in advance, since only a couple of participants had managed to reach before me.
The wall for the guys was different from the ones for the girls. My name was first on the list, but I couldn't go first!! Thankfully a more experienced climber (she had atleast climbed twice before in her lifetime) offered to go first. No, climbing windows and mango trees during childhood stupidity does not count, it was my first time and i will remain adamant on that).
It was tough. Hell, it is tough. You can pretend to make calculative steps but one loose grip or wrong footing can bring you down giving you no time to scramble for whatever part of the wall you can hang on. The vertical part is almost easy, but when the damn thing inclines to an angle of about 30 degrees to the vertical is when you are fighting with newton!! This is where an extension of 2 inches to my left arm would have helped to hold on to that damn peg no 15! But my arms gave away. I was already shaking. Holding on to a couple of pegs for some time is not an option it will only strain your arms more.
14 was my score then. My effort was commended and the organizers even claimed that I was a good climber. Well, whatever!
Another attempt was sought after. But that darn peg. this time 13!
The score is based on peg you last kept foot on.
Now climbing beyond that mark was a challenge I had to succeed or else I would not get sleep that night!
We were allowed to climb for fun while the guys finished their second round. That is when I managed to finally hold on to the peg and climb to point higher. Phew. But my arms had a different story to tell.
Popeye's biceps no longer seemed imaginative to me as the blood that rushes to your forearm makes it bulge. That was the first time I saw my forearm like that boy was I thrilled!
All in all, it was a great experience. You can draw parallels to life, or work, or whatever, but the fact is when you are up there, its just you, you determination, your confidence and the wall!
People interested in training and taking up this sport can contact Mars Adventures,Bangalore.
I registered for the event as soon as the invite to participate was received by my Inbox. The day was 4th June,2008. The only problem was the time. 7 am, at Kanteerva Stadium! Well, what the heck, it was one morning. Every other I get the luxury to leave the house at 7 30, so I should not crib about leaving the house at 6 45 am on one morning!! (Readers new to me, the previous sentence was oozing sarcasm!)
Well I reader well in advance, since only a couple of participants had managed to reach before me.
The wall for the guys was different from the ones for the girls. My name was first on the list, but I couldn't go first!! Thankfully a more experienced climber (she had atleast climbed twice before in her lifetime) offered to go first. No, climbing windows and mango trees during childhood stupidity does not count, it was my first time and i will remain adamant on that).
It was tough. Hell, it is tough. You can pretend to make calculative steps but one loose grip or wrong footing can bring you down giving you no time to scramble for whatever part of the wall you can hang on. The vertical part is almost easy, but when the damn thing inclines to an angle of about 30 degrees to the vertical is when you are fighting with newton!! This is where an extension of 2 inches to my left arm would have helped to hold on to that damn peg no 15! But my arms gave away. I was already shaking. Holding on to a couple of pegs for some time is not an option it will only strain your arms more.
14 was my score then. My effort was commended and the organizers even claimed that I was a good climber. Well, whatever!
Another attempt was sought after. But that darn peg. this time 13!
The score is based on peg you last kept foot on.
Now climbing beyond that mark was a challenge I had to succeed or else I would not get sleep that night!
We were allowed to climb for fun while the guys finished their second round. That is when I managed to finally hold on to the peg and climb to point higher. Phew. But my arms had a different story to tell.
Popeye's biceps no longer seemed imaginative to me as the blood that rushes to your forearm makes it bulge. That was the first time I saw my forearm like that boy was I thrilled!
All in all, it was a great experience. You can draw parallels to life, or work, or whatever, but the fact is when you are up there, its just you, you determination, your confidence and the wall!
People interested in training and taking up this sport can contact Mars Adventures,Bangalore.
Chick Mobile hits the Road!
"Well,decide!", I said to Michelle and Sudi, who sat across the table.We had just finished a very delicious sea food lunch at Managlore Pearl and were now contemplating where the newly arrived Red ChickMobile should go on its first long drive: Nandi Hills or Cafe Coffee Road, Maddur.We ended up going to both places! We drove up to Nandi Hills after lunch, reached by 6pm, to catch the sunset. As we discovered whatever we could of Nandi hills, the other visitors shouted
and made noise. Thank God for the Wind.The sun began its descent behind the clouds ( ok, dont get scientific with me! do you really want me to start about the earth's rotation and orbital revolution around the sun??)
We discovered a bit of childhood at the play area which is actually meant for kids...well yeah, whatever. So in the process, Michelle and I realized that I was heavier than her thanks to the see-saw. Now thats a revelation!Ever wondered, why is a see-saw called a see-saw?
Think it was 7 30 pm when we drove out of the gates of what used to be a sumer palace for Tipu Sultan . It was en-route downhill that we decided to head off to Maddur for a late-evening coffee.
Telling me that one gets coffee in the city is not going to make me stay here. CCD is just a reference point where a U-Turn is executed.
One important point, Lizzy dear was picked up to join in the girls night out! After a lovely drive and about an hour and half later, we finally headed back home. I think it was 1am when we entered our house. Let me no sign off with a witty one liner but with lasting pics of nandi hills..there I just wrote one!
The Chic mobile, christened by the guys, is Sudi's new Chevrolet Spark.
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