Our destination today was either Thekady(Kumily) or Munnar.
We chose to decide on it at the time of exit from Thenmala town. After
breakfast and check-out we roamed around the Dam site for some time. Someone
suggested us to take a walk on the Leisure zone.
We took
tickets from the Eco-tourism office some meters away from the Dam and entered
the Leisure Zone. It was a long walk, but wasn’t tiring. They had hanging
bridge, sculpture garden and view of the Kallada Dam. After spending time
there, we proceeded to the “Pathimunu Kannara Bridge” which is a landmark in
Thenmala. It is a railway bridge just next to the road, built over 13 rock
pillar archs. It usually is a good sight to see the railway bridge next to a
highway which is in the middle of a thick forest.
We took
some snaps around the bridge and started off for Thekady. Since it was already
12 noon, it was just appropriate to choose Thekady as our next destination.
This time, we rode one behind other and stuck together until Konni, where we
had lunch. The road was getting busier because of the crowd to Sabarimala. By
the time I reached Erumely, Anto had already lost Abhi again. Anto agreed to
slow down his speed for me so that at least we both were together. Crossing
pilgrims in Erumely we proceeded towards Peeramedu which was on the way to
Thekady.
We were
able to catch Abhi in a short while from then we were together on the zig-zag
highway. Peeramedu was attractive at the very first sight, and we stopped to
have a cup of tea and enjoy the view. Abhi was having a conversation with a
local about the Communist and Congress rule in Kerala. Anto and I started looking
at more interesting things like, Pazhampori, Bonda (Local snacks made of banana
and Potatoes respectively) and Tea. Their topic moved from politics to wild
animals around that area, while moved from Tea to other local savories.
After their discussion was over we started
back on our route, and within a short while dark clouds surrounded us.
Initially I wasn’t able to understand if it was getting dark because of the
time or if it was because of my Sun glasses, but when a couple of drops fell on
my finger I was sure that it was raining. I rode for a couple of kilometers
while it was drizzling, but the rain was getting heavier. I saw my both of my
teammates had stopped near a small tea shop to escape from rain. I too stopped
there and just for time-pass we ordered tea again. I made a stray dog my friend
while we were sipping our tea. Its simple to make friendship with these poor
ones, all you need is a small pack of biscuits and a smaller piece of affection
towards them.
Rain had stopped by then and we
started again. We rode for another 15 kilometers and rain showed its teeth
again. We stopped again near a tea shop, initially we thought he was offering
help, however had to drink another tea to pay him back for his courtesy. It was
already 3rd Tea in one hour. The beauty of tea is when had in
limited quantities, it refreshes you, when you exceed a limit, it washes away
even a small dust from your stomach. When the rain stopped again, I decided not
to stop anywhere until we reached a hotel room, as pressure was already
building up.
We were crossing Vandiperiyar,
which was near to Kumily and it started raining again. We saw a resort next to
us and just before the rain was getting heavier we rode into the resort. It was
either going to be a heavenly stay or just another costly tea. We checked for
the rooms there, but they were quiet expensive and weren’t that worthy. However
I managed to flush out the after effects of tea and we waited for the rain to
stop.
While we waited we searched for
other options to stay in Kumily and chose a couple a homestays. Google
suggested different routes and many home stays and guest houses just behind the
bus station. We rode on the directions suggested by Google just to end up in
some dea-ends and very narrow lanes. We even rode over some drainage slabs to
get out of the so-called sub-urbs of Kumily. Again with some help from local
public we got a perfect stay in Kumily.
“Elephant hill” homestay was one of
the best accommodations we had got in the entire trip. The owner, Shaji was
very friendly and gave us a decent room with a nice balcony. He also agreed to
take us in his car for elephant safari and sightseeing. We thanked him and
parked our bikes under a big tree. The trees and bushes around the cottage,
gave a look and feel of a dense forest. It was already a hill station and the
after effects of the rain were making Kumily colder than usual. We badly needed
a bath after a tiring ride, and were wondering if we would find any hot water.
Shaji had solar heaters installed and boiling water just poured rapidly from
the taps. Infact it was hard to search
for cold water to mix with the boiling water. After getting fresh, we walked
down towards the bus station in search of a decent bar. With each one of us
pointing to different directions as per our smart phone’s suggestion we decided
to check the area around the bus station first.
We walked and walked and from every
corner of the town we were able to see only one LED hoarding which read, “Hotel
Kumily Tower Bar”’ and was next to the bus station. Later when we entered the
Bar, we came to know it was the one and only bar in that whole town. After a
variety of typical Malabar cuisine with a couple of drinks, we walked back to
our cottage. The bus station was just
shutting down and shop keepers were closing down their stores. Some happy and
some not satisfied. We walked across the bus station, and took the small lane
behind that, which was a short-cut to our cottage.
We sat in our balcony and with no
one around to disturb us, had another couple of pegs. It was still cold, dark
and we were able to listen to the noise made by tiny insects around the bushes.
We went to sleep after having enough of the dark noises.
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