Our journey started from Munnar and we went to Thekkady (Periyar),Kottayam (Kumarakom),Alappuzha (Alleppey) and finally to Ernakulam (Cochin)
Munnar is situated at the confluence of three mountain streams namely Mudrapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundala. Munnar is a small town. Places to see include some natural lakes and some artificial ones formed by dams, plenty of tea estates, some hill top viewpoints and Eravikulam National Park. The weather’s pretty chilly. 5pm and you close the doors and windows of your room as all you get to see outside is mist, fog, clouds whatever.
Munnar is situated at the confluence of three mountain streams namely Mudrapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundala. Munnar is a small town. Places to see include some natural lakes and some artificial ones formed by dams, plenty of tea estates, some hill top viewpoints and Eravikulam National Park. The weather’s pretty chilly. 5pm and you close the doors and windows of your room as all you get to see outside is mist, fog, clouds whatever.
The next morning we took for Mattupetty dam, around 10kms away from the town. The dam forms a large artificial reservoir around the hills and looks beautiful early in the morning.
Pullivasal Tea Estate
The very name Pullivasal which literally means "temple door" conjures up a vision of beauty and peace. This estate is situated 4 km short of Munnar and is the gateway to the Company's holdings in Munnar. The first hydel electric project and Power house station were situated here. The main tourist attrations here are the Athukad waterfalls and the Allah Kovil. The estate's record yield/ha was 3396 kgs/ha which is the second highest ever obtained by any estate in High Range . The old CTC factory which was destroyed in a fire in 1981 was rebuilt in 1982. The factory produces premium CTC teas for auctions and fetches one of the highest prices in South India.
This hill station, located at an altitude of 1600 m above sea level and it has sprawling tea plantations, picture book towns, winding lanes Among the exotic flora found in the forests and grasslands is the 'Neelakurinji'. This flower colors the hills in blue every twelve years. Last time it bloomed in 2006 and will bloom next in 2018 AD. Munnar also has the highest peak in south India, Anamudi, which towers over 2695 m. Anamudi is an ideal spot for trekking. The initial part of the journey was dry planes that gave way to shrubs, and as we climbed higher and higher, we saw more greenery. Anaimudi, South India's highest summit is inside Eravikulam National Park. Our plan was to climb this peak but unfortunately we were denied permission since it is in the core area of the national park. We were hoping to see some Nilgiri Tarhs(mountain goats) and the forest guy said it is at the other side of the mountain. There is not much forest that is left in and around Munnar. You drive for hours and hours all around Munnar only to see tea and cardamom plantations.
We were supposed to go to Thekkady but due to a transport strike we were delayed. Instead of reaching at 3pm we reached at about 8:20 pm. totally sloshed we hit the bed , ate dinner watched a movie on HBO called the "The Red Eye".
Nest we went to Kumarakom Lagoon and spent a day in the warm Kerala backwaters. Kumarakom Lagoon is a place out of this world. it’s a place for 100% relaxation. Open your eyes and you can see the sun as if its palying in your neighbourhood. the resort guys sent us a boat to take us to the resort from the land.
The houseboat was a beautiful experience. it was a lovely ride and we had a cook and 2 boatsmen on the boat at our disposal. Our boat was a single bedroom AC houseboat. It had an attached bathroom too. All thru the journey the waves gently rocked the boat as we passed the lovely palm trees, fishermen , women washing their clothes and utensils, children playing in the paddy fields and a few people having a generally good time.
The houseboat was a beautiful experience. it was a lovely ride and we had a cook and 2 boatsmen on the boat at our disposal. Our boat was a single bedroom AC houseboat. It had an attached bathroom too. All thru the journey the waves gently rocked the boat as we passed the lovely palm trees, fishermen , women washing their clothes and utensils, children playing in the paddy fields and a few people having a generally good time.
Alappuzha beach in Kerala is located on a thin strip of land, sandwiched between the Arabian Sea and the Punnamada backwaters. We shopped for packets and packets of the very famous "Banana Chips", "Colocasia Chips" and "Jackfruit Chips" from Kalarickal chips Shop on Jetty road in alappuzha.
