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Today was another busy day in Kerala, except this time we were sightseeing in Munnar, up in the western Ghats. In the morning we woke up and had breakfast before heading off to the Eravikulam Forest. We went there in our SUV, but had to take a bus to get to the actual tourist attraction, which was up in the mountains. The view was spectacular, and one could see up to 4 layers of mountains, depending on the clouds. The greenery all around us was great, and we even got some decent snaps of Mountain Goats. After spending an hour there, we drove to the Mattupati Dam. The dam and the view from there were not spectacular, but we went on a speedboat, which gave us an adrenalin rush as well as decent views of the mountain and the lake. It cost a bit more than $10 (750 rupees) for the four of us, and we chose the more expensive option (the cheaper one being 600 rupees, but it was not as fast.) It was well worth it, and if you find yourself out of things to do in Munnar, this is a great (and cheap) place to go. While there, we also bought tangy raw mango slices and carrots (which are sold everywhere around here.) After visiting the dam, we came back to the High Range Club for lunch, which was great because they served us chana batura. We stayed at the hotel for a bit, and considered visiting waterfalls, which actually had warm water. The only problem, the driver told us, was that there was no water in the waterfalls due to lack of rainfall during this season. So we made a change of plans, heading off to the Kanan Devan Tea Museum. It was small and there was not much to see, the main draw being watching the tea being processed and drinking some (of course) at the end. After we visited the museum, we went uphill to the High Range Club, and took a 2 km jog across a nearby tea estate. We were really burned out after we played tag on the golf course (is that even allowed?) Right now we’re in the hotel, and I’m sitting with the mac-book on my lap, waiting for 8:00 to come, when dinner is served. Anyway, I hope you found this an insightful post, and stay tuned, because tomorrow, we’re going to Bangalore! Right now we’re chilling in our room at the High Range Club, in Munnar, Kerala, but the last two days have been long and filled with adventure. Yesterday morning, we took a flight from Chennai to Kochi. From Kochi, we embarked on a 3-hour drive to Aleppey, legendary for its houseboats. We had a houseboat all four ourselves (pun intended) and it was really relaxing trip. The houseboat looked like a straw ship used by the tribals from the outside, but the insides contained many modern commodities, and free wi-fi. A few minutes after settling down on the boat and soaking in the panoramic views on the boat, we had lunch, which consisted of traditional Keralan meals such as beans curry, rasam, sambar, and paisam for dessert. The food was above what we’d expected After lunch, we headed upstairs to the balcony to relax and take photos of the houseboats silhouettes against the palm trees and the swampy green water. We did that for a few hours, until we stopped sailing. The sun had set by then, and we got off the boat and went to a hotel, Citrus Resorts. We walked around the resort, and I can tell you from experience that the sunset in Kerala is one of the best I’ve seen, even beating many Hawaiian sunsets. The only downside is that on the boats, it isn’t easy to take pictures of sunsets or sunrises because the massive amount of palm trees and banana trees block the sun out. Once we got off the boat, the sunset was brilliant. We got back on the boat to eat dinner, which was North-Indian. Our chef, Sanju, cooked nice North-Indian food such as roti, paneer, basmati rice, and ice cream for dessert. Our food experience was good, even though later some things didn’t work out that well. After finishing our dinner, we took a break and headed to the Jacuzzi upstairs. We noticed that the water was brown and reported it to the crew members, who spent about 15 minutes repairing it. It was okay, but things like this shouldn’t happen on a major tourist attraction like such. After getting out of the Jacuzzi, we checked the news on CNN and fell asleep. The next morning, we woke up and hung out on the balcony, taking photos, chatting, and contributing to an overall relaxing moment. At 11:30, we got off the boat and started our drive to Munnar, five hours away. Kerala is run by communists, and it is obvious if you go there; we saw 2-3 communist flags a minute even in small towns. There is also plenty of communist street art and we even saw signs applauding Lenin, Stalin, and Fidel Castro. As one can expect in a communist place, there are no big chains, and shops such as Café Coffee Day and Saravana Bhavan don’t exist here. It is also much cleaner than many other Indian cities, and is extremely educated with a 100% literacy rate. Right now we’re in Munnar, at a mountain resort, High Range Club. It was originally a British sports club, with a tennis court and a golf course. It is also significantly colder than Aleppey, up in the Western Ghats of India. I hope you liked my photos, and stay tuned for more posts during my last three days here in South India! |