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#seasalts thanks Tom and Ann for all the hard work @shootingpointoysters @shiptown_norfolk #shootingpoint #oyster (at Shiptown)

[anilbisht]

Wellington.Ooty.Coonoor! Simply captivating

March, 2013

Truly: Mountainous! Spicy! Eucalyptic! Furity! Veggy! Tea Ecstatic! Chocolatee! Scenic! Forestry! Lake(y)!

 It was on a lazy Sunday winter noon; I gave a call to our Mamaji (maternal uncle) enquiring about the places like Wellington, Ooty and Coonoor, where he had already been recently. I also spoke to my sister who has been living in Wellington, Nilgiris for last few months in Army Cantonment Officer’s residences at Gorkha Hills. Convinced and encouraged by their good words and persuasion, I firmed up my decision to visit sister’s abode at Wellington and places around. With this, I looked forward for my sojourn to Southern India where I have never been before on a family excursion.

Day1. Finally, the day arrived when we boarded the early morning four and half hour flight to Coimbatore, the nearest airport to reach Wellington. Thanks to my sister and brother-in-law who had pre arranged a cab for us saving us precious time and effort.  It is a small airport and very less crowded unlike the gigantic ultra modern state of the art Delhi airport. We quickly collected our baggage and comforted ourselves in the cab. Soon the cab sped up for Wellington on the state highways of Tamil Nadu passing through Coimbatore city. On our way we observed many flourishing farms of Bananas, Betel nuts, Coconut, Palm trees, Spices and many more cultivations. Before the uphill drive started, we passed through a very densely inhabited township known as Mettupalayam, widely spread on the foothills of Nilgiris. En-route we came across many ascends, descends, panoramic view points, contours and hair pin bands of the Nilgiris mountainous terrain. By 1330 hrs, we reached Wellington in flat 2 hours time. The drive had all the thrills, frills, exciting and anxious moments of hits and misses!

We stayed at my sister’s place; the lovely, roomy, airy, well lit home with never seen balcony view in the lively and humble company of their joyous family. After the lunch and with a little rest, we ventured out for a long walk of Wellington. Air of Wellington, nestled in the Nilgiri Hills, is so magical and refreshing. Especially the view from the balcony of the house on the Gorkha Hills is so enchanting and revering.  One can see the Army Staff quarters, Equitation arena, Army drills and training centers, a Church, a Temple, Pine trees, Eucalyptus, MRC prominently embossed on a distant hill in Hollywood style, Tea estates, Cabbage farms and lush green Carrot cultivation all over the fields and the hills under the open skies. Wellington is pleasantly peaceful, noise free, pollution free, less crowded with negligent traffic; a perfect place to live in. Walking on the well maintained silky smooth serpentine roads devoid of any potholes was equally soothing and rejuvenating. Scenic richness and the blooming lavender trees on the side of the road added much to the attraction of the place. Mornings are as minty and fresh as a new born; invigorating the mind, body and the soul in equal proportions. We immensely enjoyed the morning walks to the hilt. You will wake up in the morning with melodious bells and songs resonating through the mountains. It so happens that in the wee hours, soulful renditions of devotional songs and the bells emanate from the nearby church and the temple. Soldiers undergoing their daily fitness regime of exercise and running can be seen on the roads and in the army grounds. Thumps of their boots and equally pumped up collective rhythms can be heard loud and clear every morning all through Wellington. Very first time in my life I saw such rigorous preparation levels of Indian Army; and I must say that our Jawans are working really hard, always ready to meet war situations and contingencies of any size and scale. The climate at Wellington is cool, consistent and pleasant. At an elevation of 6000 ft; indeed it is a fantastic place to live and indulge. Evenings and Morning are rather cold throughout the year.  Best thing is that there are not much weather variations therefore it remains almost the same round the year. This great weather helps equally in rich cultivation to a great extent.

Day2. It was the turn of the opulent Ooty, also known as Queen of Hills, some 15 kms further up on the Nilgiris. On the way we saw that famous Pony, the makers of high quality knitting yarn & sewing accessories.  Further up on the road, we took a halt at a view point on the Ooty road of a picturesque valley. At a distance, deep in the valley we spotted shining farms. We were perplexed to see so much reflection of sun light. To our surprise, it was strawberry farming grown over the plastics sheets which protects the berries from soiling. On the same road, we could see a railway tunnel passing through a huge rocky mountain. This is the same tunnel where that famous song Chaiya Chaiya from the movie Dil Se was shot.  Upside of the tunnel runs the hotel Monarch owned by the famous Indian film actor Mithun Chakraborty. Moving on, there is a very interesting and pleasing sight of all white and all yellow houses shining bright on the high hills by the road side.  Soon we were heading to Doddabetta (Big Mountain) with an elevation of 8640 ft, the highest peak of South India. We reached Doddabetta, 9 kms away from Ooty, passing through dense reserve forest. Forest roads were poorly maintained full of pot holes with peeled off carpet on regular stretches offering a bumpy ride. Anyhow, the summit is so stunning; displaying a 360 degree panoramic view of the surrounding peaks and valleys. The peak is cool, windy and picturesque. Once on the cliff, you feel like on top of the world! There is also an observatory equipped with telescopes offering delightful views of the layers of mountain peaks. Outside, I was tempted by the fresh juicy shining yellow Pineapple slices being sold by locals. I bought some and indeed they were sweet, succulent and ultra fresh. I just loved it, never had such juicy slices before. After soaking the summit, we descended to visit a tea factory which was situated on our way back to Ooty. First time we experienced the tea making process inside the factory, the various stages and the final product. Inside, tea tasting was also being offered and I must say the tea was aromatic and tasted so well. We bought some packs for carrying back home. My son was equally amazed by seeing the whole process of tea making. It was quite an education for him and for us as well. By the time we were done with tea factory, it was close to noon. So we decided to head straight to Pykara lake which is about 20 kms from Ooty.  Approaching Pykara, we also saw Kamraj Sagar Dam. After crossing over this relatively small dam, we reached the famous Shooting Point. We took a halt of 15 minutes at this point. Many films are shot here and that is the reason it is rightfully called the Shooting Point. I would describe it as a formation of hill shaped composed soil offering a spectacular view of the Nilgiri mountains. This place is generally lush green but sadly due to poor rains, grass beds had disappeared completely. The shape of the Shooting Point bears a striking resemblance to a turtle back; curvy, roundish and elevated. It was all barren and dusty but the view from the top was truly scenic and scintillating. We also passed through a Hindustan Film Company manufacturing unit which sells films rolls under the brand name Indu. As we headed towards Pykara lake reservoir, we saw a moderately sized Pykara Dam. Very soon we were at the enormous Pykara Lake with pristinely green and clean water. Water levels were low but sufficient enough for the lake of this size. We decided to speed boat on the lake and hired one for 10 minutes session. Sporting the life vests, the experience was exuberating, pulsating, thrilling and exciting. Our hairs were swaying wildly with the gusty winds perpetuated with the high speed of the boat. My spouse and son just loved it and craved for more.  The boat takes you to the opposite end of the lake and speeds up swiftly towards the docking end of the lake, the boarding point. The lake is truly amazing and is surrounded by huge trees and forests adding to the overall glamour of the place. Indeed a must visit for everyone, Pykara Lake rocks! We had quick lunch on the way and headed straight to another attraction known as Pykara Falls. It is a long walk off the road descending down to the falls. As we walked down, a breathtaking view emerged out of nowhere. Surrounded by trees and mountains, there were plenty of rock faces glancing out of the water surface. Sadly, poor rains have drastically reduced the water reservoir and so is the intensity of the falls at various fall points. Just imagine how beautiful it will be during the rainy season, bowl full of gleaming water with plethora of falls at several vents declining to the huge rocks underneath. Many of the tourists hopped to the scattered rock faces popping out of the receded water levels. One needs to be very careful while jumping off those slippery rocks. One slip and you will be wet with moss  all over you. My son slipped too and spoiled one side of his pants and shoes. Next on our target was the famous Thread Garden. As the name suggests, Thread Garden is a vibrantly colorful exhibition of an assortment of flowers made from 60 million meter embroidery thread without using any needle and sewing equipment. You will be mesmerized to see such a brilliant work of craftsmanship of fifty women. Their sustained effort and hard work of twelve years has paid off so well. We were told that soon Thread Garden will be featuring in the Guiness Book of World Records. Amen.  The flowers are as good as real; very hard to differentiate, truly an amazing and unique Garden. Just opposite by the road side, there is an Ooty lake Boat House and Children’s amusement park. We skipped boating as we had already done one at Pykara lake. We just enjoyed the place and shopped for the famous homemade chocolates available in every nook and corner of Ooty. The chocolates were yummy and as good as it can be. Sadly, one incident spoiled the evening a bit as my son while driving the electric car broke the lower portion of his front tooth. While driving and swerving, he banged the car on the side panels. The impact was so forceful that his mouth hit the steering.  Thankfully there was no blood but a piece of the tooth broke. It was a very painful sight but then one has to move on in life and so we did. The next destination was Rose Garden considered to the largest such garden of India. Unfortunately the roses were all cut to make way for the fresh roses of all types for the new season. So no point going inside the park when there were no flowers to be seen.  We moved on to the Botanical Garden. The garden is well laid out, vast with abundance of green cover and gigantic trees.  Different types of towering trees added to the attraction of the Garden. This marvelous garden hosts many exotic varieties of flowers, herbs, shrubs, plants and trees. One corner of the park has an India map spread over a piece of land made completely out of the real plants. The park houses a lotus pond. Also there are old world real canons placed around the park. The park is exotic in true sense and landscaped wonderfully; a fine job by local gardeners and the horticulturists of élan. As the sun set, we headed to our final destination of the day, the Wax Museum. The museum houses life size wax statues of famous personalities viz Sai Baba, APJ Abdul Kalam, Dr Manmohan Singh, Mother Teressa, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and many more. The museum is placed inside a 140 year old bungalow.  The look alike statues are not as real as it should be. But it is nice to see such a wax museum in India. By this time night descended. Ooty sightseeing ended on a good note and we headed back to Wellington.

Day3. We planned out for a trip to Coonoor and all other major attractions in the vicinity. It was a Saturday and schools were closed. My sister and the kids had the opportunity to be with us on our excursion to Coonoor. On the way, at lower Coonoor, we visited a dentist for the medical checkup of my son’s broken tooth and the extent of damage. Relieved we were when x-ray showed no signs of cracks on the roots of the tooth. Half an hour it took but it was worth it. From the clinic, we headed straight to Sim’s Park. Another wonderful park alike the Botanical Garden and a must visit for everyone. The park is on an inclined area consisting of a rectangular lush green park, children’s playing area and a pond at the base. The park also has many years’ old trees, herbs, shrubs, flowers, water body, glass house, creepers  and many other varieties of plants. We also spotted a Rudraksha (Beads) tree. The pond had plenty of small and large fishes drawing much attention of children of all age and size.  At the base of the incline by the park side, there is a message carved out by the alphabetical sizing of the shrubs – “Enjoy Sim’s Park” whose formation looks so good to the eyes. The glass house too is quite rich in terms of its collection of plants inside. Our kids too had their share of fun gazing fishes in the pond. They immensely enjoyed the seesaw, swings and the playground slide. They were so immersed in their play that we had to forcibly pull them out so that we could move to the next destination. So after seeing the exotic Sim’s Park, we headed to another attraction of Coonoor known as the Lamb’s Rock. After driving down some distance, we took a halt at upper Coonoor, a place surrounded by lush green tea gardens. The places around looked stunningly beautiful too. It appeared as if the hills have been wrapped under the blanket of lush tea gardens by Mother Nature. There were few shops by the road side selling local spices, tea and other accompaniments. The aroma of the spices was irresistible. We bought some packets to carry back home. While on our way, we also saw the sleeping lady mountain. The top of the mountain gives an artist like impression of a lady in deep sleep overlooking the skies. Lamb’s rock is a view point from where one can have a clear aerial view of the Mettupalayam town. It is a mountain cliff in true sense as the depth down below is too steep and terrifying. The surroundings have mountainous, tea estates, greenery, misty environs and breezy air. The view point with an umbrella shaped concrete shade is standing on the cliff accessible by man made steps. The walk up to this point passes through a thick forest habituated by monkeys in abundance.  One has to be very careful in their indulgences as the protective railings around the view point are all broken and loose. Especially for children as slight wrong foot will land one deep into the ravines. The monkeys around will snatch all the eatables you carry with you. So be careful of such monkey loot. Even our kids got the taste of monkey menace when their just bought snack packets were snatched away. They might cause harm if you don’t surrender your eatables to their liking. Nevertheless, the view from this point is pulsating and panoramic. You feel like sitting here for long hours enjoying the cool breeze and the scenic beauty of the high point. On the way to our next spot, we thought of having lunch. There is one De-Rock resort at the start point of Lamb’s rock so as soon we reached back to the parking area, we decided to have lunch. Unfortunately, there was no lunch being served. It was only meant for in-house guests. We decided to have lunch at Ram Chandra, the famous south Indian restaurant at lower Coonoor. But before that we went for another view point known as Dolphin’s Nose.  It is a spectacular view point situated on the tip of the mountain cliff resembling more like a Dolphin nose. Of course that is the reason behind its naming.  At the far side of the view point, one can see a white gleaming fall known as Catherine falling from a very high elevation to the base many meters downhill. The depth around the view point is as steep as we saw at Lamb’s rock. One can see the dense forest and the tree tops deep down at the base. This is also another great view point of Coonoor where one can spend hours together soaking into the beauty of tea gardens, the fall and the greens around. By this time our stomachs were rumbling loud and out. With no eatables available, we for sometime managed with the juices bought at Dolphin’s Nose point.  As we had decided earlier, we went to the famous Ram Chandra restaurant for a sumptuous late noon lunch. Masala Dosa, Onion Tomato Uttapam, Sambahr Vada, Plain Butter Dosa were all lip smacking. Ram Chandra truly lived up to their reputation of dishing out delicious culinary affairs. Amul chocolate cones added much pleasure to the hot and fiery delights of lower Coonoor bazaar. This was last of the Coonoor itinerary and we returned back to soulful Wellington of the Nilgiris district.

Day4. As the man of the house was occupied on all the days gone by, in his DSSC classes; it was a perfect Sunday for all of us to go out for a family outing at Grasswood Tea Estate located on the picturesque Ooty-Kotagiri road, 12 km from Wellington.  On our way, we first visited the Wellington Gymkhana Club. The club is marvelous, massive and very well landscaped nestled in the company of trees and mountains. The facilities are world class; a golf course, cricket pitch, tennis court, a plush restaurant overlooking the lush lawns surrounded with bounty of blooming flowers and fauna. Soon we left the place passing through the War Memorial roundabout and a life size real fighter jet in Air Force colors installed on one corner of the DSSC entry/exit gates. The way to the picnic spot was such a delight to the eyes; quite fascinating, scenic and mountainous. The roads in particular were silky, contour and comfy. The picnic spot was by the road side right in the middle of tea gardens. We sat on a black rock face emerging out of the density of the green tea gardens. The view of the valley and the mountains around was dazzling. The glitter of tea leaves reflecting the bright sun shine was an amazing sight. We immensely enjoyed the family picnic. Quickly we finished the brunch, clicked the happy moments, had coffee at picturesque Orange Pekoe Leisure Hotel on the Ooty-Kotagiri road and returned back to catch the flight. This picnic was like an icing on the cake for the all the time we were on this part of South India sojourn.

Above all, we were overwhelmed with the great hospitality, love and care of sister, bro-in-law and the doting kids.  The whole family ensured that our stay was comfortable and fun filled. We were quite impressed with sister’s generous effort in dishing out an assortment of impeccable cuisines for each day of our stay in Wellington. List is so delectable and mouthwatering that even while writing this out I feel like having it again; Ginger Chicken, Butter Chicken, Chicken Italiano, Spinach Cashew Risotto, Lasagna, Crispy Chicken, Creamy Tomato Chicken, Pepper Chicken, Sour Cream Salad, Pao Bhajis, Idlis, Paranthas and the Chutneys. These all went so well with the red wine every day! Desserts were equally tantalizing. She specially made an incredible walnut raisin cake, crumbled cookies and knockout pudding. The hospitality was beyond words to express; love you sis. You rocked.

We never imagined that this trip will turn out so well. Everything was so good; the Stay, the Food, the People, the Weather, the Mother Nature, the Mountainous Nilgris, the Highways, Wellington, Ooty and Coonoor.   Four days passed in four seconds!

Good Bye Wellington, Ooty, Coonoor! Simply captivating: taking back the aroma of the place.

(c) Anil Bisht

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Twitter handle: @anilbisht

Photo essay: http://www.flickr.com/photos/anilbisht