The Perfect Gift!

Its exactly a year to my trip to one of the most beautiful places on Earth - Kerala!

So..? What's the big deal you'd say?
Not at all...but for the expreience of,
...Air ride, taxi ride, Auto ride, bus ride, boat ride, Horse ride & Elephant ride! [Yes that too! :))] in a single trip! Among the many fantastic memories I have of the place, this is the most amusing recollection I have about the trip. Except for the rail ride, I pretty much covered almost all of the transport facilities available in that part of the country! :)

From a bird's view of stark brown patches of land visible when we started...to the sudden transfixing appearance of the lush green sights from air, Its easier to know when 'God's own country's' borders begin. Touch ground level & it only gets better!
Ok..Still, what’s the perfect gift you are thinking? I'd relive one of the best day of that awesome trip that I beleive was a gift for me alone.!

After reaching Cochin, we proceeded towards Munnar immediately. The one thing you’ll discover is, you'd never get enough of the beauty the place offers. You could also for a moment wonder if your eyes have gone green..nah not with envy :P ..but by seeing so much of greenery around! One keeps looking at more & more & More....!

Even in the prime summer month of May, Munnar gives you views of greens which are never pale. A sight for sore eyes, it can totally detox you without any diet or salon visits or even the massage centres which are so synonymous with Kerala.





Luckily we found accommodation at a hotel just at the outskirts of the town. Thanx to that, there were unobstructed views all around. Waking up to views of dewdrops on the windowpane...low clouds...tea gardens ALL around & a small 'U' shaped stream circling off from the hotel just below, gave me the feeling that I was in someplace almost like heaven! :)
On this day of our sightseeing, we began with a visit to a Tea making factory..where the process of making tea is made known from the first step to the last, when tea is packaged off to be sold in the markets. [Yeah, did behave like a good tourist & buy the customary/typical pack for home! :D]
Proceeding from there to the next stop destination, we passed through the much protected Sandalwood jungle. Passing through that got me amazed at man's discoveries. I expected a fragnant air when we entered the area..but No. There was absolutely no fragnance in the heavily guarded sandalwood jungle. On enquiry I learnt that sandalwood only gives out fragrance when cut. AMAZING!
Who would've thought that a tree that looked as any other tree would have such fantastic qualities, if it was just cut in. Nature never ever ceases to enthrall me.

Crossed the jungle & reached Rajamalai Hills. One of the 'have to visit' spots at Munnar. It's the highest point of Munnar & the rare & endangered Nilgiri Tahr can be spotted there if one is lucky. I was lucky enough to spot them on both the occasions I visited. :)
As private transport is not allowed to the top of the hills, one has to take a Govt. operated bus which is the only one which runs up & down the Rajamalai hills on the narrow path between the tea gardens. When you see two buses going in opposite directions...for a moment your heart rate accelerates thinking how is the driver going to manage crossing on such a narrow path. You breath a sign of relief when you see how effectively they manage. The bus drops you off at a stop point in the hills & from there one is free to explore the place on foot.
The thought of having a leisure walk in the lap of nature among the clouds...literally, was exciting enough...[One will experience a ‘Walk in the Clouds’ for sure at any given time at Rajamalai hills] ...so when it had slightly started to drizzle when in the bus I got super happy. But then, in the next 5 minutes, by the time we hardly reached at the top, that drizzle became a sudden heavy downpour... & we wondered what next! Not a single thing was visible. Even the person standing next to you was not visible, such thick was the fog then.

Though I loved it...[coz you don’t get such experiences daily] ; I was not at all wanting to forego the pleasure of taking a walk among the hills too. After a good wait of 20 mts. the rains dropped down to a drizzle again & the visiblity got better. We took Umbrellas & started off in the drizzle. 10 minutes in the hills & the Sun suddenly came out smiling brightly & the place only looked more stunningly beautiful & clear after the rains. The heavenly smell of Earth, the beautiful view..it was intoxicating!! Again, I was zapped at the working of nature.
Only 20 minutes back we were wondering how on Earth are we going to manage to go back if the weather remains like this... since there was no way I was taking the bus down [That is, IF they were running!!] in this zero-visibility. After all, I had more places to see..& I needed to be alive for that! :D
We had a lovely time up there..spotted the Nilgiri Tahr, stopped at little falls, walked quite a distance into the hills & ofcourse took loads of pics. :) Got back down & had a wonderful rest of the day.
But that experience was something special...something which I'll never have adequate words to describe.
The best I can attempt is to put it this way, God knew that I had long planned this holiday, & so this was his gift to me..THE PERFECT GIFT!
I beleive He personally watched over it & made sure the rains [Which is another of his creations I absolutely love..] showered just for the right amount of time, so that any of my other plans for exploring the place wouldn’t go unfinished. Thank You God! :))
It’s been a year since that last gift....& how good it was, I’ve put it out in as much words.

Well I’m wishing that he has a gift planned for this time around too ... Haven't you God?

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