A Room With a View @ Kodai

I am not talking about E.M.Forster's novel "A Room With a View" set at the turn of the 20th century, this was our room at Kodaikanal. One of the best views ever...period.! Club Mahindra - take a bow - this one deserves all kudos for location!

It was my birthday and we decided to go to Kodaikanal, the lovely hill station we hadn't been in the last few years.Set in the Palani ranges of the Western Ghats, this hill station was started by American missionaries in 1845 and then further developed by the British to enjoy the charm of its naturak beauty, its fabulous cool climate and to harness its natural resources. 

Day 1 - Tuesday, Aug 19th 2014 - Bangalore - Kodaikanal - NH 7 - NH 44 - SH 156 

Having decided to have breakfast enroute, packed only lunch and left at 6am. Contrary to my thinking it wasn't too cold. Had breakfast at the new Saravana Bhavan at 8am, this comes about 20 to 25 kms

after A2B and has lovely food. The 

drive itself is uneventful and after turning for Vatalagundu near Dindigul (right at the second flyover after the Kodai board comes up), drove on a fabulous newly laid road and turned right just after Vatalagundu, drove for about 12 kms, stopped for lunch before tackling the 48 kms long ghat road to Kodai. It is a wide ghat road so driving is a pleasure.We spotted the Rat's Tail Falls which thanks to good rains was quite bushy and looked more like a squirrel's tail, if you ask me, and moved on letting out small gasps at the beauty of the verdant greenery and small streams that we suddenly came upon...paid the Rs.40 entry fee and entered Kodai and stopped nearly immediately for some masala chai and hot bajjis as we clicked clicked clicked the Silver Cascade falls. Super!! Picked up an arm load of carrots and fruits as we normally do and continued on to the town about 7 kms from here.

Drove on asking for CSI church which comes soon after the bus stand and Hotel Astoria which faces the bus stand and turned left at the CSI church down a steep incline towards the Kodai Resort and Hotel and Ramco guest house, went past that turned right in to the Club Mahindra resort on Noyce Road, at Coaker's Walk. Since I had specifically requested for this resort for its beauty, we were not supposed to be surprised but the sheer awesomeness of the place once again left us open mouthed and breathless with glee.

Mr.Mohammed checked us in in a jiffy and we moved in to Room no.1102. The room overlooked the Valley of Clouds and I had a bowl of cotton candy for the next 2 days to enjoy! God really went in to overdrive when hed designed this place and especially this resort is heaven on earth..Kashmir, please move over!! With just 11 rooms, this boutique resort is perched at the edge of the valley and overlooks a vista which changes by the minute like a kaleidoscope. Rooms are generous and as is the wont of hill stations has more wood in its decor than not, if I had to nitpick it would be that they need a larger TV so you can watch from the bed as it is a largish room and chairs have to be more comfortable, the deck type chairs look good but have no lumbar support.

 

Collapsed and slept through till 6pm. Awoke to rain and the chill factor just zoomed..shawls and caps in place..we enjoyed a hot cuppa against the beautiful backdrop of heaven...

A dinner of fruits, carrots and soup was perfect and cuddled up watching some TV at night and hit snooze soon after.

Day 2 - Aug 20th 2014 - Kodaikanal

46 ! Didn't feel any different than when I was 45 (smile), Ranga spoilt me as usual with gifts galore and we had breakfast at Astoria restaurant, and moved on to Pine forest and Ranga climbed to Guna caves only to find it heavily overgrown and we were told this was to prevent people going there as it is a 500 feet sheer drop (btw that is how these caves were discovered, someone took a fatal plunge, as a plaque there suggests) and is where the movie 'Guna' was shot. The gnarly overgrown roots reminded me of the paranormal thriller Raaz and thought that this is the perfect setting for a ghost movie, mist et all :-) We just managed to click the Pillar Rocks before the mist rolled in obscuring these fabulous creations of the Mesozoic era. We gave Coaker's walk a miss as we were staying at Coaker's Walk and had a much better view! Passed by the pristine Kodai lake and had lunch at the Astoria once again and drove back to our resort, with home made chocolates. 

Several messages had been pouring in and calls too with wishes..the love is amazing! Friends - you are all fantastic!! The altitude and the clear O2 puts you in a slumber mode and again off we were in zzzz land.

Evening we watched the marvelous changing vista with a drink, chatting and just being at peace with the world. Thanks to the mists it was a now you see it now you don't enigma...

A dinner at the restaurant where a specially made fish curry in coconut milk in Kerala style hit the right note and as we were the only ones there after a fiendishly busy Independence day weekend, we were cossetted and pampered. 

Some TV, all my friends from abroad called...chatted and off we went to slumber land once again.

Day 3 - August 21st 2014 - Kodaikanal - Bangalore

Woke up to azaan at 4.45am, 5am and 5.15am (alarm malfunction for the mullahs or was it a relay?)..whatever - it got us out of bed at 5.30am..gazed woozily outside and was stunned at the colors of the sky. Ranga went clickety click while I made some hot coffee and the next 1 hour was spent watching the changing colors of the sky and the rising sun..the beauty of which is something I will not forget in a hurry...

Reluctantly packed and after some lungfuls of fresh air and longingly looking at the simply awesome view which we had enjoyed for 3 days (thank you CM - this is undoubtedly one of your most scenic locations by far!!), we checked out and left at 7.45am. Had breakfast at Astoria restaurant and left Kodai at 8.15am (maybe better to leave next time a bit earlier, the traffic snarls on reaching Bangalore at 3.30pm ensured that we reached home only by 5pm, a sure kill joy and more stressful than the 500+ kms to Kodai)...sad are the lives of us city dwellers...however, there is always another road to travel, another room with a view somewhere else!! Kodai rocks or thankfully doesn't and is serene and a place to visit over and over again..!

Log

Kms on the Odo - 1077kma

Efficiency - 12kms/litre (thanks to throughout AC on the return journey and the traffic chaos in Blr + 120+ speed on NH (smile))

Weather - 20 - 22 deg C in the daytime, around 15 deg C at night with the famed mist. Rains in the evenings. Lovely, perfect romantic holiday weather.

Resort - Beautiful with 100% marks for location, a million dollar view and simply inviting.

Roads - Good throughout.

Route - Bangalore - Hosur - Krishnagiri (Breakfast at Saravana Bhavan) - Dharmapuri (Lunch at A2B after Dharmapuri toll booth on return journey) - Salem - Namakkal - Karur - Dindigul - take right at 2nd flyover after Kidaikanal board to Vatlagundu - right after Vatlagundu for 12 kms - 48 kms of ghat road - Kodaikanal.