Day 211 of Indian Places gives smiles – an unusual unplanned trip to Nagarhole
Just read an article about how the new generation Indians travel. It is more about the experience than about the sight-seeing. And my 25 year old son has been doing it for years…he just takes off without notice to some unknown place in some corner of the world, without any travel or hotel reservations and comes home with amazing stories to tell us about his bizarre travel experiences.
This is in complete contrast to my idea of a perfect holiday- confirmed reservations, packaged deals, visiting the must see tourist spots, and clicking enough photos to capture the memories forever!
So in Aug.2011 it was a mother-children bonding time holiday (father had important office work). Imagine agreeing to do something that you do not know. No idea about where you are going. Getting into the first available superfast bus from Bangalore to Mysore. No time for lunch. Missing the next available bus from Mysore to Nagarhole. Requesting our second ST bus driver to race up to Hunsur. Which he actually did. Catching our third bus from Hunsur to Nagarhole. Fooling with the local school children, wearing their plastic cap.
Watching deers, monkeys, and wild dogs from our rickety ST bus as we drive through the Nagarhole wildlife sanctuary. Getting admonished by the forest guards for not having hotel reservations in the off season time. We were actually asked to take another crowded rickety ST bus to return out of the forest. From the back of the public transport bus, suddenly a drunk passenger was taken out and dumped on the forest grass. As we waited for some last minute repairs to finish on this dump of an ST bus I was seriously wondering whether this unplanned holiday was really worth the uncertainty involved.
In the meantime, son made some more enquiries…Hurrah, no going back to beginning of the Nagarhole wildlife sanctuary where we initially came from…we could actually cross over to the other side of the sanctuary to a promised beauty of the Irpu waterfall. The forest guards arranged for a special taxi to pick us up and take us to the other side of the sanctuary.
In the jeep I braced myself to enjoy the wonderful sights of nature. I questioned the driver about the numerous ‘home stay’ boards that I saw on the way. At some remote village of ‘kempukohli’ he decided to show us a sample of a ‘homestay’ concept. It was just a typical corgi family, living in their sprawling ancestral home in the middle of their modest coffee estate. We loved the small separate enclosure with a mini hall, mini bedroom and even mini bathroom. Clean, functional and homely. With a very friendly and warm host. What else does a weary traveler need? Our travel for the day abruptly ended in this very place in the middle of nowhere.
A steaming hot cup of coffee and some homemade deep fried snacks…perfect for a rainy evening. We ventured for a leisurely walk around the coffee estate. We lost track of time. Suddenly the darkness seemed to be lurching on to us and we were desperate to find our way to the main road. Instead we rambled over a thorny broken fence and apologetically ventured into the private backyard of a kind hearted soul, who allowed us to trespass through their compound to eventually reach the main road. With a warning never to take such a risk again and expose ourselves to wild elephants who decide to come out of the forests during the dusk!
After visiting a local colourful temple we were glad to be welcomed to a typical home cooked meal served in the private dining room in the main house itself. As I tried to get some sleep at night, I was amazed at all the new things that I did on this day. Just 24 hours ago I had no clue that I would actually get a feel of what it was to live in a farmhouse on a coffee estate in a remote village! The sound of the pouring rain outside and the pitch darkness inside made me just happy to lie down peacefully with my two children on either side of me on an unfamiliar bed! I might as well enjoy this moment. Within a month they would take off to UK and Australia and all I would be left with is the memory of this rare night of sleeping in the same bed as them.
The view of the estate soaked in the pouring rain was soothing to the eyes as we relished our fresh hot morning coffee. We hired a jeep to take us around the place. We drove past the tea gardens of Nagarhole. We were at the banks of the Laxman Thirtha river which is considered sacred because it originates from the spot where lord Ram’s brother Laxman is supposed to have shot an arrow in the earth to get water to quench the thirst.
We had made arrangements for a river rafting experience. We put on our life jackets and together carried our raft from the main road on the hill to the river below. The sight of the water around us was welcome to the senses and I enjoyed the ride. However our guide stopped right in the middle of the river and suddenly asked us to dive in the cold water. My children accepted this cool offer in a second. I refused. He insisted. He said that our body has to get used to the cold water before we enter one rough rapid. (Yes, this is not Hrishikesh…this river has only one spot where the water gets rough)
I did a terrifying jump into the river, yet did not let go of the raft and begged to be heaved up with difficulty back into the boat…I agree I am overweight! What an unusual experience. As our wobbly raft got thrown down the lone rough rapid, I actually enjoyed getting soaking wet. We got back to the jeep and continued our drive through the scenic district of Coorg.
We had still not yet reached our original destination of the Irpu waterfalls. It was off season and not frequented by tourists. As we climbed up the steps to reach to the top of the hill we had the pleasure of being alone with awesome mother nature. The plants, the small insects, the spider webs, the wild natural beauty enthralled us as we climbed the many steps.
And once we reached the actual Irpu falls we were amazed at the sight and sound and fury of the waters. It was one of the most memorable waterfalls that I had ever seen in my life. And I was surprised how come not many people knew about this. Our country continues to fascinate me with the beautiful secrets that she holds.
We then had to walk through some paddy fields as we went to the Rameshwar temple. Shiva will free us of our sins here. We must have done something good in our lives to see such lush greenery in the monsoons.
We returned in time for a late home cooked lunch by our hospital Coorgi hosts. This is their way of making life interesting, now that the next generation prefer to stay in the cities. The lady of the house was very content, taking care of the estate workers and going for the local club get-togethers. So much more composed than we urban people who seem to be driven all the time…!
I left the Coorgi village thinking about our radically different lifestyles. Nagarhole was a wonderful place to come on a temporary holiday. But as a true city bred woman, I prefer the permanent hustle and bustle of Mumbai anytime.
And I did not forget to thank my son for these unusual, unforgettable unplanned holiday experience…getting shouted at, getting lost, seeing drunken locals, eating home cooked food, staying in a home, soaking in rivers, seeing hidden waterfalls and finally expressing gratitude to God for this amazing country- India!
So which Indian p[lace made you smile today?
Please share your experiences of Indian places that make you smile.
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