TRAVEL DURING COVID : ROAD TRIP 2020 - EXPLORING KERALA

TRAVEL DURING COVID : ROAD TRIP 2020 - EXPLORING KERALA

“”””When You Go for a Road Trip, the Trip Itself Becomes Part of the Story. Do Not Follow Where the Path May Lead. Go Instead Where There Is No Path and Leave a Trail!!!!””””

We’ll Stop in Every Small Town and Learn the History and Stories, Feel the Ground, and Capture the Spirit. Then We’ll Turn It into Our Own Story That Will Live Inside Our History to Carry with Us, Always. Because Stories Are More Important than Things. Get.Set.Go…

During our last Road Trip in 2019 of Exploring Western Ghats, we’ve finalized and ready with full plan and entho. for exploring North-East India alias 7 Sisters of India. But unfortunately, COVID had other ideas. At the end of March 2020, India was under total lockdown and COVID didn’t gave us time for even blinking our eyes as it starts to spread world-wide all of a sudden. We thought it was almost done for the year and postponed North-East to the next year. 

TRAVEL DURING COVID :

I was supposed to be in North-East in October 2020 for a weeklong road trip, but it couldn't happen due to Coronavirus. Well, I am here for a week now, with my quartet in tow!

It's interesting to realize how travel has changed - no more crowded places, restaurants or prolonged interactions with people. No moreh chai on the nukkad (corner) or queuing up for something. Thankfully, I have always been very selective about my travel itineraries. In fact, I never believed in doing too much of sightseeing. So, I'm good even now... love #slowtravel #offbeatplaces #quietplaces 

This road trip will have no cities and noisy honks. No busy places. No touristic stuff. Just me and my indulgence into the slow life of Kerala. And Are you with me? Come-on, let's see what we've done.. 

NORTH-EAST -> KERALA :

It was during the month of September, when situations are somewhat okay (but not under full control even now, especially after UK strain). We thought of having a small break, but we don’t know where to explore and how the situation will be. One day on conversation with my friend Marsh Whesly, he was saying that he haven't even stepped-into The God’s Own Country, KERALA. A Gallivanter’s friend shouldn’t worry about such things right 😇 And yes, we had a discussion with our co-traveller’s and finalized with Exploring Kerala. 

Even though I’ve experience in exploring kerala for multiple times, myself too was very excited and waiting for the correct situation to fall around us. We conveyed our Kerala plan to Pettai Pravin (Coimbatore), who was also feeling to have some break from his routine work life. As our friend Sheikh was in dubai for his work, he got missed this year. We’ve pulled-in Arun, who was missed during our last years road trip. Arun resides in Salem and we’ve merged his bachelors party with this trip. Yes!! You read it right. Arun got engaged a month back and his wedding date isn't far away from this trip date’s (Sound’s like Hangover movie, especially part 2 😜).

We’ve analyzed a lot this time, as during this COVID situation, anything can happen. We always got alternative plans. Finally, when the expected date was arrived with some controllable situation, we kick-started out road trip 2020 towards god’s own country, Kerala, for 10 days.

MY LOVE TOWARDS KERALA :

My love towards Kerala is no secret. The winding roads along the lush green hills, the magical monsoon, the wildlife ? Kerala is what dreams are made of. I have visited different parts of India, more times than I can count. Every time, I fell in love with it a little bit more. So this is my tribute to the mesmerizing landscapes that inspired the travel writer in me. It's been a way long for a week-long road trip.

KICK-START :

This time, we’ve planned to take Marsh Whesly’s Chevy Beat for the trip, from Chennai. We all applied for vacation leave 2 months prior and ready to drive to Kerala. Kerala allowed Traveller’s from other state’s to travel and reside for maximum of 8 days with No Covid Test Certificate’s required.

Note : For more than 8 days, we need to provide Covid Negative certificate and have to be quarantines for 14 days before stepping-in the state.

We’ve applied ePass of Kerala Govt. It’s just a simple process for visitor’s data collection and approval has been done immediately right after submitting our details.

1. RoadTrip2020_Kerala_Plan& Expenses..

2. Our Kerala ePass (For Reference)..

Two weeks prior to our departure date, we gave our car for full service and to be ready before our departure date. Services costs us around Rs 32,000 INR. And we got our car, Chevy Beat, just a day before our departure.

Dec 13, 2020 (Sunday) : Chennai-Salem-Coimbatore (Departure Day)

Finally, the day has arrived. Around 7:30am, we fed our kutty papu’s stomach (diesel tank) full 😜 and started from Chennai towards Coimbatore. 

There are 2 route options to reach Coimbatore from Chennai. 

* One is via Sriperambatore->Vellore->Salem->Coimbatore

* And the other is Chengalpet->Villupuram->Salem->Coimbatore. 

We opted the 2nd as 1st usually will be over-crowded with lorries. Also 2^nd route is shorter and quicker compared to Vellore route. Near Chengalpet, we halted for breakfast @Hotel Adyar Anandha Bhavan (A2B). A2B is well-known for it’s tasty sambar, and so we went with light idly and sambar, finishing with a cup of coffee.  

We use to follow a hard rule of not drinking any Coke / Pepsi branded cold-drinks through-out our road trip.

It was around 01:30pm, when we reached Salem. Before visiting Arun’s Home, we went to get Pollution Certificate as the date got expired and we just found while on the way towards Salem (Thank god no any stops & checks). We met Arun, had our lunch @his home. Completing our lunch, we were just watching the engagement pictures of Arun and making fun. Around 04:30pm, we resumed our journey towards Coimbatore.

It was around 6:30pm, when we reached Coimbatore. We nearly halted 5-6 time(From Chennai) in-between, walk down from the car, do some general exercises and resuming the journey.

Arun’s Birthday falls on 16^th Dec, and his fiancee was working as a Nurse in an Private Hospital in Coimbatore. We all had a get together and Arun sponsored us for a dinner. 

After completing our dinner, Aruns fiancee surprised him with a cake and gifts. We all got nice send-off and reached Pravin’s Home near Coimbatore Airport.

Dec 13, 2020 (Sunday) : Coimbatore-Udumalpet-Kanthaloor-Munnar

The actual fun and enjoyment starts when pravin is in his form. 

We all waken up earlier, felt very excited towards to upcoming 10days. We started early around 05:00am from Coimbatore.  

Pravin’s mom is a superb cook and we love her Mutton Kuruma. We’ve already said we deliberately need it during our 1^st day of trip. We got 2 box parcel, one for breakfast and another for lunch.

We halted near Udumalpet, watching some group of wind-mills surrounded by dense mist. 

CORN FARM :

CHECK DAM :

FARMER 😜 :

There, we conducted Frog Race with-in ourselves and had great fun. 

We later halted @Udumalpet Bus Stand, got some dosa’s and chapathi’s parcel, excluding sambar/chutney, as we already have 2 boxes of heaven alias Mutton Kuruma. We had our breakfast at foothills of Anamudi Hills, just 2 kms of TN-Kerala Border. A papu accompanied us too, which raced towards us on opening heaven box.

 

Completing our breakfast, we resumed our journey. Around 08:00pm, we crossed @TN Check-post followed for 4-5 Kerala Check-post's.

Thoovaanam Waterfalls :

Thoovaanam Waterfalls View Point

It was nearly 10:30am, when we reach Lakkam Waterfalls, Munnar. I’ve been there thrice and this is forth time. We experienced the coldest waterfalls ever in our life time. It is too cold and might have recorded nearly 4-5*C only. The entry ticket was hiked to Rs 50 pp (Previously it was Rs 5 in 2016, Rs 20 in 2018 pp).

Getting the coldest refresh ever, we resumed our journey towards Eravikulam National Park. We completed our lunch down the national park hills with fried rice and maggi noodles, and headed inside the park. The entry ticket was hiked to Rs 200 pp (Previously it was Rs 90).

We stepped-in the National Park’s Mini-van. They will be taking us in a separate van, which was 20-25mins travel. The sceneries were unbelievable and unimaginable. Eravikulam National Park is famous for spotting Nilgiri tahr. We spotted many while our trek. We came across rare animals and species.

After arriving the top-most point @The Eravikulam National Park, we've to walk in a zig-zag road for a mile. The scenaries was too beautiful and the view from the top will be massive. There is a bakery present at the top of the hill, which tastes good. Also there is a small museum present nearby, about that History of the location and Nilgiri Tahr.

Eravikulam National Park Travel Van :

Nilgiri Thar :

Let The Wind Kiss Your Face!!😋

H2O Moisture Over The Surface Of The Hills :

Eravikulam National Park Bakery Cake's :

We all were the best combo and in the best version of us. The wavelength among us were too good and understanding @ it’s best. We were sharing our experience in our life, college and how we were during our school days and how we were now. 

Around 05:30pm, we came down the national park hills and reached Munnar by 06:30pm.

We searched for quality rooms with-in our budget and after having 3-4 options, we went with MAS HOLIDAYS, which is at the center of Munnar Town. I’ve already been here and Mr Sathish was the Manager, but unfortunately he went to his native. Mr Aniz greeted us and we went with a good deal of Rs 1,200 for 4 persons for a double room with additional beds. Thanks for MAS HOLIDAYS for providing us comfortable stay and I would recommend it for sure.

Around 07:30pm, we came out and enjoyed a good chill walk into the markets of Munnar Town. We completed our dinner @Rapsy Restaurant, which serves good starters and main course among the restaurants in and around Munnar. We’ve also purchased some Eucalyptus Oil and Spices in FLAVOUR TEA & SPICES. Mr Binu was the owner of this shop and I use to visit and purchase quality oils and spices in a budgeted price here, whenever I visit Munnar (4-times).

Completing our shopping @Munnar, we are back to our room, played cards and fallen asleep. 

About Munnar :

Munnar a hill station on the Western Ghats; The name Munnar is believed to mean "three rivers", referring to the town's strategic location at the confluence of the Madhurapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundaly rivers. The town is surrounded by the country's highest tea gardens. Layers and layers of tea estates, mountain mist, waterfalls and wildlife sanctuaries make Munnar almost surrealistically beautiful. The lofty mountain ranges with misty peaks, sprawling tea estates and serene climate provides a quiet and peaceful resort. Panoramic views of low-lying clouds and mist filled valleys make it a pretty little heaven with a cool, bracing climate and is also famous for the wild orchids locally called Neelakurinchi which blooms once in 12 years. Munnar is famous as Honeymoon destination and Romantic getaway, has a variety of attractions to feast your eyes like placid lakes, meandering streams, misty mountain peaks, sylvan valleys, rare orchids and wildlife. Plantation visits, treks, tea factory visits, cycling, boating, paragliding, day tours to the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary etc add to the excitement of exploring the truly unique destination. 

Photo Credit : Hemanth P, Jun 2018, Top Station, Munnar

Destination Facts :

Location : Idukki District in Kerala

Altitude : 5000-8000 ft above sea level.

Area : 26.2 sq. km.

Temperature : (Summer: 15.2°C - 25°C) & (Winter : -5°C - 10° C ).

Dec 14, 2020 (Monday) : Munnar-Top Station-Thekkady

Next day morning, we started our day slowly with enjoyment like a bigg boss house, completing our breakfast along with Kerala’s Kattan Chaya @Mahalakshmi Cafe (which is also one among my frequent visits in Munnar, for breakfast). It was small, budgeted and a tastier restaurant (actually a tea shop kind-off).

We are ready to be kicked towards Top Station, which is South India’s Highest Hill Range. It’s around 35kms away from center of Munnar. Also there are many other unique places to be explored on the way towards Top Station. There is also a private spot, which I love the most among the places I’ve visited across our country (which is not even present in Google Maps).

At first, we come across the photo point, where people use to take pictures standing inside tea gardens.

The next stop is the elephant camp. We didn't go for the ride as we thought it was quite expensive (not much worthy) and also not to waste time here. But clicked some pics and move forward to the next spot, rose garden.

@ Rose Garden, we came across natural, unique flowers and move forward.

Next is the great Mattupatty Dam, which is the main Reservoir of Munnar. We got down from the car before the dam itself, walked from one end to another, had some available snacks over there like nuts, corn, especially mangos were superb for that chill climate. We planned to go for a boat ride (pedal boat) while returning. 

The car had a good collection of Melody Songs and it was a great feel listening and singing those songs(of course not matching the lyrics..) while driving through in such roads. Also the roads were almost empty, as it was Monday and no rush, just away of the city and mainly away from mobile signal.😇

The next spot is echo point, where the entry ticket price is Rs.10 per head. But during our visit, they allowed us to enter for free. The location was surrounded by a small market with huge collection of jewels, handmade crafts, tea, food shops and all. Echo point was divided by the river stream which was from Kundala Dam towards Mattupatty Dam. On the other side of the river stream, there is a small hill with bunch of some pine trees. On shouting anything which pops in our mind, we can hear the echo of it (say twice or thrice atleast). It's was a different experience and almost easily we can witness / hear the echo. It's one of the must-visit location in and around munnar.

The next spot is Kundala Dam. It's almost similar to Mattupatty Dam, but it's season is ON only during monsoon, when Mattupatty Dam is full. But there are some water level maintained here usually for generating Hydroelectricity. 

Boating Experience Across Kundala :

We executed our pedal boat experience over here. They charge us Rs 150/- INR per head for 45 minutes for a pedal boat, which can occupy max of 2 person's. It was such a wonderful experience. I've done boating across many hill stations in India. The quality of boat and service they provided was just awesome.  They had a roof covered to make the boaters stay away from the sun and enjoy their time. Also the boad was so spacious, it had a separate snacks box, space for keeping our mobile phones safely, space for water bottles, even it had space for keeping our belongings.. Also after Rishikesh, this boating across Kundala Dam was the one which made me feel gigantic, as the location was so wider and surrounded by deadly high hill-ranges.

At last, we reached top station. Here we had good views from the top towards Theni District (Tamil Nadu) side. There are also presence of tea gardens over there.

Here, we explored an unknown path and disappeared into the wild!!!

After having a good visit and a small photo session @ the top station, we were much hungry (And tired too, climbing the top station hills up & down). We got a good shop to complete our lunch with some Maggi Noodles and Bread Omlette. The shop owner maintained a parrot as their pet and the parrot was so friendly too. He was saying somebody (a tourist) even ask the parrot for Rs 10.000 /- INR but he wasn't ready to give, as he felt much affectionate with the pet. 

Some Clickz With The Parrot :

 

Different Types Of Tea :

Exact Location Of The Shop : Just @The End Of Top Station Tower

After having a good spicy lunch (as per our request), we started back towards Munnar. While returning back, we halted @my favorite spot, the private place which I’ve explored  and experienced previously in Munnar. It’s 3-4kms before Kundala Dam from Top Station. 

The scene we witnessed is one of the best in our lifetime. There was a slope, covered with green grasses (30*) and the depth is almost 20-25meters.  Down the slip, there was a small water stream passing by. After that stream, there are carrot gardens for almost 500m distance. After that, there was a ground where children's were playing football and their parent, friends, passing people were applauding them..

View From The Top :

Arun Worrying About Losing Bachelor's Life 😂 :

Heaven Under Legs :

The location down the slope had a spacious plain surface, covered with grass. I jus thought of buying the land, build a small house and spend rest of my lifetime over there.! It was such a beauty..

We decided to walk down the slope and reach the stream. It was quite slippery as there were some drizzles always. On reaching the stream, we got refreshed. It was so chill and the climate along with the drizzle made my legs under the stream water almost to freeze.! 

AT LAST, NATURE WINS!!! :

Everything is a passing cloud. We started to go up the slope, and resumed our journey back towards Munnar. 

We halted for 30mins @Munnar Town for a small break with shopping @KHTP, where I use to purchase Tea Bags and Chocolates. Then we resumed our journey towards Thekkady around 06:00pm.

It was so drowsy for us and we all were tired. We halted @Nedungandam to complete our dinner around 08:30pm. We had good dinner with Borota and Fried Rice, with starters @Town Hotel. Our plan is to stay @Thekkady, but since we all running out of battery, we started to search for rooms @Nedungandam itself. Around 09:30pm, it feels like 01:00am mid-night. We can’t even find any mosquitoes around us. No rooms available and available rooms aren’t good enough for our comfortable stay. Therefore, we’ve decided to drive towards Thekkady around 10:30pm.

Among searching and getting multiple options in Thekkady for our stay, we went with FERNDALE HOMESTAY. We spoke to Mr and Mrs Baby who were the owner of the Homestay and they supported us a lot even during that late night time. Upon reaching there, they greeted us well. The home stay was superb and well-maintained.

ABOUT FERNDALE HOMESTAY :

This was the best among the quality home stays I’ve ever stayed during my travel across our country. The kind-off hospitality we experienced was really appreciably. And many many thanks to FERNDALE HOMESTAY for our comfortable stay and I’m sure, I’ll be back on vacation. I hope to get the same quality of service when I return.

Official Website : http://ferndalehomestay.com/

Contact : +91 9947825323

Dec 15, 2020 (Tuesday) : Thekkady-Vagamon

It’s a much needed break, in such travel. Next day morning, we woke little late. We had a cup of Coffee from the home stay. And we ask for good restaurant nearby, and upon getting suggestions from Mr Baby, we completed our kerala breakfast @Hotel Paradise, which is just at a walk-able distance from the home stay. Here is where we had the best kattan chaya of kerala. Also the restaurant serves good breakfast options with quality one. 

Completing some nearby ATM kind-off needs, we were back to our home stay, and headed towards Vagamon, The Switzerland of Kerala. Mr Baby gave us a good send-off accompanied with some suggestion's.

We planned to spot any private waterfalls and found a good one at the suburbs of Vagamon, which was surrounded by Tea Estate. It was a good and quick find from us. The waterfalls experience was really worth-ful and refreshing for us to start with. We were alone and it was an unique experience for us, getting lost somewhere. We also got a tennis ball to play with.

Car Park Location (150m walk) :

Entrance :

Crab Catching :

Chilling :

Pro Tip : 

• There are a lot of leeches around the location, as its surrounded by tea estates. So, be careful and get some amount of salt or a match-box, to stay safe from leech attacks.

We aren’t aware of time spend, but it took longer that we even forget to have our lunch. We left the location and entered Vagamon.

Pro Tips :

• Vagamon doesn’t hold any fuel bunks. So be ready with tank full to explore Vagamon.
• Stay away from local tourist guides. Get known of Vagamon with locals and explore yourself for better experience and budgeted too.
• There are a lot of rooms offering in budgeted price. But opt a better room by searching 3-4 cottages atleast.
• Vagamon suburbs too will be looking beautiful with high-views and sceneries. These kind-off experience will be earned only by exploring yourself and not with guides as a tourist. So plan accordingly, with un-planned decisions 😇.
• Also finding quality restaurants are difficult. No Google Reviews available for restaurants across Vagamon and don’t know why. So hear with some locals, look at the maintenance of the restaurant and it’s kitchen too(if possible) and opt for an hygienic one.

We found a good restaurant with Car parking. The restaurant serves hygienic quality food. Especially Paneer Butter Masala was amazing and must try one along with Chapathi / Naan. 

Completing our lunch, we had an evening time which can be spend for 2-3 hours. Therefore, we headed towards Vagamon Meadows. 

ABOUT VAGAMON MEADOWS :

It’s like Manjolai of Tirunelveli, but quite bigger area. We got a tennis ball to play with and an water bottle. 2 per team and each team facing each other, placing the water bottle @the middle. Distance from the bottle is around 10 feet and the team hitting the bottle more no of times win the game. It also felt good when some unknown kerala group of people join with us and enjoy their picnic along with us. It was a good experience for us to mingle with unknown faces and share experiences. Completing our visit to Vagamon Meadows, we came out and got notice of FULL JAR in a shop.

 ABOUT FULL JAR :

Bigger jar(3/4^th) will be filled with strong soda, and a small jar(1/4th) containing pieces of hot green chilly with sweet mixture and some salt will be dropped into the bigger jar. We need to drink as a gulp with those red eyes and it was a great experience.

 

My Personal View :

* Drinking full jar will remove nose blocks and good to have without ice / very less cold 😅.

Later we just drive through the suburbs of Vagamon and got to know about surrounding beauties. This was the moment, when we realize why Vagamon is also called as Switzerland of Kerala.

After the darkness filled the sky, we came back to the Vagamon Town, had some ice creams as our dinner in that cold nights, along with some Banana.

Dec 16, 2020 (Wednesday) : Vagamon-Kottayam-Azhapuzha (Arun Birthday Celebrations, V T V Bridge)

It’s birthday morning for Arun and we 3(excluding Arun) look very excited in planning for a surprise for Arun. 

We got to know about a good and huge waterfalls with scenic beauty deep inside the dense forest area of Vagamon. It was a 1.5hrs of bumpy road travel, which was saying us that achieving something precious will often have hard roads and it doesn’t bulf us. The roads were surrounded bu rubber farms. We paused our journey in the mid and got a change to see the rubber extraction process from rubber trees. 

We resumed our journey and reached the Malmara Falls. Reaching the parking lot, the roads (which wasn’t a road at all ) came to an end and from there, we need to trek nearly 1 km inside the forest, to reach the falls. Here is where we’ve planned for surprise birthday celebrations. At one point of trek, we got 2 different climbs spot. We decided top opt one for holding Arun and making the arrangements in the other way. It was a great experience not only for the birthday boy, but also for all of us to celebrate their birthday in such a silent reserve forest, that too near a gigantic waterfalls. We got 1 use & throw plate, with diary milk silk (Red Velvet) and some additional color chocolates (Gems and DM Shots) for decorations.

BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS :

Completing the celebrations and getting refresh in such a scenic waterfalls, we started our journey towards Kottayam. Since it was some local election result announcement day, Kottayam was  looking crowded with result announcement celebration's.

We search for good restaurant for our lunch, as it was already 3pm nearly and found an Tamil Nadu Restaurant, Hotel Akshaya. Unfortunately, Tamil Nadu rice wasn’t available which half of our team members expected. But we went to have Kerala Meals, which was too good. They also serve different variety of dishes like Pine Apple Salad.etc, which tastes too good.

From Kottayam, wherever you travel apart towards eastwards, you will be finding any of those kerala backwaters, and from Kottayam to Alapuzha, there is a well-known backwater which will be following parallelly along the left side of the highways. We came across listening to some kerala-tamil songs and listening to VTV songs, we remember a church where some scenes has been shoot and located near Alapuzha. We confirmed it with the help of Google. Also that church was just on the way from Kottayam to Alapuzha and it was a perfect timing for us to find it. Reaching the spot was superb, as we need to cross a small bridge, for crossing the back waters. The location was exactly the same and no any kind-off graphics involved in the film. 

We spend some good time out there, watching the sunset. 

We also simultaneously looking for a good home stay near beach-side in Google and for the know about Marari Beach Home Stay. The location was somewhat away(10kms) from crowded Alapuzha City (which we need for peace). They offered us good Home which also falls in our budget. 

Getting in the room, we got refresh and started to have an night walk towards the beach. Spending some time, watching the stars with that cold breeze from Arabian Sea, we were enjoying the moment. We got an app from Google PlayStore called ”SKY VIEW” which will translate us about the stars and what are the things present in the sky along with the stars(including satellites, if any) and it was such knowledge sharing experience for all of us. There is also a spot, where the backwaters joins the sea and where crabs can be found as a bunch.

ABOUT ALAPUZHA LUXURIOUS TRAIN..

 Dec 17, 2020 (Thursday) : Azhapuzha-Ernakulam-Aluva (Premam Bridge)

Next day, we went for a morning jog in the Marari Beach. 

Later getting refreshed in room and vacated it. 

We headed towards Cochin (termed as Ernakulam in Kerala). We skipped our breakfast as we’ve an heavy plan for our lunch. We got some tender coconuts and filled our breakfast. For lunch, we drive towards Cochin and visited VELLAKANTHARI SEA FOODS. It’s well-known restaurant across Kerala and many drive-inn even the location is far away from the Cochin City. It serves not only Quality sea Foods, but also with unique dishes. The best Sea Food Restaurant I’ve ever visited in my travel across India and a Must Visit one. We had all varieties of Sea Foods, including Crabs, Fishes, Prawns, also had some chicken and beef. Completing our lunch, we had a lime soda followed by an ice cream.

Watching my WhatsApp Posts, Mr Arun (with whom I’ve travelled in and around Coorg), suggested us to visit LuLu Mall. Therefore, at Cochin, we came across the Harbor and visited the famous LuLu Mall. 

We purchased some mementos for home for our family, as Christmas and New Year too was nearing. Also we use to shop a lot for getting some memento, in-order to remember about the places we’ve visited and also for our family members. @LuLu Mall, we shopped some Xmas dress, Hats, Chocolates, Sweets and Soft Drinks, and leave towards Aluva.

@Aluva, we are very excited to visit a spot, where the famous Malayalam movie PREMAM has been shoot for some scenes. In precise, the bridge, where George will be running on seeing Mary’s Father in 1^st half of the film. The PREMAM BRIDGE. 

ABOUT PREMAM BRIDGE :

1. Situated in Aluva to Elanjikayi road, near Aluva Market, it's not "Premam Bridge". It's aquadict connects aluva-uliyannoor-kadungallor up to UC college.

2. With Great architecture, it's a few kilometres long bridge constructed very earlier for the transport of water.

3. Some scenes of famous malayalam movie (actor- Nivin Pauly, director- Alphonse Putren) Premam were shot here.

4. It's so long and had cracks everywhere, even some pot-holes can be spotted now as it became too old. It's name had changed after the success of the film "PREMAM".

5. Till 2018, riding bikes from one end to the other was allowed, but right now it's only used for walking / travel with bicycle for safety concerns.

6. It's a beautiful stretch for morning walk.

7. We can enjoy calmness and greenery of nature at this stretch.

8. The scenery from the bridge is so amazing and unique, with 2 river crosses.

We walked through-out the stretch from one end to the other and came back. It actually took us nearly 2 hours of time for a casual walk with some good cam clicks in-between. There is a small open ground spotted in-between where some teen boys were playing football. In Kerala, Football is more famous than Cricket (which tops cross India).

Having a good peaceful walk, we were slowing searching for a good home stay nearby. Visiting multiple home-stay's, we went with Paradise Homestay, which is just 1 km away another end of the Premam Bridge. Mr Ratheesh(Owner of the Paradise Homestay) looks so calm and straight. Homestay was quite big in area, also so neat and well-maintained with Car Parking facilities.

Getting-in the room, we started to relax with some good oil massage with Eucalyptus Oil, played some Card Games and slept.

Dec 18, 2020 (Friday) : Aluva-Athirampally-Palakkad-Coimbatore (Athirampally)

The next day morning, we look so comfortable with adequate sleep. We completed our breakfast in Aluva local’s famous and traditional Annapurna Restaurant. The sambar and kurma was so tasty and made us feel juicy. We found and 100Rs note on the road and handed over to a poor, as we can’t able to find any responsible person nearby. The day started too good and we too look excited with our visit to Athirampally. It was a good 2 hours drive from Aluva to Athirampally. Reaching Athirampally, we found a lot of monkey in groups, looking to get some food from us.

Pro Tip :

• Monkeys try to attack any plastic covers if we have. So be careful, and avoid any kind-off plastic bags. Even if you don’t have any food items inside your plastic bags, the monkeys don’t know and they all knowledge that if it was a plastic bags, then there was some food available inside the bag.
• Always have a stick (1 meter long @max.) in your hand. Seeing this, monkeys won’t even try to near us.

Entering Athirapally, the check-post fee costs Rs 50 for Car and Rs 20 per person.

Disappointment caused as they didn’t allow visitors to bath due to COVID reasons. We just had some good trek to watch the location where the water falls from the top and it looks so gigantic.

We all thought of getting refreshed @Athirampally. But as a traveller, you should always be aware of in and around locations. We immediately swapped our refreshment to “Ezhattumugham Prakriti Gramam”.

ABOUT EZHATTUMUGHAM PRAKRITI GRAMAM :

1. About 8km far from Athirappily. Once you take the entry pass, a butterfly garden will welcome you. Further walk ahead to find a suspension foot bridge built across Chalakudy River, connecting Thumboormuzhi tourist spot in Thrissur district and eco-village Ezhattumugham in Ernakulam district. In short these two spots are located downstream of the renowned Athirapally waterfalls. This 210 m bridge provides a panoramic view of the forest.
2. At one point, the Chalakudy gets by the islets and boulders into seven flowing streams, and that is how Ezhattumugham (seven faces of a river) gets its name. During the non-monsoon months, the river bares its beautiful depths and you can walk on the boulders and islets through shallow water, right to the other bank of the river. During the monsoon, the river hides the smaller islets and the water sometimes reaches the road by the banks.
3. If you wish to visit Ezhattumugham from Kochi, it is about 25 km from the airport and 58km from city. The best way to reach is to hire a taxi or drive down. Oil plantations are seen abundantly on the way which makes the route worth seeing.

Pro Tips :

• The best time to visit Athirappilly is just after the monsoon season, when the waterfalls would be in full force.
• September to February is the ideal period to visit.
• You can visit the waterfalls only between 8 am and 6 pm everyday.
• Consumption of alcohol or smoking is strictly prohibited.
• Swimming in the falls is prohibited during monsoon, as it can be very dangerous.
• The visitors are advised to refrain from feeding animals (plenty of monkeys around) as the waterfalls are plastic-free zones.

It’s a resort kind-off location. The parking fee costs Rs 50 and Entry fee per person costs Rs 20/- INR for 2 hours and Rs 10 for every additional hours, which is quite affordable. The location also consists of good quality restaurant, which serves almost all varieties of food. We trekked for 2hms from the entrance and inside the river, found a good spot which looks isolated and free from the crowd and got good refreshment for nearby an hour. Followed by completing our lunch @the restaurant inside the resort itself, we left the place with full of satisfaction. Ezhattumugham will serve as a good break for those who resides in and around Ernakulam / Pakallad, for a day picnic.

The trip in Kerala has come to an end from here. Kerala Govt. Didn’t allow visitors with ePass to reside for 7 or more days without COVID Negative Certification. Therefore, we ended the trip from here inside kerala and driven towards Coimbatore (which was 4 hours of travel).

Near palakkad stretch, there were some road works going-on for years and will continue to do so for next 2 more years (estimated). Therefore, palakkad border route looks traffic @ one stretch with only 2 lanes (for both to and fro) for vehicle transportation. Therefore, it costs us nearly an hour of delay. We halted @Palakkad, got some Kerala’s special Banana Chips for our home, had some tea break and resumed our journey towards Coimbatore.

Reaching Coimbatore, we went to DENMARRK Restaurant, which was very famous one across the city. 

ABOUT DENMARRK RESTAURANT :

Making way for a hearty meal is Denmarrk Drive Inn Restaurant in Coimbatore. Established in the year 2014, this place is synonymous with delicious food that can satiate all food cravings. It is home to some of the most appreciated cuisines which include North Indian,Chinese. So as to be able to cater to a large number of diners, it occupies a favourable location at Coimbatore Central. Price For Two Costs Rs 400/- INR. The restaurant welcomes guests from 12:30 - 23:00 allowing diners to relish a scrumptious meal between the functional hours.Price For Two 400 . The restaurant welcomes guests from 12:30 - 23:00 allowing diners to relish a scrumptious meal between the functional hours.

Completing delicious dinner, we’ve reached pravin’s home.

Dec 19, 2020 (Saturday) : Coimbatore-Salem-Chennai (THE END)

The final day, we have some special moments from fiancee of Arun, offering us a lunch. We left Coimbatore with good memories of Pravin and Arun’s Family. Our next meet wasn’t too far away from us, as Arun’s wedding was nearing (In Feb, 2021). With final spot @Sri Krishna Sweets, we left Coimbatore and journey towards Chennai via Salem starts. Reaching Arun’s Home @Salem in the afternoon, we got an hour of break. We were relaxing and walking around the gardens nearby. Later, we left Salem and travelling back to Chennai. Myself and Marsh Whesly were sharing all those good moments happen in this Kerala Trip and the time went as quick as we reached Chennai by night, around 11pm.

CONCLUSION :

It was a good and required break for all of us who have gone through haptic life inside those 4 walls for long stressful days and the output of the break came as good as expected. 

We missed the presence of our friend Sheikh, who went to abroad (Dubai) for his work.

Kaanavillai Sheikh..

RESPECT KERALA !!!

TRAVELING ? IT LEAVES YOU SPEECHLESS, THEN TURNS YOU INTO A STORYTELLER

I Travel a Lot; I Hate Having My Life Disrupted by Routine. A Ship in Harbor Is Safe, but That Is Not What Ships Are Built For. At the End of the Day, Your Feet Should Be Dirty, Your Hair Messy and Your Eyes Sparkling.

Avoiding junk cold drinks has been successfully met during this trip and YEAH! I DON'T DRINK, AS TRAVELLING IS MY DRUG.!

I don’t know who said this, “Once in an year, go somewhere you have never been before”.  This became the baseline for my own quote, which I use to follow. i. e, “Once in a travel, go somewhere which wasn’t available in Google Maps.” and “Better to see some location once, than to hear about it a thousand times.”

Hope all felt interesting and got some information for your next exploration. ContactMe for any travel related queries or guides anytime. Signing-off from this Exploration. 

BON VOYAGE..!!