Vellinezhi - A Journey For Life

Here are glimpses from a journey - no, make it pilgrimage - I undertook earlier this year. A journey that will always continue to hold a special place in my life, a journey that has given me memories for life....

 It was after all a journey to the tiny village of Vellinezhi - the village my daddy called home as a little boy!

Velinezhi is considered the center for "Kathakali" and many other cultural arts of Kerala. Recently it was declared as the "Kalagraamam" of Kerala. The govt. School of Vellinezhi has the honor of being the only school in state o teach 'Kathakali'.....

But somebody had a reputation of spending more time on football ground adjoining the school...

Today, daddy's house is been grazed to ground. Here's a glimpse of another house in neighborhood that was his childhood haunt

But his favorite should be this puzha - where he frolicked as a child and then as a teenager. He had the image of 'Casanova' to live upto after all ;)

Linking this to AtoZ challenge  J is for Journeys to take before you die :)


Puzha - Small river

Ramasseri Idlis....

Idlis is a staple breakfast in almost all south Indian Homes. Each region has its own slight variation - - from your regular idlis to Kushboo Idli to Thatte Idlis. A good 30 years of living in South India and just as you think you have sampled the entire plethora of Idlis  - there comes another that is subtly different from everything else you have tasted...

'Ramasseri Idli'...... from the village of Ramasseri a few kms off Palaghat district in Kerala. These idlis seem more like steamed version of Mini dosas - So thin and flat are they! Here is a picture of the idli we had for breakfast one of those days.......

Am told that in this part of Kerala, Ramasseri Idli is a regular item during feasts at home and hotels. But of course, we had to drive the extra 10 -15 kms to Ramaserri village and sample the 'original'(cue to roll eyes)

You could read more about Ramasseri Idli and its cooking procedure here


Linking this to AtoZ challenge - I is for Idli. N thus we head off to Palaghat and its interiors for the next few days.....

Holidaying @ Ooty

Come next day morning, we took the first trip on the "Ooty Heritage Train" - our co-passengers were a group of Japanese scientists  visiting India. What a delightful company they were - a straight lift from "Big Bang Theory" I should add :-D. Just ensure you book your tickets in advance in one of the first class coaches(the remaining coaches would be literally overflowing with tourists) you are set for a quaint one hour ride......

The view from the train.....

That done, we drove down towards Lovedale to visit a tea garden and a few Victorian era churches - no crowds accosting us here and for a moment we were transferred to another world.

The Stained Glasses in these churches are centuries old.....

A hearty lunch later, we stepped into the botanical garden - The first few pit-stops were full of hooting college kids, honeymoon couples and huge families! We moved along  ignoring them. The air by then was cold and crisp after a afternoon shower. Walking together in that high altitude - with hardly any soul for company - amidst tall pine trees for company, we soon hit upon the the Toda tribe settlement(Do take a moment and read up about them). Todas are the indigenous tribes of Ooty.....

Place of Worship of Todas

Maybe the secret behind a good holiday lies in meeting people on the way, exploring places outa way and not really bothering about the "to do" checklist that a tourist book will recommend! Indeed Oooty was a pleasant, refreshing break....

Linking this to AtoZ challenge . H is for Holidaying @ Ooty

N thus comes to an end our weekend getaway to Ooty. So where should we head next people :-D

Gorgeous Nature : Enroute Ooty

After Maharastha road-trip will you join me for a quick weekend getaway....

Pheno won a holiday voucher  last year that offered a 3D - 2N package across India and abroad! The late lateefs we are, we woke up at last minute to realize that the voucher expires in next few days. In the last minute frenzy, the only viable option was Ooty! Yea, our reaction was exactly that -  "ooty $%^%&%^%". I mean who in their senses would want to visit Ooty to relax - a place that's bursting at its seams with tourists!!! Anyway we consoled ourselves that its about the journey and not the destination...

The road trip to ooty from Bangalore passed through Bandipur forests, eucalyptus-bamboo groves, tea gardens at Gundalpet, Paiakra lake and grass lands of Niligiris. Pheno was literally squealing in delight......

Please drive Carefully on these roads thru Bandipur Jungle......

@Pykara Lake. It will give Ooty lake a run for money Anyday

Gurgling Waters of Pykara......

For those of you driving down from Bangalore to Ooty, I will suggest you take the Gundalpet route(as against the Ooty Hairpin route) at least one way - Nature will definitely bowl you over! Indeed it was the perfect start for our holiday...

Alas, The moment we entered the famed "Charring Cross" of Ooty, our bubble burst! The streets were overcrowded with tourists -   so what if it was a off season at the fag end of monsoons! We were booked in at Club Mahindra's Derby Green( part of the voucher - I have reviewed it here). But as evening set in and we settled down at the resorts patio with a  drink or two , everything seemed hunky-dory again :-P.

Linking this to AtoZ challenge  G is for Gorgeous Nature

Faith...

Faith am told can move mountains. But did you know it can move oceans.....

Haji Ali mosque in Mumbai is built in the middle of ocean! Just imagine.. A mosque in midst of Arabian sea...  

The path connecting Haji Ali to the land is accessible only when the tides of ocean are low.  All of this seemed so mystical to me that I definitely had to make a pit stop here during our Mumbai Visit.....

I sadly do not have any pic that will do justice to this place...

And thus comes to and end my posts of the Mharashtra Road Trip.....

Linking this to AtoZ challenge  F is for Faith

Eating in Kolhapur..

Kolhapur was the pit-stop on our Bangalore-Mumbai road trip. Of course, it was a conscious stop considering this place is synonymous with its non-veg cuisine :).

This is how our dinner plate looked like that evening. Now, this is the interesting bit - you'll see two kinds of gravy - the red and the white one.  The white\green gravy is called "Pandra Raasa" and its mildness is the perfect foil for "Tambda Raasa" which is a fiery hot red gravy!

For breakfast next day morning, we landed at Phadtare Misal Paav. This is a no-frill, modest eatery open only for breakfast and the only item in the menu is Misal-Paav. Its rated as one among the best in  Kolhapur and it truly didn't disappoint( Of course am no expert on Misal, but it was definetely lip smacking good).......

Of course, no trip to Kolhapur is complete without picking up these famous Kolhapuris....

 

Linking this to AtoZ challenge  E is for Eating@Kolhapur

Dilras Banu Begum @Bibi Ka Maqbara

The beauty of Road trips are the hidden gems that you chance upon! Look at one that we happened to chance upon in Auranagbad........

This monument is called Bibi Ka Maqbara or locally Mini Tajmahal. I haven't yet had a chance to visit Taj Mahal yet ~~ but am told this is a true replica(though less grander) of Taj Mahal...

"Bibi ka Maqbara" was started by Aurangazeb in honor of his first wife, Dilras Banu Begum and was completed by his son. Co-incidentally, it was designed by Ata-ullah, son of Ustad Ahmad Lahauri, the architect of the Taj Mahal.

Couple of Kms away from this place is Bhadra Maruti Temple - A temple that has a strong sufi influence The folk singers who pepper this temple courtyard are a pleasure to listen to - I have posted about it in detail on Cory's blog  few weeks ago(Do listen in to the video there)...



Both thee places can be clubbed up along wit Ajanta - Ellora Caves


Linking this to 2014 AtoZ Challenge - D is for Dilras Banu Begum, the queen whose mausoleum is Bibi Ka Maqbara 

Caves of Ellora

And with this post comes to end the Ajanta - Ellora bit of the travellogue. Did you know that these caves are separated by a good 40 Kms.....

Ellora caves are synonymous with "Kailash". Can you believe that this entire gigantic structure is carved from a single rock! All the pics you see below are of "Kailash" and they do not even cover half of it....

 

 

Ellora thou is a famous world heritage site, the place sadly lacks the basic Travel infrastructure in terms of Stay and food. The only saving grace is Hotel Kails - A boutique hotel that's a stones throw away from Ellora. I highly recommend this place - it definitely adds to the overall experience......

Also of interest to Hindu travelers is the fact that one of the twelve jyotirlings - Grishneshwar - is located hardly a kilometer away from Ellora Caves.

Linking this to 2014 AtoZ Challenge - C is for Caves of Ellora

Buddhist Caves - Ellora - Part 1

Did u know Ajanta & Ellora caves were rediscovered by accident. History has it that they were built centuries ago, but were later abandoned and soon forgotten. It was in 1819, that a British Hunting party sighted these caves purely by accident and the excavations have been going on since then.....

Ellora caves are widely spread out and need a minimum of one good day to traverse through. Unlike Ajanta Caves which are all Buddhist, Ellora caves have Hindu, Jain and Buddhist figures engraved in them......

There are 34 caves in all at Ellora, out of which the first 12 are the Buddhist caves.....

 Linking this to AtoZ Challenge - B is for Budhhist Caves @ Ellora

@Ajanta

Am starting this season of AtoZ with stories from my road trip in Maharashtra that we did late last year. The caves of Ajanta and Ellora is what lured Pheno to do this back-breaking road-trip(
Mumbai - Bangalore is almost 1200km one way)........ So A is for Ajanta....

Caves of Ajanta are not just another tourist attraction but also holds religious significance for Buddhists across the world. The day we were visiting, the place was teaming with Buddhist Monks from Thailand.....

Did you know, Ajanta caves is full of priceless fresco Paintings? I for one didn't know about it. The painting of Padmapani with Louts takes the cake though.....

The sculptures from that era leaves me in awe.... Considering they are from centuries ago and they must have just had the basic of the tools to chisel these out.....

 

But my favorite should be this reclining Buddha ... the peace it exudes............

I was definitely awed by this place! Next time you are in Mumbai or Pune, do make a weekend trip to this place....

And thus we kick-start 2014 AtoZ Challenge - A is for Ajanta