Place: Our home in Palayamkottai. It was a mansion (by today’s standards) – a huge, old house with big granite blocks for steps, tiled roof, and a huge garden. The garden was big enough for us to dig trenches for water – we had a lot of banana trees, a coconut tree, a bunch of neem trees, a tamarind tree, cotton trees, papaya, drumstick (with the caterpillars), a big bush shoeflower, mom’s flower garden, and granny’s greens patch. And, we had a lot of space to play after all these. It is a best of all places I’ve lived in. 

Anyways, I didn’t mean to describe that place so much! What I wanted to talk about was a frog that sneaked in everyday. Those days, dad had a bicycle and nothing more. And, every night, we’d find this huge froggie on the seat of the bicycle. It was quite a mystery how this guy got there – because the doors and windows and pretty fine mesh to keep the insects out and the cycle was parked inside. Well, it was a mystery until we caught mister froggie making his way in. He was squeezing his way through the mesh – and I couldn’t believe he could do that! 

And ya, that’s the moment I so clearly remember – some kinda freeze frame moment!

After a few days of uncertainty and some last-minute planning, we were off to Pichavaram, a mangrove near Chidambaram (Click here for Map) – 250 km from Chennai,
a place featured in The Road Less Travelled.

We started on Saturday afternoon – to Chidambaram. It was a typical Chennai afternoon – hot and humid. After a not-so-easy journey of 6 hours in the bus, we got off at Chidambaram around 9pm. Oh ya, we did play bluff and I wasn’t good at it (well, I get to say that I am not good at bluffing!).

It was a rainy night and we had to walk to a couple of hotels to find a place. Finally, we got a place, a li’l away from the bus stand (Thanks to Simon’s call to one of the hotels earlier that day). The next morning, we walked down the road to one of those small hotels, had a quick breakfast, and then, we waited for a bus that would take us to Pichavaram.

Once we were out of Chidambaram, it was a typical rural scene – fields that stretch afar, a narrow road, few people walking by, children playing… soon, we were at Pichavaram. Quite a small place and all that you can do is go boating and get atop the tower that serves as a viewpoint.

First we went on the boat ride – into the mangroves. It was good – but could have been better. It looks like a lot of research happens there – you’d find the botanical names of trees written on small boards.
It was over too soon and we were left wondering where to go. Though the article in Hindu mentions a ban on photography, we were allowed to take cameras and were even given a ticket for the camera (Rs. 50 for a camera).

We asked the people at Pichavaram for other places to visit and got the way to the nearest beach – get off at the next village and, about 4 kms from there, we’ll have to take a boat across the backwaters to get to the beach.

At Killai, we were wondering – Should we walk? After the walking we did in Yelagiri, I was sure it would be interesting. There are things you can see and observe only when you walk – you can stop and talk to the people, walk around and observe as they go about their day…But then, Amit didn’t want to walk! So, we got two cycles for rent (no questions asked, no security deposits!) – and I got a free ride

And, there we were, cycling along the village road towards the backwaters – wondering if we should step into someone’s house and ask for a meal! Soon enough, we reached the backwaters – and there was this guy waiting in the shelter nearby who offered to drop us on the other side for 20 bucks each. We left the cycles there, and off we went – with no idea of what was awaiting us on the other side of the backwaters.

We were told that people used to live there before the tsunami, but no one lives there anymore – and the place did look like it was hit pretty bad in the tsunami (2004) – even a board that said, let’s grow more trees and reduce the impact of the tsunami; warning signs saying do not let the animals graze here or do not chop these trees – a grim reminder to what these people faced a couple of years ago.

Soon we were on the other side of the backwaters – our boatman left us there saying, get back to this spot and I will come and pick you up. So, there we were, on this island, not another soul other than the three of us, and no way to get back other than wait for our boatman!

With what seemed to be like a grove was on our left and an endless stretch of sand to our right – we walked towards the sea. If you ever visit Chidambaram and love being on a quiet beach, you should visit this place. Am lost for words to describe the moment when we came upon the sea – as a Chennaiite, I’ve been on the beach quite often – but the Chennai beaches are crowded – and can be dirty too! Here we were, on a quiet, lonely place – clean and calm… it was simply beautiful….It was a mid-day siesta out there – right below the mid-day sun, we were out there at the beach. Thankfully, it was a cloudy day and we weren’t at the mercy of the sun.

Soon, it was time to get back – to go to the other side of the island and wait for our boatman. While we were walking along the grove, we decided to explore – we thought we’d find someone living there – or at least a locked house. What we found was a grim reminder of the tsunami that hit this region a couple of years ago. There was this house standing in the middle of that grove – more like an outhouse – windows and doors stripped, yet heavy things like the grinding stone remain – well, not so long ago, it was someone’s front yard.

Time to return – our boatman coming to get us back to mainland. We returned the cycles and walked around a bit before we took the bus to Chidambaram. After lunching at a crowded restaurant, we got back to the room and we left around 2pm. Plan was to take the 3pm bus to Chennai – which would not happen. Thanks to the weekend crowd, something we forgot about, all buses were full. So, if you are planning a weekend visit, and traveling by bus, one, you’d be better off getting into one at Chidambaram, and two, you better leave a little earlier. If not, book your return tickets at the earliest and do not wait till you get out to board a bus.

In short, a great weekend getaway – especially if you want to get away from the crowded beaches of Chennai and want to explore the countryside. Just remember to book those return tickets!

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From Pictures from Pichavaram

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]]> http://www.chrisclicks.com/2007/10/pichavaram-the-mangrove-and-the-beach/feed/ 6 http://www.chrisclicks.com/2007/08/yelagiri/ http://www.chrisclicks.com/2007/08/yelagiri/#comments Fri, 24 Aug 2007 19:38:00 +0000 Christelle http://travel.chrisclicks.com/?p=7 December 15 – 17, 2006

This time, almost a year ago, we were thinking of how to meet, where to meet and places to visit. Ya, a long time online buddy was coming to Chennai – home visit – and wanted to go for a short trip. And ya, I wanted to go for a trip too – it had been quite some time since I travelled long distance.

We settled on Yelagiri for a weekend trip. This place is between Bangalore and Chennai – about 170 km from Bangalore and 210 km from Chennai (Madras). So, on December 15, I met my long-time online buddy and his friend at Chennai Central Railway Station. We took a train to Jolarpet – and I learnt to play Bluff (I hope I got the name right!) along the way. From Jolarpet, it was a bus ride to Yelagiri.

The bus filled with baskets and gunny bags – which Was a handy extra seat or stumbling block, depending on how you look at it. Late in the evening, we reached Yelagiri – we were dropped off at what seemed to be a marketplace. Within a few minutes, we had a couple of people promoting their lodges. For the first time, I went to a place without booking a place in advance and checked out places before we checked in one of the lodges right there on the main road.

After a quick wash and settling down, we went out to have dinner. After dinner at the hotel near the lodge, we decided to walk around. At about 9pm, the place was deserted. Nothing new for a village! So, we walked in pitch darkness – no streetlights, no vehicles, no lights from houses – just us and a little torch shining bright After walking around, we got back and the two school buddies started the who’s-doing-what-these-days talk. For me, it was time to sleep!

The next day, we woke up early, had a good breakfast, and headed out into the forest. We were planning to walk all the way – but then, we were told we’d be better off if we go in an auto to a village nearby and then start our trek. So, we got an auto to drop us at the next village.

As we were getting off, there was this old man with his two cows walking by. Simon and Amit asked him how far is the waterfalls and if he’d take us through the forest. He looked at the three of us, and asked “Really??” Well, he had to be assured more than once that we were capable of walking long distance. Once he was convinced, he said he’d take us. Before that, he had to leave the cows at home. This elderly man, left his towel nearby, asked us to stay there and went back saying he’d return soon!

And true to his word, he was back in a little while – off we went along the narrow path that took us into the forest. And a couple of meters in, he said that his wife told him to ask for 100Rs – for taking us around. He seemed to be that innocent villager – even inviting us to stay over at his place. And then, even as we were resting in the shade of a tree, he asked if I don’t have to go to school! He thought I had run away from home

We walked through the forest, and reached this waterfall almost at the bottom of the hill – the Jalagamparai Falls. It isn’t about the waterfall as much as it is about the walk down there – one of those places where you can say the path matters more than the destination.

All the way, we were treated to folklore and songs by ‘thatha’ (meaning ‘grandfather’) as called him. He sang to us, advised us to study well, said I remind him of his granddaughter, wanted to know if our parents knew where we were…

After that long walk through the forest, we reached the waterfalls and the temple nearby. As I said earlier, it isn’t a very spectacular falls. By the time we reached the waterfalls, it was afternoon. After a short break at the falls, we walked around to the nearest shops right outside. After biscuits, snacks, and water, we realised that the next bus would reach this place a couple of hours later [:O]

Do we wait? Well, we decided to walk along the road instead of waiting there for the bus. So, we went off again – walking on the road – hoping to see a bus on the other side. We walked and we walked – it is one of the unforgettable experiences in my life – walking around the rural areas, with no concern for time. So, we walked and walked and walked – until thatha got tired.

We walked by a couple of villages, roads lined on either side by sugarcane and cotton fields, the tar road used for drying bagasse. We came across a place where they were making jaggery – those huge pots over a big fire with a just a small opening for them to push the bagasse into the fire! And then, there were these two kids who wanted me to take a picture of their little brother.

Finally, we sat down under a huge banyan tree which was supposed to be the bus stop. As we waited, the people nearby came to enquire about us – where we are from and so on. When I set the camera on timer and took a picture, they were amazed at the camera that takes a picture of it’s own and one of them was in awe of the mind that created this

And the bus came a little later – we went to Thirupathur, had a late lunch, and then boarded the bus to Yelagiri – once more, we went up the hill. After dinner, we walked along those quiet roads – not a single horn, no TV blaring in someone’s house… the only sound you could hear were of the insects and frogs. I think it was closer to new moon, ‘coz it was a starlit night – I don’t remember seeing the moon – all that I can remember are the stars, the dark roads, and the sounds of the insects.

When we got back, we started Bluff again – until it was really really late. The next morning, we went boating in the lake out there, spent some time walki

ng around and then returned to the cottage. The boat ride was real fun – it was quite a long ride and was real fun go that far! When we got back to the cottage, we walked around the garden, took a lot of pictures, played in the swing… and soon, it was time to leave.

As we were walking to the bus stop, we saw the bus to Jolarpet start off. Simon, the sprinter, ran and got the bus to stop – and we got the last seat of the bus – we sat there eating crispies and sweets we used to have when we were kids…. And we were on our way back – to our work, each in a different location…

For more Pictures, go to Yelagiri