From Bandipur diary 2010 - 3

If you have missed out the earlier parts, you can read it here- Part 1 and part 2


Jungle Safari

By 3.30pm we got ready and rushed to get Safari tickets. There were 2 options- one was to go by bus at Rs.190 per head. Then the next is Jeep Safari at Rs.2000 and double rate if you are a foreigner. We didnt need much time to chose. We were not exactly interested in being chased by a herd of elephants or a tiger who suddenly decided to eat man for a change and opted for the bus ride.

The bus that guaranteed a bumpy ride if not the possibility of seeing many wild animals.

There were plenty of monkeys around the place, more in number than men, all addicted to Lays and Kurkure. They are being potato chips fed and spoiled by man for generations aganist the rule of mother nature.

They were arrogant,naughty yet affectionate.


The safari began sharp at 4’o clock, thanks to Karnataka govt. We were warned that we may not see any interesting creatures at all, and that we will be returned safely in 45 min time no matter what we manage to see. So the Safari began after the driver was able to hush down the loud noices of children.

Spotted deers were seen in plenty- the favourite food item of the mighty tigers of Indian forests

Then we saw a group of Bisons or Gaur. They are hugely muscular pure vegetarians, a variety of wild cattle. They were having a small party at that time in mud.

Disturbed by our intrusions and shrieks of children they decided to split off and we had to continue with our ride.

His majesty was too busy having an early supper. He concentrated mainly on his diet till he got distracted by the shouts of children.

Now the driver cum guide of the bus was angry and he warned these kids as they were spoiling the fun of co-travelers and wild animals.

Mighty elephant families were seen in plenty. After seeing the captivated animals in town it is a relief to know that free ones do exist in forests.

Finally a tiger in sight. Now everyone was curious to know whether it was alive or just a dummy!!

Well, it was an insult to him and he turned his face to prove himself.

The driver was contented now that we had spotted enough animals for 190 rupees worth and he turned and drove back nonstop. The ride was fun but put a lot of pressure in my ear labyrinthes. I was giddy and quite happy when the ride ended.

Special mention : on our way back to resort we saw wild boar twice. First time, we had an argument and John was not convinced that it was wild boar, it was only an ordinary pig. The fellow escaped our sight and I didnt get to photograph him. The second one turned out to be shy and was very fast. John was convinced this time, still I couldnt get to shoot him. As a big fan of Asterix and Obelix comics the disappointment was huge for me. The Indian wild boars are smaller than European ones and you will get some information here.

We made it on time for tea in the resort. I took this photo as a memoir for the nice time spent there and the photo was John's idea(clicked with fill in flash).

The next day we left the place in the morning with a lot of nice memories. Our special thanks to Karnataka Govt

From Bandipur diary 2010 - 2

You can read the part 1 here

I woke up to a wonderful day in Bushbetta. I opened the door in the morning to hear birds chirping and monkeys squeaking with delight. There is always breeze. Sometimes gentle caressing your cheeks, sometimes strong enough to hug you tight. We could see plenty of tiny birds around, many of them unfamiliar to us. These days urbanization is making the small birds extinct for they are losing their habitat. I began bird watching right away clicking them with my ultrazoom Nikon coolpix P100. As you can see the image quality is not so great, but few of the birds were good enough to pose for me in a nice way.

The red whiskered bulbul

Now I was really losing my patience. Shooting tiny birds without a tripod is really frustrating. There were plenty of robins and other tiny birds which skillfully evaded my camera. We went to have our breakfast at 9.30am. The tables were relatively empty by the time we finished our breakfast. We were surprised to see a lot of winged beauties chirping in the nearby table fearlessly. They had come for the left overs and were not bothered by the shooing of the waiter boys. I rushed to the sight for some quick snaps and the boys had to wait to clean up till I was done.

After breakfast we loitered around the resort for sometime and then decided to go for a drive to the nearby villages.

All I wanted was to see sunflower fields and John drove a few kilometers to find them. I voraciously shot a lot of pictures till he was bored.

They stood majestically facing the sun in unison, an impressive sight.

Several other crops were there including onion. We were stopped many times by boys waving frantically at us to buy onion. Soon we were back to the resort for lunch and a short break. Jungle safari was due by 3.30pm. I resumed bird watching from the balcony and John took a short break.

I will be back with the rest of my stories soon, till then Bye....

From Bandipur diary 2010 - 1

So began our journey in a rush on one of those rainy days of Monsoon in June, after the busy morning. We started around 11am by our car- Maruti Esteem. The holiday feel came once we crossed the familiar places along the NH17. We went via Calicut and then took right turn and entered the NH212. It was late afternoon and we were still far from border. We sped through the unknown places in anticipation. Soon we reached Adivaram meaning the Valley. From there began uphill climb through the mighty Nilgiris. As you might be knowing Nilgiris or Blue mountains got their name from bluish hue.

The Nilgiris....



There were 9 hairpin bends in total. The climb was breath taking. It was green all around which dissolved into blue in the far hill tops. It took some 45 min and we had reached high range. We didn’t dare to stop or even slow down. Vehicles were less frequent in this route. There was a panting transport bus that was struggling to reach top. The far off valleys looked blue and so tempting. Travel through Ghats made my day! Now we were on almost level road, no down hill journey was there as expected.

We had reached the Wayanad district. If the Ghats were splendid then this came as a bonus. The place is simply green and beautiful. We made a mental note to come here at some point of time for a visit. Finally we reached Sulthan Bathery and we called the resort people for directions. Soon we crossed the Kerala border and were traversing the forest sections of both states. It was late evening past 6 pm and we rushed past the green on both sides. Thank God the roads were good, straight and smooth, we could go at 100kmph and reach the resort by evening. We were greeted by herds of deer and a peahen on the way!

The forests and the roads of Bandipur.

Spotted deers are very commonly found in Indian forests. They walk fearlessly near the roads, but in large herds.



Thus ended my Day 1 in Bandipur. And soon I will come be back with rest of the stories.

A Bird's eye view from the watch tower in the resort. Unfortunately I forgot to click the picture oftower itself.

Living on an island

I had told you in the previous blog that my car has been sold. It turns out that I am not the only person who is carless now; our second car is waiting in a workshop over the last 10 days for spare parts to come from Mumbai. John is desperately going through every available car magazines as if our next trip is going to be to the nearest car showroom and that he will be forced to take an immediate decision on what car to buy. Well, truth is far from that, we won’t be visiting any car showroom in another few months time except for window shopping. While he is drooling over the pictures of latest SUVs I will take you for a walk through a small group of islands in Ernakulam.

Well, your guess is probably not right; we are not going to Fort Kochi. I am taking you to the Vypin islands where we had stayed for 2 years- a haven of back waters and serene unexplored beautiful beaches.

A king fisher with his evening catch.














Previously before the opening of Goshree bridges in 2004 these islands were connected to main land of Ernakulam through boat service and a small segment of land near North Paravur to Aluva. So imagine, if there is an emergency in the middle of the night people have to travel for hours to reach Ernakulam or wait until the next day early morning for the first boat to come and take you to Ernakulam Jetty in hardly 10-15 min time. The tiny islands are connected by tiny bridges hardly allowing one bus at a time to pass through.
Our story began much later after the completion of Goshree bridges and the real estate boomed in the tiny islands which became part of Ernakulam with direct access to main town. Land prices were rocketing, general population was exploding, the number of vehicles were statistically increasing, but the roads and bridges still belong to the prehistoric, I mean pre Goshree era. The result being horrendous traffic congestion.
Our decision to stay in Paravur hardly 2 kms from Cherai beach was out of convenience rather than our desire to live near a very charming beach of South India. We both being intense humidity haters would rather have preferred a hill station or high range. But the option was simply not there and that Cherai was half way between both of our work places we rented a house in Cherai.

Fisher men at work on a large Chinese fishing net.

When you think of beaches what comes to your mind first?
Nostalgia? A lost love? Or a future thats far yet colorful and bright? Well the mood here is nostalgia for me.











In the morning we left home in different directions, John towards Ernakulam and me northwards along the NH 17. I wonder if it fascinates you, I was traveling daily over the many bridges and serene backwaters. I was always awed by the beauty and the best part is that the same backwaters manage to look different at different hours of the day and in each climate.

Those months were my busiest in my career with heavy work schedule and lot of traveling. On the top of that not a single day passed without ourselves complaining of humidity and mosquitoes. But looking back I realize that I do miss the daily colorful sunsets created by humidity. Any one living in the heart of a city or town will know the feeling.

Evening view from my terrace...













We went to beach occasionally when we came back early from work in the evenings. We drove through the long and narrow stretches of road between the backwaters to reach the beaches and sometimes there will be water alone all around. There will be fishermen standing on the roadside with fishing nets plunged in water, their routines were a matter of delight to us. The main beach of Cherai is always crowded in evenings with plenty of natives, visitors, occasional foreigners, plenty of shrieking children and icecream and peanut vendors.

Daily commotion in Cherai beach

The backwaters are breathtakingly beautiful in many locations.













However if you prefer to relish the beauty of sky and the sea in some quiet locations, you can explore innumerable tiny beaches along the vast stretch of coastal line. I shall introduce you to a few of them.

This is Njarakkal beach, one of the Tsunami hit areas of South India. Breakwaterwalls were constructed as a future protection to reduce the impact of water in case Tsunami decides to strike again.

The break water walls once again, Is man capable of resisting the mighty nature?

Kuzhuppilly beach – a small beautiful beach 3-4 kms from Cherai.












If you get a chance drive through the roads parallel to sea.The roads are all connected to each other and to the highway so its less likely that you get lost. And one last word, smear yourself lavishly with a mosquito repellent cream.

Thats all about my story about Vypin Islands.
Have a nice time.