The Travel Connection

I embarked on yet another train journey within two weeks of traveling to Kerala in 2010. This time it was on Lallu's Garib Rath. One has to pay for the blankets and pillows and there are 3 sleepers on the side also. Other than these differences, the poor man's chariot is like any other train in India. My destination this time was Puducherry (Pondicherry) .Did you know Puducherry consists of four non-contiguous regions: Puducherry, Karaikal, and Yanam on the Bay of Bengal and Mahé on the Arabian Sea.This place still retains its evidence of French History. Though i had visited this place about 12 years ago, I was keen on rediscovering the place and its french cuisine. As this was more of hang out with friends and sight see trip, I chose ginger. For the uninitiated traveler, ginger is an affordable, very clean option for budget travelers by Tata.This place was indeed all it promises to be. As suggested by all travel shows/book, we started our weeke...

I always heard this hill station being mentioned with a lot of excitement. I was very eager to reach the place and experience it first hand. But first a long 4 hour journey through hot and humid Cochin had to be made from Allepey. I waited and waited for the amazing drive I had been told about. A long drive but it all started with two amazing water falls:Cheeyapara and valara. Since I was traveling at the end of the monsoons, both the falls were at their best. With new vigor I carried on till I hit on the rolling hills with tea gardens. Behold, I had reached Munnar!! A sight for the soothing eyes. Yes the drive through tea gardens is one of the good drives one can do in India  We stayed at a home stay “Olive brook”. This place had got very good reviews on trip advisor but I felt it could have been better. The only great thing about the place  was it felt like i was  in an aviary. I could hear the constant...

In midst of a stressed lifestyle, I set upon planning my trip to Allepey. I was really surprised to see all trains booked though I had sat down to book the tickets one month before the planned trip. With some permutations and combinations I managed to get the onward and return tickets around the time I wanted.  I loved the fact that the resorts at Alappuzha (Alleppey) are about 10 kms from the train station. You can take one of the pre paid autos to reach the resort. I had narrowed upon kayaloram heritage lake resort keeping my budget in mind. This is a quaint little resort of just 12 rooms in well manicured grounds with swimming pool. I loved the heritage buildings or Tharavads (ancient Kerala houses). The Tharavads have been painstakingly re-assembled from the original, using only wood, bricks and tiles. Even most door hinges are wood. A unique feature of these Tharavads is the bathrooms with open to sky roofs, offering you a communion with nature. ...