Kodiakanal

Day 1 : 22 March, 2016

We packed our dinners, bought playing cards and boarded the train (Tuticorin Express). There were six of us - Malani, Shreyans, Shivani (yes!! he is a boy), Chandan, Nikhil and Me (Sumit). The train was right on time (8:10 PM) and we boarded it from Kengeri, Bangalore.

Day 2

The train was running 30 mintues late with its scheduled time (6:33am). We don't usually wake up so early but there we were at the kodai railway station.

Now Kodaikanal is 80km from the kodai railway station.You can either take taxi (this is a shared ride which will cost roughly around Rupees 500 per person) or a bus.

Tip: Decide in advance whether you want to travel further to kodai by the bus or cab.

We asked the cab driver about the fare. Rupees 500 was way too much. We had planned the trip on a limited budget. So we talked to the locals about different alternatives to reach there. Bus seemed conveninet for us. We took direction to the bus stand (it's about 300 meters from the railway station , you can easily walk to there).

As we were about to leave the railway station, the cab driver whom we asked the fare came and started negotiating. We had no intention to travel by cab. He along with 3-4 cabbies started following us all along the way. On more than one occasion they stopped us (started negotiating and brought the fare down to Rupees 350). You could really feel the tension when 3-4 people whose language you cannot understand properly and a place you are visting for first time starts following you.

100 meters to bus stand, we noticed some strange unusal movement. A suv was driving slowly by our side. The cabbies boss was inside. The car stopped, windows rolled down. He started talking. We refused to travel. The price was lowered to Rupees 280. Was still too much for us. We somehow talked our way out of it.

The bus was standing there to kodai. The ticket was Rupees 120/person. It was funny that even when we were sitting on the bus waiting for it to fill , one cab driver came again asked us to get of the bus and travel by cab (the final price was Rupees 250). We declined polietly and showed him the bus ticket which we purchased. Finally, that was the end of it.

The journey took roughly 3-3:30 hrs. The roads were made by cutting rocks. Steep ascents, zig-zag roads made the journey scary. Mountains, scenic beauty, cold breeze made it beautiful. So, it was a mixed emotion.

Tip: Book the hotel beforehand online. You can get a nefty discount.

We had already booked the hotel (JC Woodville Manor) .The booking was made for each day seperately because of their check-in/out timing policy. Believe me or not but the family bedroom (4 bed) for 2nd day had cost us just 120 rupees. Split the amount between 5 people. You know the maths. Most of the hotels are within 100 meters from the bus station.

We freshened up , had our brunch at dominos and started with Pambar Falls. The way leading to the falls was amazing . On the way, one can find the Church, Fairy Falls, Dolphin's Nose.

The water of the falls were mostly dry becasuse the monsoon had not hit yet. We were 2 months too early. It took us 2-3 hrs to travel back and forth from bus stand (our hotel was there) to the falls.

Next was the famous Kodai Lake, 2-3 km from bus stand. One can enjoy recreational activities like boating, cycling, Horse riding. Initially I was against boating (don't know how to swim) but my friends persuaded me to join them. Just one small promise - in case the boat overturns, they will save me first (silly!! I know). Wearing life jackets, we paddled around the lake. Cycling is a must. There are small shops which rent bicycle for half hour. We cycled around lake which stretches 8km.

It started getting dark. There’s not much of a nightlife in Kodai. We had our dinner. One can find few decent places to eat apart from the fastfood chains like - Dominos, Subway , Papa John's etc. After reaching the hotel, we geared up for the India VS Bangladesh (T-20 World Cup 2016) cricket match. The last over was just breathtaking. After India won, eveyone of us went full crazy in deep joy (specially Malani).

Day 3

We woke up early to see the sunrise at the Coaker Walk. It is within 1km from kodai bus station, follow google maps to navigate and ask locals for direction. The ticket will cost Rupees 10 per person. The gate opens at 6:30 AM. We were a bit late but we could see mountains and the scenic beauty was mesmerizing. We ate breakfast (idli) at a local shop. Although i don't like it much but that is the best one i have tasted till date.

Next was Bear Shola Falls. The falls were dry - off season. But we were so enthralled by the paths leading to the falls that we were not a bit dissapointed by it. Houses on the mountains, pine trees, the birds chirping in the silent forest made it amazing.

We were back to kodai lake, roamed there, had snacks. We were tired so we took break and sat beside the lake with our feet immersed in the water. The small fish were making movements around our feet. Sitting there was so peaceful. We rode bicycle one last time. It was 2 in the afternoon. We had lunch, headed back to the hotel, packed everyting, checked out, catch the 4 PM bus and was on our way to the railway station.

We arrived at the station, bought snacks for night and waited for the train (Mysore Express).

Day 4

Next morning, we were in Bangalore. Kodaikanal is a place, once worth visiting if you are bored of the mundane of daily life. It will refresh your spirits.