Coorg, as they say “Scotland of India” has been in my bucket list since my college days. Finally, i got time to fulfill it. I was really excited for my second solo trip with courage drawing from my previous trip. Started off in an Airavat bus from Shantinagara bus stand(Bangalore) at 3 in the afternoon to Mercara(anglicized corruption of the word Madikeri). It is the headquarters of Kodagu district which is often called Coorg. Due to less traffic, it didn’t take much time to reach Satellite bus station. Got delayed thereafter. Most of the passengers got down at Mysore itself with very few people till Madikeri. I slowly fell asleep and woke up around 45 minutes before destination. Its almost dark but a blunt vision into the darkness reminded me of God’s own country,where i spent my significant amount of my life for its lush greenery. We went through deciduous forests followed by evergreen forests with steep turns. Its already 10 in the night by the time i reached Madikeri. Bus stand is located in a quite low place making it unique. I had food in a nearby restaurant. Home stay,i booked is around a mile from that place. Its my first time in a home stay alone.
Lazy of walking to that place, i hired an auto. It costs you around 30 bucks to reach any place with a distance of less than 2km. We couldn’t find the place even after half an hour. its completely dark and scary since we were in the middle of night. I couldn’t find the number of host and none of the auto drivers were aware of that place. Tired of searching and thinking that i got cheated, i felt detested for my carelessness. Then started searching for lodges with the help of auto driver. Luckily got one around 12:30 near the bus stand(Popular Residency) which is fairly good. Settled down and felt restless about not able to find the home stay, i started searching for my mobile charger due to my my mobile running low on battery. Damn it, i forgot the charger in Bangalore itself. I cursed myself and scoured my mails to find the phone number of host of the home stay. I felt really bad for not doing this before. Finally i slept and woke up early in the morning at 5. I had a small walk. The road is sparsely occupied by people who just arrived at madikeri. Thanks to the receptionist who agreed to charge my mobile.
Then got ready and started searching for home stay. I reached a place called kannada bane and i can see a big cricket ground and the area seems to be a remote one. i started searching where i left last night and finally got the place. Its hard to find even in the morning. There is a small valley in front of the place and view was amazing with foggy bushes. Into the horizon, it was filled with greenery and hills everywhere. It was worth all the drama surrounding to find it. The host is a Malayalee settled there and they are really cordial. The host and his father took care of all my needs. I got two rooms, one with two beds and the other a dining hall. Homemade breakfast is really delicious and felt like home.
He was kind enough to drop me off at the bus and guided me. As suggested, i started to Bhagamandala in a private bus. I preferred this transport since i get to travel with locals like a local. There is a temple and place called Triveni Sangama where three rivers (Cauvery, kannike and sujyoti) joined as the name says. The architecture of the temple resembles to that of kerala style. Then started to TalaCauvery in a private bus again. It is the birth place of river Cauvery. There is a view point which has to be reached by climbing around 350 steps. It is steep but it is worth putting all those efforts reaching there. The clouds greet you with a smile. The camouflage of nature and scenic beauty made me just relax and enjoy. Clouds moving at close heights and cold breeze skipped my beat.
Then started off to Bhagamandala in the same bus. I had lunch and came back to Madikeri by 3pm. Its drizzling and i set off to Abbey falls in an auto. Ran into a conversation with the auto driver about the place,climate and people. The rhythm of the falls soothed me and drizzling continued. As suggested by the driver, i bought local honey,coffee and home made chocolates on my way back. Reached Raja Seat, but its already raining. I didn’t get much time to spend there. Then had food and reached home stay. It was scary to reach the place alone.
Day 2
I woke up early in the morning at 5:30. I had a small walk in the fog. Had breakfast and started walking towards bus stand which is a mile away. The locals were kind enough to offer me a ride. As suggested, started off first to Nisargadhama in a kushalnagara bound KSRTC bus. The place is okayish. Its a kind of park where you have fun with family and kids. Then took a shared auto to Kushalnagara. From there i took one more auto to Tibetan camp. The architecture of Namdroling monastery was splendid and reflects Tibetan culture. I had a good conversation with a student in the monastery on my way back to kushalnagara. They study Buddhism and its philosophy. Then had food in a small hotel and took a private bus which goes to Siddapura. I dropped off at a place on main road which is 1 km from Dubare forset. I got to speak with a forest ranger on my way to the place walking. We discussed a wide variety of things ranging from forest to elephants.
The place is really good to have fun in water with not much depth. i spent in the water for an hour. We will get to see elephants at 4pm. Unfortunately, i can’t wait till then. Started again to Kushalnagara since there is no direct bus to Madikeri. Rain welcomed me on my way back to Madikeri town. Then went to Raja Seat again and i didn’t forget to carry an umbrella this time. It was raining and i felt like a king watching the valley in rain. The climate is really cool and i spent sometime. I had conversation with two medical students who came for a peaceful sunday to get rid of busy college life. Then visited Omkareshwara temple which is just beside that. Then took an auto back to the home stay. I messed it up again. I forgot the mobile phone in auto. Immediately ran to my host. He tried calling my number. After around 10 unsuccessful attempts and 15 minutes, driver picked my phone. Luckily he is not a stranger to my host and i got it back. I was really luck to have such a kind host. Finally, i set off to Bangalore from a peaceful place with amazing people.
I managed to speak broken kannada everywhere and somehow locals got to understand it. The feeling is amazing. I managed to use public transport most of the times with locals guiding me every time. The cordiality of my host,his son,persons who offered me ride and auto driver who helped me search for a place in the middle of night everyone amazed me like anything. The small conversations with auto drivers, locals, buddhist monk, forest ranger and medical students made my days. All those adventures in the night will never fade away from my memories. The lessons i learnt,places visited, hassles faced, moments cherished, all these memories, i carry forward in my life till the last of my breath.