Our journey today takes us out of Tamil Nadu, crossing the border via the Ghatt pass, with spectacular mountain hairpin et al bends, made more dangerous by Indian highway users. But first we stop off at the vineyards, of which we visit Jeni’s. Large crowds swarm into a grape overhead enclosure with security guards stopping anyone picking grapes from the overhead bunches. Then people pay for grape, sugar & water blended juice which tastes …. sweet. And from all of this viniculture, non-alcoholic wine, from all the wine sellers! What’s the point?
Immediately across the border from Tamil Nadu, we are now in Kerala. And in the tourist town of Thekaddy, this means no litter, rubbish, building rubble, torn up pavements, etc etc anywhere on the highways. We feel lighter. We also stop for a coffee and a ‘budgie’ – banana fritter.
Our tour guide has arranged attendance at a Tamil Kathakali performance followed by a martial arts display. Yawn.
Kath then has an hour Ayervedic massage at a famous (like I would know) centre & returns oiled & rested. And the hotel we’re staying in for two nights is rather fine & has beer.
Next day has us walking for three hours with a local guide in the outer zone of the Periyar Wildlife Reserve, hugging the waterline of what is a man-made reservoir, complete with four sizeable pipes serving a hydro-electric power station at the bottom. The lake is in Kerala, the power station in Tamil Nadu, so a collaborative venture. We see all manor of wildlife, including longur monkeys, giant squirrels (with such stunning coloured jackets), a monitor lizard, mynah birds, sambar deer, butterflies with piercing colour schemes and a vivid blue kingfisher.
The afternoon has us on a boat trip around the lake, with more wildlife on display, such as egrets, herons, pelicans, Goar (like buffalos but bigger) and wild boar. The ranger took a photo of a ‘snakebird’ – like a cormorant but with a really long neck.
As this marks the halfway point of our holiday, we take out our guide & driver for dinner & some beers. Transpires our driver, Rakesh, is sleeping in his car & has been doing so for every trip he does, so for a number of years. He’s 42, while our guide, Dominic, is 47, though neither of them look that old. When they’re at home – rarely, as they’ve had two days off in the last 29, apparently – they’re still at their parents’ homes. We had a fun night.
Chris & Kath's Travel Time 