Pulickathotti: Come, fall in love with Rain
I've been an unreliable blogger. It's been a year now since I relapsed into my former lazy attire of storing all my travel adventures within me. An unsharing gentleman. That's how I see it.
Well, here I am now. But atleast the last 12 months didn't go waste.
For I traveled to over 12 destinations around India, and another 20 within Kerala itself. Just one destination among this lot was a nerve wrecking encounter, and may not find space in this blog for some time. But all of these destinations have elevated my consciousness to a different league.
Talking about peace, what has actually inspired me to start writing again, is the sound of pitter-patter raindrops falling on the tin sheet adjacent to my bedroom. The rains are something, ain't they? And today, they took me back in time to a day on 7th June 2012. Almost exactly 4 years ago.
The discovery of this date when I opened my diary in itself, is a shocker of sorts. Some monthly coincidence!
The place in mention is this tiny remote, no man's village, in the upper reaches of Vannapurram Municipality in Idukki district (Central Kerala).
Named Pulickathotti, and home to a slow moving group of sleepy villagers, I had been here on a rain drenched monsoon day 4 years ago, as part of my research on the livelihood options among Kerala's grassroots population. There are state run KSRTC buses to this tiny hill top village. But they are rare and far in between. The main mode of reaching here is on shared jeep taxi service. A free spirit, I opted for the jeep choosing to listen to the banter of the locals.
Now let me warn you, this jeep trip is one for the adventurous soul. The drive sits with half his bum outside the door, while easily steering the vehicle with the other half that's inside; through the twists and turns leading to the village uphill. Locals prefer to stand on the rear footboard, feeling the wind beat across their tired faces. Out- of- station visitors are treated with care, and given seat space. Yup, I looked touristy to them.
*it's been 4 years, and not a lover of clicking pics. So attached a pic referenced to one Mr. Sajith.
Up in the village, there's nothing of prime touristy value. But there's a lot of great traveler value. Hike further up after the last point, towards a barren hillock which is the highest point of this hill village. The rocks are slippery, and villagers often climb up, to spend the mornings or evenings playing cards, chatting about Obama (kidding!) or drinking some country liquor, with the astounding view of the valley for company.
If you are an adventurous soul with your own tent on your back, this would be one hell of a place to camp without worrying about moral policing, irritating locals or their kind. If the rain clouds start to loom over, my suggestion would be to wrap up and climb downhill ASAP. And that is when the fun actually begins. If, and only if, you are here during the monsoon period.
I boarded the state KSRTC bus. And the gods gave me the extreme fortune to be witness to an F1 race between the clouds, their spears of rain drops and the wobbly bus. Seated by the window, the clouds had just begun to take on their grey shape as the bus kicked off in first gear. For the next one hour, it was a battle between condensed water vapour and the bus, as I saw the rains lash uphill, then touch several curves prior to ours, then a few curves prior to ours, then three curves, then one curve...and finally by the time we had almost touched the plains, unleash their fury on the roof of the bus. That sight of near victory and that moment of the rain just beating us to the finishing line let out a silent hurrah in my mind. It was indeed, a miracle.
The entire trip took me more than half a day. To reach the village, explore its main centre, check out the base of the uphill climb and return to the plains of Vanapurram. But never in my 5 year discovery of this State and it's gorgeous locales, have I ever come across such a sight of loving race between a man made machinery and nature's own battle whip. That's the day I fell in love with the monsoons of Kerala.
Next week up is the special train journey between Shornur and Nilambur. A must experience journey to be undertaken after the first monsoon of the year, which on any day, can easily outrival the hype surrounding the heritage train journey of the Nilgiri and Darjeeling hills.
Till then. Keep travelling.
-A dreamer who also carries a backpack, is a floating turtle.
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