Recently, my family and I had received an excellent opportunity to visit ‘THE GIFT OF THE FOREST’- Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu. Our uncles and aunts also accompanied us during the journey.

The Journey

We were all ready with our baggage for the journey. I remember reciting a small prayer before leaving home. Soon I heard the horn of a bus. We bid goodbye to our grandparents and finally set off for the journey. As we travelled, I was so eager to see the wonders of Kodaikanal. My parents, aunts and cousins too were equally excited about visiting Kodaikanal. During the long trip from Kerala, I had fallen asleep. Later, I woke up with a start and realized the fact that we were no longer in Kerala. We had reached our destination, Kodaikanal-‘The Gift of the Forest’.

We couldn’t explore much that day as it was nighttime and our stomachs were growling with hunger. Therefore, we decided to stop by a restaurant. Though I can’t recall its name, the dishes we had in the restaurant were mouthwatering! It was none other than Tamil Nadu’s famous masala dosa and chutney. Slurp! After having our fill, we got back into our bus and later we reached a beautiful villa. Soon, I came to know that it was the home stay arranged by my uncle. We unpacked our suitcases and fell fast asleep.

Day one-A glance of the beauties

I was awakened by the radiant sunlight that shone on my face. Later, we had our breakfast and without any delay, we got into the bus to start our journey. I can’t tell you how excited I was to explore the wonders of Kodaikanal. First, we stepped out to visit a pine forest. It was full of pine trees. There were numerous busy monkeys sitting on top of them. I also saw a newborn monkey. Though I hate monkeys, I had to admit that this one really was cute. I had also picked up a few pine seeds to store as memories of my trip. After admiring the beauty of the woods, we got back into our bus and set out to ‘Lake View Point’. The driver told us that this place was a shooting spot. We had taken pictures of the exotic scenery we witnessed there. The hills looked enormously grand. The drifting fog gave it the real beauty. The place was very crowded with none other than busy monkeys. Later, we got back into the bus and stepped out to view the ‘Coaker’s Walk’. The scenic beauty here was amazing. The exotic view of the plains was dazzling. We had a nice walk. Finally, we got into the bus and had a glance at the marvelous scenic beauty as we travelled. We got back home, had a hearty meal and I went to sleep dreaming about the wonders I was going to witness the next day.

Day two-Into the creeps

Next day, we followed our daily routine, got into the bus, and resumed our journey. Our first destination was the ‘Pillar Rocks’. ‘Pillar Rocks’ is a set of three giant rock pillars standing vertically. This was a beautiful sight. In between the two pillars lies a vast chamber known as the ‘Devil’s Kitchen. Like most tourists, we too skipped going inside the cave as the tour guide told us that people who had gone inside the cave have never been found out later. Then, shiver had run down my spine. Next, we went to the ‘Suicide point’. The ‘Suicide Point’ has an excellent panoramic view of the plains. The fog travelling down the hills looked amazing. At the same time, it looked creepy too as we were watching the scenery from such a height. The tour guide told us that due to the increasing number of suicides in the area the name of this wonder was changed to ‘Green Valley View’.

In order to drive away the blues we went to a beautiful place that leaves you wonderstruck. It was the ‘Silver Cascade Waterfall’. It is being situated on the Kodai Road in Madurai. The steady flow of the running water was a spectacular sight. Not anyone who visits Kodaikanal should miss this wonderful sight. As we travelled, we saw numerous pear trees filled with fruits. We stopped nearby and went towards the juicy pear fruits. We plucked some and got back to our bus. At last we went back home, had our fill and went to bed.

Day three-Back Home

This was the last and final day of my trip. As always, we woke up and had our breakfast, but that day we had an additional job that was to pack up. While packing I did not forget to take the pine seeds I had collected to store as my memories. Soon, we got into the bus. I was excited to go back home but at the same time I felt sad. Finally, we finished packing our suitcases. My father and my uncle kept them inside the bus. We bid goodbye to those who helped us out in the home stay. As we were travelling, I had a last and final look at all the places we went to admire. On the way, we saw a board which read “Welcome to all horse riders’ development society”. Soon we had got to know that here; one was allowed to ride on a horse for about 1km for Rs80. As I had never ridden a horse, I really wanted to go for it. After much pleading, my mother allowed me to ride on it. The ride was truly unexpected. As I was scared, my mother too accompanied me in the ride. My legs shivered as I climbed on the horse. Then I realized that the ride had begun! I had been paralyzed with fear. After a journey of one kilometer, I felt relieved. After the ride, we resumed our journey. Last but not the least; we went for a boat ride. It was exciting. The best part of it was that someone among us had to steer and control the boat. I did not do the job, as I had been too young for it. Instead, my cousin did the controlling.

We got back into the bus and travelled a long distance to Kerala. I could not wait to narrate the whole trip to my grandparents. Soon we reached home and our grandparents welcomed us warmly. Our stomachs were growling with hunger. Therefore, we decided to have our dinner. As we ate, I narrated the whole trip to my grandparents. It included the fun we had as well as the scenery we enjoyed. After hearing our experience, they actually regretted for not coming with us.

One thing I can say is that Kodaikanal is undoubtedly marvelous for its scenic beauty and a nature lover would truly enjoy the wonderful scenery one would witness at Kodaikanal. Eventually, I fell asleep dreaming about this trip and looking forward for our next trip…