Waking up is difficult! I am not a morning person except when that morning starts post 12 noon. But the only time I do manage to get my ass up before the sun is even up is when I am traveling. It takes me 2 minutes to convince myself to get out of bed when traveling as opposed to the usual 15 minutes any other time.
Coorg is quite a change from Kushalnagar. While only 40 kms away, the weather and surroundings in these two places are very different. I truly believe that the dynasty that set up Coorg liked to work out and they took their workouts very seriously. As a result, everything is either downhill or uphill.
I took a local bus from Kushalnagar to come to Coorg. These buses are not for the faint-hearted. Local buses in small towns are like big autos- uncomfortable, given the number of potholes in any place in India and with a lot of personality. But if personality is something you enjoy, then hold on to your wallets for safety purposes purely and go ahead to take a ride in one. It took about 1 hour to reach Coorg and thankfully my hotel was pretty close by. Since it wasn't a particularly good hotel, I would choose to not make recommendations. After a brief rest, I decided to go a place called Talacauvery before the sun sets in.
All great journeys undertaken are usually for a greater destination. The destination in this case was the top of the Brahmagiri hill. Ofcourse, getting there is no easy task. Brahmagiri Hill is 350 steps from the Talacauvery temple. Talacauvery is about 45 kms from Coorg and requires a bus trip of about 3 hours to and fro. You get off from the bus at Bhagmandala, 8 kms away from the destination. This is where the 3 rivers- Cauvery, Kannike and Sujyothi meet and is called Triveni Sangam, it is highly over hyped. From here, you take an auto to Talacauvery which will wait for 45 mins at the destination for you. Once you reach Talacauvery, there is a small outlet where the Cauvery river starts from. It is quite fun to try and figure out where that small outlet is since there are always hundreds of faith blinded people screaming around the place at any given time. Once you've figured it out, start climbing the steps from the temple to the top of the Brahmagiri Hill.
The top of the Brahmagiri Hill gives the best view of Western Ghats, and if you don't believe me then you can sue Lonely Planet. The view is quite breathtaking, also cos the air gets thinner with the height. A most definite must go to place.
The next day brought more drizzle with it. I decided to brave it and took a bus to Somwarpet. Its a small village near Coorg which has the supposedly famous 'Chick Basappa Club', famous for are absence of chicks and presence of drunken men even at 11am. The ride to the village and back crosses many coffee plantations and if you manage to befriend any of the drunken men, you may get an inside view to a coffee estate. Needless to say, I am not that friendly.
In the early evening, I made my way to the Madikeri fort. Making my way in Coorg means walking for 5 mins from the local bus stand, its a small town. The fort is quite charming and retains its medieval look despite the government setting up an office there, but then our government officers are quite medieval looking too. The perfect place for watching the sunset in Coorg is definitely the Raja's Seat. As the name suggests, Raja's Seat is the seat for the Raja. But for a nominal fee of 5 bucks, you get to see this coveted throne.The garden is lovely here and the view is one of the best views in the town. Another must visit in Coorg for sure.
My last day in Coorg aka Madikeri aka Mercara took me to Abbi Falls. Its about 8kms away from Coorg and needs a short auto trip with waiting time built in. Once you reach the gate, its a small hike to the Falls and is quite nice. The only unfortunate thing is that the area around the falls is protected by fences unlike some other falls where I have been fortunate enough to trek all the way to the top, which is a story for another day. After spending some time, I left to catch my bus to Bangalore. I had a long night ahead of me with my impending travel to Pondicherry the same night.
I lost 1 kg in Coorg while waking and gained 2 while having the awesome pork curry they make in thier own style. Pork dishes are a specialty and should not be missed. The same goes for the kukkad coffee you get at the Kodagu Cuisine restaurant which is diagonally opposite to the Coorg Post Office and quite close to the local bus stand. I would recommend the same place for food too. The bus ride to Bangalore was most eventful- I saw Robot and failed to understand the magic that is Rajnikanth. How the man is still acting is beyond my understanding. Perhaps it shall continue to elude me much like some other mysteries that I fail to understand like happy people or vegetarianism or happy people.
Coorg is not a big place and not a shiny place. Its got personality and very old world charm. It reminded me of the silent black and white movies which you could watch alone without the need of popcorn and just gaze at every scene, taking it all in.
I took a local bus from Kushalnagar to come to Coorg. These buses are not for the faint-hearted. Local buses in small towns are like big autos- uncomfortable, given the number of potholes in any place in India and with a lot of personality. But if personality is something you enjoy, then hold on to your wallets for safety purposes purely and go ahead to take a ride in one. It took about 1 hour to reach Coorg and thankfully my hotel was pretty close by. Since it wasn't a particularly good hotel, I would choose to not make recommendations. After a brief rest, I decided to go a place called Talacauvery before the sun sets in.
All great journeys undertaken are usually for a greater destination. The destination in this case was the top of the Brahmagiri hill. Ofcourse, getting there is no easy task. Brahmagiri Hill is 350 steps from the Talacauvery temple. Talacauvery is about 45 kms from Coorg and requires a bus trip of about 3 hours to and fro. You get off from the bus at Bhagmandala, 8 kms away from the destination. This is where the 3 rivers- Cauvery, Kannike and Sujyothi meet and is called Triveni Sangam, it is highly over hyped. From here, you take an auto to Talacauvery which will wait for 45 mins at the destination for you. Once you reach Talacauvery, there is a small outlet where the Cauvery river starts from. It is quite fun to try and figure out where that small outlet is since there are always hundreds of faith blinded people screaming around the place at any given time. Once you've figured it out, start climbing the steps from the temple to the top of the Brahmagiri Hill.
The next day brought more drizzle with it. I decided to brave it and took a bus to Somwarpet. Its a small village near Coorg which has the supposedly famous 'Chick Basappa Club', famous for are absence of chicks and presence of drunken men even at 11am. The ride to the village and back crosses many coffee plantations and if you manage to befriend any of the drunken men, you may get an inside view to a coffee estate. Needless to say, I am not that friendly.
I lost 1 kg in Coorg while waking and gained 2 while having the awesome pork curry they make in thier own style. Pork dishes are a specialty and should not be missed. The same goes for the kukkad coffee you get at the Kodagu Cuisine restaurant which is diagonally opposite to the Coorg Post Office and quite close to the local bus stand. I would recommend the same place for food too. The bus ride to Bangalore was most eventful- I saw Robot and failed to understand the magic that is Rajnikanth. How the man is still acting is beyond my understanding. Perhaps it shall continue to elude me much like some other mysteries that I fail to understand like happy people or vegetarianism or happy people.
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