The shimmering capital city of Kerala- Trivandrum.
Kerala is located amidst the hues of green. On coming to this destination, the people are taken through a drive along the agriculture and forests of the land. The state shimmers with its water bodies and abundance of nature. On taking a tour through this Gods own country, the tourists get to observe that each district is blessed with sites that are worth visiting once in a lifetime. A lifetime is not enough to explore each and every corner of Kerala as a lot of places are still undiscovered. As the monsoons would soon leave the state, I decided to visit this ravishingly blessed state on the cheapest Kerala tour packages. Basically, the only cost incurred on traveling to Kerala depends on the place of stay. If luxury is not preferred, the people can easily come on budget and visit the places here.
The prime place of my visit to Kerala was Trivandrum. Located on to the south zone, this is the largest city as well as the capital city of Kerala. The roads were smooth and the city lights fell on a busy schedule of the working day. I dumped my only bag pack in the hotel room and rushed to the restaurant beneath for breakfast. They had asked me if it was required to send my breakfast through the room service as it was a special offer for the travellers coming through tour operators. Since travel sickness had not got my back, I decided to have it from the restaurant.
There were other tourists as well who had come for the same tour of mine. Once everyone arrives in a stipulated time, our tour planners, Dream Holidays would take us to the first destination, Ponmudi. As everyone arrived, we decided to set off in an airbus to Ponmudi Hill station. Known as the Golden Peak, this place is a part of the Western Ghats mountain ranges.
On climbing the hills, the people get to stride through the tea plantations. As trekking is the major activity to be pursued here, I had already taken my shoes and enough water with snacks. Socialising was also happening as it was more like a journey with strangers.
As we walked, we got to see birds which as per the guide, was a usual sight for all the travellers trekking in this place. We took halts in every 20 minutes as the pace of trekking was different for each person. Some of them required rest in every 10 minutes as well. There were several trekking routes in this destination. We had chosen the Braemoor route as guides were easily available to this one.
Kalarkad Waterfalls was another route but required local guides who were hard to find at Ponmudi. In some time we reached the station from where we got to see the parallel ranges. Various other flying insects were also there but they seemed to be harmless. We spend some time watching the view from the top and sat there to hog in some snacks. We started back and it took us comparatively very less time to reach down.
All of them were tired and we wanted some heavy lunching to get over our trekking tiredness. We were taken to a Multi-cuisine restaurant where Kerala food, as well as Chinese and Arabic food, were available. In a short span of time, we were done with a delightful lunch after which we decided to leave to the next destination. Kallar and Meenmutty waterfalls which are located on the same route was our last stop for the day.
From the place where we stopped the vehicle, we only had to trek for 2 Kilometres in order to see the beautiful sight of the waterfalls.
After walking through the lush green forests on our side, we got to embrace the best creation fo nature. We had expected an entry fee to enter the site, but there was not any. Our Kerala tour package with price was probably cheap due to this reason. Small natural pools had been formed in the premises from where the Kids could play int he water.
The guide told us that various other waterfalls like Kombaikani Falls were also located in the vicinity. It was indeed a destination which we could keep staring for hours. We returned back as it was getting darker and there were chances that animals could be out on our way due to the presence of forests in the place. It was a long drive to the hotel and all of us collapsed to sleep in the bus.
The next day, we set off to the most happening place of Trivandrum. As the weekend had arrived, the roads had more vehicle and were off to the Varkala beach. Other than being a major tourist destination, this beach is also considered holy according to the Hindu myth due to which it is also known as the Papanasam Beach. One fascination that I got to see here was a Temple on the cliffs.
Since it was morning, the sun rays felt good and we sat on the shores watching the glory of the waves. A lot of people started to come and we decided to dip in the sea. While some were convinced by myth, others did it just for the fun of it. A lot of foreigners had been there walking through the coast.
We went to the Kappil lake which was also located close by at Varkala itself. A catamaran had been there on which we decided to have a short cruise as it was something that I had never done before. The backwaters were calm and not too many people were there.
The guide informed us that boathouses functioned here during the evenings. For all the people who had been there on the tour, the backwaters was a fascination. The peace and serenity that surrounded it could not be found anywhere else. The travellers who had been from Delhi had been enjoying the ride the most. They were of the opinion that a Kerala tour package from Delhi is more like an escape from hustle and bustle. And the sights of Kerala is incomparable to the metro cities in the North.
The last destination of our visit for the day was the Napier Museum and Zoo. The museum housed ancient carvings and idols while the zoo was exceptionally maintained with the various animals like tigers and zebras. The snake park inside also had a variety of reptiles like Anacondas and King Cobras.
Our travel had come to an end at the Zoo. The very night, most of us had our flights back to home as well. By shopping some souvenirs from the city, we bid bye to a land that refreshed our body in just two days.
