Special Guests

Meow Kutty:
Last year, on an April night at around 10 PM, when we opened the door to take Sparky (pet dog) out for a walk, he was jumping & barking – fortunately Anand noticed a tiny kitten beside our door & immediately pulled Sparky back. The kitten was shivering with fear on hearing Sparky bark. We named this kitten Meow Kutty. Quickly boiled some milk for Meow Kutty & fed it. Placed Meow Kutty in a flower pot (fearing that Sparky may attack it, if inside the house). Next day my father-in-law told the maid to leave Meow Kutty far away from our house – Pavithra was higly upset to know of this on her return from School. But wonder of wonders, Meow Kutty consecutively visited us for 2 days & then, it was not to be seen

Butterfly oh Butterfly
December 2009, Anand saw a pupa on our neighbour’s wall - & his childhood memories gushed, memories of the wonderful time in Bhavanisagar, memories of the pupa that he had kept in a matchbox till it turned into a butterfly & he wanted Pavithra to see the butterfly evolution. So we emptied a matchbox, kept the pupa in it & half closed the box & kept it in the bedroom (ofcourse away from Sparky). Every now & then Pavithra & I kept peeping into the box. By the 3rd day, I was sure that it was dead – it had hardened. After 8 days, on a Sunday morning, the butterfuly was out of the box – magical ! We left it out in our little garden.

Family Package
March 2010, there were 4 kittens in a flower pot – after some time saw Mama Mia ….oops .. Mama Meow - the mother also happily in the flower pot with her little ones – but we were scared to go near. Few hours later, the family was not to be seen in my little garden.

Bye Bye Blue bird
April 14, 2010 – holiday for us & was hoping to have a relaxed day. Pavithra who had gone to play came back rushing saying that there is a blue colour bird downstairs & looks like it is hurt. Anand quickly went down hoping that dogs/cats/crows don’t pounce on it in the meantime. It was a kingfisher bird – he brought it home – kept it away from Sparky. We named it Bluebird. It didn’t drink water & we didn’t know how to feed it. We had decided to leave Bluebird in Blue Cross but before that it needed medical care. Anand searched in the internet for Blue Cross contact number. On their assurance that their doctor was available, we (Anand, Pavithra & her friend Kaushik & me) took Bluebird to Blue Cross. Paid an amount of Rs.500/- as voluntary donation. Our first visit to Blue Cross – the amount of love we shower on our pets – but here there were so many animals and birds (and not all were healthy) with few people to take care - it was like visiting an orphanage – came back with a strange sad feeling.

Bangalore Trip - our Stressbuster

Anand & I were looking forward to our trip to Bangalore. Pavithra was neither eager nor unenthusiastic – she knew she can spend some fun time with her cousin Pooja but she also knew that she will miss out playing with her gang of friends – cricket, badminton, hide n seek, soccer.

The 3 of us along with our pet dog Sparky, started from Chennai on 24th April by about 7.30 AM in our Alto Car. First halt at Shirdi Baba temple in Guindy. Anand & I were on an upbeat mood – of course, away from the daily grind is a welcome change. But we were also concerned about how Sparky would manage this travel – first time that he was travelling such long distance. Stopped at Hotel Arusuvai (after Sriperumbudur) for breakfast – as mentioned in my earlier travelogue, food is good here, lots of parking place & clean toilets. Sparky too had his breakfast during this break.

Too much of lorry traffic till we reached Hosur. However because of the good road, the drive was enjoyable & we were also in great holiday mood. Anand & Pavithra were continuously playing the songs from Vinnaiythandi Varuvaya & did not want to change the CD. Travel from Hosur to Bangalore has become easy now after the completion of the long, very long flyover. Toll fee has to be paid to use this flyover but it is worth paying – one can avoid so much of traffic.

Reached Akka’s home & had sumptious lunch. She has a pet dog Ginger. Just as we reached Akka’s place, she told Sparky that Ginger is his sister and to have only sisterly feelings for Ginger !!! & Sparky looked at her innocently ! First few minutes, Ginger & Sparky barked at each other & then they both ignored each other – we were relieved. Ginger is calm & well behaved – just like Pooja (my niece) & Sparky is hyper active – just like my daughter Pavithra.

Went on a shopping spree in the evening & had dinner in Hotel Nandhine – as usual, good food (waiting time in Barbecue Nation was more than an hour & car parking was a problem – so headed to Nandhine). Continued the shopping spree on Sunday morning too, lunch in Bangalore Central food court, some more shopping (yes we indulge while in Bangalore – we feel there is more choice of dresses here than in Chennai) & back home in the evening. All was well at home – Sparky & Ginger continue to ignore each other.

Visited one of my cousin’s place for dinner on 27th – had a good time. The 3 beautiful girls too had a great time (teenaged daughters of my cousin, my sis & me). No damages at home – Sparky & Ginger don’t pay attention to each other. 30th being our wedding anniversary, Pooja & Pavithra wished us at 12 AM . Anand & I visited the Shirdi Baba Temple at Cambridge Layout. Went out for dinner with my sister’s & cousin’s family. Can you imagine the languages being spoken amongst the 9 of us – English, Tulu, Tamil and Hindi – unity in diversity ! Food in the restaurant Infusion was very good, though a tad expensive, good ambience. Only the music was loud – may be, meant for the bar attached.

1st May, left for Chennai. Visited Brindavan Ashram in Whitefield before proceeding to Chennai by around 10 AM. Lunch at Ananda Bhavan (immediately after the nameboard Chinnar & before Krishnagiri) – good food but too much of crowd, lots of parking place, clean toilet. Sparky too had his lunch. Had a tea break in between. Good drive with good music.
Sparky didn’t have any problem with the long drive – most of the time, he was happily resting on my lap.

Trip to Bangalore is our stress buster – we always have very good time there - little bit of shopping (!) & a lot of relaxation.

KOLLIMALAIYIL KONDATTAM

During the lunch break in office on 9th April, most of us agreed to the need for a break, to go out of scorching Chennai – after discussion on various options, Kollimalai it was – this place was truly a respite from the Chennai heat.

Getting a confirmed train ticket at was impossible & hence opted for bus.  Everything quickly fell into place – organizing the bus, hotel booking, food, etc., etc.

Mode of transport : Parveen Travels 40 seater Hitech bus Chennai/Senthamangala/Chennai (Rs.25,000/-) & 2 vans for Senthamangala/Kollimalai/Senthamangala (Rs.9,000/- for both the vans) – charges including day 1 & day 2. Toll fee extra. (one can go by train upto Salem. Salem to Kollimalai (via Rasipuram) takes approximately 3 hrs by van/bus.

Stay : PA Lodge, Semmedu, Tel: 04286 247488 / 247466 (double occupancy rental per night: Rs.300/- per room & Rs.100/- extra for the third guest). The rooms and beds are small and is just right for double occupancy.
(PA Resorts have better rooms and their approximate charges are Rs.400/- per person, per night)

We started from T Nagar on April 16th evening by around 7.45 PM .  17th early morning by around 4.30 AM, we were awakened by the hustle & bustle of the Shandy at Solakkadu (can you believe it, people were busy buying pulses, grains, etc., & business was in full swing in the wee hours). Took some time for our bus to cross this place because of the traffic jam. Alighted from the bus at Senthamangala, brushed teeth (fortunately for us, there was a tap near by) & had tea/coffee/milk in the tea stall. After clicking some photos, we got into the 2 vans to go uphill with a break in between at the Petrol Bunk.
Uphill drive was pleasant, especially the first few miles were very scenic ….neatly white washed houses ….cattles grazing …..lush green fields ……hills in the background – picturesque scenery.

About PA Lodge: Very average rooms except for one or two rooms. Good food though spicy. PA Resorts seem to have good rooms (they look new) but they don’t have rooms for individual families – most of the resort rooms are 5, 7 & 10 bedded. Contact number for both the Lodge & the Resort is the same as mentioned above.

But the surrounding is very very nice - lots of greenery - plants and trees all around, flowres in all hues and colours, cool weather, only few tourists, no flashy restaurants/shops (like the ones you find in any tourist place) - Kollimalai hasn’t lost its old world charm.

After a nice warm shower & good breakfast we all headed to the falls by around 10.30 AM – since we all were eager to go the the water falls, going down the 1000 odd steps (yes, you read it right – 1000 odd steps !) was not a big task – we took few breaks in between for rest and photo shoot. On seeing the falls, I thought not much water but I was wrong – the water was just right for us to have lots of fun. If the water force was more, we wouldn’t be able to go near the falls. By the way, the approach from the base of the steps to the waterfalls itself is thrilling – ropes have been tied and we will have to hold the rope and wade through waist deep cold water to reach the falls. As we get on to the rock & stand under the falls, the heavy, very heavy downpour of water leaves us gasping for breath. What an exhilarating and wonderful time we had ...had unlimited fun in the waterfalls at the cost of aching legs - Pleasure & pain – 2 sides of a coin !

After the arduous climb, all of us badly wanted a refreshing drink & what better way to quench our thirst than to have our local lime n soda (I didn’t bother to look at how the glasses were being cleaned or the water that was being used). Back to the resort, had our lunch & rested for some time.

We had to cancel our evening outing plan & bonfire because of the heavy drizzle. There was a fresh nip in the air .

Late in the evening, with the power cut, heavy drizzle & very cool weather, there was nothing much to do and so most of us were stuck in our rooms. We could only hear the buzzing sound of insects. Silence, sometimes, is peaceful but silence in the dark, to me, is eerie.  Having decided to have good fun, we quickly formed 2 teams... what a wonderful time we had participating in the games that KV conducted in that narrow strip of a place. With minimum lighting, we had a sort of candle light dinner.

Sunday, 18th April, some of them got up early & went to the view point nearby – I am sure they had a great time, what with the fresh cool air and greenery all around. Had good breakfast & checked out from the lodge by around 11 AM. Travelled upto Senthamangala by the 2 vans & Senthamangala/Chennai by Parveen Travels bus. Once in the bus, almost all of us were dancing to the foot tapping music till we felt hungry and decided to have lunch break. We had our tasty lunch (packed veg biryani & curd rice from PA Lodge) in a picturesque grove and played for some time in the fresh and clean water from the pump. Reached Chennai by around 9 PM.


No doubt all of us had a rollicking time.

Photo courtesy: KV Anand, Sanjeevi & Anand