There can never be any words to explain the enjoyment and relief in taking a day off from the usual hectic and boring weekdays. Especially if you are meeting your near and dear ones after a long time (leaping up and down,getting into each other's arms...hugging..right in the middle of the road, nobody really cares about the surroundings then). So was it, last week.
After a long planning we at last managed to find sometime to spend together at Vaalpaarai (don't know how many of you guys know about this place). Vaalpaarai is a hill station famous for film shooting, prominently Tamil movies. No wonder why cinematographers are very much fascinated by the place. I must say the serene beauty captivates everyone in this world. It is no comparable to the queen and the sister hill stations of TamilNadu, still I must recommend this place for its yet-to-be-explored beauty. It is also known for its large number of hairpin bends(40 totally one of the largest. Kollimalai has the largest in TN ?!?!?!
The spirit started from the day we booked tickets to Coimbatore from Bangalore for this weekend, exchanging mails everyday regarding plans and literally counting days for this one Friday. On Friday night we boarded a rickety RajaHamsa to Coimbatore (Cbt) and its really an adventurous travel to Cbt through Mysore. From Cbt, its again an hour travel to Pollachi, where it all really started. The qualis (already booked as part of our accommodation) was ready to be boarded. Couple of my friends were already there and we were literally leaping right in the middle of the road....wow!!! Not wasting any more time we bought shampoo, oil, soap everything we needed and quickly took off to rock!!!!
The trip started with Aazhiyar dam. A beautiful landscape with a lake right at the bottom of the hill that we are going to climb. With a few snaps and the breakfast, we steered through our first hairpin bend. It was all oohs and aahs from then onwards till we stopped at the ninth hairpin bend to get a good valley view. Our camera eyes didn't miss a single direction, with the photo flash filling the entire place as though a real film shoot is happening. In a short time, a captivating falls forced us to change into bathe suits. Within a very short time we crossed our last hairpin bend.
A beautiful house, romantic lawn and a thriller type bedrooms were awaiting for the exuberant group. Hope you can very easily imagine our state of mind. We really forgot that we had to pay the cab bill, talk to the cottage owner and etc hoping the other will do. Such was the excitement for us. The hungamas subsided with a quick shower and a delicious lunch. The neatly arranged cozy bed took us to a very deep world that we had never experienced after joining the company.
How come a day end without a cool walk in such a wonderful place! We did have a very slow and cold walk and it was so refreshing for the energy deprived corporates. With that we targeted to enlighten our spirits further in the lawn where everything remained so passive as though they were in a very deep rest under moonlight. We had a very long night party leaving us with energy only enough to sleep.
The very next day started well with "Balaji's dharshan", a private temple neatly maintained. I should say things didn't work well for us that day. We couldn't get into "Grass Hills", a restricted area known for its adventure. Whenever we went to such hill stations we are confronted with similar problems. We forgot to get the pass required to access these areas. Anyway we got back with disappointment. The day is not yet over. A day is not wasted if a memory is made. Well, this time its an awesome falls, "Chinnakallaaru". It is situated in the midst of a forest area. This falls deserves a separate blog itself. Such a beautiful place, with dense forest at both sides, water flowing in the middle and an adventurous wooden bridge to be crossed to reach the falls. After spending two hours nearly, we left the place to end the trip.
Ultimately, it was a much needed break and an energizing trip to "Vaalpaarai". My mind and heart is really beating hard to search for the next place while writing this blog. Hmmmm hope this journey continues!!!!
