This summer, I and my family went on a two day trip to Coonoor, a popular hill station in the Nilgris. My brother and I were really excited because we were holidaying together as a family after ages. As we drove higher and higher up the hill, we had a beautiful view of the city of Coimbatore. During our journey, we clicked numerous pictures ranging from several tribes of monkeys, their funny poses, different species of trees, the lush green tea plantations, the enchanting Nilgris hills, the valleys and finally we reached our resort “De – rock”. I searched frantically for my mobile to click a few pictures, check-in on Facebook, foursquare and let the world know that I’m in such a beautiful place. But to my dismay, there was no signal for communication!
However the absence of signal turned out to be a blessing in disguise. For once, I had to be away from the routine calls, pings in whatsapp, facebook and all such apps, which wouldn’t have been possible otherwise! The serenity and beauty around began to draw me towards it and I started to fall in love with the place. Our room was in the first floor and the view of the vast spread of verdant green tea shrubs from our balcony was mesmerizing. In front of our cottage was a cage which housed few rabbits and turkeys and a vegetable garden with lettuces, cabbages, carrots, celery, broccoli, strawberries and much more.
The resort is located very close to Lamb’s rock – a popular tourist spot in Coonoor – where you get a spectacular view of the Coimbatore plains and the Nilgris Hills. We walked through the tea plantations in front of this cottage to reach the Lamb’s rock. On our way we spoke to couple of women who were busy plucking the tea leaves. They taught us the art of plucking tea leaves and finally certified that we were equally good too! 😀
Must do activities in Coonoor:
You have two options – either visit the tourist spots which all tourism sites promote or relax well in the resort and explore the area around. And what we did was a perfect combo – one day for sightseeing and another day for relaxation and exploration. We visited the century old Sim’s park which has several trees, shrubs, creepers and unusual plants brought from different parts of the world.
Dolphin’s nose is another tourist attraction in Coonoor. Don’t imagine that you can find dolphins out there! The tip of the rock resembles the shape of dolphin’s nose and hence the name. It is a view point which has gigantic ravines on either sides and you can see the Catherine falls in front of you. One thing which you shouldn’t miss when you come to Coonoor is the toy train! Since we came by car, we missed the beautiful journey from Metupalayam through the tunnels and bridges amidst Nilgris.
On the second day, we went for a mini trek to the Shola forest nearby, engaged ourselves in bird watching, collected different species of rare plants, relaxed well in our room and at night enjoyed the camp fire along with hot sizzlers served for dinner.
What I really liked about the resort:
• The hospitality was second best to none in the world. The owner of the resort, Mr. Charles took great care of each and every family staying there which instantly made us feel at home.
• The resort had just 2 little, lovely cottages, with 3 rooms each and because of its compact nature, you will easily develop a bonding with the other families.
• If you feel like playing badminton or a game of dart, you have all the necessary amenities.
• The vegetable garden not only caters to your food requirements, but also gives an aesthetic appeal.
• There is an amazing chef who prepares the food of your choice, but the only request is that the food should not be wasted.
• Nothing goes waste here – even the vegetable wastes! They are used to feed the rabbits and the poultry.
• You can listen to the world’s best music – the sound of nature. The chirping of birds, buzzing of insects; It’s beautiful, I tell you!
• Above all, I liked the place for being signal free; for making me stay away far from the madding crowd!
If you wish to take a break from your work and relax for a couple of days, you now know where you should be heading! 🙂
Memoirs of Monisha 