Kayak through Periyar

Being Sunday, I went for a Kayaking journey through the Periyar river, which is surrounded by the lush greenery of Thattekad Bird Sanctuary.

I drove from Kochi to Kothamangalam and then turned to Thattekad road . After a few kilometers drive,  turned  right to Chaarupara road and further drive was through a straight road till Inchathotty bus stop.

As per our itinerary,  our meeting point was at Inchathotty at 9 am. After reaching Inchathotty, I waited there for sometime for all the people in the group. There were few small shops selling tea, snacks and cold drinks.

The main attraction of this place is the hanging bridge which is considered as the longest suspension bridge in Kerala.

It was constructed as a walking bridge from Charupara of Keeripara Panchayat to Inchathotty of Kuttanpuzha Panchayat. Kerala Electrical and Allied Engineering Company Ltd completed the design and construction of the bridge. The view of river and the coast area from the bridge is breathtaking.

Since I had an experience of kayaking in Dharmadam island , I opted for a single kayak. The instructor gave the instructions and we set to go.

The 3 hour kayaking trip starts near to the hanging bridge. The sun was bright. One of the best part of kayaking in Periyar is that it gives you an experience of getting close to nature.

Navigating through dense tropical jungle  is like making your way through libyrinth. As we made our way through the scenery, I felt like in an english movie scene.

Except with the initial nervousness, the three hour journey was fantastic.

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Beach Camping and Kayaking at Dharmadam,Kerala

After waiting for  long, the time finally came for a kayaking trip to Dharmadam. Dharmadam is a small town  in Thalassery of Kannur district, in the Indian State of Kerala. Going to Dharmadam is easy by train and bus. One fine Saturday morning, I boarded Island Express from Ernakulam. It was fortunate that I reached the station much early to take ticket. Since it was a long weekend due to Vishu festival, there was an unbelievable rush at the ticket counter.  

Reached Thalassery at around 1 pm. My friend already informed about Hotel Paris for lunch. The summer was hot. I walked about 1.7 kms and was very pleased to find  the hotel, bustling with helpful-looking staff. Had a fabulous Non Veg lunch

Then took bus and got down at bridge stop. Took an auto to our camp which was near to the Dharmodam beach park.  It was around 2:00 PM, when I reached the camp site. It had five separate tents beautifully arranged and could accomodate 5 persons each in a tent.  The tent  there was a pleasant surprise - I guess you could call  it a junior luxury room.

It was such a beautiful location facing the sea. I strolled around on the beach absorbing the surroundings. I could see couples stroll through the beach holding hands and giving each other hugs and kisses.

A different attraction on every corner- from beautifuly arranged tents,  hammock under palms etc. Resting in hammock with sweet soud of waves, the view of the beach and cool breeze under the shade of palms make it a perfect relaxing place.

Our first activity in our chart was kayaking around Dharmodom Island. Dharmadam Island is located 100 meters away from the main land of Dharmadam. It is surrounded by the Anjarakandy river on three sides and the Arabian sea on the fourth side.

It was my first time so I was a bit excited as well as scared. We were given few minutes lesson by the guide. After a little bit of practice, my hands had become used to the grip of the paddle and the strokes had begun to come naturally.  

Since it was my first time, we shared a double-seat kayak. I sat in the back seat. Person sitting in the back seat have the control of the Kayak. We had moved against the tides. We took a round through  the Dharmadam Island and witnessed the beautiful view of the sunset.

We  reached back after sunset. After a long kayaking trip, our first priority was tea and snacks.

After dinner we walked through the beach. There were some surprise activities.  Vishu festival was coming after one day. We celeberated Vishu in the beach with fire crackers.

Day 2

Nothing can beat a morning  walk through the beach with an amazing sunrise. Few minutes after my casual walk began, I arrived near to the Dharmadom Island, where rocks projected in different structure. That was an ultimate morning stroll - the sun coming near you,  the alternate sound of quite then crashing waves, a good ocean smell.  A moment later, while standing around rocky beach, a strong smell of kelp and seaweed completed the sea side aromas.

I saw locals catching fishes. I stopped sometime , inhaling the smell of dead fish. Few steps further, the sight of a cemetery which was constructed for film shooting,caught my attention. After a leisurely breakfast,  we had a kayaking trip to explore the forest of mangroves around Anjarakandy river.

After 2 hrs of joy ride , we reached back to the camp around 10 am. It was low tide. We walked to Dharmadam Island through sea. We sat there for some time. You can spot corals everywhere.

It was around 1 pm. when we were back to the camp site. After having a yummy lunch we packed. Then on to Thalassery, then back to Kochi with a promise to come back again.

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A Day with Artisans at Sargalaya Arts and Craft Village

This time my travel is to Sargalaya Arts and Craft Village in Iringal which is near to the coastal town of Vadakara. I reached Kozhikode late night for next day's program and took rest in a Hotel. Next morning,  after having breakfast, boarded  a private bus from Kozhikode new bus stand at around 8.30 am. I stared out of the window and tried to make sense of the cityscape. 

Reached Oil Mill stop, Iringal at around 9.30 am. I was informed to wait at the bus stop. I walked around the place to find a tea shop and found Richus Thattukada and had a tea. When all members in the group arrived, we took  an auto and headed to Sargalaya craft village. We, a gang of 20, were anxious to meet the people who have devoted their lives to art or are living a life of art.

The session started at around 11.15 am. We sat on the benches facing Parakulam. Mr. Rajesh Sir and Mr.Sivadas Sir briefed us about the craft village. 

Spread across 20 acres of land, Sargalaya Craft village is developed and managing by  Ooralangal  labour coorperative society.  Started in 2011, it is the first craft village and it gives importance to both  tourism and craft. It has already invested 27 crores in two phases and attracts more than 4 lac visitors per year. It consists of 27 huts for craft making and has one craft training acadamy.  Around 100 craftsmen are associated with this place.

We started from the hut where clay models by  Mr.A.K.Arun were displayed. The models  that he made were simply beautiful. If you want to see the craftmen at work, this is a great place to visit.

Then we visited huts for  bamboo products, flowers made up of natural products etc. Another hut showcases Kayar products, then a Naithu shala which produces 3 meter cloth  a day. We were simply mesmerised seeing these works. 

Naithu Sala

The Craft village is really beautiful. Every year, Sargalaya  hosts 19 days handicraft exhibition. There is one aqua section also. We had lunch from the canteen in the village.

It has one lake  and is known as parakulam and has boating facility. Boating was interesting and 4 persons can use pedal boats at a time.

Then we headed to Kunjalimarakkar  Museum which is around  2km from the craft village. Our guide explained about the history of Museum.

The Kunjali Marakkar Museum is the old house of Kunjali Marakkar,  the naval chief of the Zamorin of Calicut. Marakkar was the honored title bestowed upon the family of valorous fighters, who were the admirals of the Zamorin's fleet. Kunjali Marakkar fought valiantly against the Portuguese army and the Portuguese were able to capture him only through treachery. After his defeat, he was imprisoned and later, beheaded in Goa.

Some of the prominent displays include the sword used by Kunjali Marakkar, cannon balls and some other war relics belonging to the period of the Zamorins.

It was already 5 PM  and we decided to bid goodbye till we meet in another place. 

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Exploring Janakikad

For long day's travel, I always prefer to reach the destination early and take rest. So the travel will be more convenient . This time as well, I  reached Kozhikode on 9th evening to attend a group get together on the next day at Janakikad which is near to Kuttiady in Kozhikode district in the Indian state of Kerala.

After refreshment from the hotel, I went for a walk out of SM street or Mithai Theruvu. The street were crowded, but l felt myself alone. You can buy anything from textiles to sweets from this street.  Had Kozhikoden snacks -Unnakaya and Banana stuffed with sweet coconut filling -  from one of the hotel in the street.  It was late when I reached back to the hotel and I was tired. A slight breeze was in the hot March air. I finally drifted off into the land of dreams.

Woke up in the morning at 6'0 clock. In the early hours of dawn, the day was already growing hot. After breakfast , took a private bus from Kozhikode new bus stand. I took side seat to get the views around.

It took 2 hrs to reach Paleri. I caught an auto from the bus stop .  The driver was enthused enough to put songs. After a few minutes, we reached a long bridge crossing Kuttiadi river . It is too small and hardly one four wheeler can pass at a time.

After crossing the bridge, the auto stopped infront of the entrance of Janakikad Eco Tourism Center. And I waited there for all group members to arrive. Tickets are Rs 30 for adults and 15 for children. Admission is allowed from 10 am to 5 pm.

We have a group of 40 people. After introduction, we started the  forest walk. We had a butterfly expert and a guide along with us. This 320 acres of forest is covered with rare herbs and trees. Our guide explained various plants in the forest. Scenic beauty with chirping sound of birds made the walk refreshing. It was interesting to walk with a group of friends by enjoying  the view of Kuttiyadi river on one side and a walkway leading to the forest. There are also some iron benches for relaxation.  When we were listening to the guide, someone suddenly shouted  'Ocyceros'.  By the time I took my camera, it had vanished.

It was already 2pm. And we crossed the bridge for lunch. Had fabulous fish curry meals in Kozhikoden style.

Again we returned back to Janakikad to take bath in Kuttiadi River. The Kuttiadi River is also known as the Murat River and yellow river.  The bath and enjoyment  lasted  for 2 hrs and this is the most exciting experience I found in this place. There is a facility for dress changing as well.    

The day made me  feel so refreshed and  close to nature. I returned to Kozhikode on my way back to Kochi.

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Cosying up with Nature in Iringole Kaavu

We were a group of 39 people assembled at Iringole Kaavu beating the heat of March. 

Iringole Kavu,  a sacred grove, is a temple dedicated to Goddess Durga in the midst of forest and is situated just 2.5 km from Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district, in the Indian State of Kerala. Sacred groves are known as 'Kaavu' in Malayalam language.

We assembled near to the Kavu at around 9'o clock. The breakfast was already arranged by the coordinators. After breakfast , we started the walk along with two biologists. There are three entrances and a small pathway through the forest to reach the temple.  We spotted various butterflies, birds and orchides in the Kaavu. Cottonia peduncularis, Artocarpus hirsutus were few that  we spotted during our walk. The information provided by the biologists was really helpful to understand the  multiple flora and fauna in the the forest.

We split  into  five groups and each group collected plastics and bottles, left behind by other visitors / tourists , in a polythene bag. This was our small attempt to help create an eco-friendly environment and preserve nature . 

It was around 1'o clock , when we reached the Durga temple. By that time the temple  was closed.  The temple is surrounded by 50 acres of thick forest. There are many ponds in the area. The 'theerthakulam' or temple pond here is lush throughout the year.

We had a traditional Sadya in platain leaf in the Oottupura located near to the temple. After lunch , we had a workshop to make paper pen  from waste paper and at the bottom of each pen a seed of a tree was placed  that would eventually grow into trees.  The seeds were collected from the forest around the Kaavu. 

It was time for some entertainments. We sat on the steps infront of the temple. We had a wonderful time for group activities by singing songs. The theme of the song was Vanchipattu.  It was already 4'0 clock and some of our group members were  coming from distant places and we decided to bid goodbye.

Next day I returned back to the Kavu with my wife. Had darshan and took prasadam. They  offer Jaggery( Sarkara in Malayalam language) as prasadam. Had sometme near  the pond reminiscing last day events.

Then we moved towards the car looking for any given opportunity to return back to Iringole Kaavu.

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Heritage run from Ernakulam Jn to Cochin Harbour Terminus

I was excited to travel in a steam locomotive even in this century. There I am, at Ernakulam South Railway Station to board  the century old  'EIR 21 Express'.   It was as part of Thiruvananthapuram Division’s initiative  to run this century old steam engine  from  Ernakulam Junction to Cochin Harbour Terminus. This segment of the trip takes about 20 minutes covering 8 kms. My trip was at 2 PM. I reserved my ticket in advance and the fare for adult Indian nationals is Rs.500.

It is said that the name 'EIR 21 Express' was given to the loco by its creators, Kitson,Thampson and Hewistson of England, who built it in 1855. The loco was shipped to the Indian subcontinent and used about 55 years till it was discontinued in 1909.  It was then used for exhibitions at Jamalpur Workshops and  Howrah Station for 101 years.

In 2010,  Loco Workshop , Perambur revived the Express EIR 21 and the first heritage run by EIR 21 was conducted as part of the Independance celebarations in 2010 from Chennai Central to Avadi with two coaches. It runs in Chennai, Puduchery, Thiruchendur and Nagarcoil before coming to Kochi.

A special coach with 40 seats is  also attached to the steam engine for the trips . The coach was decorated beautifully . The coach has plenty of removable chairs and was fitted with an air conditioner.

The train left from Ernakulam Jn at 2 pm and it chugged through scenic places towards Cochin Harbour Terminus. Along the way you will get beautiful views on both the sides. When the train passed through level cross, I could see clicking of dozens of cameras going off around the train. Some were waving to the train as it passed.

 
After a break at Cochin Harbour Terminus, it returned back to Ernakulam Junction. The train was fun and and the route is also beautiful . Sometimes duration and the destination doesn't matter for a train journey and for me, this train journey will always be cherished .

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Trekking and Camping at Pampadum Shola National Park

Munnar is my favorite place in the whole world. I’ve been fortunate enough to have visited this breathtaking place multiple times, and each time I fall more in love with it.

This time, my travel is to Pambadumshola, the smallest national park in the Indian state of Kerala. It is situated 35 kms from Munnar town.

The drive to Munnar from Kochi was uneventful. I decided not to stop till I reach Munnar town. After breakfast from Munnar town, started my drive through narrow road amidst tea estates. When  I passed through tourist destinations like Rose garden,  Mattupetty, Echo point and Kundle Dam,  I saw huge rush in those areas. The road was good till 3 kms away from the Top station. And as I drove, I could see mist spreading all over the area. From Top station, I turned left through a small road and the road was not good till the entrace of the Pambadumshola National Park. After that the road was excellent. 

Our two day camp was arranged near to the Forest Department training centre.  It was already 1 p.m., when I reached the camp site. 

The Forest Department had also arranged enough facilities to accommodate tourists who wish to stay overnight and enjoy the park. There is one amenity center and two log houses for  tourist accommodation.  You can book the rooms directly from Kerala forest department website.

RESTORING GRASSLANDS

After lunch, our first activiy was to participate in the Grassland Restoration Project.  And we walked through the tar road  and both sides of the road is interspersed with eucalyptus and conifers.  Forest department doesn't allow passengers after 6 pm in this route. The long walk through woods is always an awesome experience.

 
After a few minutes walk through tar road and then the dense forest, we reached   an open space.  There are grandis (a variety of eucalyptus) that threatens the ecology of the area due to its dehydrating and quick-spreading character.  We removed extensive  growth  of sprouted wattles. This project started few years back and we could see the grasslands that are coming back. I felt proud to be a part of this project.

The dusk turned into night, we returned back to the camp site.  'There are some actvities tonight' our coordinater pointed out.  We had some fun filled activities and  an interactive session with Dr Rajan, a biologist, who spoke about the bio-diversity of the Andaman and  Nicobar Islands. It was interesting to listen to his personal experiences and how he escaped from tribals.  

It was too cold in the night. With a bit of luck, we saw gaur herds near to our camp site. Suddenly the full force of thunderstorm hit with all its pent-up fury. A torential rain poured down. I crawled in  the sleeping bag and felt myself drifting away. Of course, I dreamed. 

Day 2

When  I stepped out of my room  in the morning, I could see mist covered in the area. The air smelled clean and crisp.

Our first acivity in the day was a visit to Vattavada strawberry farm. Vattavada, situated 6500 ft above sea level is just 7 km from the camp site. 

We made a short jeep ride to Vattavada.  Further, the jeep turned down to small mud road from the main road. The path was slippery with mud.  Our local guide was waiting for us and he directed us to his farm. And I plucked carrots and strawberries from the farm and asked the farm people to pack for me.

On the way back to the camp site, we were lucky to see gaur herds. 

Our next activity was  a five-kilometre trek through the Bandhar route. Our guide had already reached the camp by that time. We walked till Pampadum Shola National Park entrance. Some of us bought T shirts with logo of the park from the counter.  After a few instructions from the authorities, we started our trek.

The area is home to wildlife animals such as elephants, buffaloes, lion-tailed macaque, gaur, and Nilgiri langurs. There are various types of medicinal plants (herbs), of which studies have been made. We caught the sight of the dazzling rhododendron blooms on the side of the path

We spotted nilgiri langur on the way.  It walked on top of a tree branch and gave us a good sighting for few minutes.

Around 1'o clock we reached back to the Camp. After lunch and camp review, we bid goodbye each other.

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Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2018

I drove heading to Aspinwall house, to visit the fourth edition of Kochi - Muziris Biennale.  Since 2012, the first Kochi - Muziris Biennale conducted in various parts of Kochi,  streets of Kochi got an artistic make over especially in and around  Aspinwall house, which is the main location for Kochi Biennale. The streets were filled with domestic and foreign tourists. Somehow I managed to park my car near to the Cabral Yard. This part of the town has some creative street art to boost off.  It was good to see cheerful artwork on the walls initiated by Zanele Muholi .

I started from Aspinwall house and then visited Pepper House and Cabral Yard exhibits. After taking entry ticket from the counter near to the entrance of the Aspinwall house, I enquired about the day's program from the Information Centre. And I walked towards Song Dong's installation  'Water Temple'.  Anybody can come and draw with water on the walls.

After visiting few installations, I had lunch from the food joint inside the compound.  After a quick visit to Pepper House, I visited Cabral Yard. I was excited to see the Pavilion - a temporary structure at Cabral Yard. Before leaving Cabral Yard, I had tea from a food joint run by Kudumbasree Mission.

Here is a selection  of 8 installations from  the fourth edition of Kochi - Muziris Biennale to keep an eye on.

Arunkumar's installation Con-struction 1 and Con-struction II, stress on the prefix "con" to point to the deception in the development model. By recycling, reclaiming and reworking industrial waste, especially packaging wood from scrap yards, he not only comments on environmental issues, but indicates a rebirth of this material.

An installation from Arunkumar

'From the Oysters Shell it fell with a neck of dangling bells a flirtatious alligator who put upon us a bodily spell ' suggest the underlying repression in the form of a carnivorous plant. The work is also a dismissal of appearances as reductive, inadequate frameorks for representation, reflecting the essentialiation that women, and other minority groups undergo.

An installation from Rina Banerjee.

Lubna Chowdhury began Metropolis in 1991 and didn’t complete the installation of 1000 ceramic sculptures until 2017, when she first exhibited the work in its entirety at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Metropolis’s abstracted towers, monuments and other less definable forms — some look like handheld electronics, others like toys — aesthetically subverts the preciousness of the medium in the history of art.

An installation from Lubna Chowdhury

Shilpa Gupta's installation, 'For, In Your Tongue, I Can Not Fit — 100 Jailed Poets' expands on the artist’s investigations of political borderlines, and how they exist beyond maps to the invisible mechanisms of control and surveillance. The work is an installation of one-hundred speaking microphones that sit above corresponding stakes that each pierce a page of poetry. Recitals of a different poet’s work emanate from each microphone in a synchronized chorus. All of the writers who are represented, some living decades or centuries ago, were imprisoned for their poetry or politics, and the installation gives voice to their forced silence. Incarceration instigates a physical boundary between prisoners and the free world. However 'For, In Your Tongue, I Can Not Fit — 100 Jailed Poets' points to how orchestrated oppression is harder to detect as it renders those imprisoned voiceless and invisible.

An installation from Shilpa Gupta

Kausik Mukhopadhyay utilizes, as he puts it,“discarded household gadgets,” or recognizably outdated pieces of technology — dial phones, incandescent light-bulbs, and bulky television sets. The artist re-animates these into kinetic installations where they become players in a cacophonous performance.  By highlighting relics from the futuristic visions of the past, Mukhopadhyay’s work therefore raises the question of what the world will look like when these dematerialized technologies become increasingly prevalent and, perhaps one day, obsolete.

An installation from Kausik Mukhopadhyay

Sue Williamson's Messages from the Atlantic Passage at Aspinwall South African artist Sue Williamson discusses her work ‘Message from the Atlantic Passages’ which recasts bureaucratic records of the Atlantic slave trade.

An installation from Sue Williamson

William Kentridge’s work features a cast of silhouetted figures stepping and dancing in line to the sounds of a brass band. The figures carry objects made from cutouts of Kentridge’s drawings, including portraits of historically significant figures, cages, plants and an array of human belongings. The load-bearing characters recall recent images of refugees migrating to escape the atrocities of their homelands.

An installation from William Kentridge

 'Smiling Angels from the Sky' is an installation of hanging sculptures, with ten “angels” who don pleasant, enthusiastic faces and resemble toy airplanes. Dono presents the angel as a universal symbol of hope for the future that isn’t tethered to any singular tradition or religion, and can therefore be appreciated by any who comes across their winged forms.

An installation from Heri Dono

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Madurai-Rameswaram-Dhanushkodi

After years of planning , I finally  got an opportunity for a trip to Rameswaram. Since it was not possible to see everything that we wanted to see,  we decided to focus our trip on three places - Madurai, Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi. We finally left for Rameswaram from Kochi on the evening of November 23rd.

Our route was via NH 45 Adimali/Theni/Kambam/Madurai

24.11.2018 - Day 1

It was around 9 am, when we reached Madurai. After refreshment and breakfast, we reached the South Gopura of Madurai Meenakshi temple. The temple was surrounded by shops and hotels. The temple has four towers or 'gopurams, with entry gate each and are engraved with beautiful sculptures of demons and gods. You are restricted from carrying cameras, mobile phones, bottles and food. The temple provides free cloak/footwear room near to the South Gopura.

South Gopura of Madurai Meenakshi temple

The temple complex has many mandapas (pillared-halls). Near to the South Gopura is a sacred temple tank , called  Porthamarai Kulam ("Pond with the golden lotus"). Surrounding the temple tank, there were 64 pictures of Shiva's Thiruvilayadals (miracles).  On the western side of the  tank, you can see  a small portico where you can see a portion of 17th and 18th century paintings of Nayak period.  It depicts the marriage of Sundareswarar and Meenkashi attended by Vijayaranga Chokkanatha and Rani Mangammal. After prayers, we visited Thousand Pillar Hall and it contains 985 (instead of 1000) carved pillars.

Prayers over, we returned to the hotel and checked out. Next up was Paazhamudur Cholai Temple.  Before boarding the bus, we bought some sweets from age old shops who sells Halwa made up of pure ghee and sugar.

Reached Paazhamudur Cholai Temple at around 11 am which is considered as one of the six important abodes of Lord Muruga. . It is situated atop a hill covered with dense forests, and there were many monkeys around the temple.

Paazhamudur Cholai Temple

Coming out, I could see a long queue to collect food which was donated by an organisation.

Next up was Rameshwaram. By this time, it was  lunchtime and we were searching for good restaurants along the way, which seemed hard especially in rural Tamilnadu.  Finally, we stopped at one hotel near Sivakasi.  With lunch over, we pushed on  towards Rameswaram. The road was good with less traffic. Once everyone settled in the bus, our coordinator put one Malayalam film.

It was 6 PM when we reached the Pamban Bridge. The Pamban bridge - Road bridge and the Railway bridge -  connects the shores of Mandapam and Pampan - the starting point of Rameshwaram island.

Pamban bridge

The bus dropped us in the middle of the bridge and allowed us to walk till end of the bridge. We could see the area built across the rail bridge where boats passes through and the bridge would lift up when the boat comes. We could see Fish Landing Centre from the bridge. By that time sun started to set creating a mixture of orange, yellow and dark blue hues.

Sun set view from Pamban bridge

Our accomodation was arranged in Hotel RSN International located in Sannadhi St and is a walk-able distance to the Temple and the Agni Theertham. I was tired after a long journey. After dinner, me and one of my co traveller walked around the temple to photograph the stunning views of Gopura and the life around the temple.  There were small tea shops and hotels around the temple selling tea and food. Cows were roaming around the street which reminisce me of the Varanasi streets.

11.00 pm. time to bed. Went back to hotel. It was worth  to spend the night in a hotel located near to the temple and the beach. Last goodbye to day's hectic travel, quick shower and off to bed after a fantastic day.

25.11.2028 - Day 2

In the early morning at 5.30  our guide reached our hotel to help us to take bath in Theertham and other rituals. Wearing white Dhoti we walked towards Agni Teertham. First we visited the Sri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam.  Statues of Sri Adi Sankara with his four principal disciples is located at the top of the tower, facing the sea. The Life History of Adi Sankara is depicted in the form of carvings on the tower.

Sri Sankara Matam, Rameswaram

AGNI THEERTHAM

Agni theertham sea  is  located just 50 meter from the Rameswaram temple. Those who wanted to take sacred bath should first take bath in Agni theertham and followed by bath in theerthams inside the temple. The ghats were caught up in the early morning bustle.  Facilities are available for those who wanted to take holistic rituals such as tharpanam(ritual for the ancestors who were dead). After bath, all of us went ahead to Rameswaram temple in wet cloths for holy bath in 22 wells.

Agni theertham sea

After bath in 22 wells inside the temple, we came back to hotel to change our dress. Then proceeded to temple visit.

Ramanatha Swamy temple

Photography is strictly prohibited inside the temple premises. You can take special pass for Rs.50. A  huge Nandi idol is placed in the entrance. We were about to hear an interesting story from our guide.The Shiva lingam of Lord Rameswaram is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. It is believed that Sri Rama worshiped the Shiva Lingam of Lord Siva. After Ravana's death, Lord Rama came to Rameshwaram with Lord Sita and decided to worship  the deity of Shivalingam  and perform pooja  to save his sins. But Hanuman was unable to bring Shivlingam on time. But Sita created one Shivlingam by spraying salt water into the sand of the sea and the same was installed at that moment. After that, Hanuman arrived from Kailash with Shiva Lingam. It is believed that seeing the face of the sad and angry Hanuman, the new shivlingam was placed near to the shivalingam of Sita. Since Lord Rama, the incarnation of Lord Vishnu,  worshiped  the Shiva Linga (Shiva)  by his own hand, the Vaishna Saiva Vedanta devotees comes to pray here. It is believed that if you pray in this temple, all sins will be washed away.

We walked through the third corridor,  which is said to be the longest pillared corridor in the world with its 1212 pillars. The carvings on the pillars have been painted in bright colors.

Arrived back to hotel, checked out,  left our luggage inside the bus.  After a leisurely breakfast, moved out to visit  Dhanushkodi.

DHANUSHKODI

Since heavy vehicles are not permitted to Dhanushkodi, we hired a small van. Dhanushkodi is around 20 kms from Rameswaram. When the van crossed the city limit, I tried to remember  the tragedy that  happened to Dhanushkodi 56 years back. It was on 22 December 1962, when the clock turned 23.55, one passenger train with around 150 people was crossing Pamban to Dhanushkodi, when suddenly a strong wind followed by heavy rain washed out Dhanushkodi and the train drowned in the high tides and all of the passengers died. Two villages and  port city vanished  and 1800 humans died from Pampan island. Entire Dhanushkodi was wiped out. Dhanuskodi is declared as a ghost town by the government after this natural calamity.

The road was empty and we could see only travelers along the way. Both side of the road were tied with big stones to protect from waves.The left side of the road is Indian Ocean and right side is Bay of Bengal.

Road ahead to Dhanushkodi

When Dhanushkodi approached, we could see people living in bamboo houses. Fishing is the main occupation. There are many shops on both sides of the road.

Dhanushkodi was a major port city in Bengal cost since British rule. It has port, railway station, water tank, post office, church, temple , hospital, school , hotels and other shops. Now we could see only ruins. It was also famous for people coming here for Bali karma.

On the left, we  saw the remains of the old railway station.

Old Railway Station, Dhanushkodi

Near to the Old railway station is an old Tank.

Old Tank, Dhanushkodi

You can see parts of the old mosque on the right side of the road. They are many stalls near to the mosque which sells Shakh and chippi.

Old mosque, Dhanushkodi

Wading through stories, we finally reached  the tip of Dhanushkodi. The bus dropped us at the end of the road and it is the last turnaround of South India. In the middle you can see an Ashoka Stupa. This is the place where  seas Indian ocean (A sea with high tides) and Bay of Bengal (the low tide sea) merges. The area was crowded with people and vehicles. This is the land border of India and Srilanka which is nearly about 15 kms from here. It is believed that Ram Sethu was built from here to Sri Lanka. 

tip of  Dhanshkodi

People from the locality were selling cut fruits, nuts etc. and they do not have any other income sources in this place. Before heading back to Rameswaram, try to taste those fruit cuts  - mango, pineapple , etc. from local people.

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Monument

This is the last place in our chart before leaving Rameswaram. It showcases memories from the life of Dr.APJ Abdul Kalam. Curious to know more, I entered the museum with high expectations. Dr. Kalam's life is depicted through portraits. Statues of Dr. Kalam in presidential suite, in sitting and standing, last moments in his life is also displayed here. In another section, personal belongings of Dr.Kalam, sample model of missiles and rockets with which Dr.Kalam had worked are also displayed. Photography inside the memorial is prohibited for visitors.  If you complete the inside views, the outdoors  are perfectly sublime.

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Monument

After lunch we started our return journey. When we crossed the Pampan bridge, we could see lots of peacock's in the railway track.

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