Postcard To Coorg

"Imagine, you rise early in a morning, you step out of the room with the fragrance of a hot cup of coffee, with a view of lush green mountains, chirping birds and colourful flower beds" Well, this thought was there in my mind for a long time till my friends decided on this trip, a place approx. 250 kilometres from Bangaluru (a 4 to 6 hours drive) in  Kodagu district of Karnataka, also famously known as the Coorg.
Heard of it, well let me tell you something about this place, my way ~ History:  Kodavu, the native name of presently known Kodagu, was then known for its ethnic warrior tribe Kodavas and its coffee and timber. The East India Company annexed this district from its then ruler King Chikka Virarajendra in the year 1834 and renamed the place as "Coorg." The area of Coorg was declared as an administrative state till post independence when it was merged with the State of Mysore(now Karnataka).
Place ~ Coorg, small district in the Western Ghats, known for its coffee, cardamom, black pepper and timber plantations along with other traditional crops, majorly paddy.
But the secret of this place lies in the monsoon season. This place gets alive in this season with the canvas turning green and white with lush green paddy fields and coffee plantations on the mountain side and white waterfalls from the rivers that come to life during this season. One can find large number of resorts in and around Coorg.These include places like Club Mahindra Resorts, Orange County, Tamara, etc. The place we choose is called the Honey Valley Resorts at Medikeri ~ a beautiful resort on a small mountain, part of the Western Ghats, in the middle of a coffee plantations.
The place where we crashed !!





The resort apart from its breath taking view and peaceful environment gives an excellent opportunity to photography enthusiasts with its flora and fauna.
Some we could capture in as a memory :




























For people who love reading well this place will not disappoint you. It has a small library with books ranging from local dialects to English. Grab a glass of some homemade wine or a cup of hot filtered coffee with a book and some old tunes - one word I have for this - "sorted."
A kilometres walk down the mountain, in the resort area itself, there is a small surprise a private waterfall known as Chingara Falls.   After a sweaty morning walk and a few good shots, the view of the waterfalls, sound of the flowing water is truly refreshing. I don't think I could have stopped myself from going nuts!






Joined by my buddy Raxit Cholera

The most beautiful part of the resort, something different, is the employers concern for its employees. The resort has strict rules of serving food, when I enquired the owner humbly replied "it is difficult for my employees, I don't want them to take any kind unnecessary stress." The resort provides a good combination of Coorgi and South Indian Dishes under the guidance of the owners' wife. The highlight for me was the Coconut Jackfruit Chatney and the Avacardo Sweet Dish.  I am a tea person but I can proudly say I didn't have tea there, it was coffee all the way hands down, coffee with a pinch of cinnamon - "lovely."
If in one line I need to explain my stay in this place and what I witnessed, I can just say that the resort, the area, itself is, in a true sense, blessed by Mother Nature.
P.S. Some pictures are taken by my dear friends Raxit Cholera and Neelam Saini.