Kodai Trip - Part 2

        When we woke up, it was well past midday and all of us were starving, having had dinner around 10 the last night and only a small snack to keep us going till we reached Kodai. Half an hour later, we were wolfing the lot at a small hotel, thanks to the frantic efforts by Pscho and CC. Having catered to the call of the most basic of all needs, we decided to go and take a short tour of a few nearby places.

       One of them included the 'Suicide Point', notorious for suicides. Mostly young people disillusioned  by love took plunges from there. So, the authorities sealed of the place and put huge iron railings to prevent any such untoward instances. As we approached the 'Suicide Point', following a path through small shops selling perfumes and spices, we could see the Silent Valley National Park in the distance. When we reached near the point, the view left us awed; we could see the plains dotted with hills and realised how high we were all above them. On our way back from the awesome view, we were encountered by a few monkeys who were hoping that we would have some food on us; hard luck for the monkeys!!

At Pillar Rocks

     The next item on the menu was Pillar Rocks. We travelled for quite sometime, going past the Golf course and through some of the most winding roads I have seen. Thankfully though they were not some of the steepest.The sun was almost setting when we reached the rocks. The authorities were almost closing shop, but we gained access to the viewpoint and the vertical rocks in the fading light left us feeling puny. We took a few snaps and soon were on our way back, as the light was fast fading and the chill in the wind too much for us Chennaites to handle!!

       Evening found us safely tucked under blankets, enjoying the World Cup Final. True, people back in insti were having a blast enjoying the match at OAT and I would have liked to celebrate India's victory with hundreds of friends, but I was not to be denied the fun of a warm bed in April in Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu has been too unkind to me; I haven't had the pleasure of covering myself with two blankets in winter since I came to Chennai. I could not even think of the need of a blanket in Tamil Nadu; but evidently Kodai proved me wrong and was I glad to be proved wrong!! 

        The next day, we had a discussion at length to decide which places to visit and finally after some consultation with the hotel manager decided to make a visit to the Dolphin's Nose. It, we were told, was quite a place with cliffs all around and ideal for great snaps. This time however, I decided to take Naseef's bike and asked Peeyush to hop on. I knew well that the interests of the others differed from mine as did Peeyush's. Peeyush had recently bought a DSLR and was looking forward to some photography. I, on the other hand, was looking for some peaceful time amongst the hills. 

      We started at around 10 am and soon were asking locals the route to Dolphin's nose. The hills rising around us left us awestruck and calling us to take snaps of them. We could no longer ignore the temptation and were soon making frequent stops to click away as many snaps as possible. Peeyush could hardly contain his excitement, neither could I. We however had to be careful to park our bike without disrupting the traffic; the road was very narrow at this juncture. When we reached the end of the road, it became apparent to us that we would have to walk down a rough trail to reach the Dolphin's Point. Wasting no time, we parked the bike and were soon on the way down, struggling to find a proper grip for our feet. Halfway through, when we stopped to replenish our fluids, we saw our friends returning from Dolphin's Point. The image they gave of the place would leave the both of not-so-eager. But we decided to trod on and visit the place nevertheless. 

      Walking through a grove of eucalyptus trees, we could see many people on a small hill. There was a ledge on one side and people were sitting on it, while others took their photographs. We went to the opposite side first and found ourselves looking at another hill, a vertical wall of rock just a few hundred feet from us. But what

was going on the other 

side of the hill captured our attention more. So we climbed to the top of the hill and were rewarded with an amazing view of the surroundings. I lost no time in asking Peeyush to take a snap of me sitting on a rock with a few hilltops in the background. The way to the other side was treacherous as well as crowded. We had to tread carefully among the rocks lying all over the place. When we reached the other side, we saw a ledge that was projecting out of the mound of rocks. A couple were at the very end of the ledge and a photographer was taking a few snaps of them. When they left, another group came and sat on the ledge while their friends clicked their photos. I decided that I would be up next, but the moment I stepped on the ledge, I could feel my heart in my mouth and decided to try a bit later. So, I sat near the ledge and tried to muster my courage while other people went and had their photos clicked. Many were on the verge of yelling from the fright of the sight of the gorge just below their feet. After watching for sometime, I decided to try and get myself on the ledge. 

At Dolphin's Nose

This I did after I had encountered the most frightening moments of my life. Sitting on the ledge and trying to find a good grip lest I fall off into oblivion, I couldn't help myself to a smile at overcoming my fear. "Darr ke aage jeet hai"..... quoting that ad from 'Mountain Dew'. A few smiles for the camera and I was at ease. 

    By the time we left Dolphin's Nose, it was already around 1 pm and we had to meet up with our friends. Instead we told them to eat without waiting for us. We decided to visit some more places and after we had our fill of them, we decided to indulge ourselves at a Swedish restaurant. The barbecued chicken we had was great and we would have eaten more, had our stomachs any room left. We reached our rooms just about sundown and began packing our stuff. It had already been decided that we would try and cover the first leg of the return trip with some light to guide us through the winding roads. So, as I settled in the back seat of the car, munching the home-made chocolates of Kodai, I could satisfactorily say to myself that my long drawn drought was over.