A long trip

I love driving, my favourite past time to go for a long ride on the east coast road on my motorcycle. The east coast road extends from chennai to pondicherry and is a serene place where you can find speed limits like 100km/hr. I can take time off my usually hustle bustle and spend hours listening to the waves rush and collapse on the sand with the moon visible above on the beaches that the road hugs all through. Chennai's beaches are a favourite getaway. It helps that the flights that come down to the chennai airport take the path along the beach, and I can try to imagine all the sights in the beautiful cities they are flying in from. Lufthansa from Frankfurt, that one is from Dubai, one from Heathrow. frequent trips to pick my close friends at the airport and I always fly Lufthanse, so the usual arrival times are familiar to me. :)

I prefer driving mostly on the wrong side of the speed limit. :) After a couple of incidents (never had an accident in over three years), that gave me rubber legs, I decided it was time to throw away the bike and get a four-wheeler. The reason is not just that a four wheeler is safer, a car is simply not fast enough to get to the speeds I do on a powerful two wheeler. ( I would get myself a new bike later, that is resting at home without a rider with less than a month's riding, in over an year. LOL) . I would get a second hand fiat palio, my first real car, small and fast, suits me perfectly, Nope I don't consider the one my Pop paid for as mine.

I had promised a loved one studying in Kodaikanal, that I would come visit, after many broken promises, I decided it was time I kept my word. So I requested my roommate to come along
and the plan was to drive the 600 something km from chennai. Should take around 15 hours as the mapmyindia webpage calculated.

It would be fun. My roommate had some last minute plans to go home, leaving me alone. Now once I decide something there is no turning back. After getting the car cleaned, doing the usual checks, all fluids, brakes and the spare tire etc, (yes I can change a wheel in under 5 minutes) set off.

The plan was to avoid the direct route through trichy, which was under construction, useful info from a friend who goes home every other weekend, decided on the salem route which would go alongside the temple at palani and up the hills to kodaikanal.

In around three hours reached the sleepy town of Krishagiri, off the chennai bangalore highway, it is easy to drive fast here, usually do around 130 or more here. (That is faster than I manage here in Canada. :) ) It was already past midnight and after a week's work I was tired like hell. The thumbrule I follow on long drives is never drive more than an hour without break. I will stop occasionally for a coffee, a chat with some villagers, or dinner etc. Went looking for lodging for the night. Found lodging, woke up the security guard and asked him for a room he mentioned it was closed for the night, 100 bucks into his pocket and he had opened the gates and I got a room. It helped that he would be sleeping in front of my vehicle, so I could get sleep without a worry, no a thief in this sleepy place would not be smart enough to fool the car's locks. The room was easy on the pockets and quite neat too so I needn't get my sleeping bag after all. After telling the old guy to wake me up at 5:00 am and also get me some coffee in the morning, I went to bed. If you are surprised, I can get away with sleeping four hours on weekdays.

Morning sharp 6:00 am I was off, the next 100 kilometres the road was quite bad and I have take couple of detours. Driving on the unmarked state highways in Tamilnadu is fun, stretches and stretches of open road with few signs of people anywhere, the miles fly away so fast. With the windows up, with a/c on and some music on the cd changer, nothing can match the peace. I remember seeing a couple of cops out in the distance, slowed down abruptly to a respectable speed. They flagged me down anywayz, and asked if I was speeding. I denied speeding. They let me go without too many questions. When I got back and let the car cool down a bit, I could not help smile that the front grill of the car was peppered with dragon flies, not speeding, was I ? :)

It would be around 11:30 am when I reach Palani, and then disaster. It was something like 45 degrees outside, had the a/c turned on full and was speeding and the engine was overheating. After pulling over, I opened the bonnet to see what was going on. Then I made the mistake of opening the radiator cap and all the green liquids rushed out. It took around 20 minutes with the engine running for it to cool down and half of the coolant around the car in eeky green. In between lot of sympathetic villagers offered pushing the car, watering it to cool it and lot of things which I found funny and politely refuse. They are so helpful, one guy even offered to get me a mechanic from a few kilometers away if I wanted. Somethings just need patience to get right again, I explained in the broken tamil that I can manage. After filling the radiator back up with more green liquid I was off again through a few sleepy villages on a road barely one vehicle wide but without a person in sight. Soon I had reach Palani, I went into the temple, nope I was not going to climb to the temple on the top of the hill, just the temple at ground level.

You might think I get used to driving alone, not really usually I stop to get expert advice, it helps talking to guys around to know if a road is closed etc, and usually get a request for a lift, which if I find the person friendly I am only too happy. It is nice to hear their view of things. Like waiting an hour for the next bus. They are always surprised when I ask them to put the seat belts. :) Even more when how fast you can reach a place when I am driving. I am always fascinated by the simple life the villages lead.

Going up the Kodai road with the majestic view that follows you all along the hill climb is an enlightening experience. You have to do that to believe the view. I wanted to take some pics, but stopping or getting distracted on those climbing roads is not a good idea. The drive is not for the faint hearted though, if you are scared of taking on steep climbs on a stick shift or giving way to a bus with barely two feet between you car and the cliff that seems to extend to the bottom of the earth, don't even try.

It took around three hours to get to the top, a little more than twenty kilometres of uphill climb. Leaves me wondering why we don't get automatic cars here. Well going back down the hill would take a little less than an hours time. :)) It was in the after noon I reached kodai. Deepu you are a bad photographer aren't you, My cabinet in chennai has at least a dozen unwashed film rolls that I feel guilty looking at them. I still wonder why I never washed the rolls that included some excellent pics at even the neuschwanstein castle, garmisch in germany. Sorry, no pics to add on this post.

I borrowed a bike to see around the lake at kodaikanal, parking the car. Took some pics...it was a nice day with the usual hub-bub of tourists.

After calling my Sis to meet me, had dinner. It was late already. I went looking for a room. Next day would roam around kodai a bit with her, visit the college when she was studying and get some shopping done and in the evening the long drive back. Back at the hotel I traced down the route I had taken and got a smile that on the map which showd, I had taken the shortest route possible from salem to kodai, the road names were all in tamil, so no I don't remember them.

The only consolation about the drive back was there would be no climbing hills. :) The return journey would take around eight hours. Don't ask if I was speeding. Monday morning as I was leaving for office, our house owner was giving amused glances at the car, the grill had caught enough dragon flies that it looked like they were its dinners. Uggh back to the usual bustle of every day work.

Visiting Kodai

Kodai is best reached by train to kodai road station from where you can get a local bus up the hill. It is a hill station and so it can get a bit chilly, it is handy to have some warm clothing. If taking a vehcile, make sure you got fog lights, and you are comfortable driving in worse than normal conditions.

The serene environs are a photographer's delight and you can always find places that the tourists don't frequent to enjoy a peaceful and pleasant vacation. Some places may be out of bounds for safety reasons, so check out the boards before going into the forest etc. There is a sanctuary there, but no man eaters I think :)) , I have seen wild buffalo's and deer there but nothing worth my nikon.

I hope to capture a tiger on my Nikon sometime, when will I get that lucky I wonder. ;)

New Year's Eve

We decided to head for Niagara Falls to spend the New Years Eve. Living just an hour and a half drive away, and the place is our nearest weekend getaway. Given the weather of ten below freezing quite convenient also. After office, went home, took a few print outs from google maps, just in case. Had booked rooms for me and friends at the hostelling international a few days back.

Traveling for me is a last minute affair, never used to meticulous travel planning that everybody does. Grab a few clean clothes, toiletries and I would be ready to go anywhere. After coming here nothing much has changed, except checking the weather before going out. I prefer to have a few layers of clothing, so depending on how good or bad the weather is I can add or remove some.
Packing is simple, deciding on all the geeky stuff to take along and the assorted chargers for each of them. Since this was a short trip I decided on taking along my Nikon and a basic zoom lens, my small n handy canon that I use for all those casual snaps went into my coat pocket, a GPS without which I would get lost – I am used to driving from chennai to bangalore and back without a map but I still can’t figure out direction is north here, unless there is a really cold wind . Forget about asking for directions on the expressways, and even on the country roads, finding people is difficult in winter. And circles, i hate driving around circles that are in use to enter and exit the expressways coz they make me loose all sense of direction. :)

After doing a quick check of my car, we set off. Reached Niagara around 6:00 pm. The weather was good for this time of the year, minus ten and windy. We took a cab to the falls and had dinner on the way. Since my friends have never seen the falls, we walked along the falls for some time. The water falls is actually two falls, the majestic horseshoe falls that you see in the pictures on the Canadian side, and the smaller American falls. It is nice to watch them at night as they get illuminated in different colours and everything else is comparatively darker. We got there just in time as the fireworks started for the night. See pics above. Not long before they were complaining about the cold. :)

After acting as a tour guide for some time, we headed back to a casino to try our luck. The Fallsview Casino is very famous here, though I have never been there. I spent some time checking out some games and slot machines. You can always get a good laugh at some other players who have no idea how these things work. After noting that I should should learn to play poker, those people on the tables seem to be engrossed in. Coz it is something that intelligent people play. It also helps that the dealer is a gorgeous young lady. ;-) I head for a nearby pub to see what the crowd on New Years is like. We meet and chat with a few guys from across the border, while my younger friend is busy getting his photos clicked. It is his first time out of India. I learn they are college students from New York, who are here to have fun. I guess only reason they are here in Canada is one needs to be over 21 to get into a pub across the border. I am quite liberal in poking fun at them on this note. J After wishing them a great year ahead we head for the concert near the falls. Seems Justin hines is playing some all time favourites tonight. I ponder over how the guy can sing and play his guitar in the freezing temperature. It is around 11 pm when we think it is time to grab a beer and are back at the pub, I see the National Hockey League is on the screens and it is easy to figure there are quite a crowd across the border as the Americans seem to be winning.

There is lotta clicking glasses and hugs as the New Year approaches and we head back to our room, it is almost 2 am. I notice that I have been careless and my feet are frozen cold and wet after walking so long in the thick snow. When you are tired, there is nothing that feels as good a nice bed.


Visiting Niagara

To visit you need a Canadian or US visa, and easiest way to get there is to take a bus from Toronto or New York, the view from the Canadian side is better though. If you plan on renting a car, check that it comes with a good navigation system, so you don’t get lost on the expressways.

The best time to visit is summer, as most of the attractions are closed during Canada’s harsh winter months. Book your accommodation in advance before getting here, as there would be quite a crowd during holidays.

Tourists come here for a view of the majestic falls. A trip on the famous maid of the mist ride is a must. My tip, take a position near the bow of the ship, and you would be surprised. It rides straight into the falls, soon the sound of the ships engines get drowned out by the roar of the falls, and all around only thing you see would be the white water rushing down and the everpresent mist. It is breathtaking. Note some pics were taken last summer. J

Don’t miss the fireworks over the falls on Sundays and weekdays with the falls illuminated in different colours in the background, would be perfect for a romantic night out. J

See photo below.





The best thing about Niagara I like are the Casino’s and pubs are open all through the nite. The Fall’s view Casino is the place to be, if you want to have some fun and gamble away some dollars. The buses run till 2:00 am and you can always walk, it is a small place. No one drinks and drives here you see. ;-)

The place is known as a favorite spot for honeymooners, but for all I have seen most people bring their extended families along. The crowd is usually young and quite hip hop, god it reminds me of good old days I spent in Amsterdam.